I am one in five million. No, not the odds for winning the Mega Million jackpot. Not the odds that I would ever be a Space X passenger aboard the next starship. I am one of the five million who wore a POW MIA bracelet between 1970 and 1976. The nickel-plated bracelets sold for about $3 and were engraved with the name, rank and loss date of an American serviceman captured or missing during the Vietnam War.

They were first created in May 1970 by a California student group called Voices in Vital America (VIVA) so American Prisoners of War in Vietnam would not be forgotten. Missing but not forgotten; the numbers are unfortunate and staggering. As of May 2020, The Defense POA/MIA Accounting Agency within the Department of Defense reports these figures:

• 72,598 still considered MIA from World War II

• 7,580 still considered MIA from the Korean War

• 1,587 still considered MIA from the Vietnam War

• 126 still considered MIA from the Cold War

• Six from conflicts since 1991

In 1979, Congress and President Jimmy Carter signed a proclamation (which has been repeated annually by every U.S. president) establishing the third Friday of September as National POW/MIA Recognition Day. The first observance of POW/MIA day included a ceremony at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. Since then, official ceremonies happen nationwide.

The Missing Man Table, created by the National League of POW/MIA Families, is a major part of any POW/MIA ceremony. From their website, they explain the meaning of the items on this special table as follows:

The table is round — to show our everlasting concern for our missing men.

The tablecloth is white — symbolizing the purity of their motives when answering the call of duty.

The single red rose, displayed in a vase, reminds us of the life of each of the missing, and of the loved ones who keep the faith, awaiting answers.

The vase is tied with a red ribbon, symbol of our continued determination to account for our missing.

A slice of lemon on the bread plate is to remind us of the bitter fate of those captured and missing in a foreign land.

A pinch of salt symbolizes the tears endured by those missing and their families who seek answers.

The Bible represents the strength gained through faith to sustain those lost from our country, founded as one nation under God.

The glass is inverted — they cannot share a toast.

The chair is empty — they are missing.

My bracelet showed the name of a Navy lieutenant commander. I was still on active duty when I learned that “my” MIA officer had returned home — safe and alive. Still, countless service members and their families have suffered — and still suffer — from the residual effects, the fears, the unknown and unanswered.

For information of field operations and recovery actions, go to www.dpaa.mil.