Mini Memorial Wall Draws Strong Emotions At Vietnam Vets Reunion

This year we managed to take a few trips to Melbourne for the reunion. As usual there were plenty of vendors selling things, camp grounds filled with different groups and a brotherhood that is hard to put into words.

The perfect picture seems to be this one. While he stands at the wall looking at the names, I was trying to take pictures quickly because people kept walking by. The names blurred and colors emerged in the photo but it was just a black wall with white lettering. It's perfect because when they think about their time in Vietnam, names may fade from memory, but faces didn't.

Talk to Vietnam veteran as they go thru their scrap book of fading pictures. They will look at each and everyone of them remembering the person in the picture, telling stories about them as if it all happened yesterday but they will struggle to remember their name.



Here are a few more I took yesterday.

Mini Memorial Wall Draws Strong Emotions At Vietnam Vets Reunion
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Reported by Margaret Kavanagh

MELBOURNE -- Strong emotions surrounded the 22nd Annual Vietnam and All Veterans Reunion this week at Wickham Park.

Roughly 80,000 people turned out to honor and remember those that gave their lives to protect the freedoms Americans enjoy here at home.

At the center of the reunion was the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall, a miniature replica of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington.

As thousands of troops fight overseas, Vietnam veterans said the event was a good way to bring people together and remember the fallen war heroes.
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Mini Memorial Wall Draws Strong Emotions At Vietnam Vets Reunion