For years, hundreds of American flags, once draped over the coffins of unclaimed veterans, sat in storage without a permanent resting place. That changed when a project spearheaded by Wayne Cohen and other veterans’ advocates found new homes for these flags, bringing long-deserved respect to the memories of forgotten service members.
Cohen, the mission coordinator for the Patriot Guard Riders in New York, described the effort as both a responsibility and an honor. “When I saw those flags languishing in a basement with no place to display them, I knew something had to be done,” Cohen said. “We owed it to these veterans to give them a dignified resting place, even if that meant stepping up as their family.”
The initiative began in 2018, when Cohen was approached by Jay, a member of the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 32 in Whitestone. Jay’s organization had been displaced after their local VFW Hall was sold, and the flags—estimated at 160—were moved to a basement in a Polish Hall in Maspeth. Without documentation, only a nameplate on each case identified the deceased. Cohen knew the flags represented veterans who had no family to claim them; it became his mission to find these heroes a new, respectful home.
“I don’t take this lightly. These flags were bestowed upon veterans who served and sacrificed, and they shouldn’t be stored out of sight,” Cohen explained. Through a network of volunteers, veterans’ organizations and community members, Cohen helped distribute the flags to various American Legion posts and private individuals who had volunteered to care for them.
“Some people took one or two; others, like the Elmont American Legion and East Meadow American Legion, took five each,” Cohen said. “It was heartening to see how many people were willing to honor these veterans by becoming their stewards.”
The flags found new homes across the country, from Long Island to Maryland, as families and veteran groups stepped forward. Cohen noted the emotional responses of those who accepted the flags.
“Everyone I spoke to said it was an honor to take a flag home,” he shared. “There’s a strong sense of connection; these are people’s brothers and sisters, even if they never met them.”
Cohen’s project resonates with a larger effort to ensure the dignified remembrance of unclaimed veterans. Programs like the American Legion’s Missing in America Project and the Patriot Guard Riders’ Veteran Recovery Program have mobilized similar initiatives for unclaimed veterans’ remains, often transporting cremains to national cemeteries for formal burials. Cohen acknowledged the unique challenge posed by the volume of flags.
“We’ve done mass missions before, but 160 flags? That’s rare. And once we identified that each represented a real, individual service member, it became clear that we had to find a solution,” he said.
The importance of the project hit home for Cohen when he saw the reaction from volunteers and local communities.
“People still ask me if I have any flags left to distribute,” he said, noting that even after multiple distribution events, there are continued offers from individuals eager to serve as caretakers. “When we held a distribution event at Williston Park American Legion, I had a list of interested people, but not everyone could make it. And yet, one couple drove all the way from Staten Island to pick up two flags. That dedication shows just how much people care.”
The community’s commitment to honoring fallen veterans doesn’t end with this flag project. Cohen envisions a wider reach in raising awareness about the need for DNA samples in identifying veterans’ remains. He highlighted a critical point: many families don’t know they can contribute DNA to aid in identifying missing relatives from past wars.
“There are still thousands of unaccounted-for service members from World War II, Korea, and Vietnam,” Cohen said. “We need to get the word out to families, encourage them to submit their DNA to databases so these heroes can finally be brought home.”
Cohen also hopes that future technology will allow for even more advances in veteran recovery and identification.
“Who would have thought that DNA would be so valuable in identifying remains?” he asked. “But now that we have it, it’s a powerful tool to reconnect families and close the chapters for people who never knew what happened to their loved ones.”
The project brought Cohen into contact with people passionate about giving back to their communities and paying respects to those who served. And while he has no immediate plans for another large-scale flag distribution, he emphasized that the work is far from over.
“People often assume that just because a flag is folded and displayed, it’s a burial flag. That’s not always the case, but when it is, it deserves special care,” he noted.
Cohen’s hope is that his work will inspire others to look around and see if there are unclaimed veterans’ flags or remains in their communities. With a touch of humility, he emphasized that the project wasn’t about personal accolades but about doing the right thing.
“I’m just one person in a sea of volunteers,” he said. “This isn’t about making a name for myself; it’s about making sure these veterans are remembered the way they deserve to be.”
For more information about how you can help or to inquire about the list of unclaimed veterans, call the Patriot Guard of New York at 585-866-1747 and ask to leave a message for Cohen.
