THE WALL OF FACES

Marshall has a military stone in his honor at Lakeview Cemetery in Calumet, Mi.

Dear Marshall,
I had a baby boy on June 23rd 2008. I was, ironically, due July 14th. The day you went missing, on top of that, you were born in Augusta, Maine. My child in Augusta, Georgia. I guess it was fate. Dominic Marshall is now 3 months old, he likes to look at your photo. One day when he is older I will tell him all about the amazing, brave man we named him after. We will never forget you.

STAFF SERGEANT

MARSHALL FREDERICK KIPINA


who served as an

OBSERVER / AIRBORNE SENSOR OPERATOR

of an

OV-1C MOHAWK

( 61-2675 )

with the


131st AVIATION COMPANY

" NIGHTHAWKS "

14th AVIATION BATTALION

" VERSATILITY "

12th AVIATION GROUP

" AD EXCELSUM CONAMUR "

1st AVIATION BRIGADE

" FIRST IN VIETNAM "


was a posthumous recipient of the


AIR MEDAL

PURPLE HEART

NATIONAL DEFENSE SERVICE MEDAL

VIETNAM SERVICE MEDAL

REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM CAMPAIGN SERVICE MEDAL


and was entitled to wear


ARMY AIRCREW WINGS



===== ===== ===== ===== ===== ===== ===== ===== =====


On 14 July 1966 Captain Robert Graham Nopp, pilot and his observer/airborne sensor operator, PFC Marshall Frederick Kipina, took off from Phu Bai Air Base, Hue, in OV-1C tail number 61-2675 for a night surveillance mission over the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

The last contact with Nopp was at about 2330 hours.

When they failed to return and an airfield search showed that they had not diverted to another field, search and rescue efforts began, however neither aircraft nor crew was found.

Both men were classed as Missing In Action, and both men were promoted while in that status.

In time the Secretary of the Army approved Presumptive Findings of Death for LTC Nopp (on 01 Dec 1977) and SSG Kipina (on 09 Feb 1978).

Their remains have not been recovered.



///// ~~~ MISSING IN ACTION ~~~ \\





YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN

NOR SHALL YOU EVER BE

Do not stand at my grave and weep.
I am not there; I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glints on snow,
I am the sun on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning's hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there; I did not die.

Mary Frye – 1932

I have not forgotten you. I chair the Adoption Committee for The National League of Families of Prisoners of War and Missing in Action in Southeast Asia. We will always remember the 1,889 Americans still unaccounted for in Southeast Asia and the thousands of others that lost their lives. We will not stop our efforts until all of you are home where you belong.

We need to reach the next generation so that they will carry on when our generation is no longer able. To do so, we are attempting to locate photographs of all the missing. If you are reading this remembrance and have a photo and/or memory of this missing American that you would like to share for our project, please contact me at:

Candace Lokey
PO Box 206
Freeport, PA 16229
[email protected]

If you are not familiar with our organization, please visit our web site at :

www.pow-miafamilies.org