WWII soldier's remains return to Chicago after nearly 73 years

BOLINGBROOK, Ill. (WLS) -- A lifetime after leaving to defend the United States, Army Private Arthur "Bud" Kelder is home.

"He passed away in a POW camp and we have been trying to bring him home," said Doug Kelder, "Bud" Kelder's nephew.

Thursday's ceremony at O'Hare Airport was a testament to the courage Kelder displayed after he was taken prisoner in the Battle of Bataan, a fierce fight in the Philippines in which the Japanese captured 75,000 American and Filipino soldiers.

Kelder, who grew up in Chicago's Norwood Park neighborhood, eventually succumbed to disease and starvation in a POW camp. He died on November 19, 1942. His remains, along with 13 others, were buried in an unmarked grave.

Kelder's family had no knowledge of his death and continued to write letters well into 1943. Eventually the burial records were declassified, and it seemed obvious that would be shared with the family. However the U.S. government, for some reason, decided not to acknowledge that information in its own records.

"The last five years spent in a federal lawsuit with the Army and Secretary of Defense and after all this time, we were able to get his body disinterred and bring him back home," Doug Kelder said. "It was just overwhelming."

The head of the organization representing POW families says others can have confidence that the system has improved.

"It's a positive thing but it breaks your heart to think of how many years they had to wait for an answer to that," said Ann Mills Griffith, National League of POW-MIA families.