| Dear Fellow Americans: Walls are usually built to
divide, to keep people or places apart,
to separate one area from another.
But there's one wall
that has had exactly the opposite effect
for more than a decade. "The
Wall," the Vietnam Veterans
Memorial. It's in Washington, D.C., and
it's the most visited, most attended
memorial, not only in our
monument-crammed nation's capital, but in
the United States.
What is it that draws
people to this monument at the rate of
better than 2.5 million a year?
After all, the war in
Vietnam was the most divisive event of
this century. Not since the Civil War has
anything so threatened the very unity
that preserves us as a free nation. Those
who fought in it bear scars and injuries
that weren't all inflicted on the
battlefield.
Sadly, the scars and
injuries caused by our own countrymen can
take much longer to heal than those
inflicted by the enemy. The stories of
our men and women who were
"fortunate" enough to make it
home from that war have become part of
our national history -- a part many of us
would like to forget.
For example, a veteran
who returned to college after the war was
asked by some classmates if he had lost
his arm in Vietnam. When he answered
"Yes," he was told "It
served you right." There are
thousands of stories like this, each and
every one focusing on an individual who
answered his or her country's call and
served in that conflict -- only to be
greeted with scorn, derision, even
outright hatred!
I know, because I lived
through some of those same incidents
myself after my return from that war, as
I struggled to deal with my own memories.
Yet vets like myself are the
"fortunate" ones, the
survivors. We might have left our arms,
or legs, or vision, or hearing, in
Vietnam, but we did make it home, back to
our families and our loved ones.
And that's why I was so
determined that this Memorial would be
built.
Those of us involved in
that effort from the beginning saw it as
a tribute to our fallen comrades, as a
Symbol of honor for everyone who served
in that wa,r, and as a healing bridge for
a nation very much in need of one. As
evidenced by the unending stream of
visitors, it has been a remarkable
success.
I think perhaps the
greatest reason for that success is that
it was built with only the generosity and
caring concern of other Americans just
like you. That's right. The government
didn't build that monument, the American
people did. With contributions of $10,
$15, $25, $50, whatever they could afford
to send.
But the other reason is
certainly the Memorial itself. Its
gleaming black granite walls that point
toward the Lincoln Memorial and
Washington Monument carry the names of
each and every one of the 58,202
Americans who gave up their lives in the
Vietnam War.
Quite simply, there's
nothing else like it, anywhere, in any
country.
If you've been to the
Memorial, you know exactly what I mean.
If you haven't, you owe it to yourself to
do so as soon as possible. It's an
experience you'll never forget. There's a
reverence that is immediately noticeable,
a sense of awe that propels a visitor
into silence. There's also an undisputed
healing process that takes place there.
For all who come.
For Vietnam vets, it's
a chance to say good-bye to old friends,
comrades-in-arms, often times to say
thank you once again to a buddy who saved
your life. It's a chance to come
face-to-face with old fears and pains and
loss.
|
|
|
For other Americans, it's an
awakening. Many of those who marched in
protest come away with respect and
understanding for the sacrifice made by
every individual who answered his or her
country's call! Because the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial is not a monument to
war, it's a monument to people, to
thebrave American men and women who
answered their country's call and who
gave up their lives in return. And no one who visits it, no one
who sees it, has ever or will ever walk
away from it unmoved. It's impossible.But
why am I telling you about all this?
Because we need your help to allow this
crucial healing process to continue and
expand.
Let me explain. We need
your help with important programs.Here is
some of what VVMF accomplished in the
past year:
Started
national tour of The Wall That Heals, the
traveling Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Provided
free name rubbings to the public
Distributed over 50,000 books to high
schools and veterans groups around the
country
Assisted
the Volunteer Guides at the Wall
Continued funding an exhaustive
engineering study on the Memorial.
Provided
funds to help perpetually preserve items
at the Wall.
Hosted
ceremonies at the Wall on Memorial and
Veterans Day.
Provided
$100,000 to colleges for scholarships.
Yet the only way we can
continue these activities is the same way
we were able to build the Memorial in the
first place -- with the help of Americans
who care, Americans like you.
Remember, those who
served in Vietnam didn't come home to
ticker-tape parades and celebrations the
way those who served in World War II or
Operation Desert Storm did.
They're America's
forgotten martyrs, America's neglected
heroes.
We at least owe it to
them -- to those who survived and to
those who did not -- to do everything in
our power to promote the healing process
of which the Wall has become such a vital
part.
You can help by sending
the most generous contribution you can
possibly afford to the Vietnam Veterans
Memorial Fund. If your gift is at 1 east
$20, I'll send you, free of charge, an
official Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund
lapel pin.
Help the healing
process continue. Help complete the
reunification of a nation
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Jan C.
Scruggs
President and Founder
P.S. Again, if you
haven't been to the Wall, I urge you to
go as soon as you can. And if you have
been, go back again, and talk to the vets
you'll find there. Let them know you
appreciate what they did. It will mean a
lot -- to you and to them.
|
