The Graybeards – KWVA - Korean War Veterans Association

Defense POW/MIA Weekly Update
KOREAN WAR/COLD WAR
DOCUMENT FAMI-
LY RESEARCH
August 19, 2002
Remains of U.S. Servicemen
Recovered in North Korea
Remains believed to be those of seven
American soldiers missing in action from the
Korean War will be repatriated in formal ceremonies
on Tuesday in Korea.
The remains will then be flown on a U.S.
Air Force aircraft from Pyongyang, North
Korea, under escort of a uniformed U.S.
honor guard to Yokota Air Base, Japan,
where a U.N. Command repatriation ceremony
will be held.
A joint team operating near the Chosin
Reservoir in North Korea recovered six sets
of remains believed to be those of U.S. Army
soldiers from the 7th Infantry Division who
fought against Chinese forces November-
December 1950. Additionally, a second team
recovered one set of remains in the area
along the Chong Chon River near the junction
of Unsan and Kujang counties, about 60
miles north of Pyongyang. The area was the
site of battles between Communist forces
and the U.S. Army’s 1st Cavalry and 25th
Infantry Divisions in November 1950.
Approximately 1,000 Americans are estimated
to have been lost in battles of the Chosin
campaign.
The 28-person U.S. contingent was composed
primarily of specialists from the
Army’s Central Identification Laboratory
Hawaii (CILHI).
The Defense Department’s Prisoner of
War/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO)
negotiated terms with the North Koreans in
June, which led to the scheduling of three
operations this year. This repatriation marks
the end of the first of this year’s three operations.
The remaining two operations are set
for Aug. 24-Sept. 24 and Sept. 28-Oct. 29.
Twenty-three individual joint operations
have been conducted since 1996 in North
Korea, during which 159 sets of remains
believed to be those of U.S. soldiers have
been recovered. Thirteen have been positively
identified and returned to their families for
burial with military honors. Another 12 are in
the final stages of the forensic identification
process.
Of the 88,000 U.S. servicemembers missing
in action from all conflicts, more than
8,100 are from the Korean War.
Family Updates
Direct Accessibility and Personal
Attention for the Greatest Number of Family
Members: The Family Support team puts
together “Family Updates” presented by the
Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office .
These meetings help to resolve uncertainties
by illuminating the facts and informing
the family members of American missing.
We conduct meetings monthly in different
geographical areas throughout the United
States selected to provide direct accessibility,
enhanced communication and personal
attention for the greatest number of family
members. We present information in a
straightforward and open manner to assist
families in understanding the U.S.
Government effort to achieve the fullest possible
accounting of our missing in action –
from all wars.
To participate in this program, contact
your respective service casualty office.
Please view the current schedule for family
update meetings.
Design of the Meetings:
We design these meetings for POW/MIA
family members using comments from family
members who have participated in pervious
family updates. Additionally, we present
new information as it becomes available.
Determine Sites Best Suited
or Direct Accessibility:
We post the home location of all the “primary
next of kin” for POW/MIAs on a map
of the US. The respective casualty offices
provide the addresses. Based on the posted
home locations we identify concentrations of
family members and select large cities within
those concentrations. Our reasoning is to
ensure lodging and transporting availability.
Then we draw three hundred-mile radii
around the identified cities. This takes into
consideration same day travel requirements
by family members. We then divide the
country into geographic areas (i.e., East,
South, Midwest, West and other) to ensure
we cover all areas. Next, we select a location
from a geographic area while attempting to
minimize overlapping radii. Finally, we send
out invitations to family members to attend
our meetings. These invitations go through
the respective service casualty offices.
Tailor Government Briefing Team
to Enhanced Communication:
To provide the best possible speakers, the
respective service casualty office provides
DPMO with a list of family members who
wish to attend. This allows DPMO an opportunity
to research those particular family
cases to ensure the government officials most
familiar with their issues attend the meeting.
Our “Research and Analysis” directorate
provides informational packages on those
cases represented by the attendees.
Additionally, DPMO ensures a representative
attends from the respective service casualty
office.
Results and Successes:
Since the onset of this program DPMO
has met with thousands of family members
representing hundreds of cases. Each meeting
averages close to one hundred family
members representing dozens of cases.
Approximately 30% of the cases represent
Vietnam-Era, while 60% represent Korean
War era, and 10% represent World War II and
Cold War eras. Our efforts have heightened
the public’s awareness of Government
accounting efforts. Representative family
comments point to the fact that these meetings
are very informative and helpful.
Closing Thoughts:
“Family Updates,” help to open communications,
lessen uncertainty, save families
money and time, create networking, and
allow access for families to US Government
officials involved in the POW/MIA issue.
2002 Family Update Schedule
Date Location
Oct 26 ..........................Salt Lake City, UT
Nov 16 ........................Tampa, FL
2003 Family Update Schedule
Jan 18 ............................San Francisco, CA
Feb 22 ............................Birmingham, AL
Mar 22............................Houston, TX
Apr 26 ............................Detroit, MI
Jun 18-21........................Washington, DC*
July 25-26 ......................Washington, DC**
Aug 23 ..........................Seattle, WA
Sept 20............................St. Louis, MO
Oct 18 ............................Jacksonville, FL
Nov 22............................Phoenix, AZ
*Annual Southeast Asia Government Briefing
**Annual Korea/Cold War Government Briefing
September/October, 2002 Page 13