National POW/MIA Recognition Day is Friday. Here’s How to Commemorate It.

Mike Smietana
SVP/Real Estate
HEROES Executive Champion

On Friday, Sept. 20, associates in Exchange headquarters, will encounter a set but unoccupied table in the dining area. On the table will be six hats, each representing a branch of the Armed Forces.

The table is in honor of National POW/MIA Recognition Day, which is the third Friday of September. Patriotic associates began the tradition of setting up the table display in headquarters long before I joined the Exchange in 2008. The display is a silent, poignant way of honoring those who were prisoners of war or who remain missing in action.

Along with the hats on the table are a rose, representing family; a yellow ribbon, the sign of waiting for those serving abroad; an inverted glass, representing the fallen; a lemon wedge, representing the bitter loss of a service member; salt, symbolizing the tears shared by loved ones; and a candle with a red band around it, representing blood shed by troops. An American flag and the POW/MIA flag stand next to the table. There is one empty chair at the table, representing the missing and fallen.

In 2023, PXs, BXs and distribution centers worldwide, from the Germersheim DC in Germany to the USAG Humphreys Military Clothing store in South Korea, set up similar displays. You can view an album of these displays on Flickr by clicking here.

More stores are welcome to set up a display, working with their installation leaders and inviting them to be part of the observance. I encourage individual associates worldwide to take a few moments on Sept. 20 to reflect on the service and sacrifice of our POWs and MIA service members. We should always be honored to recognize our Nation’s Heroes for their sacrifices and to remember all POWs and MIAs on this special day of remembrance.

Since World War II, exchanges have helped provide freed American prisoners of war with a taste of home. During the Vietnam War, Clark Air Base in the Philippines was the first stop for nearly 600 POWs airlifted out of Hanoi. The Clark Exchange was the first store the former POWs would visit. There are also examples throughout Exchange history of associates who had been prisoners of war themselves.

As a co-executive champion of the special emphasis program HEROES, I am honored to be among those continuing this tradition—and to be part of group that honors the contributions and sacrifices of Exchange associates who are military Veterans, as well as supporting their spouses and families. I too had a good friend whose father was a POW in Vietnam. He was imprisoned with Senator John McCain and was one of the fortunate ones to make it back. I think of him often and with such great respect for the sacrifices he made. What an exceptional person he was.

I invite you to join HEROES to become even closer to tributes such as these. To learn more about HEROES and other Exchange Special Emphasis Programs, visit the Exchange HUB here. If you’d like to join a Special Emphasis Program, click here.

National POW/MIA Recognition Day was established in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter. To learn more about the day of remembrance, visit the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency website.

To contribute photos from this year’s National POW/MIA Recognition Day, please email them to exchangepost@aafes.com and socialmedia@aafes.com. Please send photos actual size, as jpeg attachments if possible.