U.S. Army Corporal Marvin S. Patton Receives Military Honors and Burial

By DANIELLE REID

Patriot Publishing

Family members of U.S. Army Corporal Marvin Silvester Patton received closure during a ceremony at the Southwest Virginia Veterans Cemetery in Dublin, on Monday, March 9, 2026.  Corporal Patton was reported missing in action on July 5, 1950 after a battle in Osan, South Korea but his remains were not accounted for until August 1, 2025.

Patton, who was born in Tazewell, enlisted in the U.S. Army after graduating from Cottage Hill High School and served with B Company, 1^st Battalion, 21^st Infantry Regiment, 24^th Infantry Division.  B Company was assigned to halt the advance of the North Korean Army into South Korea.

Edith Pearl Patton Kinder, one of Patton’s surviving sisters, said she was notified last year that his remains were accounted for by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency but that he was presumed dead in 1956.  Patton’s other surviving sister is Mary Martha Patton Remines of Rural Retreat.

“It’s good to get closure,” she remarked.  My brother was young when he went into the service. We had two other brothers fighting in Korea.  (Private First-Class) Johnny Lee Patton was taken as a prisoner of War.  He died in 1950, but they haven’t found his remains, she added.”

Another brother who was also fighting in Korea, Carl Roger Patton, was returned home after the loss of the family’s two sons.

According to one of Patton’s nieces, Susan Bartlett, “We finally get closure and we are crying happy tears.  It’s an honor to bring Uncle Marvin home after 75 years, and to celebrate today with the family.  Our family has a long history of military service and we have cousins in the Navy, Marines and Army,” said Bartlett.

During the ceremony honoring Patton, Bartlett read a letter written by Corporal Patton to his parents.  The letter was preserved in a family Bible and recently discovered.  On the flip side of the letter were cartoon-type drawings, showing that Patton had a fun sense of humor.

“The letter to his Mama is a powerful proof of Marvin’s love for family and friends. He wrote about how much he missed his Mama’s fried chicken, and his girlfriend, Evelyn,” she said tearfully.

Judy Remines shared how special it was to see family members coming together to do honor to Patton.  “There are family members I haven’t seen in years – and I’ve met two cousins that I never met before.  We all came together to honor Uncle Marvin (Patton),” stated Remines.

Military honors were bestowed upon Corporal Patton by U.S. Army service members from Fort Lee in Virginia who served as Pallbearers, performing a Three Shot Volley, followed by Taps and the Playing of Taps.  They also presented the flags that draped his coffin to his two sisters, Edith Pearl Patton Kinder and Mary Martha Patton Remines.

U.S. Army Service Members from Fort Lee are:  SFC Seiber, SSG Ancheta, SSG Silva, SSG Lyons, SSG Mazzullo, SSG Dyson, SSG Baker, SSG Latiolais.

Southwest Virginia Veteran Cemetery personnel were present as well as the Southwest Virginia Veteran Cemetery Honor Guard, as a tribute to the family of the fallen soldier, Corporal Patton.

“We are so honored to be welcoming home this Korean War Hero, and so grateful for the extraordinary sacrifice of the Patton family. Bringing Corporal Patton back to Virginia 75 years after his death demonstrates our nation’s commitment to never leaving a service person behind,” said John Maxwell, Commissioner of the Virginia Department of Veterans Services.

Patton is the recipient of the Purple Heart, Combat Infantryman Badge, Korean Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Republic of Korea Presidential Citation, Republic of Korea War Service Medal, United National Service Medal, Army Presidential Unit Citation, Army Good Conduct Medal and Marksmanship Badge.    He is also memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific and at the Honolulu Memorial.  Additionally, his name is inscribed on the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DC and in the Virginia War Memorial Shrine of Memory: 20^th Century – Korea section under Tazwell.