COLUMBIA, S.C. — Tuesday morning at the State House, officials announced a national reunion to be held in Greenville next year.
The South Carolina Department of Veterans' Affairs (SCDVA) is partnering with the Vietnam POW (Prisoner of War) Reunion Foundation to host a reunion gala to be held in South Carolina next summer.
The 49th Annual Freedom Reunion, which is expected to bring dozens of former Vietnam POWs from around the nation to the state, will take place in Greenville in June of 2022, and will bring together hundreds of men who served in the air force, navy, marines, and army.
The National Organization of Former Vietnam POWs includes men who served in the Air Force, Navy, Marines, and Army. These Veterans averaged more than five years of torture and inhumane treatment as POWs.
Vietnam POW Reunion Foundation Chair Brenda Stewart, whose father is a Vietnam War Veteran, established the Vietnam POW Reunion Foundation in March of 2020 with the goal of bringing the NAM-POW group (surviving POWs) to Greenville, South Carolina for one of their freedom reunions.
In June 2021 the NAM-POW board and its members voted to accept the invitation. Their 49th Annual Freedom Reunion will be held in Greenville, June 1-5, in 2022.
As of July 2021, only 407 remain alive out of the original 662 military POWs. Eight of these men live in South Carolina.