Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson was thanked this week by the family of a soldier killed during the Korean War for his part in helping to return the soldier's remains from North Korea. Richardson met privately with the family of Cpl. Clem Robert Boody of Independence, Iowa, on Tuesday in Des Moines, days after they learned that DNA testing confirmed the remains as those of their family member. The family credits Richardson and former Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi, who traveled to North Korea in April and spoke with military leaders there, for securing the remains of six soldiers, including Boody. The U.S. Department of Defense still has the remains, but Boody's family expects to bury his remains this fall in Independence.

After learning that the remains are those of her uncle, Stacey Brewer, of Toledo, Iowa, sent a letter of thanks to the New Mexico governor.

"I wanted to say: Thank you Gov. Richardson for taking the time to remember the sacrifices made by the families of those who served their country over 50 years ago. Thank you for bringing my uncle home to the United States," she wrote in the letter dated last Thursday.

Richardson told The Associated Press that returning the remains to the families is "an important step in bringing closure and I was humbled to have played a small part.

"These soldiers have sacrificed so much for this country, the least we can do is give them a final resting place near their loved ones," he said.

Family members couldn't be reached to comment, but in the letter, Brewer said she promised her father, George H. Boody, before he died that she would work to get answers about where his brother was killed, how he died and where his remains could be located. She said she spent years trying to get U.S. Army officials to help her, but got nowhere.

Boody, a member of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, was listed as Missing in Action while fighting near Unsan, North Korea on Nov. 2, 1950, and was presumed dead on Dec. 31, 1953, according to a statement from Richardson's office.

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