Remains of Korean War soldier return home

From Newsday: Remains of Korean War soldier return home
t was a send-off Maximo Troche would have appreciated.

The calling out of orders, the raising of the American flag, the crisp white gloves climbing in salute: -- Troche would have been proud, said his sister-in-law Angie Mario, 84, of Brentwood. "He was so patriotic, he would have loved this," she said as a tear slid down her cheek.

Sixty years after his death in the Korean War, Troche's remains were returned to his family Wednesday in a military ceremony at Kennedy Airport.

Army Private First Class Troche, of Manhattan, had also seen battle in World War II, and re-enlisted for the Korean War. He was declared a prisoner missing in action in Korea in 1951. The 24-year-old's remains were recovered in 1993, but it wasn't until last month that his family learned a positive identification had been made.

Wednesday, more than a dozen of Troche's relatives gathered on the tarmac at Kennedy Airport as Delta Flight 2250 arrived from Hawaii. As Troche's flag-draped coffin rolled from the plane's belly onto a conveyor belt, family members gasped and embraced. American flags flapped in the breeze next to members of the Patriot Guard Riders -- a motorcycle group that honors fallen soldiers -- and Army Reserve members saluted before hoisting the coffin into a hearse.

The remains were taken in a funeral procession to the Michael J. Grant Funeral Home in Brentwood, where a service is planned Saturday at 9:30 a.m. Troche is to be buried in Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, alongside other relatives.

With his grandson, Troche's second cousin Robert Arce -- who was 3 years old when he watched Troche go off to war -- approached the coffin at the funeral home. Kneeling, Arce closed his eyes and prayed. " 'You're almost home now,' I said," he recalled. "I can't wait for that reunion on Saturday."

More than 6,100 Korean War combatants remain missing in action, said DeWayne Reed, the Army's section chief for Korea and Southeast Asia at Fort Knox. To date, the Army has identified 155 sets of remains, he said. "It's not a simple process and it's not a hard process, but it is a time-consuming process," he said.

Family members Wednesday thanked the Army.

"They were relentless in their pursuit to find us and bring him home," said Troche's niece Jacqui Mario, of Patterson, N.Y. "When they say they don't leave anybody behind, they're not kidding."