KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Thursday, August 14, marks the 80th anniversary of VJ Day, when President Harry Truman announced Japan's intention to surrender. While the day for some in East Tennessee brings back the image of thousands of Manhattan Project workers and their families celebrating in Oak Ridge, for others, the day can be a reminder of those who never made it home. A sailor from Knoxville is still unaccounted for after he was killed during the Battle of Okinawa.

Eight decades have passed since the end of World War II, but more than 71,000 service members are unaccounted for, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (PDAA) reports. Nearly 1,200 of those unaccounted-for service members are from Tennessee, including Seaman First Class Herbert Randall Colquitt.

The East Tennessee Vetera

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