Brian Sedgwick, commander of the New Lebanon, N.Y., American Legion post, was the keynote speaker for the event.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Local veterans gathered on Friday to honor prisoners of war and service members missing in action, and to underscore efforts to unite them with descendants.
The Charles Persip American Legion Post 68 held its third annual POW/MIA Remembrance Ceremony at the Veterans Memorial Park. Keynote speaker Brian Sedgewick, commander of American Legion Post 1236 of New Lebanon, N.Y., reported that more than 200 missing servicemen were identified in the last year.
This includes 159 from World War 2, 55 from the Korean War, and eight from the Vietnam War.
"We're actually making progress," he said.
"In over 50 countries around the world, there are active investigations going on, where you have investigators out there interviewing actual witnesses, descendants of witnesses, family members that actually took part in burying American service personnel who may have a recollection of where they might be. All over the world, our investigators are out there just trying their best to find as many as we can possibly bring home for the next of kin."
He added, "We must never forget and continue to strive to bring as many of the fallen service members home to their loved ones as can."
Last year, two World War II casualties were returned home after being identified eight decades later: Marine Pfc. Erwin S. King of Clarksburg, who was killed in action during the Battle of Guadalcanal, and Army Air Forces Pfc. Bernard Calvi of North Adams, who died in the notorious Cabanatuan Prison Camp in the Philippines.
Congress and the president solidified the POW/MIA recognition day in 1979 after a drive for more accountability from families of more than 2,500 Vietnam War POWs and MIAs. There have been more than 138,000 since World War I.
The Charles Persip American Legion Post 68 held the inaugural ceremony in 2023. Army veteran Henry "Hank" Morris had attended a fellow Vietnam veteran's funeral in Albuquerque, N.M., the prior year and was inspired to start the tradition.
"The Defense Department remembers and honors those Americans who were POWs and those who served and never returned home. DOD's POW/MIA Accounting Agency continues to search for the missing, fulfilling the nation's promise to leave no service member behind," American Legion Post 68 Cmdr. Woody Vaspra explained.
"The agency has been searching for remains of service members in 45 nations in an effort to bring closure to the loved ones, and it also strengthens diplomatic ties with those nations."
Vaspra shared his personal connection to this day.
"I, for myself, had a friend who was a POW for eight years, and he came back, and he didn't last too long, but at least he made it back to see his family," he said.
"Then my roommate and pilot trainer was shot down, and he was missing in action, and they finally, after a while, found his remains. He's now on the Vietnam Wall, and that's why I'm very active in these activities, to honor those gentlemen and everybody else."
Sedgewick pointed to the National POW/MIA Flag Act, which he said reaffirms the country's commitment to its missing, "And ensures that the words emblazoned on the flag communicate a clear message of our unwavering support and commitment to our nation's heroes and their families."
"The message is this: You are not forgotten. Private citizens, organizations, and businesses are free to display this flag, and are very much encouraged to display their flag on a daily basis. We do it to respect and honor those who have helped, who have been held in captivity and returned, as well as those who have yet to come home from the past conflicts around the globe," he added.
"By being here today, you and I are part of a global effort to bring recognition to this noble mission and remind the families of this special category of brave patriots that they are truly not forgotten."
Tyrone Bellinger from the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 65 recited the POW/MIA table of remembrance:
"The table is small symbolizing the frailty of one prisoner alone against his or her suppressors. The tablecloth is white, symbolic of the purity of their intention to respond to their country's call to arms. The single rose in a vase signifies the blood they were willing to shed and sacrifice to ensure the freedom of our beloved United States of America. The rose also reminds us of the families and friends of our missing comrades who keep the faith while awaiting their return. The yellow ribbon on the vase represents the ribbons worn on lapels of thousands with demand with the unyielding determination of proper account for their comrades that are not among us. A slice of lemon on the plate represents the bitter fate,"
"The salt sprinkled on a plate reminds us of the countless volunteers, the families, as they wait. The glass is inverted they cannot toast with us at that time. The chair is empty. They are not here. The candle is reminiscent of the Light of Hope, which lives in our hearts to eliminate their way home from their captors to the open arms of a grateful nation. The American flag reminds us that many of them may never return and paid the supreme sacrifice to ensure our freedom."
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