Vietnam POWs honored at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (William Thomas)

Former prisoner of war retired U.S. Marine Corps Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bill Thomas and Mrs. Thomas take a moment to reflect after placing a traditional Hawaiian lei during a ceremony marking the 40th anniversary of Operation Homecoming April 4, 2013. In 1973, the last Vietnam conflict prisoner of war landed on Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. (Department of Defense photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Michael R. Holzworth/Released

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Col. Vernon P. Ligon Jr., Vietnam POW

Between Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day lies a lesser-known but no less important commemoration. POW/MIA Day, Sept. 15, is a day for remembering the men and women who, like Air Force Col. Vernon P. Ligon Jr., have suffered at the hands of a wartime enemy. All too often, those who

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A Romance by Air, Sea, and Land (Tom Latendresse)

Tom Latendresse has what his wife Melinda calls “the Latendresse laugh,” a big, boisterous chuckle that can shake up a room. It’s hard not to appreciate the sound and the man who voices it. Born in Yakima, Wash., Tom was infatuated with aviation as a child. “I would jump on

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Returned to sender, 40+ years later (Richard Dutton)

A special delivery of long-forgotten letters and photos came from Vietnam to an Air Force widow. The United States and Vietnam are working together to return personal belongings of prisoners of war to their rightful owners; and, a package was delivered today to the family of retired Col. Richard Dutton.

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