Mississippi VII

I have written several times over the course of this effort about the very first memorial I ever photographed. If you simply click on Mississippi on the left side of this page you will find several posts about it.

Today, like the last time I wrote about Mississippi, I am going to feature a few more of the faces from their memorial.

There are few words to be said here. If I had been more certain of how this journey was going to unfold, I might have thought to find out more about the individual faces seen here and elsewhere, but I did not.

So, I throw it out to you. Anyone from Mississippi, or anywhere else for that matter, know these guys? If so, you can reach me at the email to the left. Sometimes I hear from some of you and I am always delighted to hear your thoughts, stories, and in some cases, corrections.

Next time, on the 2nd, we will return to Nebraska for a few more Faces of Remembrance, so join me there at 9:00am.

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

I will ask, as I do at the end of nearly every post now, for anyone who has pictures of Vietnam memorials not seen here to please send them to me. I will give you full photo credit for the pic and any information about it you may know. Check your state, or anywhere you may have visited, from the list at the left.

Michigan X

Back in March I wrote a post about the service and sacrifice of the many women who served in Vietnam. I was having trouble with my computer that day and the pictures would not post and I promised to return to the issue. You can read that post here.

Today, I have high hopes that the pics will post and our courageous comrades will get some of the respect they so rightly deserve.

This face comes from the lone statue in Heck Park in Monroe, Michigan. As I have stated before, our women comrades are usually depicted as nurses and truthfully all of those who are included on The Wall were.If you go back and read the post from last March listed above, you will  see so many more that perished in our efforts in 'Nam. But, here you will notice that he woman whose face is featured is dressed in flight gear, still a nurse I am sure, but, uniquely attired.

Here is her face.

This “Women Who Served” Monument was added in the spring of 2008. The plaque describes the various roles (non-combatant) that women played during the war in Vietnam and describes the similarities of what they had to endure alongside of the men. Of the thousands who served, there are eight women’s names on The Wall in Washington D.C., but, 56 more died in service to the people of Vietnam.

The plaque below the statue reads:

Next time, on the 28th, we will return to Mississippi, so join me there, as always, at 9:00am.

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

Massachusetts XXXIII

It is interesting to me how the faces of our soldiers are depicted in memorials. As you know, if you have followed this site at all, I have spent considerable time sharing some of these with you.

Today, I have one, from Massachusetts, that is located in Dedham. The memorial, if memory serves me, is located in a cemetery and you can see the original post here.

These depictions, as we have seen, range from the most lifelike to the most simple, caricatures, if you will, that represent all as opposed to those that seem to be, but usually are not, actual people.

It is striking, even in these less human-like forms, how the artist is still able to capture the reality of how so many felt. In what is little more than a line drawing we can still feel the sadness, fatigue and resignation in this soldiers face.

We rarely see women depicted in our memorials except as nurses rendering aid to a fallen solder, next time, on the 23rd, we will see something just a little different, so join me then, as always, at 9:00 am.

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

I will ask, as I do at the end of nearly every post now, for anyone who has pictures of Vietnam memorials not seen here to please send them to me. I will give you full photo credit for the pic and any information about it you may know. Check your state, or anywhere you may have visited, from the list at the left.

Maryland XXXV

It reinforces my seemingly never ending scrounge through my photos to actually find something that I have not posted. I was really, really surprised to find this memorial from Hancock, Maryland, as it was one of my very early trips and I was absolutely sure I had posted it at the time.

I began this journey in late 2009 and these pics were taken in the summer of 2010, so pretty early.

 

So, the Hancock memorial is dedicated to what are often referred to as the 20th Century Wars and nearby there is a marker to the Civil War. I don't know why this one stands separate unless it was added later, perhaps. A plaque specific to Vietnam is placed on the rear of the wall along with a listing of names.

Many names are listed here as having served. On the rear of this wall is a plaque to Vietnam.

"IN MEMORY OF ALL VIETNAM VETERANS

This memorial was erected in memory of the young individuals who went to war as kids and lost their youthful dreams, and some their lives, for a cause - freedom and honor - and came back as men with the horrors of war instilled in every fiber of their being and were never given the respect and honor they so dearly deserved from the public or the United States government.

God will one day judge our actions. Until then, he will shine on the lives of each veteran now and forever more because He was with them in Vietnam. He is the only One that truly knows what they went through and are living with every day."

The names of those who served are listed here, too. 

Otto P. Barnhart seems to be the only one lost according to the information here. I also noted several women's names and five people named McCarthy. I wonder if they are all related in some way?

As you know if you follow this site at all, I am a sucker for statues and this one is poignant due to the familial theme. This was taken well before I had the Faces of Remembrance concept in mind, so I did not take the portraits required to feature what are probably valuable views of grief. Perhaps I will get back to Hancock at some point.

The memorial is located in Widmeyer Park, just off W. Main Street.

Next time, on the 18th, we will take a quick, one stop return to Massachusetts, so meet me there, as usual, at 9:00am.

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

I will ask, as I do at the end of nearly every post now, for anyone who has pictures of Vietnam memorials not seen here to please send them to me. I will give you full photo credit for the pic and any information about it you may know. Check your state, or anywhere you may have visited, from the list at the left.

Louisiana XI

So, once again, faces. these are a little different as they are all likenesses of actual people.

The first is of the gentleman from Iberville whose story was told previously on this site. You can read that story here, and I recommend that you do take the time, it is really quite a story.

The second face is that is taken from a photograph at the Gonzales memorial, another very extensive and interesting site. See more here.

The final is from a small memorial at the University of Louisiana to Capt. Stephen Bennett, a Medal of Honor recipient who sacrificed his life for his friend. See more of his story here.

It is unusual, at least in my experience, to find these memorials where each of those honored are also actually identifies, at least in picture. The first two of today's faces names are unknown to me, but well known to others and I am thrilled to share their stories with you.

Next time, on the 13th, we will venture back to Maryland, so meet me there, as always, at 9:00am.

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

I will ask, as I do at the end of nearly every post now, for anyone who has pictures of Vietnam memorials not seen here to please send them to me. I will give you full photo credit for the pic and any information about it you may know. Check your state, or anywhere you may have visited, from the list at the left.

Illinois XVII

So, as you can see if you follow along on this journey, I am still searching through files trying to find something to share with you. As I do this, I am reinforced in the thought that I really must find a means to get past my concern about airports. I have no real issues anymore about hotels and I am convinced that the airlines are doing a good job of keeping the planes safe, but I've found no way to determine what the actual airports are doing. I remain concerned. 

All of this is by way of explaining why so many of my recent posts have been in the Faces of Remembrance series. I am running out of posts about memorials. I have a few left from a few states but overall my cache is running low.

Today's faces come from Havana, Illinois. They are etchings on the memorial there which you can take a look at here. It is interesting to me that they are directly across the street from the shop window display of so many faces in actual photographs from Mason County, You can see some of them here.

Even in these caricatures one can see the resignation, fatigue, and sadness of these, who represent us all.

Next time we will revisit Louisiana to see additional Faces from a couple of different memorials. So, join me, at 9:00am on the 8th, to honor our valiant comrades.

Tomorrow is Independence Day, so along with cook-outs, parades, and fireworks, take just a moment to remember those who have fought and died to retain our independence.

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

I will ask, as I do at the end of nearly every post now, for anyone who has pictures of Vietnam memorials not seen here to please send them to me. I will give you full photo credit for the pic and any information about it you may know. Check your state, or anywhere you may have visited, from the list at the left.