The Search Continues

BY RICHARD C. DeLONG, CHAIR

The committee continues to work toward a full accounting of all those missing. Army Capt. James M. Johnstone of Baton Rouge, La.; Army Sgt. John R. Jones of Louisville, Ky.; Army Maj. James L. Whited of Norman, Okla.; and Marine PFC James J. Jacques of Denver, Colo., have recently been found and returned home for interment. That leaves 1,655 still listed as missing and unaccounted for.

The committee needs information so we can facilitate the discovery of more remains. If you have access to any information that may help us help those who are on the ground searching for the missing, please contact us through the committee’s webpage at www.vva.org

During the last committee meeting in October we received information about four places that may contain remains. Committee members visited the National Archives to look for more information about whether these sites have already been searched and if there is a possibility that any Vietnamese personnel were buried there. The information about the sites will be handed over to the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) for further investigation.

The POW/MIA Committee took on the Veterans Initiative Program several years ago. So, in addition to gathering information about our own missing, we also are searching for information related to those missing from North and South Vietnam. The committee is beginning to plan a trip to Vietnam to exchange information with

Vietnamese veterans in hopes of receiving new information about our own missing.

One of the obstacles we face when planning these trips is funding. If anyone has information about possible funding sources or would like to contribute to the next Veterans Initiative trip, please contact me at rdelong@vva.org