On Thursday, the San Luis Obispo County Veteran Services Office held its first-ever senior veteran welcome home event.
While KSBY was there covering the event, a special guest was in attendance to share the story of her father Elwyn Righetti, who went missing 80 years ago during World War II.
Our community reporter, Dylan Foreman, spoke with her for a few minutes about his story.
Elizabeth Kyle Righetti is the daughter of Elwyn who 80 years prior, lost her father who went missing in action when his plane was shot down in Germany on his 30th birthday, April 17, 1945, just weeks before the third Reich surrendered.
Although he radioed in that he was okay, they never heard from him again and his disappearance remains a mystery to this day.
"There's been hope in the family,” said Righetti. “There's been pride. A lot of pride. Closure. A sense of closure. It's been 80 years. That's a long time to wait."
The Righetti family has been synonymous with agriculture in the Edna Valley/San Luis Obispo area for well over a century.
You can learn more about Elwyn Righetti's life and military adventures in a book titled ‘Vanished Hero’ by Jay Stout or visit his exhibit and plenty of others at the Central Coast Veterans Memorial Museum off Grand Avenue in San Luis Obispo.
