Benjamin Moore Jr., age 43, from Waycross, Georgia, Ware county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Hhc, 2D Battalion, 27Th Infantry, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii
Date of death: Friday, April 24, 2009
Death details: Cob Speicher, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Chad Michael Mercer, age 25, from Waycross, Georgia, Ware county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Company B, 2D Battalion, 121St Infantry (Tf Baghdad), Fitzgerald, Ga
Date of death: Thursday, June 30, 2005
Death details: 86Th Csh, Baghdad, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense
Thomas Oneal Zorn Jr. from Waycross, Georgia, Ware county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Sunday, September 17, 1972
Death details: On September 17, 1972, an F-105 Thunderchief (tail number 62-8360, call sign “Condor 01”) with a crew of two departed Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base on a combat mission. The aircraft was hit by a surface to air missile (SAM) in the vicinity of (GC) 48Q YH 187 827, and both crew members ejected. Their parachutes were seen to land in the Gulf of Tonkin. Search and rescue teams saw the bodies of both crew members below the surface of the water, but were unable to retrieve them due to harassing enemy fire.
Captain Thomas O’Neal Zorn Jr., who joined the U.S. Air Force from Georgia, served with the 388th Tactical Fighter Wing. He was the pilot of the Thunderchief when it was shot down, and his remains were not recovered. Today, Captain Zorn is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Based on all information available, DPAA assessed the individual’s case to be in the analytical category of Non-recoverable.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Charles Ray King, age 21, from Millwood, Georgia, Ware county.
Spouse: Cathy S. King
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Sunday, April 26, 1970
Source: National Archives, Associated Press (1970)
James Robert Dowling from Georgia, Ware county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Wednesday, July 12, 1950
Death details: On July 11, 1950, the U.S. Army’s 21st Infantry Regiment, which had arrived in Korea six days earlier, was placed in defensive positions near the town of Chochiwon, South Korea. The regiment was not at full strength and lacked artillery and anti-tank weapons. That day, they were attacked by North Korean forces and were forced to withdraw to avoid being surrounded, as well as to buy time until they could be reinforced and resupplied. Private First Class James Robert Dowling, who joined the U.S. Army from Georgia, served with the Medical Company, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was captured by enemy forces on July 12, near Chochiwon and forced to march north to the Apex prison camps in North Korea. In mid-October, when the group was near Manpo, North Korea, PFC Dowling and two other prisoners attempted to escape, and were tracked down by their guards. PFC Dowling and one other soldier were shot. His remains have not been identified among those later returned to U.S. custody. Today, Private First Class Dowling is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency