AFMAO hosts POW/MIA ceremony

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Veronica Aceveda
  • AFMAO Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE VBASE, Del. --  About a hundred people gathered Sept. 23 inside the Atrium of the Charles C. Carson Center for Mortuary Affairs for a POW/MIA ceremony.

Following a video, depicting the number of servicemembers still unaccounted for, Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations Commander Col. Thomas C. Joyce shared a story about a prisoner of war in Vietnam who blinked morse code messages of truth while vocalizing what his captors insisted be told.

"The amazing capacity of human spirit in this man and those who came before us is why we are gathered here today," he said. "We reflect on those Americans, those still missing and their families."

Attentions then turned to a small table, set for one, as one member from the Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force each placed their uniform hat upon the table symbolizing each branch of the Armed Forces.

"It's always a great honor to represent the Navy," said Chief Petty Officer William Montague, who participated in the table demonstration. "The ceremony reminded us of the great sacrifice our military and their families have experienced and are still experiencing."

At this event, there were seasoned veterans, civilians and some like Marine Cpl. Matthew Duerr who had never witnessed a POW/MIA recognition service.

"It was the little things like the symbolic lemon representing servicemembers' bitter fate that actually made me realize 'this is real' and 'these things really happened," he said."

Around 83,500 remain unaccounted for according to the Defense Prisoner of War Missing Personnel Office website, last updated Sept. 22. The majority of these servicemembers are from World War II with 73,787, followed by the Korean War with nearly 8,000.

"I didn't want to miss this opportunity to be able to pay my respects to the men and women who served before me," said Army Sgt. Luis Diaz, a reservist who has volunteered to serve at AFMAO since 2008. "They are the ones who gave us the gift of freedom, so it was great to be part of something focused on POW/MIAs today."

The POW/MIA recognition ceremony, arranged by AFMAO's chapel staff, came to an end with the playing of Taps. However, Joyce, in an e-mail to his command, encouraged all to continue remembering those who served before us when they observe base retreat.

"Whether you're playing a round of golf, walking to your car, driving on base, or on the flight line preparing for a dignified transfer, when you hear those special notes of our National Anthem, the appropriate and right thing to do is to stop, pause, reflect and render honors to all who served and do so today, including yourself."