[News Today] War Hero remembered, Daughter reunited

[LEAD]
It was Parents' Day in South Korea yesterday. And for one daughter, it became an unforgettable moment, 74 years in the making. She lost her father during the Korean War and had never seen his face, not even in a photograph. But through a recent facial reconstruction project, she was finally able to meet the face of the father she never knew.

[REPORT]
As the national flag is removed, a picture of a 26-year-old young man appears.

His daughter, who is now in her 70s holds tight onto her father's portrait, refusing to let it go.

Song Jae-sook / Daughter of late Song Young-hwan
It was probably hard for him to close his eyes leaving me behind.

Seeing her father's photo for the first time, she places a carnation representing her love and respect for him.

This portrait is a restoration of late Private First Class Song Young-hwan, who perished in a battle in Jeongseon, Gangwon-do Province in March 1951 after volunteering to fight in the Korean War.

Song Jae-sook / Daughter of late Song Young-hwan
It was thrilling to hear that I look like him.

The Ministry of National Defense's Agency for Killed-in-action Recovery and Identification and the National Forensic Service are restoring the faces of four soldiers who were killed in action in the Korean War and whose skulls have been well-preserved.

Late Private First Class Song was the first among them.

His remains were found in 2013 and identified last October.

After a CT scan of his skull was taken, the damaged parts were filled to create the image of his face during lifetime.

Yoo Jun-yeol / Researcher, National Forensic Service
When a face is sculpted along the skull contours, facial restoration becomes complete.

Until now, there had been no real-life photos of this fallen war hero.

Song Jae-sook / Daughter of late Song Young-hwan
My father has given me this honor by honorably giving his life for his country.

Now his daughter has an image of her deceased father to remember him by.