Loved Ones Gather To Dedicate Memorial For Missing Veteran

Friends and family are remembering a fallen serviceman who went missing in action more than 50 years ago. They gathered in Vian for a memorial dedication Saturday.

The monument was costly but the man behind it, Jimmy Owens, said it's nothing in comparison to what the Vietnam War cost Captain Neil Bynum: His life.

"How easy we forget," Owens said. 

If you’ve ever had an encounter with Captain Neil Bynum, you'd remember it.

While it was cut short, he led an impactful life in Vian.

"Duty, honor, dedication, motivation," Owens said. 

Owens said the idea for the memorial came after reading something written by Bynum's daughter, who spoke of her life without her father and growing up longing for his presence. 

"He was a prankster. He was a great guy,” Owens said. “He was a tough little fella. He was tough on the football field. He was tough with his studies.”

Bynum, who served in the Air Force, went missing in October 1969. He is one of more than 1,500 Americans from the Vietnam War who remain unaccounted for.

His niece, Kim Teehee, said she was only 2 years old at the time Bynum went missing. She doesn't remember much but recalls a time when she was riding on her tricycle in front of her grandparents’ home.

"A blue station wagon pulled up. And I remember a large bird being on the door and two uniformed officers got out," Teehee said. "I didn't realize until later who they were and why they had come."

Owens and Teehee said the moment we forget the names of the fallen is the moment we forget our history. They said that won't happen to Bynum.

"The way that he was and how he treated people even 52 years since he's been gone has left such an impression on them that is life-changing," Teehee said. 

Owens, an amputee with metal rods in his back, helped raise money for the memorial by skydiving. He did 21 military jumps while serving. Last year, he celebrated his 80th birthday with a 22nd jump.

Related: Oklahoma Veteran Skydives On 80th Birthday To Honor Fallen Hero

"I just did the jumping," Owens said. "I thought that was the hard part, but I'm going to tell you I think that was the easy part." 

Owens said he helped raise more than $7,000 for the memorial. The money left over has been donated to a scholarship fund helping those going into the military at Oklahoma State University.

"I'm alive. The heroes I know are dead," Owens said.