OCALA, FL (352today.com) – They are not forgotten.
Those powerful words resonate with all who hear them, even more so on National POW/MIA Recognition Day.
A ceremony presented by Marion County Veterans Services (MCVS) was held at the Ocala-Marion County Veterans Memorial Park on Sept. 20, 2024. The event remembered and honored those who’ve made great sacrifices and those who have continued the effort to find American service members.
The ceremony began with MCVS Director Jeffrey Askew welcoming those in attendance at the ceremony.
“It was an outstanding program. It’s good that folks came out to remember those who are missing in action and those who were prisoners of war,” said Askew. “We must always keep trying to bring them home. We need all the help we can get to bring them home.”
Missing Man Table
Dexter Vance and Chief Warrant Officer Tim Simpson, members of the Marion County Memorial Honor Guard and active supporters of Marion County Hospice, presided over the Missing Man Table ceremony. This event honored those who did not return home, symbolizing their presence in spirit.
“It’s has been celebrated since the end of the Vietnam War,” said Vance. “In the words of President Abraham Lincoln in his second inaugural address, ‘To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow, and his orphan,’ by serving and honoring the men and women who are America’s veterans.”
The ceremony itself is rich in military tradition, honoring the men and women of the armed forces. They are honored for defending our freedoms and those of the free world, even if they are unaccounted for and officially listed as Prisoners of War or Missing in Action.
“Those who have served and are currently serving are ever mindful [that] the sweetness of enduring peace has always been tainted by the bitterness of personal sacrifice,” said Vance. “We are compelled to never forget while we enjoy our daily pleasures, there are others who’ve endured and are still enduring the agonies of pain, deprivation and interment. We call them comrades.”
The table occupies a place of dignity and honor and symbolizes members of the United States Armed Forces who are missing from the ranks, said Vance. The empty chair at the table is symbolic for holding the weight of thousands.
“It is set for the prisoners of war and the missing in action from all wars and all branches of military service,” said Vance. “This table is set for one. It is small symbolizing the frailty of one prisoner alone against his or her suppressors.”
Keeping hope and memories alive
There are currently more than 80,000 service members who are still missing and unaccounted for. There have been over 100 female veterans who have been taken prisoner of war, and there are still 24 who are considered mission in action.
“This is a great time to come together, to honor those who fought and gave up the last measure for the freedom that we enjoy,” said Craig Curry, Marion County Commissioner District 1. “It’s still a great country. I know we’re torn in a lot of directions, but people have so much to be thankful for, and I’m totally convinced if there’s ever a call to action in this country, the young men and women will be there to defend us just like they were in World War II. I have a lot of faith and confidence in our country and the people in it.”
It’s that sentiment of honoring those men and women who are still being held or are unaccounted for to remember those unresolved casualties of war, and the importance of keeping their memories alive.
“It’s such an honor to be involved with this program, probably the greatest thing for me, at my age, coming from Vietnam is to be able to start to have unity because that’s what it’s all about,” said Ron Oppliger, Friends of the Marion County Veterans Park. ‘The park is an awesome place. That’s what we’re doing to carry this memory on and pass that torch.”
However, it’s the families of the missing who want to stay informed about the progress being made to locate loved ones.
“We need to never forget,” said Charles Whitehead. “I just wish that it would ring with more people. I wish we could get more people involved or at least pay notice. I know there are other communities doing the same things. I always think about the families of those missing in action.”
Making it her mission to find a loved one
One Marion County resident’s uncle was a boxer, from Brooklyn, NY. She said he wanted to join the U.S. Army at 17, but his mother didn’t want to sign the enlistment papers at first. At 18, he informed her that since he was now an adult, he would sign the documents. His name was Sgt. Peter Patete.
“He stayed in the states for training and then he was sent to Korea. And he wasn’t there that long, maybe 18 months,” said Dorothy Antonelli, who will make another trip to South Korea in the near future to try to find out more about her uncle. “That was when [Gen. Douglas] MacArthur told our soldiers to go north of the Han River. Meanwhile, the Chinese were coming down and they didn’t know that. So, MacArthur sent them up and they all got killed as the Chinese were coming down the Han River. His remains were never found. I’ve been on a mission for more than 20 years.”
“I was fortunate enough to find his Army buddy who he was in Korea with, and I found him on the internet,” she continued. “I asked if I could meet him. I said, ‘where do you live,’ he said, ‘Baltimore, Maryland.’ So, I went to Baltimore, and he took me out to lunch, and he told me all that I could’ve learned about my uncle in the service and what happened to him, and that’s when I started joining different military organizations so I could network.”
For information about donating or volunteering at the Ocala-Marion County Veterans Park, contact Veterans Services at 352-671-8422.