The Tennessee Vietnam Memorial Wall is now on display on the lower level of the two story mall, near Belk Women’s and Children’s store through Saturday, April 2.
The display is the first event of the ten-year-long Welcome Home Celebration, a partnership with Hamilton County and City of Chattanooga’s joint committee on the commemoration of the Vietnam War. The Joint Committee is chaired by Mrs. Linda Mines, Hamilton County historian and co-chaired by MG (Ret) Bill Raines, and is comprised of veteran’s organizations and citizens from across the city and county.
The Wall is owned by Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) Chapter 203; it will be on display all week to offer families and visitors the opportunity to pause and remember those who fell.
The Wall will be manned by members of VVA Chapter 203 and by the Associates of Chapter 203. Ladies of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) will be there to provide commemorative pins to the veterans of the Vietnam Era.
“The Corian-like Wall is four inches thick and consists of 4 panels, weighing over 200 pounds each; it is eight feet tall at the apex. It includes the names of those 1,292 Tennesseans killed in the Vietnam War. They are listed by date of death” says Chapter 203 President Charlie Hobbs. “The names are engraved so that etchings may be taken. The total exhibit is 24 feet long.”