A grieving Oregon mother is facing a nightmare no parent should endure after a court ruled she must dig up her late son’s remains. Paula Tin Nyo’s heartbreak grew when a judge sided with a wealthy family who had purchased the same burial plot years earlier. Now, she must confront a cruel and unimaginable reality. What should have been a peaceful resting place for her son has become a legal and emotional battle shaking the community.
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Funeral Plot Dispute Rocks Oregon Family
In 2016, a truck struck and killed Paula Tin Nyo’s 20-year-old son, Tyber Harrison. And the family reportedly placed his ashes in a memorial vault in 2021 at Portland’s Skyline Memorial Gardens and Funeral Home. The vault also held his baby teeth, hair, and other keepsakes. But in 2023, Skyline filed a lawsuit seeking the removal of Harrison’s remains. Reportedly, they sold the plot years earlier to Martin and Jane Reser, parents of Alex Reser, a 30-year-old who died in 2019 and whose family owns the billion-dollar Reser’s Fine Foods company.
Judge Sides With Billion-Dollar Family, Mother Left Heartbroken
A Multnomah County judge sided with the Resers, despite Skyline’s double-booking admission. Paula Tin Nyo and her husband, David Williams, expressed deep frustration over what they called the “unfathomable” cruelty of the situation.
“I think the humanity or lack of it, the cruelty, and someone feeling so entitled that they just wanted that piece of property when someone’s son is already in the ground was sort of unfathomable and she just didn’t know how to manage that,” David Williams opened up to local CBS affiliate KOIN about the heartbreaking ordeal involving his wife’s late son.
Mother Says No, Funeral Home Acts Anyway
Skyline reportedly attempted to remedy the mistake by offering a $16,000 refund. Additionally, they suggested the vault be reburied a few feet away. However, Paula Tin Nyo declined. Her lawyer, Darian Stanford, explained that only a small amount of ashes was used in a watercolor painting. And disinterring the vault would cause “severe emotional distress.” Meanwhile, the Resers reportedly wished to avoid the legal fight but were required to participate. Skyline began removing Harrison’s vault on Tuesday, and the disinterment is reportedly expected to continue over the coming weeks.
