After being missing in action for decades, James Caesar Mondati, SGT, United States Army Air Forces, is finally coming home.
James made the ultimate sacrifice for his country during WWII. James entered military service on December 16, 1939. He served with the 19th Air Base Squadron (AB Sq), 20th Air Base Group (AB Gp) in the Philippines. With the surrender of the forces in the spring of 1942, James became a prisoner of war.
James died on July 4th 1942, at the age of 22 on the Bataan Peninsula. As a prisoner of war, he endured the eight day, 65-mile Bataan Death March to Camp O’Donnell and then to Camp Cabanatuan, dying from disease, malnutrition and abuse.
James was listed as missing in action until the prisoners of war were liberated by the US Military Forces in 1945. It was then that the family learned of his death.
His remains were not immediately recovered or identified as the remains of over 2,700 POWs had been buried in common graves.
At the time, camp records associated his burial with a mass grave site at Cabanatuan.
James was born on May 3, 1920 to Eugenio Mondati and Rosa (Magagnini) Mondati. He graduated from Ely High School in 1937 and worked for Cy Fortier, the Ely Theater and CC Camps before joining the U.S. Army Air Forces.
During his military service, James was worried about his parents and sent funds home to help out the family during hard times. He wrote to his family that he missed hunting and fishing.
In 2018, surviving family members were contacted by the Army Casualty and Mortuary Affairs Operations requesting DNA. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) works tirelessly to recover and identify unaccounted Department of Defense personnel listed as prisoners of war or missing in action.
James’s remains were found at Common Grave 409 at Camp 1 of Camp Cabanatuan, sent home for forensic study and identified in March 2026 utilizing the DNA provided by surviving family members, one niece providing a full DNA profile to match.
James joins his parents, Eugenio and Rosa, sisters, Adeline, Delina (Catena), Mary (Puncher) and brothers, Enrico, John, and Natalina in eternal rest. His three brothers were also military service members during WWII. They survived the war and are buried on American soil.
James Ceasar Mondati will never be forgotten for his sacrifice and service for our Country.
A visitation will be held at the Kemtz Funeral Home, 140 E Sheridan St, Ely, MN 55731 on Friday, October 9, 2026 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
James will come home to be buried with full Military Honors next to his parents in Ely, Minnesota on October 10th, 2026 at 11 a.m. at the Ely Cemetery, 2110 MN-169, Ely, MN 55731.
A reception and lunch will be held at the Veterans on the Lake Resort, 161 Fernberg Rd, Ely, MN 55731, immediately following the graveside service.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home and members of the Army Casualty and Mortuary Affairs Operations.
The family wishes to extend their deepest gratitude to the United States Military, the DPAA, the Veterans on the Lake Resort, and the generous community members supporting them on this incredible journey home.
