In the new year, Manila American Cemetery has added three rosettes to its Walls of the Missing. On Jan. 18, the rosettes were placed to signify that U.S. Army Air Forces Technician 4^th Grade Lloyd R. Bruntmyer and Pfc. David C. Hansen, and U.S. Army Pvt. Leonard Jackson have been identified.  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced Bruntmyer’s identification on Dec. 18, 2024. Bruntmyer, 22, of Des Moines, Iowa, was assigned to the 7th Materiel Squadron, 5th Air Base Group in late 1941 in the Pacific Theater. He was reported as captured when U.S. forces surrendered to the Japanese in Bataan and then subjected to the 65-mile Bataan Death March. He died Nov. 1, 1942, in Cabanatuan POW Camp No. 1. His remains were identified from an unknown grave at Manila American Cemetery and will be buried in San Diego in November 2025. 

Hansen’s identification was announced by DPAA on Dec. 20, 2024. Hansen, 25, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 27th Bombardment Group, and another prisoner of war reported captured at Bataan. He died June 28, 1942, at Cabanatuan POW Camp No. 1. His remains were identified from an unknown grave at Manila American Cemetery and will be buried in Brookfield, Wisconsin on a date yet to be determined. 

The final rosette placed Jan. 18 was for Jackson, whose identification was announced Dec. 17, 2024, by DPAA. Jackson, 22, was a member of Battery L of the 60th Coast Artillery Corps. He was also a captured in Bataan and died Oct. 31, 1942, at Cabanatuan POW Camp No. 1. A full accounting of Jackson’s case will be released by DPAA upon the family’s full briefing.  

When a missing service member is recovered, identified and finally laid to rest, ABMC places a rosette beside their name on the Walls of the Missing. This rosette, a symbol of eternity, is crafted as a bronze rosemary wreath—a timeless emblem of honor and victory. Encircled by the eight-points of a compass, it signifies America’s commitment, reaching out in all directions to recover their remains from the farthest corners of the earth.  

These rosettes are three of more than 2,000 that have been placed beside the names of missing service members at ABMC sites around the world. The placement of these rosettes brings the total to 505 on the Walls of the Missing at Manila American Cemetery, which includes the names of 36,286 service members.