VFW Post #892, from Salem, conducted their own personal tribute to the dead at the Ohio Vietnam Wall in Clinton, on Aug. 23. The funeral honor guards did a three volley salute and played taps.
Ida McCollum, traveled from Salem to lay a wreath for her brother, Charles Torri, who died in Vietnam.
She had been through the area, a few months ago and saw the wall for the first time.
“I was so impressed when I saw it, I had to go back and tell the people from the VFW,” said McCollum.
She wanted to give her brother a special tribute.
“He deserves the honor. He was in the Army and was only in country, less than a month. He was a truck driver and stopped to help someone whose brakes were on fire. Somehow, he got caught by the truck and was killed.”
“This is a tribute to veterans who served,” Sergeant John Nedzeiski, a Korean War veteran, stated. “This is the funeral service that we do for all of our veterans. We are veterans honoring veterans.”
Veterans from Korea, WWII and the Cold War were represented.
“It is an honor to be here,” Nedzeiski, stated. “I was very anxious to get my people together to do this. I’ve been to the wall in D.C., but this is fabulous. This is more than I expected. To think, that just a small group of veterans got together and came up with this. This just boggles my mind.”
The wall is 125 feet long, with 50 panels that are 30 inches wide, six feet tall, and eight inches thick. One side of the wall holds the 3,095 names of those who died in Vietnam from Ohio. The other side holds our country’s war history. The panels begin with the War of 1812 and end with our current combats in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Veterans Memorial is raising money for their POW/MIA reflection pool. To honor an individual who has served, alive or dead, you can buy a 4x8 brick for $75, or an 8x8 brick for $125. Granite, benches, pear trees, and other types of memorials can be purchased through the organization.
The park is located at 8005 Cleveland Massillon Road in Clinton. All information regarding the park is on their Web site, at www.ohiovietnammemorialpark.org. E-mail is Ohiovietnam@hotmail.com.
