Vietnam POW—Medal of Honor

VFW Magazine, Sept, 2002

September has long been the month in which prisoners of war and the missing in action have been publicly recognized. This year it's Sept. 20. Also this year, the first Medal of Honor given to an Army POW for actions taken during captivity in Southeast Asia was awarded to Capt. Rocky Versace.

Versace, wounded and captured while serving with a South Vietnamese unit in the Mekong Delta in October 1963, was executed by the Viet Cong Sept. 26, 1965. During his two years of torturous captivity, the Green Beret attempted to escape four times and persistently defied his captors. His remains are still missing.

The last time his voice was heard, he was singing God Bless America "at the top of his lungs." The $250,000 Captain Rocky Versace Plaza and Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated in his hometown of Alexandria, Va., in July.

Incidentally, Army helicopter pilot Capt. Jon Swanson, killed in Cambodia on Feb. 26, 1971, also was awarded a Medal of Honor this year on May 1.