National Vietnam War Veterans Day honors fallen heroes and families
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SENTINEL FILE PHOTO - The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. in July, 2017.
By Kaylee Lindenmuth
SHENANDOAH – Today marks National Vietnam Veterans Day, a time to thank all Vietnam-era veterans for “their dedicated service and great sacrifice,” according to the commonwealth Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.
The day received permanent dedication in 2017, and the day’s historical significance ties to March 29, 1973, the day combat and combat support units withdrew from South Vietnam.
“[Today,] we focus on thanking our Vietnam War veterans and their families for their tremendous service to this nation,” said Maj. Gen. Tony Carrelli, Pennsylvania’s adjutant general and head of the DMVA. “They make up the largest group of Pennsylvania veterans today (nearly 275,000) and deserve to be recognized on this national day of remembrance in their honor.”
The DMVA also uses the day as a way to draw attention to the national Vietnam War Wall of Faces program, for which it has partnered with the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) in Washington, D.C., to find a photo of every Pennsylvanian whose name appears on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. Each photo is posted to a virtual Wall of Faces “in order to put a face and a story to every name, allowing these Vietnam Veterans to be honored by family, friends, and others from around the world.”
“Even though the Vietnam War ended decades ago, we still have firm resolve to keep these heroes’ memories alive, for what they and their families all did for this nation,” said Carrelli. “Through this virtual Wall, we can continue to honor these great Americans and teach future generations what our veterans have done to secure freedom for today.”
Eleven fallen Vietnam veterans from our area are among those present on the virtual wall of faces.
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