Korean War soldier’s remains returned to East TN after 74 years

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. ( WATE ) — A soldier’s remains have been returned to East Tennessee 74 years after he went MIA during the Korean War.

U.S. Army Master Sergeant David Paul Sluder was honorably discharged after serving in World War II. He later reenlisted at the start of the Korean War.

Sluder’s unit was stationed south of the Kum River Line. On July 14, 1950, his unit was attacked by enemy ground forces of the North Korean People’s Army (KPA). Sluder was sent to warn soldiers and civilians in a nearby village about an upcoming invasion after all communications with them had been lost. He was killed upon arrival to the village as KPA had already gotten to the village. He was reported MIA that day.

After the war, recovery teams retrieved the bodies of soldiers. Sluder’s body was taken to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii. It would be decades before his family learned what happened to him.

Sluder’s niece, Gerri Hayden, who is now in her 80s, was at McGhee Tyson for the arrival of his remains Thursday.

“Today when I saw that casket come out and to think that we don’t have to worry about where his remains are is such a good feeling to know that we can put him to rest and not wonder where he is,” she said.

In 2008, Sluder’s family learned about The Korean War Project, an effort to identify soldiers through DNA. Sluder’s daughter, Mary Gail Sluder Smith, posted a message on the project’s website seeking information about her father.

“I did not think that we would ever find him, and we wouldn’t have if it hadn’t been for one man keeping a daily diary, and that was James Bolt, who served with him,” Hayden said.

Smith received a response from James Bolt. Bolt served alongside Sluder, and thanks to the diary he kept, he was able to tell Smith what happened to her father on July 14, 1950.

Now that they knew how Sluder died, his family was determined to find his body. They got the call about his identification on September 27th, 2023.

“Through the DNA of my aunt, his sister, her two children, and Paul’s, my uncle’s daughter, and then the DNA from this unknown soldier that was in Hawaii, it was my uncle,” Hayden said.

Hayden wants to encourage other families to do their research and look into the resources available.

“Don’t give up hope because they are working miracles with this,” she said.

After WWII, Sluder was awarded:

• Combat Infantryman Badge
• American Theater Campaign Medal
• European-African-Middle Eastern (EAMET) Campaign
• Medal with 1 Bronze Star
• Good Conduct Medal
• WWII Victory Medal
• Honorable Service Lapel Button WWII

After the Korean War, he was awarded:

• Purple Heart
• Marksmanship Badge
• Korean Service Medal with 1 Bronze Service Star
• National Defense Service Medal
• Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation
• Republic of Korea Korean War Service Medal
• United Nations Service Medal
• Army Presidential Unit Citation

A funeral for Sluder will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday at the gazebo on the grounds of the James H. Quillen VA Medical Center in Mountain Home National Cemetery in Mountain Home, TN.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WATE 6 On Your Side.