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A Tribute... |
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IN
HONOR OF THE MEN AND WOMEN OF
THE ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED
STATES. |
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| The National
World War II Memorial will be the first national memorial
dedicated to all who served during World War II. The memorial will
honor all military veterans of the war, the citizens on the home
front, the nation at large, and the high moral purpose and
idealism that motivated the nation's call to arms.
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| It will be located on the
National Mall in Washington, D.C. at the Rainbow Pool site at the
east end of the Reflecting Pool between the Lincoln Memorial and
the Washington Monument. This prominent location is commensurate
with the historical importance and lasting significance of World
War II to America and the world. Groundbreaking is projected for
Veterans Day 2000. |
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The Korean War
Veterans Memorial should make us consider not just the
sacrifice of war but the conflicting courses several nations
took to create that war and its horrors. When the last of
the Korean War veterans fades into history he can do so
knowing that a portion of the National Mall in Washington
D.C. has been set aside
to remind future generations of what they did for Freedom. |
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| Those veterans
that are still with us today can be assured that they are
forgotten no more. The many parts of the Korean War Veterans
Memorial should be viewed as a whole and not separately. The
inscription summarizes the true meaning of the memorial: OUR
NATION HONORS HER SONS AND DAUGHTERS WHO ANSWERED THE CALL
TO DEFEND A COUNTRY THEY NEVER KNEW AND A PEOPLE THEY NEVER
MET. |
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| The Vietnam Veterans
Memorial was initially conceived with one overriding purpose to
bring long overdue honor and recognition to the men and women who
served and sacrificed their lives in the Vietnam War. Because so
many veterans met with ridicule and contempt upon returning home
to America, it was hoped that the Memorial would be a place where
that injustice could at long last be rectified.
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| Inscribed with 58,214 names, it
has long spoken a silent but eloquent message for those who
participated in the war as well as for all those whose lives were
impacted by it. Healings, restorations and reunions occur there
daily. The memorial has transcended its role as a national symbol
of reconciliation and has evolved into an international emblem of
peace and healing, offering itself as a living history lesson for
all. More than 40 million visitors have come to The Wall since its
dedication in 1982. |
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| Vietnam
Veterans Statue. Some
veterans and their political supporters felt that the
Wall was "a black gash of shame" or a
"giant tombstone." It was too abstract a
design for others who wanted a more heroic, life-like
depiction of a soldier. The three servicemen depicted
represent the racial makeup of the troops. They wear
the uniforms and ordinance of the various military and
naval branches. |
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| The bronze
sculpture was placed in a grove of trees near the west
entrance to the Wall. The servicemen appear to be staring at
the Wall as if contemplating the names of the others. The
Wall was built in 1982 and the Statue of the Three
Servicemen was added in 1984. |
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The Vietnam
Women’s Memorial
completed the circle of healing at the Vietnam Veterans
Memorial. The names of the eight military women who died in
Vietnam are inscribed on the Wall, but the statue of the
Three Servicemen did not reflect the women who served.
Sustained by her respect for these women, one former Army
nurse, Diane Carlson Evans, founded the Vietnam Women’s
Memorial Project in 1984. Many of the 250,000 women veterans
worked in concert with her and others to place the Vietnam
Women’s Memorial near the Wall. |
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