Vietnam vets to hold annual vigil
The 50 Fayette County residents who never returned from Vietnam will be remembered at a vigil being held from noon Friday until noon Saturday.
The ceremony, which honors the fallen and missing soldiers, will run from noon until 11 p.m. Friday and from 7 a.m. until noon Saturday.
The vigil will be held at the Fayette County Vietnam Memorial at the corner of Walnut Street and Buttermilk Lane in Hopwood.
Vietnam Veterans of Fayette County Inc. sponsors the annual vigil.
“We’ve been doing it now since 1984,” said Glenn Nielsen, vice president of the Vietnam Veterans and chairman of the vigil.
“We used to do 24 hours, but we’re getting too old for that, so we’ll go to about 11 p.m., then start back around 7 a.m. Our membership is around 137. We’ve lost a lot of guys since the war, and we’re not getting any younger.”
Nielsen said the Vietnam veterans continue the vigil each year for the families of the 50 local soldiers who did not return home. Forty-nine were killed in action, and one is still listed as missing in action.
“There aren’t that many of the parents left, and those that are, are up in age,” Nielsen said.
“We always do it the weekend prior to Memorial Day, and that Saturday is Armed Forces Day.”
A member of the Vietnam Veterans Inc. will stand at the memorial holding a flag throughout the vigil.
“We have guys standing 15-minute intervals holding an American flag,” Nielsen said.
Members of the public are invited to stand along with the veterans to honor all veterans of the Vietnam era.
Nielsen said the candlelight vigil at 9 p.m. Friday is a solemn event, which is generally well-attended by the public.
The names of each of the 50 Fayette County soldiers lost in Vietnam will be read, and a bell will be rung as each candle is lit, Nielsen said.
Closing ceremonies will be held at noon Saturday, with retired U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class David Lowden, a Vietnam veteran who currently lives in Virginia, giving the keynote address.
Nielsen said the veterans organization will continue to hold the vigils each year as long as they are able.
“Nobody cares about us when we came home, so we care about each other,” Nielsen said.