Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Jeffrey Troutman | 150727-N-ON468-087 HONOLULU (July 27, 2015) Sgt. John Blas, left, a member of the...... read more read more
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HONOLULU – A dignified transfer for unknown service members who once served aboard the USS Oklahoma was held at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, July 27.
The dignified transfer was performed by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), an organization that helps determine the fate of missing service members and where possible, recovering them alive or recovering and identifying the remains of the dead.
The process of identifying the remains of the service members will begin at the newly-built POW/MIA Accounting lab located at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. The remains will then be sent to a lab in Omaha, Nebraska for more detailed study.
"It’s a very humbling experience, to be a part of this procedure," said Chief Hospital Corpsman Joshua Saniel, a member of the DPAA. "It helps to bring closure for the families who before now didn’t know the fate of their loved ones missing or killed in action, and it’s an honor to our past service members who gave their lives for our country."
According to the DPAA website, more than 83,000 Americans remain missing from World War II, the Korean War, the Cold War, and the Vietnam War. For those service members killed-in-action, the DPAA community is charged with locating, recovering and identifying their remains. Agency teams deploy to countries throughout Asia, the Pacific and Europe, as well as to sites in the United States. Additionally, the DPAA also performs humanitarian missions worldwide to recover and identify individuals as directed by the Pacific Command.
Michael S. Lennington, the DPAA director, was on hand to witness the transfer and to praise his team of service members for their duties.
“This is an amazing thing you all did as a team this morning,” Lennington told the approximately 20 Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine service members who carried out the transfer service. “This is about never leaving a service member behind, and I can’t put into words how incredibly important this is to the family members of those you served here today. You should look back on your service today, and all of what you do, with immense pride.”
To prepare for the transfer service, DPAA service members rehearse many times in the days and weeks before the transfer takes place, to ensure each fallen service member receives full military honors and is transferred with dignity and grace.
“It gives me a real sense of pride to see our rehearsal and our hard work rewarded in this manner, to reconnect these service members with their families,” said Sgt. 1st Class Merianne Salcepuedas, a DPAA member who helped oversee the transfers. “I’m just grateful I have the opportunity to be a part of this.”
The DPAA is supported by a number of defense agencies who assist with the transfer and identification service, including the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL). The personnel components of the military departments, including the Service Casualty and Mortuary Affairs officers also provide key support serving as primary liaisons with family members. Other Department of Defense entities, including intelligence community components such as the Defense Intelligence Agency, bring together myriad specialties that are instrumental in support of achieving the fullest possible accounting.
For more information about the DPAA, please visit their website at: http://www.dpaa.mil/Home.aspx
| Date Taken: | 07.27.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 07.28.2015 17:04 |
| Story ID: | 171283 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 117 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Unknown USS Oklahoma service members receive dignified transfer in Honolulu By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jeff Troutman, Navy Public Affairs Support Element West, Det. Hawaii, by PO1 Jeffrey Troutman, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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