John Lyght in his Air Force uniform, 1945. From the John Lyght photograph collection

A special honor guard participates in the funeral procession for the Unknown Serviceman of the Vietnam Era. Picture are Gen. J. A. Wickam, USA; Admiral James D. Watkins, CNO; Gen. Charles A. Gabriel, USAF; Gen. John W. Vessey Jr., Chairman, JCS; and Gen. Paul Kelley, CMC. The senior enlisted men of their respective services march with them. Public domain.

Gen. John W. Vessey Jr. (standing) meeting with Caspar Weinberger, President Ronald Reagan, Vice President George H. W. Bush, and Robert McFarlane in the Oval Office of the White House, January 20, 1981. Public domain.

Retired Army Gen. John W. Vessey Jr., left, who served as the tenth chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, greets Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, right, the eighteenth chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, at the Minnesota National Guard Armory in Rosemount, Minnesota, August 16, 2012. Public domain.

Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, December 1, 2000. John W. Vessey Jr. stands second from the left, next to Gen. Colin Powell. Public domain.

John W. Vessey Jr., ca. 1983. Public domain.

Earl and Ruth Tanbara on their wedding day in Portland, Oregon, 1935. Photo from the private collection of Judy Nomura Murakami. Used with the permission of Judy Nomura Murakami.

Ruth Nomura in a flower kimono, 1924. Photo from the private collection of Judy Nomura Murakami. Used with the permission of Judy Nomura Murakami.

Ruth Nomura and family in Portland, Oregon. Left to right: Howard (sitting), Paul (standing), Ruth, mother Kiyo (standing), Elsie, and father Frank Jiro, 1919. Photo from the private collection of Judy Nomura Murakami. Used with the permission of Judy Nomura Murakami.