Vietnam Veterans Memorial Replica Coming to Rice This Summer

(KNSI) – Today is National Vietnam Veterans Day as a way to say thank you and honor Vietnam war veterans and their families. Coming up later this summer is a way to memorialize and remember those who died in combat during the war.

The Wall That Heals is a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. In August, the Wall That Heals is coming to Central Minnesota.

Cora Martin is the event coordinator in charge of bringing the wall here and for her, this is a deeply personal undertaking.

“My dad was a Navy veteran. He had told me stories about coming home and not being welcomed and spit on when he came home. I remember the last thing that my dad had always told me is to always teach people about what happened in Vietnam. Don’t let it ever go in the dark.”

Event coordinator Cora Martin says the wall will get a hero’s welcome to town on August 17th, but they need the public’s help.

“We are going to have an escort service so anybody that wants to come in that drives a motorcycle, wants to help with the escort is more than welcome to contact us. We would love them to be involved with it. We are going to have the semi truck going to meet us here in St. Cloud and we’re going to have an escort through St. Cloud into Rice.”

The wall will be set up August 18th at the elementary school in Rice, and open to the public on August 19th. There will be a special ceremony Thursday, August 19th for the official opening. The space will be open 24 hours a day through August 22nd.

At each stop the wall makes, there is an education center showing letters and memorabilia left at the wall in Washington and more details about the names.

Learn more about the stop at the group’s Facebook page, which can be accessed by clicking here. You can sign up to be an escort by clicking here.

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