Bonnie McClure was just a young girl when her uncle, Clifford Keeney, an Army Airman fighting in World War II, was shot down in Germany while on a mission in 1944. Keeney was listed as killed in action, and he was buried in a cemetery by enemy forces in Germany.
Despite the obstacles, McClure vowed, even as a youngster, to one day bring her uncle home. She didn’t realize it would take more than eight decades.
Keeney’s remains were finally recovered, and the Army veteran was given a proper military funeral in York, Pennsylvania, on Nov. 28. While they painstakingly waited 81 years, the burial brings a measure of closure to Keeney’s family.
“It kind of hit me… he’s finally home,” McClure told Fox 43 News.
Keeney’s B-17 Flying Fortress, a popular aircraft used by the U.S. military in World War II, was hit while flying over Germany, and the airman was killed at the tender age of 26. McClure has thought of her uncle often through the years, wondering what really happened to him. Even after Keeney’s remains were identified, and McClure was notified, it all didn’t seem real until McClure saw her uncle’s casket, American flag draped proudly across the top, that it finally hit her – Uncle Clifford was home.
“It’s very surreal yet to this moment. When I saw the coffin, it kind of hit me a little bit,” McClure said.
DNA Solves the Mystery
A breakthrough in Keeney’s case came in June when, through state-of-the-art DNA analysis, his remains were identified by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. Realizing that modern scientific methods could help finally solve the mystery of what happened to him, Keeney’s family submitted samples 35 years ago in the early days of DNA testing. While the wait was agonizing at times, their prayers were finally answered. His story is complete.
McClure greeted mourners, many of whom never knew Keeney, as they filed into Christ Lutheran Church Cemetery in rural York County. McClure smiled, thinking about how she was able to keep her promise. To her uncle. To her family. And she was still alive to see a day she thought at times might never come.
“And I realized he’s finally home where he should be,” McClure said.
Still Many Left to Find
Keeney’s funeral service included a rifle salute, and a folded American flag was presented to his niece. Some relatives attending the service had never met before but came to give one final salute to Airman Keeney, a staff sergeant, who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation.
“I got to meet some second and third cousins that I didn’t even know existed,” McClure said. “This has been lovely, and I really appreciate everybody showing up for this.”
The ceremony was also bittersweet as McClure thought about her grandmother, Keeney’s mother, who went to her grave never knowing what happened to her son.
“It’s a big relief and a great satisfaction that my grandmom is finally satisfied,” McClure said.
“She’s happy now, and she knows I followed through all those years.”
According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, more than 72,000 U.S. soldiers from World War II are still unaccounted for. The agency began its work on Jan. 30, 2015, when the Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office merged with the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command department. In 2024, the agency reported that 172 service members had been identified in that year alone, including 135 World War II soldiers.
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