Northern California soldier, missing for 75 years, comes home after Army identifies remains

Albert Estrada, an athletic and charming teen, knelt in his living room as his mother blessed him repeatedly and prayed for his safe return.

Estrada hungered to consume the world’s sights and wonders. But his parents, Mexican immigrants in the Bracero program, labored in California’s Woodland fields with no means to send Estrada, one of 15 children, to college. They encouraged him to join the U.S. Army in 1950, and the service-minded 17-year-old agreed.

Estrada — called Junior by his family — had worn a uniform for less than a year when his mother received a telegram declaring him missing in action as he fought in the Korean War. When the conflict ended, family members gathered around a radio to hear the list of prisoners of war. As the announcer said Albert, they leaned closer holding their breath.

But the surname was never Estrada.

For 75 years, the family wondered what happened to Junior, who always kept his shoes shiny and once recorded himself singing for his baby sister.

On Wednesday, he reunited with his mother after the U.S. Army positively identified his remains. Now, he rests next to his mother at St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Woodland.

https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2025-06-19/northern-california-veteran-missing-75-years-return-home-18175346.html