Photo By Staff Sgt. Taylor Crul | A photo of the Family Viewing Room inside the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency at...... read more read more
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Every aspect of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency building was designed with significances and intention. Every architectural detail, from its placement to the smallest design element, reflects this profound mission.
The building's orientation in particular stands as a great example. As the sun rises in the east, it bathes the front of the building in light, symbolizing the start of each day's tireless efforts to locate and bring home those still missing. As the sun sets in the west behind the building, it represents the agency's dedication to seeing this mission through to its very end, striving for the fullest possible accounting. This daily cycle serves as a constant reminder to everyone within DPAA of the solemn duty they carry out.
Yet, no feature embodies this commitment more profoundly than the family viewing room. Suspended above the building’s atrium, at the very heart of the DPAA, the room belongs not to any one directorate or department. It stands as a testament to the culmination of the entire agency's efforts, signifying the final step in the identification of a missing service member and the long-awaited moment of answers for their families.
“Upon arrival at DPAA, families are warmly greeted and given a brief overview of the agency's work and a tour of the facility,” said Corey Idleburg, a DPAA external relations specialist. “We then share the service member's profile with the family. After the tour, families are given dedicated time in the family viewing room with their loved one's remains.”
Idleburg’s role is to provide compassionate support and guidance to families throughout their time at DPAA.
“Before escorting the family into the viewing room, I offer them a private moment to prepare themselves. This might involve freshening up, taking a few moments for quiet reflection, or simply gathering their thoughts,” Idleburg said. “This quiet moment of preparation is crucial, as it allows the family to enter the viewing room ready to reconnect with their loved one's remains, marking a significant step in their journey toward healing and understanding.”
Before families enter the viewing room, every detail is carefully arranged to create a space of reverence and privacy. The curtains are drawn, providing privacy to the room, while photographs of the missing service member are displayed, offering glimpses into a life lived and cherished. At the center of the room, on a table, rest the recovered remains.
"The remains are positioned in such a way that if the soldier were to sit up, the first thing they would see is the American flag." explains Benedick Soria, the DPAA lead evidence coordinator, who oversees this delicate preparation. She noted that it acts as a final salute to their service and sacrifice, and a powerful symbol of the nation that never forgot them.
Soria's meticulous care ensures this room becomes a sanctuary for families, a place where they can finally reconnect with their loved ones and begin the long journey of healing.
“The goal for the atmosphere in the room is to have it feel sacred and the primary attention is to the remains… to the soldier that lost their life during the War,” said Soria.
In the quiet solemnity of the family viewing room, DPAA's mission reaches its culmination. It is within this room, suspended at the heart of the agency's operations, the true impact of its work is felt. Here, families can finally connect with the tangible remains of their loved ones, bridging the gap of years and uncertainty.
This deeply personal encounter provides a profound sense of emotion, a moment of healing that transcends words, and reaffirms DPAA's unwavering promise to leave no one behind and to provide the fullest possible accounting for America’s missing personnel to their families and the nation. It is a promise etched not just in the building's design, but in the hearts of those who dedicate themselves to this sacred mission.
| Date Taken: | 05.02.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.02.2025 23:01 |
| Story ID: | 496913 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HAWAII, US |
| Web Views: | 17 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, A Room for Closure: Inside DPAA's Sacred Space, by SSG Keion Jackson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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