Honoring Prisoners of War and those Missing in Action in Eastern Idaho

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Amid the horrors of war, 142,233 U.S. service members served as Prisoners of War (POWs) and 81,000 are still Missing in Action (MIA) between World War I and Desert Storm.

Fifty local veterans, their families and community members commemorated National POW / MIA Recognition Day Friday with a ceremony at the Veterans Memorial along the River Walk in Idaho Falls.


Many of the original World War II Prisoners of War from eastern Idaho have since passed on, but were were recognized by their family members.

John Cope spoke of his father Ray Cope, from Mud Lake, who was captured as a 31-year-old contractor on Wake Island. The Battle was later called “the Alamo of the Pacific” and served as a rallying cry for U.S. servicemen overseas.

"My dad, Ray Cope, was in that battle and was one of the civilian workers and defenders of Wake that fought for 16 days defending the island through insurmountable odds," his son said. "To have my dad be that type of defender – he was my hero."

Ray Cope endured 44 months as a Japanese Prisoner of War, John described, facing “severe malnutrition, disease, beatings and torture.”

"They were expected to pack cement bags on their backs that weighed as much as they did, and that was difficult part. My dad said that if you gave up, you died," Cope said. "He remembers many people just giving up hope. He always said he knew that he was going to make it home, and that was the impetus behind his survival."

Ray found his way home six weeks after American forces bombed the city of Nagasaki – 35 miles from his internment camp.

For two and a half years, his family did not know whether he was dead or alive.

He later served as Mayor of Mud Lake for 17 years and counts 27 grandchildren in his family.

Ray Cope died on the Fourth of July in 1988 – a fitting tribute to an all-American hero and POWs everywhere.