“Every brand of service is special but the brand of service that a former prisoner of war has devoted to their country is unmatchable,” said Andrew Welch, director of the New Mexico Veterans Affairs Health Care System, as he welcomed guests to the annual event. Col. Steve Garcia, chief of staff of the New Mexico National Guard who served as the guest speaker, said that anytime he finds himself in the presence of our former Prisoners of War and their families, he is in awe of them and values the opportunity to talk with them. Garcia, who comes from a family with generations of service before him, said that while growing up, there was no day honoring this special group of Service Members. He is glad that our elected leaders on July 18, 1979, designated April 9 as National Former POW Recognition Day, a commemoration honoring America’s POWs and MIAs – those returned and those still missing and unaccounted for from our nation’s wars. “Our former POWs volunteered or complied with a draft notice to answer their nation’s call and in the performance of that duty, they were subjected to internment and God only knows what other horrors of torture, isolation separation from family and hard labor they went through,” Garcia said. “I have spent many hours interviewing some of our World War II POWs, not so much to know what they endured because I honestly don’t think there is any way we can comprehend that, but more for me to understand what helped them survive.” Garcia said that because each former POW, like Bill Overmier or Joe Gideon who were in attendance, has their own unique story and it is difficult to accurately talk about their experiences as a collective group. However, Garcia believes that for all of them, it was no accident they survived – there was a reason they survived. “For many of them, their faith in God helped them survive the ordeals they suffered,” Garcia said. “For many of them, thoughts of their loved ones back home helped them endure. For many of them, their upbringing in rural America helped to endure the hardships of captivity. For many of them, their will to fight was never taken from them as they secretly sabotaged the military effort of their captors.” Garcia also acknowledged that his fellow service men and women who receive treatment at this medical center have good things to say about the people who work here and the treatment they receive. He said he witnessed firsthand the wonderful care for his grandfathers and his father in law. He said he was also enlightened to the fact that many of these benefits we now receive have not always been in existence and it was because our former POWs needed special health care and fought for the benefits we enjoy today. Garcia reminded us that Freedom is not free. “After spending 30 years in service of our nation and state, I will tell you that along with the families of our Missing in Action and Killed in Action, there is no other living group of individuals that know better what the cost of freedom really is or how precious it is than our former POWs,” Garcia said. “It is incredibly important for our society to never forget the sacrifice of our former POWs and keep our solemn duty to serve them, their families and all our veterans as well as they served us. Thank you for being the great examples you are for our current military members and to me personally and thank you for your sacrifice.”]]>
