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FORT KNOX, Ky. – The remains of U.S. Army Sgt. Kester B. Hardman, a Soldier killed during the Korean War, will be interred Oct. 12 at Hardman Chapel Cemetery, Smithville, West Virginia. Raiguel Funeral Home, Harrisville, West Virginia, will perform graveside services preceding the interment.
A native of Smithville, Hardman was assigned to M Company, 3rd Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action December 1950 after his unit engaged in intensive combat actions in the vicinity of Sunchon, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. According to historical documents, Hardman died a prisoner of war in the spring of 1951, at age 22, at POW Camp 5, on the Pyoktong Peninsula.
He was accounted for by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency May 2, 2024, after his remains were exhumed in July 2018 from the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific - also known as the Punchbowl - Honolulu, Hawaii, for laboratory analysis and identification.
The Past Conflict Repatriations Branch, under the Army Casualty and Mortuary Affairs Operations Division at the U.S. Army Human Resources Command, Fort Knox, Kentucky, plays a key role in the process of locating Family members of missing Soldiers from WWII, the Korean and Vietnam Wars.
The process begins with locating the Family member most closely related to the missing Soldier, known as the primary next of kin, followed by a request for Family reference samples or DNA, which are used as a main source in identifying remains.
Once a Soldier has been identified by the Armed Forces Medical Examiner, the PCRB notifies and briefs the Family about the results of historical, forensic and DNA reports, benefits and the mortuary process including burial with full military honors.
For additional information about Sgt. Hardman go to: https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/Press-Releases/PressReleaseArticleView/Article/3808904/soldier-accounted-for-from-korean-war-hardman-k/
Media interested in covering and/or obtaining more information about the funeral and interment should contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490 and/or Raiguel Funeral Home, 304-643-2913.
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| Date Taken: | 10.15.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 10.15.2024 13:51 |
| Story ID: | 483148 |
| Location: | FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, US |
| Web Views: | 12 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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