Woman at last meets man honored on bracelet: McCain

In 1971, Teresa Herring was an 11-year-old girl enjoying the rural farm life on Yonge's Island. She rode her bike all over the place, she had just picked up water-skiing as a hobby, and one of the most important figures in her life was her Shetland pony, Dynamite. All in all, it was an idyllic life rich in Southern country comforts.

Thousands of miles and a world away, John McCain was at the mercy of his North Vietnamese captors, suffering regular beatings at least two times a week at Hoa Loa Prison in Hanoi. He had already been a prisoner of war for four years and had refused a repatriation offer because he felt soldiers who had been captured before him should be released before or with him. He spent two years in solitary confinement and survived a bout of dysentery.

Even though they did not know each other at the time, they became linked by a strip of inexpensive metal when Herring went to a Citadel football game that year. For about a dollar, she bought one of the popular Vietnam POW bracelets at a concession stand. Each bracelet bore the name and rank of a soldier and the date the soldier went missing in action.

The POW bracelets were the "Livestrong" movement of the day, with people nationwide wearing them as a sign of patriotism in wartime.

"It was kind of a serendipitous purchase to buy this," Herring said. But she said a lot of her friends had them.

The name engraved on her bracelet? Lt. Cmdr. John McCain III.

"I thought about the fear and the pain he was experiencing and how much he must be missed by his family," she said.

She wore the bracelet for two years. She prayed for him every night, she said, and when she saw the picture of him in the local newspaper returning to his family at Jacksonville, Fla., Naval Air Station in March 1973, she rejoiced. Her parents even clipped out the picture and accompanying article.

She continued to wear the bracelet for a while after he returned, but eventually kept it safe with her other jewelry.

Herring went on to graduate from the University of South Carolina with a degree in marine biology. She volunteered in the Peace Corps and performed research in her field of study. She received her master's degree in medical science from Emory University in 1990, then worked in Atlanta and Virginia Beach. She moved to James Island three years ago to "reconnect with my roots and enjoy my family."

Herring had wanted to meet McCain since his return to tell him he had been in her thoughts all those years ago. She even wrote the Arizona senator a letter in 1995 but never mailed it.

"I never thought it would get to him," she said.

But her chance arose when McCain made a campaign stop at the American Legion Post on Folly Road last year. She met him in the middle of a large crowd and excitedly stated her story to the presidential hopeful.

"I said, 'Sen. McCain, this is your POW bracelet. It's yours, look!' " She said he gently held her hand and offered his gratitude for her prayers.

The POW bracelet tradition was to wear it until the serviceman was located, and then break it in half. One part went to the returned soldier or his family and the wearer kept the other half. But instead, McCain asked her to keep the bracelet safe, and then he gave her a hug.

"This interaction with Sen. McCain proved to me his ability to be caring and tender, yet demonstrate his natural affinity for strength, power, courage and leadership."

She met him again when he made an appearance at Hibernian Hall on Meeting Street recently and said he recognized her when she showed him the bracelet.

"This to me is an assumed one-on-one bond with the serviceman, defining an unspoken lesson of unity, caring and brotherhood," Herring said.

Reach Sophia Rodriguez at 937-5538 or srodriguez@postandcourier.com.