Racine County VSO details local 'empty chair' memorials placed across Southeast Wisconsin

Sean Rivers, the Racine County veteran service officer, spoke at the Kenosha County Center remembrance ceremony about a regional effort to place POW/MIA "chairs of honor" where people gather.

"There's nothing complicated about it. It is simply a seat that remains empty," Rivers said, describing chairs placed at Milwaukee Harley-Davidson in 2016, Simmons Field in Kenosha (the Kingfish), the Wisconsin Veterans Home at Union Grove, the Kenosha County Executive's Office (installed 2019), the Kenosha County Center (installed 2020), a display at the Wisconsin State Capitol rotunda and a 2024 installation at Pritchard Park Metro Memorial in Racine. Rivers said each chair differs in design but carries the same promise: "You are not forgotten."

Rivers said the chairs are intentionally sited where people live and work so remembrance is part of everyday life rather than confined to cemeteries or memorials. He encouraged attendees to pause and reflect on the empty chair on display at the County Center before leaving the ceremony.