Saturday, more than 70 years after his death, Cpl. Henry Helms will be laid to rest.
Helms was killed in December 1950 while serving in the U.S. Army in the Korean War. His remains were in Box 39 of the 55 crates holding the remains of unidentified U.S. soldiers that were returned to America in June 2018.
For friends and family, it's much-needed closure, an ending to a family chapter long overdue, especially for his last living sibling, Evelyn Snyder of Ringgold, Georgia.
"Death hurts," said Regina Worley, Helms' niece and Snyder's daughter, "but the not knowing was worse. You can't imagine all the different scenarios you could think about when you don't know.
"We watched on TV as the 55 boxes were unloaded, and in the back of your mind, you think, 'That would be so great,' but we knew the chances were not great he was going to be among them. When we found out, my mom was so excited and emotional. When she called me, I couldn't understand what she was saying."
Helms was born in 1926 in DeKalb County, Alabama, before his family moved to Ringgold in the 1940s. He joined the military and fought in the final year of World War II. He re-enlisted in the Army in 1948 to fight in Korea and was reported missing Dec. 2, 1950, after his unit was attacked near the Chosin Reservoir in what is now North Korea.
Since then his family has always wondered about him; their questions went unanswered for generations.
"My mom was extremely close to her mom, and my grandmother would cry a lot," Worley said. "My uncle was her oldest, and she called him her Sweet Boy. A couple of years after he went missing, my grandmother would sit in front of the TV and cry and pray out loud.
"It's been hard for our whole family."
Worley was among the family members who went earlier this week to Atlanta as Cpl. Helms' body was honored by the military and put into a hearse for the journey back to Ringgold.
"It was a small event, but it was a perfect acknowledgement," Worley said.
His funeral service on Saturday will begin at 2 p.m. at Wilson Funeral Home in Ringgold, then move a short distance to Anderson Memorial Gardens.
Gilbert Childers leads the efforts to honor veterans in Catoosa County, and he said plans are in place to rightly honor Helms.
The Ringgold High School JROTC honor guard, the fire department, riders from the Patriot Guard and several dignitaries are scheduled to participate. Flags will be displayed along the route to the cemetery.
"It's fitting that it's happening this close to Memorial Day," Childers said. "It should be quite an event."
Said Worley: "It feels like there is so much peace that this has brought my mom and our whole family."
A final send-off befitting a hero.
Finally.
Contact Jay Greeson at jgreeson@timesfreepress.com.