Vietnam Memorial

[Bo Diddley]

On our recent trip to DC, we stopped by the Vietnam Memorial. That was my first visit to the memorial, if you can believe that, and it had quite an impact on me.

I had two uncles that volunteered to go. They signed up to become Green Berets. Uncle John followed through all of the training and became a Green Beret. I never heard him speak a word about Vietnam in my life. Uncle Daryl had a problem with heights, so he didn't do the airborne training, and instead became an infantryman.

My uncle John has passed away, but my Uncle Daryl is still alive. In his infantry unit, he lost quite a few friends. He still has hard feelings for the way he and his brother were treated when they came home. I don't think he's ever been to the Vietnam Memorial in DC. I want to convince him to let me fly him and his wife out to DC and take him to the Vietnam Memorial. I think this will be my next project.

Vietnam Memorial.jpg

Vietnam Memorial 2.jpg

[happyone]

My father, who served in Viet Nam ('66-'67) was very much against the "Wall" design when it was proposed. He felt it was not appropriate and denigrated those who served. When it was approved and built, I remember him saying he would never go see it. A few yrs later he was in DC for a Principal's convention and Mom dragged him to it. He later admitted that it was very moving and said he approved. Later when my brothers were stationed in DC, he had retired from teaching and would visit them often. They said every time he visited, one of the first things he wanted to do was visit "The Wall". He also likes the Korean War Memorial. He joined the National Guard at the tail end of the Conflict, so he has personal connections to both wars.
I was also deeply moved when I went.

[happyone]

For those who don't know, Layton has a Viet Nam wall replica.

[wuapinmon]

Is the statue of the three soldiers the first statue on federal land of an African-American?

[frank ryan]

Is the statue of the three soldiers the first statue on federal land of an African-American?

No.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington_Carver_National_Monument

[wuapinmon]

No.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George...ional_Monument

Cool! Thanks for posting that.

[All-American]

No.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George...ional_Monument

Though in fairness, most of the voters in that area probably couldn’t read past the first two words when they pushed for it. Bet they were real surprised once they found out.

[Northwestcoug]

The Portland Vietnam Memorial is also moving, in it's own little way. It has a granite slab for each year of the war, naming those who died that year. It's somber to see how quickly the deaths escalated.

[New Mexican Disaster]

My father, who served in Viet Nam ('66-'67) was very much against the "Wall" design when it was proposed. He felt it was not appropriate and denigrated those who served. When it was approved and built, I remember him saying he would never go see it. A few yrs later he was in DC for a Principal's convention and Mom dragged him to it. He later admitted that it was very moving and said he approved. Later when my brothers were stationed in DC, he had retired from teaching and would visit them often. They said every time he visited, one of the first things he wanted to do was visit "The Wall". He also likes the Korean War Memorial. He joined the National Guard at the tail end of the Conflict, so he has personal connections to both wars.
I was also deeply moved when I went.

When I was fourteen my parents and I visited the Vietnam Wall. It was very emotional for my dad. The war changed his life completely, as he was a draftee who went on to become an officer and spent his career in the Army. He was very emotional on our visit and it spurred a lot of conversation about that time period between us. I am very grateful that we got that experience since he died a few years later.

[Bo Diddley]

I'm spending my Saturday at a conference for officers in the National Guard here locally. We had a couple of former P.O.W.s, Jay Hess and Lynn Beens speak to us. Wow. They both spent time in the Hanoi Hilton. Some people have sacrificed so much for our country.