Major Lewis Philip Smith II, a Forward Air Controller with the 29th Tactical Airlift Squadron, was shot down on Memorial Day, May 30, 1968, while flying an O-2A Skymaster over Laos. Trained on T-38 and C-130 aircraft, he had served in one of the most dangerous roles in Vietnam. He was declared killed in action but not recovered on June 21, 1978.

To his family, Lewis was larger than life—an eldest sibling whose presence, especially in dress blues, left lasting impressions. Remembered by his youngest sibling as “10 feet tall,” he was dignified, handsome, and kind. Quietly determined, Lewis had majored in music at Penn State and hoped to teach after fulfilling his service.

Though he never returned, Lewis’s legacy endures. His Penn State class ring was returned to his family in 2009 by a man who found and buried him. His name is etched on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall and the Courts of the Missing. He died in the prime of life, serving with courage to preserve the freedoms we hold today.