A ceremony was held at the state capitol, recognizing the service members who were Prisoners Of War (POW) or are still considered to be Missing In Action (MIA).
One specific WWII Veteran was to be recognized. Mr. Robert W. Lents, a WWII U.S. Navy veteran, was captured on March 3, 1942, when his submarine, the USS Perch (SS-176), engaged in naval warfare in the Java Sea with forces from the Japanese Imperial Navy.
His submarine was severely damaged, crewmen were injured and forced to abandon the vessel. Lents was held captive by the Japanese for three and a half years until he was liberated on Sept. 18, 1945.
Lents was unable to attend the ceremony as he hails from Fayetteville, Ark. and unforseen circumstances prevented his attendance.
Among those in attendance were the Honorable Trevor Drown, Arkansas Representative for district 68, the Marine Corps League, the American Legion, the Distinguished Flying Cross Society, Central Arkansas Quilts of Valor, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), and many others.
A joint Department of Defense color guard opened and closed the ceremony where all branches of the service were present.
(U.S. Army National Guard story by Spc. Stephen M. Wright)