With Veterans Day just more than a week away, this weekend provides an opportunity for the community to remember those that paid the ultimate sacrifice during the Vietnam War. The Wall That Heals, a replica of the Vietnam War Memorial (The Wall) in Washington, D.C., is still on display until Sunday afternoon. It is located on the University of North Georgia Dahlonega campus.
It is truly a moving experience, especially at night, as the orange hue of light illuminates the more than 58,000 names on the panels.
A volunteer at the Wall That Heals explained that the orange hue is to bring awareness of the service members that were affected by the disabilities caused by Agent Orange, a defoliant and herbicide that was widely used in the jungles of Vietnam.
The Wall That Heals provides veterans, family members, and Americans alike the opportunity to remember, reflect, and heal from the pain experienced from a war that took so many lives.
According to the United States Department of Defense, the Vietnam War Era started on November 1, 1955 and ended on May 15, 1975. Military advisors began arriving in Vietnam in 1955 with combat operations beginning in 1964. During that era, more than nine million Americans served in the military.
Ties to UNG
During the opening ceremony on Wednesday, October 30, UNG President Michael Shannon told the audience that during the Vietnam War era approximately 2,500 cadets graduated from then North Georgia College. “Five hundred of those alum served in the Vietnam War as leaders in the Army, Marine Corp, and the Air Force,” he said.
Shannon explained that UNG was the military college of Georgia. A place where young men and women came to prepare for a purpose. Those young men and women took the path less traveled and raised their right hand to a commitment for a cause that was greater than themselves. He said, “There is no clearer example of this than going to the Vietnam War,.
He told the audience that of the 58,281 names on the Wall, 29 were from UNG. “North Georgia grown, bound for service, American heroes who paid the ultimate sacrifice,” Shannon said.
Touching tributes
If the Wall That Heals doesn’t move you, the Mobile Education Center surely will and is a must see. The Center provides information to visitors about the Vietnam War but more importantly, it demonstrates personal accounts of how the war affected individuals by displaying items that have been left at The Wall in Washington, D.C.
For some people, remembering what they had for supper last night can be a chore. For many combat veterans, the memories and pain of war are never forgotten.
A General remembers
The United States highest ranking military commander and advisor to the President in 2007 demonstrated that the memories and pain remain, decades after the war.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Peter Pace retired on October 1, 2007. After leaving his retirement ceremony, he visited the Vietnam War Memorial. While at the Wall, he paid tribute with a card addressed to a Marine he served with. The card reads, “FOR GUIDO FARINARO, USMC. THESE ARE YOURS-NOT MINE! WITH LOVE AND RESPECT, YOUR PLATOON LEADER,” signed Peter Pace. Attached to the card were his four General stars.
According to an article written in 2020 by Aidan Cappallino for the Chaminade High School Newspaper, Tarmac, Farinaro was the first person killed under Paces command. Pace was a young Second Lieutenant in the Marine Corp and Farinaro’s Platoon Leader. Farinaro was mortally wounded by an enemy sniper on July 30, 1968. He was the first of seven Marines under Pace’s command that died during the Vietnam War.
Care package unopened
Another moving tribute left at the Wall in Washington, D.C. that is in the Mobile Education Center is a care package. The care package was originally sent to Charles Stewart who was serving with the U.S. Army in Vietnam in 1972. However, it was returned to his family unopened. Stewart was killed in action on October 31, 1972. The unopened care package was placed at the Wall in 1993, 21 years after it was originally sent.
The Wall That Heals and the Mobile Education Center will be open through Sunday, November 3, until 2 p.m. on the UNG Dahlonega campus. It is located on the Plaza in front of the Library. Volunteers will be available 24 hours a day to assist visitors and answer questions.
