Yo Tonk!! Thanks for letting folks know about the Operation Welcome Home being held at Nellis AFB in Las Vegas and in other communities on Memorial Day 05. I was listening to G Gordon Liddy the other day. He was interviewing the author of a new book entitled "Naked In Da Nang" by Col. Mike Jackson and a co author whose name I did not catch. It is a book filled with the FUNNY stories of what happened to the author in VietNam. He also included some of the more serious sides to life at that time and place, and after some of the early readers who sampled his book, the feed back consensus seems to be, "You got it right! I want my family to read this!"
During the interview, it came out that they are planning a nation wide WELCOME HOME VIET NAM VETS event on Veterans Day. What they are hoping to do is coordinate parades and other events across the nation. The main celebration will be in Las Vegas, but they are hoping that when other parades are organized they will occur at the same exact time.
The web site is http://www.vietnamwelcomehome.org/
From their FAQ:
Q. How will this event be paid for?
A. Operation Welcome Home is being supported through corporate and organizational partnerships and private donations. This is a grassroots effort by concerned citizens, patriotic companies and civic organizations who believe it is finally time to heal the scars of the Vietnam era. Checks should be written to "Aviation Nation / OWH" Aviation Nation, Inc. is a 501 C (3) non-profit private organization that donates support to the Aviation Nation air show at Nellis Air Force Base. Aviation Nation is an official U.S. Air Force air show and one of America's top aviation events. Operation Welcome Home is a key component of the Aviation Nation 2005 air show and all donations will go toward supporting the Operation Welcome Home component of this world-class event. Since the organizing entity is a non-profit organization, donors will receive all the tax benefits of a charitable contribution.
Q. What will the event involve?
A. The Welcome Home celebration will be hosted by Las Vegas and Aviation Nation, but will include activities throughout the nation. Las Vegas will present a huge Veterans Day Welcome Home parade and the objective is for cities and towns nationwide to hold their own parades at the same time - thus creating the largest Welcome Home parade in history...
Thanks for the ping!
Q. What will the event involve? A. The Welcome Home celebration will be hosted by Las Vegas and Aviation Nation, but will include activities throughout the nation. Las Vegas will present a huge Veterans Day Welcome Home parade and the objective is for cities and towns nationwide to hold their own parades at the same time - thus creating the largest Welcome Home parade in history...