GRANITEVILLE, SC. (WRDW/WAGT) — Seventeen people were laid to rest during Aiken County’s paupers’ funeral, a historical ceremony for those who can’t afford a funeral or have no family left to claim them.

The practice dates back hundreds of years and is passed down from one coroner to the next as a way to give dignity in death, no matter the circumstances.

Long after the bagpipes are played and the sermon is given, TJ Farrer gets to work with a shovel and a purpose.

“I just think if it were a loved one of mine, I want them to have the dignity of having the last service. I mean, everybody deserves that,” said Farrer, owner of Farrer’s On Track.

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