He flourished at Boys Town, making honor roll the majority of his time there and playing football, basketball, track, and baseball.

As an enlisted man, Bucher reached the rank of quartermaster second class and obtained a high-school diploma.

In January 1954, Bucher was called to active duty and served as division and education officer on the USS Mount McKinley.

This treatment allegedly turned worse when the North Koreans realized that crewmen were secretly giving them "the finger" in staged propaganda photos, an action the crew had initially explained away as being a "Hawaiian good luck sign".

[2][3] Bucher was psychologically tortured such as being put through a mock firing squad in an effort to make him confess.

Eventually, the Koreans threatened to execute his men in front of him, and Bucher relented and agreed to 'confess to his and the crew's transgression.'

Exactly 11 months after being taken prisoner, Bucher led the long line of crewmen, followed at the end by the executive officer, Lieutenant Ed Murphy, the last man across the bridge.

The ship is still officially carried as in commission in the United States Navy's Naval Vessel Register.

Bucher was not found guilty of any indiscretions and continued his Navy career until retirement in the rank of commander.

The Poway-Bernardo Mortuary, which was featured in the A&E reality TV series Family Plots at the time, handled the funeral services.