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Portland, Oregon, Metro Area Chapter 392 is the driving
force behind The Vietnam Era Veterans Memorial Project in
Canby, a small agricultural and residential community on
the Willamette River south of Portland. Chapter members,
including former President Mike Breshears, have been working
since 2000 to build the ambitious memorial, which will honor
everyone who served the nation during the Vietnam War era
in a park-like setting.
The Chapter was instrumental in acquiring
a Huey helicopter from the Pentagon for the memorial, along
with the parcel of land where the memorial will be built.
The Chapter also provided cash donations and its members
are working in many ways to help the memorial come to fruition.
The
memorial’s bamboo, pines, and palm trees are meant
to suggest a rural Vietnamese setting. There also will be
a village with a town square surrounded by buildings, including
a traditional pagoda containing a Buddhist bell. The center
of the park will be a brick plaza forming the Shou symbol,
the Chinese character for “long life.” The symbol
also will contain a red cross, above which the Huey will
be mounted. The paving around the plaza will include a shadow
of a dove, suggesting peace, as if cast by the helicopter.
There
also will be a statue of an American G.I. cradling a wounded
buddy with a Vietnamese child by their side. Funding is needed
to complete the memorial. For more information, email info@VietnamEraMemorial.org,
call 503-263-5066, or go to the Memorial’s website,
www.VietnamEraMemorial.org
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2008, Vietnam Veterans of America. All Rights Reserved. 8719 Colesville Road, Suite 100, Silver Spring, MD 20910