WELLS — Enrollment at York County Community College is steadily increasing, but there is one chair that will remain empty, no matter how full the classrooms are.

North Berwick Company Hussey Seating, donated a POW MIA Chair of Honor Wednesday afternoon, and a ceremony to dedicate the chair was held on the first floor of the Pratt & Whitney Building, where the chair sits.

“The intent is for us to provide a chair that is perpetually empty so that prisoners of war and those missing in action always have a spot in every public gathering place,” said Hussey Seating Vice President of Sales and Marketing Sean O’Leary. “It’s the least we can do, one small token, to honor their service.” 

YCCC Foundation Vice-Chairman James Fitzgerald said that since World War I, 82,000 U.S. service members remain unaccounted for. 

Fitzgerald said the chair serves as an “instant and constant” reminder of all the sacrifices made for our country by these still missing Americans.

The chair that has never been sat in is in front of a desk that has not been used, with a notebook never opened and a pencil never sharpened. These represent a POW or MIA who never had the opportunity to attend college and further their education, said Fitzgerald.

“Even though you are not here, you are not and will not be forgotten,” he said. 

For more information on the POW/MIA Chair of Honor, go to www.husseyseating.com/chair-of-honor/.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribune.com.