THIS IS THE FORMAT THAT I AM FAMILIAR WITH.
POW/MIA Ceremony
Props:
- 1
small round table
- 1
chair leaning against the table,
- white
table cloth, table set for 1,
- salt
shaker,
- 1
lemon slice,
- black
vase with yellow ribbon,
- black
napkin,
- red
rose,
- water
glass inverted on table,
- recording
of Taps - Some Gave All.
Script:
Those who have served and those currently serving the uniformed services of the United States are ever mindful that the sweetness of enduring peace has always been tainted by the bitterness of personal sacrifice. We are compelled to never forget that while we enjoy our daily pleasures, there are others who have endured and may still be enduring the agonies of pain, deprivation and internment.
Before we begin our activities this evening, we will pause to recognize our POW's and MIA's.
We call your attention to this small table, which occupies a place of dignity and honor near the head table. It is set for one, symbolizing the fact that members of our armed forces are missing from our ranks. They are referred to as POW's and MIA's.
We call them comrades.
They are unable to be with their loved ones and families tonight, so we join together to pay our humble tribute to them, and bear witness to their continued absence.
This table, set for one, is small, symbolizing the frailty of one prisoner, alone against his or her suppressors.
The tablecloth is white, symbolic of the purity of their intentions to respond to their country's call to arms.
The single red rose in the vase, signifies the blood they many have shed in sacrifice to ensure the freedom of our beloved United States of America. This rose also reminds us of the family and friends of our missing comrades who keep the faith, while awaiting their return.
The yellow ribbon on the vase represents the yellow ribbons worn on the lapels of the thousands who demand with unyielding determination a proper accounting of our comrades who are not among us tonight.
A slice of lemon on the plate reminds us of their bitter fate.
The salt sprinkled on the plate reminds us of the countless fallen tears of families as they wait.
The glass is inverted - they cannot toast with us this night.
The chair is empty - they are not here.
The candle is reminiscent of the light of hope which lives in our hearts to illuminate their way home, away from their captors, to the open arms of a grateful nation.
Let us pray to the supreme commander that all of our comrades will soon be back within our ranks.
Let us remember and never forget their sacrifices.
May god forever watch over them and protect them and their families.
Those who have served and those currently serving the uniformed services of the United States are ever mindful that the sweetness of enduring peace has always been tainted by the bitterness of personal sacrifice. We are compelled to never forget that while we enjoy our daily pleasures, there are others who have endured and may still be enduring the agonies of pain, deprivation and internment.
Before we begin our activities this evening, we will pause to recognize our POW's and MIA's.
We call your attention to this small table, which occupies a place of dignity and honor near the head table. It is set for one, symbolizing the fact that members of our armed forces are missing from our ranks. They are referred to as POW's and MIA's.
We call them comrades.
They are unable to be with their loved ones and families tonight, so we join together to pay our humble tribute to them, and bear witness to their continued absence.
This table, set for one, is small, symbolizing the frailty of one prisoner, alone against his or her suppressors.
The tablecloth is white, symbolic of the purity of their intentions to respond to their country's call to arms.
The single red rose in the vase, signifies the blood they many have shed in sacrifice to ensure the freedom of our beloved United States of America. This rose also reminds us of the family and friends of our missing comrades who keep the faith, while awaiting their return.
The yellow ribbon on the vase represents the yellow ribbons worn on the lapels of the thousands who demand with unyielding determination a proper accounting of our comrades who are not among us tonight.
A slice of lemon on the plate reminds us of their bitter fate.
The salt sprinkled on the plate reminds us of the countless fallen tears of families as they wait.
The glass is inverted - they cannot toast with us this night.
The chair is empty - they are not here.
The candle is reminiscent of the light of hope which lives in our hearts to illuminate their way home, away from their captors, to the open arms of a grateful nation.
Let us pray to the supreme commander that all of our comrades will soon be back within our ranks.
Let us remember and never forget their sacrifices.
May god forever watch over them and protect them and their families.
Play Taps and Some
Gave All
YOU ARE
NOT FORGOTTEN SO LONG AS THERE IS ONE LEFT IN WHOM YOUR MEMORY REMAINS.
The History of
The Vietnam War POW/MIA Flag
In 1971, Mrs. Mary Hoff, an
MIA wife and member of the National League of American Prisoners and Missing in
Southeast Asia, recognized the need for a symbol of our POW/MIAs. Prompted by
an article in the Jacksonville, Florida TIMES-UNION, Mrs. Hoff contacted Norman
Rivkees, Vice-President of Annin & Company which had made a banner for the
newest member of the United Nations, the People's Republic of China, as a part
of their policy to provide flags to all UN member nations. Mrs. Hoff found Mr.
Rivkees very sympathetic to the POW/MIA issue, and he, along with Annin's
advertising agency, designed a flag to represent our missing men. Following
League approval, the flags were manufactured for distribution.
The flag is black, bearing
in the center, in black and white, the emblem of the League. The emblem is a
white disk bearing in black silhouette the bust of a man, watch tower with a
guard holding a rifle, and a strand of barbed wire; above the disk are the white
letters POW and MIA framing a white 5-pointed star; below the disk is a black
and white wreath above the white motto YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN.
Concerned groups and
individuals have altered the original POW/MIA Flag many times; the colors have
been switched from black with white - to red, white and blue, -to white with
black; the POW/MIA has at times been revised to MIA/POW. Such changes, however,
are insignificant. The importance lies in the continued visibility of the
symbol, a constant reminder of the plight of America's POW/MIA's.
On March 9, 1989, a POW/MIA
Flag, which flew over the White House on the 1988 National POW/MIA Recognition
Day, was installed in the United States Capitol Rotunda as a result of
legislation passed overwhelmingly during the 100th session of Congress. The
leadership of both Houses hosted the installation ceremony in a demonstration
of bipartisan congressional support. This POW/MIA Flag, the only flag displayed
in the United States Capitol Rotunda, stands as a powerful symbol of our
national commitment to our POW/MIAs until the fullest possible accounting for
Americans still missing in Southeast Asia has been achieved.
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