Camp Holloway Discussion Forum Archive 05 - 02/12/06 to 01/21/10

I VISITED THE WALL

Gentlemen,

While I was on my trip through Sturgis and then on to the Veterans Rally at Winter Park, Colorado, I visited the moving wall. It was truly one of the most moving experiences that I have had in a long time, and it was the most impact to me of any of my visits to the Wall. I have visited the Wall in D.C. on three occasions, and I have visited moving walls on numerous occasions here in Texas and the surrounding States.

This time was special! I first located a couple of my classmates who were on the Wall, and then I visited Marty and his crew. I also visited my friends and students who's names were on the Wall. For some reason, I went to Thanksgiving Day in 1968, that was three days before I entered Vietnam that year. I was stunned to find that my tour started on Wall Panel 31E and continued through 70E, then started up again on Panel 70W and continued through 38W. 71 Panels of the wall list the names of people killed during MY TOUR IN VIETNAM, that is over half of the panels. The remaing 32 panels on the West side of the wall is scattered with men that I knew, friends, flight school classmates, and students. I have never been so moved.

I left there and I tried to get drunk, it didn't work! I went to sleep sober that night after eight double shots of Johnny Walker Black, no ice, no water. A real sobering experience!

Dave