U.S. Hostages Mark One Year in Captivity

May 27 -- The family of Martin and Gracia Burnham are marking a grim anniversary today: a full year that the Kansas missionaries have been held captive by Philippine guerrillas.

"We want to go home alive to our family," Martin Burnham said in a videotape released to news organizations in February. "We can hardly express it in words."

For the past year, the Burnhams have been held captive somewhere deep in the Philippine jungle, moving frequently with their captors, who are fleeing the Philippine military. The captors are members of Abu Sayyaf, a Muslim militant group which reportedly has ties to Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda terror network.

U.S. forces joined the search five months ago, but military officials compared the task to finding a tiny tack in a backyard. Last month, the United States helped arrange a ransom agreement that included $300,000 in privately raised money.

ABCNEWS learned last month that the cash was handed to an individual who claimed ties to the terrorist group, but U.S. officials were never able to verify that he delivered the money.

"We just know that there was an agreement made, and Martin and Gracia were to be released, and they were not," Martin's mother Oreta Burnham told Good Morning America. "What went wrong or what happened we don't know, but we do know that they have not been released as the agreement was made."

The Burnhams said they speak to officials at the State Department every day, but have received no new information recently. U.S. officials are still hoping that the release will be negotiated, with the help of joint efforts by the Philippine and American militaries.

Children Wait Patiently for Parents

The missionaries have three children, ranging in age from 11 to 15, who are being taken care of by the grandparents. The separation has been hard for the children.

"I think they've been very patient, and very understanding, and they've had many friends and a lot of support," Oreta Burnham said. "Yet, one year is a long time to be separated abruptly from your mother and father."