Every night, for many years, I prayed that Douglas P. was OK. I’d look at the bracelet that I never removed from my wrist, and consider the date that appeared on it. Along with the name. Every day meant more time away from home.

The wristlet was a Prisoner of War (POW) bracelet from Vietnam. I haven’t thought about it in years, but as we recognize the 50-year anniversary of the end of the war, the memory has come back to me with brilliance.

My dad was close to Doug’s dad. When Doug was captured, Dad asked me if I would like a POW bracelet to wear to support him. He explained that the bracelets were designed to be worn all of the time until the POW named returned home. I was a little girl, but each night I eagerly watched the news to see if Doug would come home. When he eventually returned, I mailed it to him with a note. I welcomed him home and told him that I prayed for him every night.

Later I received a long letter from him, a young kid from Casper, Wyoming. He wrote that he was so happy to hear from me and that I remembered him every day. He cherished the thought that a little girl was thinking about him and thanked him for his service.

Why am I sharing this story? This memory made me grasp things that I hadn’t considered all those years ago. I now know that the POW bracelets weren’t just a “nice” thing that was happening at the time. This was a concerted public relations effort. It was a humanizing effort.

Unless you were alive then, you may not realize how polarizing that time was. In many ways it’s similar to what is taking place now, in my opinion. The bracelets were a quiet but effective way to remind people that U.S. soldiers were being held prisoner in a land far away. Our folks were in need of our support.

When bracelets were purchased, the small fee collected was used to support our POWs, and if possible, let them know that someone was wearing their name every day in support. The date I mentioned? It was the date of Doug’s capture. Watching the days tick slowly by gives you a different perspective, even as a little girl. I wasn’t interested in the politics, I just wanted Doug to come home.

I was often asked what I was wearing. When I shared his story, no one debated the merits of the war. We just wanted to support the folks that were there on our behalf. It didn’t change the world, but it positively changed the lives of those who were held captive and returned to a world they didn’t recognize.What are things that your business or organization could be doing to humanize people? Those that are effective in this arena will benefit by focusing on what draws people together.

Not what separates people. In times of division, businesses and organizations that focus on bridging divides and providing leadership are those that resonate in their communities.

Pulitzer Prize winning author Geraldine Brooks says, “There are always a few who stand up in times of communal madness and have the courage to say that what unites us is greater than what divides us.”

I didn’t realize that I was making a statement all those years ago. I just knew that Doug needed to come home.

The POW bracelet project was able to bring people together in support of people. Not in support of the war. Not against the war.

Just our neighbors, family and friends.

Stacy Cornay is the owner of Communication Concepts Public Relations & Advertising. She may be reached at 303-638-7127 or scornay@comm-concepts.com.