Last weekend, Marty and I made the drive to Dover Delaware to attend the scheduled DPAA Family Update Meeting. For those of you not familiar, DPAA stands for Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and our purpose for attending was to receive an update regarding Marty's Uncle Fred who went missing in action on Feb. 9, 1945.
It has been reported that this was the largest attendance ever, and, believe me, that was certainly obvious by the lines we stood in after entering the doors.
This meeting was a reschedule... twice.
It had been on the calendar for a weekend in October last year, but the government shut down changed that to January 23 of this year. A huge snowstorm that swept into that area then forced yet another reschedule, and here we were, finally able to hold the meeting.
Since this was held in Dover, we were afforded the opportunity to take a tour through the forensics DNA lab where the identifications are made. DPAA provided bussing and transferred groups of 40 in school busses from the Bally Casino to the Air Force base where the government lab is held.
The tour was beyond amazing. We were given first hand insight into the various stages of preparation that go into making identifications from unknowns.
As you might recall, I have been actively involved with the Tokyo Pridin Fire MIAs and it was fascinating to follow the various steps taken to secure those identifications.
The tour lasted 2 hours start to finish and buses were running from 9:00 am through at least 4:00 pm, if not later. Obviously the families of the missing are equally interested in learning about the identification process.
The lab tour was on Friday which was the prior day to the scheduled full day event on Saturday. The drive from home to Dover, although quite doable, seemed a bit much for us to make twice in two days, especially since we were required to be on site at 8:00 am., so we opted to stay overnight nearby. Rooms were offered at the Casino hotel, but that didn't appeal to me. I found a lovely B&B about 30 minutes away in Milford, Delaware. That was certainly a wise decision on my part as Marty and I thoroughly enjoyed exploring this cute town Friday evening, but more about that later.
Saturday saw a record crowd of people in attendance. Over 70% represented families from WWII missing. Generally, people are invited if they are within a 250-300 mile radius. But this event saw people driving from Michigan and flying in from Florida. People want answers about their loved ones and these family meetings seem to be the only time where families can meet with a historian and ask questions regarding status.
Our meeting was at 9:00 AM with Mark Russel, a historian who is familiar with Fred's case and has been involved for over a dozen years. Mark showed us a new technology that he used to survey the crossing area where Marty’s uncle was believed to have gone missing. The technique is called LIDAR and is being used in Germany. The images were fascinating. Mark was able to point out foxholes and trenches in the area. We still don’t have any answers at this time, but it is comforting to know that DPAA is continuing to keep Fred's case classified as "Active Pursuit."
After our meeting, there were numerous speakers who gave us insight into the role of DPAA, of which we had been quite familiar. There was also a detailed review of the newest strategies being implemented with DNA for identification.
Much to his surprise, as part of the program, Michael Krehl, who was the grass roots impetus into the Tokyo Prison Fire Project, was called onstage to be recognized for his outstanding achievement in regards to his extreme efforts. He was granted the Superior Public Service Award by the agency. And it certainly was a proud moment for him.
