The Naperville Park District and local veterans groups plan to build and display a 233-foot Vietnam memorial wall to mark the 50th anniversary of the last American combat troops leaving that war.
The memorial, a replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., will be set up at the Grand Pavilion near the Naperville Riverwalk from Nov. 9 to 15. The site will also serve as the location for the annual Veterans Day ceremony Nov. 11.
It was last displayed in Naperville in 2015.
“Visiting the wall is an extremely moving experience,” Park District Executive Director Brad Wilson said. “The wall includes the names of over 58,000 service members who gave their lives between 1957 and 1975. It conveys the tremendous sacrifice that so many made for our country.”
Naperville printing company Blooming Color is printing the names and providing the vinyl paneling for the wall, while 84 Lumber in Naperville is donating lumber for the frame. The wall will be built by park district staffers, members of local veterans groups such as the VFW and Naperville Responds for Veterans, and other volunteers.
“For the public, it reminds them of the sacrifices made so they can enjoy their freedoms,” said Mike Barbour, a Vietnam War veteran and board member for Naperville Responds for Veterans. “For the Vietnam veteran, it lets them visit their friends that they served with.”
The memorial will also include 11 plaques for each of the Naperville residents who died in the war.
“It creates different experiences for different people, and whether you’re family or someone who served in combat, you connect to those names,” said Wayne Fischer, a Vietnam veteran from Naperville and past state commander for the American Legion. “I remember my first trip to the wall, my wife was with me in Washington, D.C., and we walked down to the center of the wall and all of a sudden I looked up and I could see ghosts of men swirling over my head.”
The Naperville Park Board plans to vote on the project at its next meeting. Visiting hours have not been set.
“Naperville is a very, very patriotic community,” Fischer said. “You’ll see it at the Labor Day parade, at the Memorial Day Parade and program afterwards. It’s just an honor to live here. The community serves veterans and our active duty.”
Giles Bruce is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.
