PORTLAND, Ore. -- Today, September 20th, is National Prisoner of War / Missing in Action (POW/MIA) Recognition Day, an annual observance to remember and honor those who were held as prisoners of war by an enemy as well as those still missing in action and their longsuffering families.
President Biden issued a proclamation for the day, in which he stated “Let all who read this know that America remains grateful to our heroes held in the worst imaginable conditions as prisoners of war. Additionally, I encourage my fellow citizens across the Nation to reflect on today and let us not forget those heroes who never returned home from the battlefields around the world or their families who are still waiting for answers. I call upon Federal, State, and local government officials and private organizations to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.”
President Biden’s complete National POW/MIA Recognition Day proclamation can be viewed here.
For the 142nd Wing, the unit remembers its POWs and MIAs from World War II and the Korean War. A former unit member was a POW during the Vietnam War. In these wars there were 24 men who were POWs, and a listing of their names can be viewed here.
There are as yet 11 men still missing in action from World War II, including three original charter members of Oregon’s first military aviation unit, the 123rd Observation Squadron. Their names can be viewed here.
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency is the federal government’s focal point for POW/MIA matters. We remain hopeful that DPAA will achieve success in locating at least some of the wing’s 11 MIAs.