The Wall That Heals makes an impression in Fayette County
Stretching across the baseball field at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, the Wall That Heals offers education and reflection about the Vietnam War.
The university and the Fayette County Cultural Trust brought the mobile memorial of the Vietnam War to the Lemont Furnace campus on Thursday, where it will remain on display 24 hours a day through Monday.
The replica wall honors the more than 3 million Americans who served in the Vietnam War, and bears the names of the 58,281 men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice.
Daniel Cocks, executive director of the Fayette County Cultural Trust, said 49 service members from Fayette County lost their lives during the war, and 693 service members lost their lives in the counties surrounding Fayette.
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, which was authorized by Congress in 1980 to build the original wall in Washington, D.C., also created and maintains the mobile replica wall.
John Coleman of Somerset is a cultural trust board member and works for Janney Montgomery Scott LLC, which is one of the sponsors that helped bring the wall to Fayette County. He and all of the employees at the business’ Uniontown office volunteered to help for the duration of the wall’s display.
“We thought it was the least we could do to pay our respects to those who served,” Coleman said.
Coleman, who saw the full-size wall in Washington, said the replica is also impressive.
“I think this is a great experience,” Coleman said. “I’m glad to see it during the day, and now I want to come back and see it at night.”
Laura Williams of Rostraver, one of Colman’s volunteer co-workers, came to see the wall the night it arrived to gain a better understanding of the Vietnam War through the mobile education center trailer that accompanies the wall.
“I found it very informative,” Williams said, adding that she was shown how to assist people to find names on the wall.
Williams added that The Wall That Heals is a positive community event and something that means a lot for those who have served as well as their families.
Along with the public having access to the wall, events surrounding the wall included a “Welcome Home” ceremony Thursday afternoon as well as a presentation by Vietnam veteran and actor Stu Richel called “Vietnam…through my lens” at the Maggie Hardy Magerko Auditorium on Friday.
“This year, the nation recognizes the 50th anniversary of the date the last combat troops left South Vietnam,” Cocks said. “We honor Vietnam veterans and their families for their service, and remember the men and women who put the lives of others ahead of their own to serve during one of America’s longest foreign wars. This 50th anniversary, remember to thank your family members, friends and neighbors who served in the Vietnam War.”
Along with Penn State Fayette, the Fayette County Cultural Trust and Janney Montgomery Scott, others sponsors include the county, Armstrong, the National Daughters of the American Revolution Fort Necessity Chapter, Greater Connellsville Chamber of Commerce, First Energy Foundation, VFW Post 21, National Society of American Colonists, North Union VFW Post 8543 and individual donors.
For more information on The Wall That Heals, visit www.thewallthatheals.org.