Events will be held across the country next week in observance of National Vietnam Veterans Day, including a commemorative pinning ceremony in Chattanooga.
The events will mark another year in the 50th anniversary commemoration of the Vietnam War. Authorized by Congress and launched by President Barack Obama in May 2012, the commemoration extends from its inaugural event on Memorial Day 2012 through Veterans Day 2025. The commemoration is taking place over a 13-year period because the war period spanned multiple decades, according to the Department of Defense.
If you go
› What: National Vietnam War Veterans Day commemoration.› When: 10 a.m. Wednesday, March 27.› Where: Chattanooga National Cemetery, 1200 Bailey Ave.› Info: 423-855-6590
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs will lead the ceremony at Chattanooga National Cemetery at 10 a.m. Wednesday. The program is designed to thank and honor Vietnam veterans, says William “Bill” Sachse, administrative officer at the cemetery.
According to 2016 records, the latest he has available, 4,165 Vietnam veterans are buried within the cemetery. The land was designated for such use in 1863, following the Civil War Battles of Chattanooga.
“We don’t bury by war period,” says Sachse. “We bury by section until that section is full, and then we open up a new section. [Placement] is not based on when they served or their branch of service.”
The pinning ceremony will continue an effort begun a few years ago to offer Vietnam veterans “a lasting memento of the nation’s thanks,” according to the Department of Defense.
Living U.S. veterans who served on active duty in the U.S. armed forces at any time between Nov. 1, 1955, and May 15, 1975, regardless of location, are eligible to receive one lapel pin.
The front includes the image of an eagle, representing courage, honor and service to country; and six stars, representing the six allies who served and sacrificed together (Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Thailand and the United States). The message “A Grateful Nation Thanks and Honors You” is embossed on the back.
Any Vietnam-era veteran who has not been pinned is encouraged to attend the ceremony. Sachse believes the majority of Chattanooga’s Vietnam veterans were pinned during a special commemoration two years ago. The three-day event, March 27-29, 2017, included a pinning ceremony at First Tennessee Pavilion, screenings of the movie “We Were Soldiers” at the Tivoli Theatre and a candlelight memorial at Chattanooga National Cemetery.
“I feel like most of the veterans have been out and been pinned,” he says. “but I’m sure there’s some that have not that could come.”
Wednesday’s keynote speaker will be U.S. Marine Corps veteran Bill Norton, a member and past president of the Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 203.
The program also will include a wreath-laying ceremony and a city proclamation noting March 29, which falls on Friday, is National Vietnam Veterans Day.
The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that there are 6.4 million living Vietnam veterans and 9 million families of those who served in the war. No distinction is made among veterans who served in country, in theater or who were stationed elsewhere in the war.
“All were called to serve and one could not self-determine where they would serve,” says www.vietnamwar50th.com.
Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6281.