THE WALL OF FACES

I have the POW/MIA bracelet for Donald D. Burris, Jr. I received it in exchange for a donation back in the 80's, and did so in honor of a nurse I worked with at the time (she had served in the Vietnam War.

I wore Donald's bracelet for many years, and he continues to be on my mind. I am grateful for his service and wish him peace, wherever he may be.

Don left many memories of himself behind him at Northwestern, too many to relate in this short space. May his memory be a blessing for us.

For such a short time you were one of my pilots. I didn't know you well but will never forget the times.

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

Like John, I knew Don - we called him DeeDee - for years in Wayne, PA . . . I think he came to town about 5th grade and we shared good times and many classes and friends through years high school, Boy Scouts, and as neighbors. His performance in the senior class play with Bill Wiley was outstanding, his quick progression to Eagle Scout admirable, his selection as most likely to succeed for the class of '65 pre-ordained. I chuckled when he dropped out of Northwestern and grimaced when he enlisted, but he was always testing the waters. I recall his mother's pride in his choices when I expressed my dismay that he was missing Mary and Ed's wedding in the summer of 1969 -- he was on a tour in Germany and had just volunteered to return for a second tour in Vietnam. I learned of his death while studying Vietnamese in preparation of my own tour - we were told it was in Cambodia but since we weren't officially there, it had to be reported as Laos, and the letter his mom wrote in response to my condolences is tucked into my high school yearbook. I miss his friendship and share the pride in his service.