Welcome
The Coalition of Families promotes the fullest possible accounting for American servicemen who remain missing in action from the Korean and Cold Wars. Our members are all families of these men. Together, we not only assist each other in our individual searches for information, but we help to shape the nature and extent of the U.S. Government's effort to account for our missing servicemen.
Our goal is to ensure that we are providing all the tools we can to aid in the search for missing servicemen. We will continue evolving this website to bring the best possible experience.
Take care, and remember that you are not alone in this journey. We are right there with you.
Our goal is to ensure that we are providing all the tools we can to aid in the search for missing servicemen. We will continue evolving this website to bring the best possible experience.
Take care, and remember that you are not alone in this journey. We are right there with you.
President's Corner
Soldiers sent into battle face dire realities. One of these ends is the possibility that, like disappearing into a Stephen King fog, he or she will simply never be heard from again. This kind of enigmatic loss ripples through generations of the man or woman’s family. There is no ending to their story. There is no grieving to begin healing. There is only uncertainty, longing, and an ever-present hope that he or she will return one day. It is a wound that never heals. No matter how much one tries to accept this kind of loss, a place in the heart simply needs to know what happened to someone that important in our lives. It is an essence of who we are as human beings. In a tragic way, all the missing soldiers, airmen, sailors, and marines remain alive, simply because it’s not known how, or even if, they died. This leaves generations of family members, who when asked what happened to such an important person in their life, can only answer, “We don’t know”. More than 7500 families from the Korean and Cold Wars live this life. They are still searching for answers. And they face a clock that keeps ticking. Too many have already passed without finding closure. As a nation, we promised that their loved ones would never be left behind. They were. The same promise is made to the families of today’s soldiers, airmen, sailors, and marines. If this promise is to hold credibility for present day servicemen and women, it must be honored to the finish for those who have gone before. There is much to do. Much that can still be done. Thank you for joining with us. Rick Downes, President (Lt. Hal Downes, father, MIA North Korea 1/13/1952) |
On National POW/MIA Recognition Day (Sept 18 ), prisoners of war and those still missing in action were honored in ceremonies across the country … literally … from the Pentagon in Washington, DC, to Boring, Oregon, to Honolulu, Hawaii.
The Coalition was represented by family members at two of the events. Robin Davitt (Cpl. William Douglas, uncle, POW/MIA North Korea) attended the Pentagon Ceremony and Sharyn Selby (Lt. Leland Richey, father, MIA North Korea) was roadside in Boring, Oregon, as U.S. Highway 26 was officially designated “POW/MIA Memorial Highway”! ~ Black Hawk Helicopters over the Pentagon ~ Robin Davitt with Deputy Secretary of Defense David Norquist ~ Sharyn Selby at Oregon highway dedication (in blue on the left) ~ Oregon “POW-MIA Memorial Highway” Sign
POW/MIA Recognition Day 2020
DPAA Director Kelley McKeague Message September 18, 2020 
Sunny Lee, a heartfelt, remarkably active woman connecting U.S. Korean War veterans/MIA Families and the appreciative people of South Korea, has passed. This tribute was put together by Jorja Reyburn and Mike Badzioch … two family members whose lives Sunny touched deeply. Sunny will be missed by so many.
Sunny Lee Tribute 
Forgotten Men of the Forgotten War
(Project Trailer / 2min 30sec) Forgotten Men of the Forgotten War will present the mysteries of men still missing from the Korean War, chronicle the long-term impact these stories have had on the men’s families, and then pursue their final chapter in order to achieve some definition of closure. |
