“Promise made, promise kept,” said Jim Eddleman, on building memorial wall

Vietnam Veteran fulfills promise 5 decades later

KFVS NBC 12 News
By Kelsey Anderson
March 1, 2019

PERRYVILLE, MO (KFVS) - A Perryville man made a promise to himself while serving in the Vietnam War.

If he made it home, he would honor his fallen comrades. Now, nearly five decades later he gave a part of himself to build it and the land to build it on.

“Promise made, promise kept,” said Jim Eddleman, who was a specialist in the Army during the Vietnam War.

“When I was in Vietnam, I made a promise that if i made it back to the United States alive that I had to do something to show my honor and respect for my comrades,” said Eddleman.

He never forgot the promise and was waiting for the right opportunity to fulfill it.

“Finally this opportunity for the veterans memorial come up and I knew that was what I wanted to do,” said Eddleman.

The wall that's an exact replica of the one in Washington D.C. sits on property donated by Eddleman and his wife Charlene.
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