Photo project memorializes fallen Vietnam soldiers

Photo project memorializes fallen Vietnam soldiers
Sun Sentinel
By Mike Clary
August 5, 2013

Since it opened in 1982, perhaps no monument in the U.S. has evoked more sadness, and drawn more tears, than the black granite wall in the nation's capital known as the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Until recently, however, nearly half of the more than 58,000 names inscribed on the wall have been faceless — unaccompanied by any archival photo or biography that tells the story of who those soldiers, Marines and airmen were.

Among the undocumented are some 1,100 men and women from Florida, including 144 from Broward and Palm Beach counties.

But now, the faces and stories of Lance Cpl. Robert Irwin, 20, of Hollywood, fellow Marine Lance Cpl. Walter "Bucky" Gierman II, 21, from Lake Worth, and others are being collected thanks to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund's "Call For Photos."

It is part of Faces Never Forgotten, a nationwide campaign to gather photographs of service members whose names are inscribed on the Washington memorial.

"We want to show who they were, to make it more than just a name on the wall," said former Naval officer John Dibble, a Vietnam veteran and chairman of the VVMF's board. "They were people with loved ones and comrades, and we want to bring that home to new generations of visitors."
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Jan 23, 2012
Take a in-depth tour of the Education Center at The Wall, the place on the National Mall where the stories and sacrifices of military heroes will never be forgotten. The Education Center at The Wall will put a face to every name on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

To ensure that these brave individuals are never lost to future generations, we need your help to build the Center. To learn how you can help visit: www.buildthecenter.org

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund would like to thank Vietnam veteran and supporter Richard McGonagle for providing the narration.