Stay In Touch With Us!

Sign up for email updates on Arlington National Cemetery news, events, closures and more. 

Published on: Friday, August 22, 2025 read more ...

AUTHORS

JENIFER LEIGH VAN VLECK

“Love Always”: A 70-Year Marriage and a Family’s Enduring Bond

When retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. George Kesnig passed away on March 13, 2024, his wife of 70 years, Clair, followed him 21 hours later. Their marriage was tried by war yet blessed with family. 

Faith and Duty: The Story of Chaplain Joseph Mulqueen

U.S. Navy Chaplain (Cmdr.) Joseph Mulqueen served his country for 22 years, including time in Vietnam and at Arlington National Cemetery. On Aug. 14, 2025, his family and friends gathered at the cemetery to say farewell to the chaplain, whom they remembered as a humble man. 

With the Tuskegee Airmen: The Story of Edna Webster Watson

During World War II, Edna Webster served in the communications office for the U.S. Army Air Forces’ 99th Fighter Squadron— the original unit of the famed Tuskegee Airmen. Her connection to the unit began a year earlier, when she met her future husband, Spann Watson, just days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941.  

“Welcome Home, Brother”: Vietnam Pilot Lt. Col. Donald "Donny” Downing Laid to Rest

On the night of Sept. 5, 1967, two U.S. Air Force F-4C Phantom II jets flew a reconnaissance mission over North Vietnam. Suddenly, one of the two-man crews saw a fireball light up the night’s sky. At that moment, the crew lost contact with the jet flown by Capt. Donald “Donny” William Downing. At sunrise the next morning, search and rescue efforts attempted to find Downing and his radar operator, but the searchers found nothing. 

A Lasting Impact: Physical Therapist Treated Wounded Korean War Soldiers

Marian Barrett may not have served her country in uniform, but she did serve her country by treating wounded soldiers coming back from the Korean War. On June 25, 2025, Marian was laid to rest with her husband of more than 40 years, Lt. Col. James “Jim” Barrett, a veteran of World War II and the Korean War who died in 2008.  

Remembering a WWII Marine Who Played a Role in Historic Guadalcanal Flag Raising

On Aug. 7, 1942, U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Robert H. Dillard (pictured, above right) splashed ashore at Guadalcanal with Weapons Company, Fifth Marines, part of the initial Allied assault force . He made his way inland and, on the second day of the campaign, reached the Japanese airfield where an enemy flag flapped in the breeze. “It was hauled down and the stars and stripes were run up,” Dillard wrote years later. “The flag we put up was only about a foot long, but it sure looked good.”  

Arlington National Cemetery Tour Celebrates Army’s 250th Birthday

About 30 people braved the Washington, D.C., area summer heat to tour Arlington National Cemetery and learn about the U.S. Army’s history on June 22, 2025. They took the “Global Wars, Global Warriors: Army History in the 20th Century Tour” hosted by ANMC Historians Dr. Allison Finkelstein and Tim Frank.  

 

WWII Veteran Identified and Buried After More Than 80 Years

When Jeremiah “Jerry” Mannell learned that his uncle and namesake, Jeremiah “Jerry” Mahoney, had been identified after being missing in action for more than 80 years, he felt both relieved and saddened: relieved that his uncle had been identified, but saddened that his uncle’s immediate family had passed away without knowing what happened to him. “None of my siblings knew anything about him,” Mannell said. “We only knew he was lost in World War II.” 

81 Years of Marriage, Separated Briefly by World War II

Darrell and Dorothy Bush went everywhere together, usually holding hands. The two were familiar faces at Arlington National Cemetery, attending yearly Battle of the Bulge ceremonies, at which Darrell would wear his World War II veteran’s cap and a jacket replete with medals.

Missing Vietnam Air Force Flyers Not Forgotten

U.S. Air Force Capt. Ronald Dean Stafford and his weapons system operator, Capt. Charles Joseph Caffarelli, never came back from their Nov. 21, 1972, bombing mission over North Vietnam. Search flights for their F-111 Aardvark bomber proved unsuccessful. Ten days after their mission, parts of their Aardvark washed up on a beach in South Vietnam near the demilitarized zone. Investigators determined their aircraft had crashed at sea and both officers were lost.