A tribute to those who died during the Vietnam War is coming to Centerville next month as part of an exhibit that will also honor local men and women who died after returning home from war.
The Wall That Heals, a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC, and a mobile education center, will be on display July 27-30 at Yankee Park, 7500 Yankee St.
Presented by the Washington-Centerville Public Library, the exhibit honors the more than 3 million Americans who served in the US Armed Forces in the Vietnam War. It bears the names of the 58,281 men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in Vietnam.
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The exhibit, which is traveling across the country, will be officially available for continuous viewing from July 27-30. She is scheduled to arrive July 25 at Sinclair Community College: Centerville Regional Center, 5800 Clio Road, and will be escorted to Yankee. Park, according to Liz Fultz, the library’s director.
“We will be building it from 8.30am on Wednesday (July 26) and officially open on Thursday July 27 (10am) with music, speeches, taps (and more),” he said Fultz. The exhibition will close on July 30 at 2 p.m.
The tribute will also feature a special “In Memory Honor Roll” featuring photos of Ohio Vietnam veterans who returned from the war but have since died from Agent Orange, the disorder post-traumatic stress and other illnesses as a result of their service.
“Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund believes that all who served in Vietnam should be honored and remembered for their service,” VVMF said on its website. “The ‘In Memory’ program allows the families and friends of those who returned home and later died the opportunity to have them remembered forever.”
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Area residents can submit their loved one’s information for free by June 27 a www.vvmf.org/inmemory-apply to include your profile. All Ohio veterans honored through the In Memory program will have their photos and names displayed as part of the Education Center’s mobile exhibit when The Wall That Heals is in Centerville.
Those wishing to honor a veteran must complete a brief application and submit the veteran’s DD214 showing proof of service in Vietnam, a copy of their death certificate and two photographs.
Having a veteran honored through the In Memory program includes creating a personal online memorial page with their photo and biographical information. Family members can share the page and leave memories about their loved one. To view the Honor Roll, visit www.vvmf.org/Honor-Roll.
Those honoring a veteran also receive an invitation to an upcoming In Memory Weekend in Washington, DC, which includes a ceremony at the site of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial where each honoree’s name is read aloud. Each applicant also receives a personal tribute certificate printed with their veteran’s photo.
For more information, visit www.wclibrary.info/thewallthatheals.
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Fultz said the goal of the exhibit is to honor as many Ohio Vietnam veterans as possible.
The exhibit will also include “Left at The Wall,” a display of items representative of those left on The Wall in Washington, DC, and “Directory and Kiosk,” where people can search for names using VVMF’s Wall of Faces at kiosk or paper directories.
The library is asking for volunteers act as ambassadors to greet and assist visitors, handle traffic control and help visitors search for a name.
“Some of these harder-to-fill spots, the peak hours between midnight and 6 a.m., are especially good for veterans who understand the sacredness and solemnity of what happened,” the library spokeswoman said Debe Dockins, whose father served three tours in Vietnam.
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