![]() “I have talked with three cousins I had never communicated with before. He said as the news spread about the identification, he began hearing from family members from all over the country. “I’m glad to be a part of it.”Ĭharles McDaniel said the news of his father’s return provided more than just closure for him. “It is an honor to do this for them,” Daake said. He said it was “emotional, but also satisfying” to be able to help bring the family together again. He was with the family when the remains arrived in Indiana on a commercial airline flight last week. ![]() Michael Daake, who serves with the Indiana National Guard, was assigned to be the casualty assistance officer for the McDaniel family. As a man folded the blanket over the remains, they were taken on a gurney covered with an American flag for the final journey home. had been identified, his remains were carefully placed in a standard issue green Army blanket - a tradition that dates to World War I. “It is a commitment that we will never leave one behind.” “It’s a powerful moment that means a lot to the families,” McKeague said. On average, the agency does around 200 identifications per year. And Defense POW/MIA Director Kelly McKeague said the recent discovery that collarbones are unique identifiers - similar to a fingerprint - has helped provide more identifications. In the early 1990s the largest provided in any given year was 33 boxes between 19, the United States received a total of 208 boxes.īyrd said that dental records are the gold standard for identification, but that DNA has become an important tool as well. The turnover of the materials in June was sizable. Officials with the accounting agency said the remains in the 55 boxes came with more specific information - including a lot of boxes coming from a village in the area of the Chosin Reservoir. Over the years, getting remains from North Korea hasn’t been easy, and sometimes they were delivered to the United States mingled with misidentified remains. ![]() World War II accounts for the bulk of the missing, totaling 72,000. There are more than 82,000 Americans missing from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and other conflicts. John Byrd, director of analysis for the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, said there is a lot of work to do. There are bones, along with nonorganic items such as canteens, boot covers, blankets and pieces of military equipment Trays are laid out and numbered, and the painstaking process of identification is conducted daily. The deceased veteran’s remains had been brought to Hawaii in June, where government scientists sorted and studied them in labs behind large glass windows. He was told that, when North Korea turned over 55 boxes of remains in June as part of an agreement between its leader, Kim Jong Un, and President Trump, there was a piece of a dog tag. In July, Charles received a call from the Army. He was 32 when he is believed to have died during the Battle of Unsan. He reenlisted as the Korean War began to ramp up. He left the Army in 1945 and became a truck driver for the coal mines. He had served in World War II through five campaigns in Europe. He began looking into his father’s records in recent years, but they didn’t reveal a lot. “Though I wish I had asked more questions about him.”Ĭharles McDaniel ended up following in his dad’s footsteps, becoming a medic and a chaplain in the Army. ![]() “I think it was hard on her,” Larry McDaniel said. He chose to be a medic because he wanted to help people in need. He was a great father who often held them when they were babies. I feel like the sky is falling down Ain't nobody here to play around Push it to the edge, I won't back down Cause it's time to go hard or go home One way up, no way out I give it all, all for the family We stay up, no bail outs Give it all, all for the family E-e-ey, e-e-ey, e-e-ey for the family E-e-ey, e-e-ey, e-e-ey all for the family (family, family, fam-fam-family) M-O-N-E-Y, what I go hard for Swingin' on the green like I'm tryna get a par four You ain't sittin' at my table, hope you starve Ho, don't be pushin' my buttons 'less you startin' up my car Pressure make a diamond, that pressure made me a star Got a method to my madness, to bring me down by the bar People always askin' me how I got this far My response is just to keep it honest and be who you are Now they call me Mrs.Over the decades, the sons gleaned slivers of information about their dad: He was a good man.
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