LAURENS COUNTY, Ga. — A Laurens County family is thanking a higher power after their family member remains were identified from the Korean War.
Evelene Warren says she was six when her first cousin went into the Army and now decades later, she will get to bury him.
"The only thing I could remember about him is he had curly hair," Warren said.
Warren doesn't recall much about her first cousin Army Corporal James Rix.
"He was 17 when he enlisted. He went in on September 14, 1949," Warren said.
Due to her age at the time, Warren says she doesn't remember when she learned Rix would not be coming home.
"Actually they sent my aunt, his mom, a telegram on December 29 letting her know her son had been killed in action in Korea," Warren said.
After Rix died, Warren says his mom tried for years to get his remains back home, but his remains were never identified.
"She was just sad that he could not be returned home," Warren said.
Warren says Rix's mom died in 1984, leaving a headstone beside her grave in his honor because she knew Rix would eventually come back home.
"I'm just really grateful and thankful he has been accounted for. That actually happened on February 8, 2019," Warren said.
The Defense POW/MIA agency says that more than 7,000 veterans have yet to be identified from the Korean War, but new technology is giving them hope. The department says scientists use dental records, DNA, and even material evidence.
"We couldn't believe it because it had been over 68 years," Warren said.
Over those years, Rix's remains went from North Korea to Honolulu, and they will be in their final resting place come May.
"I think it is going to be just an awesome day for all of us," Warren said.
Rix will be buried next to his mom filling the spot she knew he would one day take. He will be buried Saturday, May 4, with full military honors at Union Springs Baptist Church off Scotland Road in Alamo, Georgia.