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It had rained hard all the previous night. On April 21,
friends and family of 75 dead Vietnam veterans gathered on
the knoll above the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington,
D.C. These veterans had not perished in Vietnam, but many
years later.
Still, their deaths were directly attributable
to the war. Many had died of the cancers associated with
Agent Orange. For others, the PTSD-induced rage within them
finally destroyed them.
As the crowd gathered for the 10
a.m. In Memory ceremony to honor these most recent victims
of the Vietnam War, the rain tapered, then stopped. The families
gathered in a broad semicircle behind 75 small posters on
which were printed the names, photographs, and dates of the
veterans.
Speakers, including Jan Scruggs, eulogized the
men. But far more eloquent were the family members themselves.
They waited patiently and attentively as, one by one, they
spoke of the men they had lost.
Many widows spoke angrily
of being betrayed and abandoned by a government that had
sent their husbands to war in their prime but ignored them
in their decline. Others concentrated instead on the personal
pain of loss. Kathleen Aylward, widow of long-time VVA Board
member Randy Barnes, praised his commitment to work for veterans
and promised to follow in his footsteps.
When everyone had
spoken, a light drizzle resumed. The assembly made its way
to The Wall, where the posters were placed—often
with other mementos—near the names of those with whom
these veterans had served.
The In Memory ceremony is held
annually on the third Monday of April. To have a veteran
included in the ceremony, call the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Fund at 202-393-0090 or go to the website, www.vvmf.org and
click on “Programs.” You
must submit an application, a death certificate, proof of
Vietnam War service, a photo, and a brief bio.
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©2006-
2008, Vietnam Veterans of America. All Rights Reserved. 8605 Cameron
Street, Silver Spring, MD 20910