Ceremony in Washington D.C. honors Vietnam veterans who died after returning home.
Contributed by Heidi Zimmerman, Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund
Nearly 600 Vietnam veterans, including one from Alaska, will be inducted into the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund’s (VVMF) In Memory Program for 2020. The program honors Vietnam veterans whose lives were cut short as a result of their service after they returned home from Vietnam.
On October 15, 2021, VVMF will host its 2020 In Memory ceremony on the East Knoll of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, where the names of each of the 591 honorees for 2020 will be read aloud. The ceremony was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic.
“For many Vietnam veterans, coming home from Vietnam was just the beginning of a whole new fight. Many never fully recovered, either physically or emotionally, from their experiences. As these veterans pass, it is our duty and solemn promise to welcome them home to the place that our nation has set aside to remember our Vietnam veterans,” said Jim Knotts, president and CEO of VVMF.
The plaque that honors these veterans was dedicated as a part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial site in 2004. It reads: In Memory of the men and women who served in the Vietnam War and later died as a result of their service. We honor and remember their sacrifice.
2020 In Memory Inductee from Alaska:
Raymond E. Lyons Jr., U.S. Army
Houston, Alaska
October 29, 1949 – May 15, 2019
VVMF has created a personal remembrance page for each honoree online in the In Memory Honor Roll at www.vvmf.org/honor-roll. Their photos are also displayed around the country when VVMF’s mobile exhibit, The Wall That Heals, is on display in an honoree’s home state.
The 2020 In Memory ceremony will be shown live on VVMF’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/VietnamVeteransMemorialFund) beginning at 10 a.m. ET on October 15, 2021. The In Memory program was created in 1993 and has since honored more than 5,100 veterans. For more information on the In Memory program or to apply to have your loved one honored in 2022, please visit: www.vvmf.org/inmemory.
About the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund:
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) is the nonprofit organization that founded the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (The Wall) in Washington, D.C. in 1982. VVMF continues to lead the way in paying tribute to our nation’s Vietnam veterans and their families. VVMF’s mission is to honor and preserve the legacy of service in America and educate all generations about the impact of the Vietnam War and era. To learn more about VVMF, visit www.vvmf.org or call 202-393-0090.