Indiana VIII

So, in preparing to write about Louisiana, I stumbled across another site I had overlooked. I promise we will get to Louisiana, soon. I hesitate now to predict!

 This one, in Indiana, is at the Parke County Court House, the older memorial covers a lot, the smaller, newer one adjacent to it covers Vietnam.

Two from the area are remembered and honored here.

The Court House is in Rockville, Indiana on the corner of Ohio and Market Streets.

Parke County lies on the western border of Indiana almost exactly half way down the state. The 2010 census reported a population of 2607, again, small towns do great things.

Next time on the 30th, we will return to Louisiana, I mean it this time, so join me there, as always, at 9:00am.

To see other memorials from Indiana, or any other state, click the state name on the left side of this page.

Illinois XIV

I know that last time I said we would be in Louisiana today, but I ran across this small memorial in Virginia, Illinois and thought I would share it. We will move on to Louisiana, next time.

I was just driving, headed somewhere else, when we came upon this one, yes, my lifelong buddy, Steve, was with me on this trip.

It isn't huge, it lists no names and is dedicated to the lost of more than one war, but as I have said before, this is often the way of small towns. many just do not have the resources to build new memorials to every war we seem to get involved in. The 2010 census counts 1611 in this city 30 miles northwest of Springfield.

This one is located on the N.E. corner of the Court House lawn at S. Main and E.Springfield Streets.

I was not able to discover just how many were lost from Cass County, but I did find that two from Virginia are among them.

So, next time , on the 25th we will check out Louisiana once again, so join me there, as always, at 9:00am.

To see additional memorials from Illinois, or any other state, click the state name on the left side of this page.

Idaho VII

Inside the City Hall in Nampa is this replica of the Liberty Bell.

The day I visited I was unable to find anyone who could tell me about the memorial. Today, I was able to contact the City Clerk who assured me that all from the State of Idaho were honored here.Inscribed beneath it are the names of the 216 from Idaho who were lost in Vietnam.

The City Hall is located at the intersection of 3rd Street and 5th Avenue and outside the building is a Peace Garden mentioned earlier on this site.

Next time, on the 20th, we will return to Louisiana, so join me there, as always, a 9:00am

 To see other sites from Idaho, or any other state, click the state name on the left side of this page.

Florida IX

I had seen a number of pictures of this memorial and was desperate to find out where it was located. This is not always an easy task and took going down a number of dead ends before someone finally pointed me in the right direction. Even with the direction, I almost missed it.

If you were dropped into the middle of this place and it didn't have sidewalks, you might believe you were in 'Nam. The jungle like surroundings only make the memorial more meaningful.

The sculptor purposely made the chair representative of all lost and missing. He said that doing this makes it personal to each person who sees it. He says it "... is so non specific that it is specific.." we each bring our own memory we all know who is missing from our tables.

It reminds me a little of the P.O.W. table settings one often sees. Each element carries a particular meaning and this is true here, too.

The folded flag recalls the flag presented to the family at a military burial, the empty boots will never be worn again, and the dog tags, well, they say it all, "The cost of Freedom."

The memorial sits on the grounds of the Ormond Beach Memorial Art Museum and Gardens located at 78 E. Granada Blvd.

Next time, on the 15th, we will return to Idaho, so join me there at 9:00am. In the meantime, I will continue to work on getting Honor and Gratitude posted.

To see other memorials from Florida, or any other state, click on the state name on the left side of this page.

Honor and Gratitude

My home county declared 2015 the Year of the Veteran and their Families. I wrote before about the Welcome Home for Vietnam vets that was held last fall and in conjunction with all of this the county asked Emmy winning film makers Barbara Grunbaum and Dan Rankin to create and produce a documentary about 'Nam vets from the county. Dan explained from the very beginning that their interest was to not talk to the usual suspects but to tell the stories of those whose boots were actually on the ground, those doing the everyday work, those actually fighting the war.

Through circumstances I can't really explain, I was asked to be among those interviewed. In total there were 7 of us who ranged from the very first resident of the infamous Hanoi Hilton, to an Army nurse who was later characterized in the TV show about Army nurses called China Beach, to my buddy who actually pushed Ron Kovic ( Born on the 4th of July) down Pennsylvania Ave. in his wheelchair to demonstrate against the war at the Nixon White House and several more, including me. The intent was to illuminate what our particular experiences in-country were, what is was like coming home and how we might have been affected as we moved through the rest of our lives. It achieves these in remarkable fashion and we were all blown away by the job Barbara and Dan and all those who assisted them were able to do. I was humbled to sit among these heroes and am not sure I actually belonged there. However, I was and that presents this opportunity to share the film with you. (Maybe that's why I was there)

Honor and Gratitude was premiered on March 23rd, so it is brand new and you will be among the very first to get to see it in its entirety. I hope you will take the time, it does take about an hour, and that you will let me know what you think. I would love to hear from you.

So, it is a great honor and privilege to share Honor and Gratitude with you. Enjoy!

I've had a little trouble getting this to start, if you do, you can see it here, too.

 https://youtu.be/p3OAnvShg-0


Next time, on the 10th, check out a new site from Florida. See it at 9:00am, as always.

To see memorials from any state, click on the state name on the left side of this page.