'The Wall' honors Vietnam vets for 20 years

Air Force Link ^ | 11/07/02 | Unknown

[SAMWolf]

'The Wall' honors Vietnam vets for 20 years

Thousands will gather at the National Mall in the coming days to witness and participate in ceremonies marking the 20th anniversary of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

The weeklong remembrance began with a musical tribute to Vietnam veterans Nov. 6 and will end with a Veterans Day observance Nov. 11. In between, more than 1,000 volunteers will read the names inscribed on "The Wall," starting at 3:30 p.m. Nov. 7 and ending at midnight Nov. 10.

It is only the third time in The Wall's history that all 58,229 names will be read aloud. Volunteers, each reciting an average of 30 names, will read for about 19 hours each day Nov. 8-10. The full list of names was read in 1982 as part of the memorial's dedication and again in 1992 during activities commemorating the memorial's 10th anniversary.

Master Sgt. Angeline Robinson, the Pentagon's vice president of the Washington Area Top 3, will attend a reading for the second time, although this will be her first as a participant. She attended The Wall's 10th anniversary reading, and obtained a "wall rubbing" on behalf of her boss at the time, Adm. David E. Jeremiah, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The name of Jeremiah's nephew was one of those being read.

"When I remembered that, this year's reading became very significant to me," she said. "I decided to participate because it's a way to honor those who went before us."

Thirty-four Air Force members from the Washington Area Top 3 will read 540 names, beginning at 11:24 p.m. Nov. 8.

"It's a way for us to give back," Robinson said. "It's as simple as that."

For some, though, the symbolism of reading the names on The Wall goes deeper. One of those is Bao Nguyen, a Vietnamese-American who was once jailed by the North Vietnamese, later served as a South Vietnamese Army officer, and currently works at the Pentagon on the Air Force Chief Information Officer's staff.

"Each year (on Veterans Day), I have a need to express my gratitude to all American veterans in general, all the Vietnam veterans in particular, and to the more than 58,000 names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial for their sacrifices to defend the freedom of a people in a place they hardly knew," Nguyen said. "(And it's) not just me alone. Overseas, Vietnamese are forever grateful for those sacrifices."

For more information on the 20th anniversary of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund Web site

[SAMWolf]

Thanks for the excelant link. I hope you don't mind if I make it clickable.

"The Price Of Freedom Is Written On The Wall"

[SAMWolf]

Thanks Tonk.

I haven't told you "Welcome Home, Brother" in a while.

[Victoria Delsoul]

Thanks for the link, Souris. It's sad to see so many young lives lost.

[Victoria Delsoul]

Thanks for the photos, Souris. Very moving, indeed.

[Mustang]

Thank you Sam....I'll make it a point to visit the Portland Memorial on my next flight up there.

Mustang sends...from Florida...BTW, the 'weax' reports from the left coast are reporting rather stormy conditions. The surf and snow seem to be up!

Break out the long boards, wet suits and snow boards!

We're still in the 80's down here. :)

[Victoria Delsoul]

That was great. Thanks Sam.

[Victoria Delsoul]

LOL! That's cute, Misty. :-)

[VOA]

bump

[SAMWolf]

News this morning was reporting 12 foot waves at the coast.

[Don'tMessWithTexas]

My daddy was a Navy boy in Korea. In 1950, he served on a minesweeper in the South China Sea. When it hit a mine, he was topside smoking a cig. He saw one of his buddies blown to bits. My daddy lost all his hair. I try to imagine a poor skinny kid all alone in the ocean. He died 14 years later.

God Bless all our veterans. The ones still with us and the ones who paid the ultimate sacrifice.

[MistyCA]

I am sorry for your loss, and the loss to your family.

[Don'tMessWithTexas]

Leave it to Ol' Possum to do an outstanding job. He can put so much in a song. I mean he practically throws out the line "packs of gum" and then he rips your heart out with the line "fatherless daughters and fatherless sons". I would love to hear that song played everywhere on Vets Day.

[MistyCA]

lol! that's cute! :)

[MistyCA]

Nice seeing you, Tonk!

[Don'tMessWithTexas]

BTW, how did you make that a clickable link?

[MistyCA]

Thank you for what you did for those vets from California. What a wonderful gesture that was.

[MistyCA]

Well, thanks! :)

[MistyCA]

There is a special place in heaven for men like your Dad. May God Bless and keep him. I am sorry for your loss.

[MistyCA]

For some reason you are making it hard for me to see my screen too.