Traveling Tribute brings story of sacrifice to Oshkosh, Fox Valley
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial located in Washington D.C. honors U.S. service members who paid the supreme sacrifice during the Vietnam War. The war lasted from 1955 to 1975, years which featured aid and assistance from troops of the United States armed services. During this 20 year period, over 58,000 out of the 3 million American service members involved lost their lives. In honor of their sacrifices, the Vietnam Wall was constructed and dedicated in 1982, including an initial 57,939 names. In the 42 years since its dedication, an additional 337 names have been added to honor a total of 58,276 individuals who lost their lives in service throughout the Vietnam War. Of these losses, at least 38,572 died in combat, 5,264 died of wounds, 3,524 died while missing, and 116 died while captured as a prisoner of war.
Attracting over 5 million visitors each year, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is consistently the most-visited site on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Although millions are able to see the wall each year, many families and service members are unable to travel that distance. In order to bring the experience and connection to more people around the United States, the American Veterans Traveling Tribute was created. The traveling wall is an 80 percent size replica containing each of the 58,000+ names represented on the original and has traveled to all 48 states in the continental US. As time goes on and service members are found or death dates are discovered, names and missing statuses are changed accordingly on the original memorial as well as the traveling tribute.
From September 10-13, 2024, Sons of the American Legion Squadron 70 sponsored the Traveling Vietnam Wall to come to the Sunnyview Expo Center in Oshkosh. The American Legion, American Legion Auxiliary, Sons of the American Legion, and the American Legion Riders in the Oshkosh area have each taken part in organizing the event every few years since 2008.
Sons of the American Legion Squadron 70 commander Rick Helms stresses the importance of organizing community events for local veterans, families, and students alike to learn and pay their respects.
“It’s especially important because there are over 58,000 names on this wall who have given everything, given their lives, and there’s a lot of people that will come here, including fellow veterans who have served with those whose names are on the wall,” he said. “So this is really an opportunity for them to reconnect, to pay that honor and their respects to the fallen soldiers.”
Accessibility is a major factor in deciding where to hold the traveling wall, according to Helms.
"Typically the traveling tributes would be located outdoors in a park setting, but we bring this one inside the Sunnyview Expo Center so that weather doesn't prevent people from being able to get out here, and we ensure that ADA accessibility is very easy, so that many people are able to see this and have this experience,” he said.
Sunnyview was staffed 24 hours a day for people to be able to access the traveling wall and other educational resources related to military history in the United States.
"We are open 24 hours a day in order to provide people with the opportunity to see this memorial whenever they need to,” Helms said. “We've had family members and veterans come to see the wall at 1AM, and this allows them to be able to pay their respects and have this experience when they need it and aren't able to see the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C."
Helms is grateful to be a part of planning and organizing this event.
“It’s always interesting to hear stories from veterans that know somebody that’s on this wall that was there serving alongside them,” he said. “It’s always very humbling to learn people’s stories, and it's just a small way that I can pay it forward and honor those sacrifices as somebody who did not serve myself.”
As the Vietnam War fades further and further into the dust of history, Helms believes in the vital importance of educating current generations on the sacrifices made.
"This traveling tribute serves to help people remember and provide veterans and people who will never be able to make it to D.C. to see the original wall to have this experience,” he said. “We also have the Cost of Freedom tribute panels which educate people on conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, 9/11, and other events, so it’s important to remind people that for every name on these walls, they gave the ultimate sacrifice and left a family behind, that for every name on these walls, loved ones were left behind, and it’s important to know that that’s the cost of freedom and the reason we’re able to live our lives the way we do today is because others before us gave their own."
by Ciera Striley
Published November 4th, 2024
Oshkosh West Index Volume 121 Issue II