For years, a Fort
Pierce retiree wore on his wrist a reminder of America’s MIA and POW service members from the Vietnam War. But the name engraved on the bracelet was a mystery — until an Orlando Sentinel story published this week.
For years, missing U.S. airman Richard A. Kibbey weighed on Don Pettit’s mind and wrist.
Pettit, now 77 and retired in Fort Pierce, wore a silver POW/ MIA bracelet etched with the name of the Air Force pilot declared missing in 1967 after his helicopter was shot down over North Vietnam.
“I thought about him at times when I wore it, which was most days,” Pettit said Wednesday. “Maybe some day, I’d think, I’ll find out who he is.”
That day came Tuesday, when Pettit read an Orlando Sentinel story about a ceremony at Patrick Air Force Base in Brevard County, where Kibbey’s recently recovered military ID tags were turned over to his three sons, one of whom, John, 52, lives in Orlando.
Kibbey was identified as a major on Pettit’s bracelet, which reflected the airman’s first posthumous promotion. He ultimately was promoted to colonel after his death .
Pettit, who got the MIA bracelet while serving a 12-year hitch in the Air Force, had been curious enough in the past to inquire about the name on his wrist.
He once reached out to Richard Kibbey, a lawyer in nearby Stuart — not the airman, not a relative.
Pettit said he wanted to give the bracelet to Kibbey’s children — if they wanted it — as he no longer wears it.
Richard “Rick” Kibbey, 63, of Viera, the airman’s eldest son, said several others who wore MIA wristlets bearing his father’s name have offered the bracelets to him.
“America was in such turmoil in the 1960s and 70s, so much antiwar sentiment then,” said Rick Kibbey, who was 12 when his father was listed as missing. “To me, it meant some people cared and still care.”
Rick Kibbey said he’d prefer Pettit keep the bracelet to remind him that he and other Americans like him helped military families heal.
According to The National Museum of American History, the idea to create the MIA/POW bracelets originated in 1970 with two college students.
The Smithsonian museum’s website credits Carol Bates Brown and Kay Hunter, who were looking to support U.S. troops in Vietnam without being involved in demonstrations and protests.
An estimated 5 million bracelets were sold for $2.50 to $3 a piece. Some are available now on eBay for $39.99.
Each weighed about an ounce and were intended to raise awareness of America’s missing or imprisoned servicemen in Vietnam.
Pettit said he and his wife, Janice, who also wore an MIA bracelet for many years, got theirs for a donation.