The Penn State Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine ROTC cadets and midshipmen will hold a joint POW/MIA vigil starting at 6 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 19, with a ceremony on Old Main lawn.
The 30-minute ceremony will feature a joint color guard raising the U.S. flag and the POW/MIA flag and a joint presentation of the Missing Man Table. The Wild Blue Yonders, a ROTC a cappella group, with perform the national anthem and “Amazing Grace.” There will be a reading of the Presidential Proclamation and a brief story from each service about either a Prisoner of War or service member missing in action from those services.
Following the ceremony, a vigil will last 24 hours with a guard posted ever hour. The event will end with a formal joint flag retreat at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 20.
POW/MIA stands for Prisoners of War/Missing in Action. The Penn State vigil is aligned with National POW/MIA Remembrance Day, which falls on the third Friday of September every year. Several distinguished visitors from the university and the community will be in attendance.