WASHINGTON, D.C. – Not many Montanans have their final resting place in Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, where President John F. Kennedy and many American military and political notables are buried.

One of the latest additions to this honored group of Americans will be John Andrew Ranum of Great Falls, who as a Specialist 4 in the U.S. Army served as a Sentinel at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington for 14 months from 1960 to 1961.

Ranum, a native of Starbuck, is scheduled to be inurned in the Columbarium in Arlington National Cemetery on Monday, July 29, at 3 p.m., according to his wife, Joyce Ranum of Great Falls. John Ranum died March 13, 2023, in Great Falls, Montana, at age 86.

His widow recalls the Army soldier was “quietly proud” of his military service guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, an arduous but honorable task. His active-duty service guarding the tomb helped qualify him for inurnment in one of the nation’s oldest national military cemeteries. All honorably discharged U.S. military veterans are eligible to be inurned in the Columbarium in Arlington cemetery, as are certain reservists and ROTC members who die while on duty, according to cemetery rules. 

After his military service, Ranum moved to Montana and sold farm machinery. In Great Falls, he met and married Joyce in 1984.

John Ranum was “always a gentleman” and without fail opened car doors for her, Joyce Ranum recalled. “He was a 47-year-old bachelor when he got me and three teen-age boys.” He loved the boys, could strike up a conversation with anyone and was proud of his association with the Society of the Honor Guard, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Ranum will be one of several Montanans whose final resting place is in the cemetery. Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield, who grew up in Great Falls, is buried in Arlington National Cemetery with his wife, Maureen. The notable political figure is listed on his tombstone as Michael Joseph Mansfield, Private, U.S. Marine Corps, reflecting his military service. Mansfield, also a U.S. ambassador to Japan, died in 2001.

Even with ongoing expansion, Arlington National Cemetery is expected to run out of room for burial plots by 2060, according to cemetery officials.