40 years after end of Vietnam War, local veterans remember
Norwich — It was all about those who weren’t there.
More than 60 people gathered Saturday on Chelsea Parade to honor the memory of the 12 native sons killed in action during the Vietnam War and the tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers who have fought in foreign wars and whose fates are still unknown.
Not far away, at precisely 1 p.m., the city’s Freedom Bell tolled 13 times outside City Hall, once for each of the Norwich fallen and once for those taken as prisoners of war or listed as missing in action — the POWs and MIAs.
Bob Murphy, vice chairman of the Norwich Area Veterans Council, the group that organized the Vietnam Veterans Day event, called the roll. After each name came the intonation, “Killed in action, sir.”
Robert K. Cooley … Francis C. Donohue … Thomas E. Donovan … James L. Greene Jr. … Joseph J. Grillo Jr. … Robert L. Howard … William L. Marcy … James W. McNeely … Harold R. Nielsen … Robert L. Pendergast … Franklin M. Renshaw … David Vatour.
Murphy was buoyed by the annual event’s turnout, which he said has grown in each of the last four years since the veterans council assumed responsibility for it. Saturday’s observance marked the 40th anniversary of the Vietnam War’s end in the fall of Saigon as well as 50 years since the escalation of U.S. involvement in the conflict.
Dennis Baptiste, the council chairman, served as guest speaker, calling attention to the plight of veterans impaired physically and otherwise by their wartime experiences. He cited the example of soldiers suffering from exposure to Agent Orange, a deadly herbicide used during the war.
“Register with the VA (Veterans Administration) system and join a veterans support organization,” Baptiste advised veterans. “Stay informed. Help yourself.”
State Sen. Cathy Osten, herself a veteran, reinforced the message.
“In my humble opinion,” she said, “It (Vietnam) was the one forgotten war, the one whose veterans did not receive the respect they deserved when they got back.”
Norwich Mayor Deb Hinchey also spoke, noting the ordinary beauty of the surroundings.
“To be here in the sunshine, with the traffic going by… ,” she said, serve to remind us why those who serve are willing to die.
“Because of their sacrifice, we do have a better life,” she said.
Twitter: @bjhallenbeck
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