(Richmond) The Virginia War Memorial will host the Commonwealth’s National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony on Friday, September 19, 2025, at 10 a.m. The ceremony will be followed with the ribbon cutting and public opening of the Memorial’s new exhibit: Virginia’s MIA: The Search Continues.

Members of the public are invited and encouraged to attend this ceremony and opening of the new exhibit.

National POW/MIA Recognition Day is an annual observance held on the third Friday in September to honor and remember those American service members who were Prisoners of War (POW’s) and those who remain Missing in Action (MIA). More than 81,000 Americans are still listed as Missing in Action from World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and other conflicts. Of these, nearly 1,300 Virginians are still MIA.

Invited guests at the Commonwealth’s National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony and exhibit opening will include family members of Virginia’s MIA, veterans, and other military and government officials.

“Recognizing our service members who were captured and held as POWs during wartime and the thousands more that never returned and are listed as MIA is one of the most important missions of the Virginia War Memorial and why we hold this ceremony each year,” said Dr. Mountcastle.

“We are especially proud to publicly open our new exhibit, Virginia’s MIA: The Search Continues this year to tell the story of many of our Virginia MIA and to highlight the continuing daily efforts of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) and other organizations to find the remains of these heroes around the globe and bring them home. It is their enduring promise to leave no American service member behind,” added Dr. Mountcastle.

Admission to the Commonwealth’s National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony is free. Free parking is also available in the Virginia War Memorial’s surface and underground lots at 621 South Belvidere Street in Richmond. The Memorial will be open for visitation on September 19 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Ceremony attendees should arrive no later than 9:45 a.m. for parking and seating.

For more information, please visit www.vawarmemorial.org or www.dvs.virginia.gov.