Matthew Shepard's ashes to be interred at the Washington National Cathedral

The ashes of Matthew Shepard, the 21-year-old gay man whose brutal murder 20 years ago helped lead to the passage of the historic Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, will finally be laid to rest later this month at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., the New York Times reports.

Fearing desecration of his grave, his parents, civil rights leaders Judy and Dennis Shepard, had not chosen a final resting place for Matthew. “They considered spreading his ashes over the mountains and plains of Wyoming,” the New York Times continues, “but still wanted a place they could visit to talk to him.”

Working with Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, they finally found a place for Matthew to rest where he’ll not only be safe, but where many others can also come and pay their respects. “I think it’s the perfect, appropriate place,” his dad Dennis said. “We are, as a family, happy and relieved that we now have a final home for Matthew, a place that he himself would love.” Matthew will become one of only 200 or so people to be interred at the cathedral, which include President Woodrow Wilson, Helen Keller and her teacher Anne Sullivan. 

Bishop Budde will preside over the October 26 ceremony, ”alongside the Rev. V. Gene Robinson, who became the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church in 2003.” Bishop Budde said that Matthew’s “death was a wound on our nation. We are doing our part to bring light out of that darkness and healing to those who have been so often hurt, and sometimes hurt in the name of the church.”