Video by Staff Sgt. Shawn Morris
Army Reserve Soldiers honor repatriated WWII hero
99th Readiness Division
Nov. 19, 2022 | 1:22
Soldiers from several Army Reserve units stationed in New York helped honor 1st Lt. John Joseph Heffernan Jr. as his repatriated remains were interred Nov. 19 at St. John Catholic Cemetery in Queens, New York City. Heffernan served in the 490th Bombardment Squadron during World War Two. On Feb. 22, 1944, he and six crewmates were lost when their aircraft caught fire and crashed into a field in Burma. From January to March 2019, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency conducted a recovery mission at the crash site. On Nov. 2, 2021, the DPAA positively identified Heffernan’s remains from among those recovered. WO1 Sainah Theodore of the 151st Theater Information Operations Group from Fort Totten, New York, was interviewed during the event. Second Lt. Jaemin Chun of the 200th Military Police Command's 423rd Military Police Company from Shoreham, New York, presented the Flag to Heffernan's family.
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