Vietnam memorial to visit Vegas

Monday, Nov. 29, 1999 | 11:33 a.m.

An estimated 600,000 Las Vegans and tourists are expected to visit the The Moving Wall of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial this week in Las Vegas.

For many it will provide a long overdue closure to one of the darker episodes in American history -- the Vietnam War, a conflict that sharply divided families and the nation and left bitter feelings among many who bravely served their country only to return to public scorn, resentment or apathy.

"For a lot of people the wall is a way of finally letting go of the war," said Al Libby, a Vietnam-era Army veteran and chairman of the first visit of The Moving Wall to Las Vegas since 1992. The traveling wall is a replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.

"There are a lot of us who cannot afford to go to Washington, D.C. and visit the permanent monument. This half-scale monument has the names of every American killed in action, just like the permanent wall and provides similar fulfillment."

The traveling wall includes the names of the 151 Nevadans who were killed in Vietnam.

Vietnam Army veteran Jon Grubbs of Las Vegas said the wall is a symbol where veterans can take their children -- and now grandchildren, as many are in their 50s and 60s -- to teach them fact from fiction about the war.

"The wall will be set up in Las Vegas the same way it is in Washington and it will be open 24 hours during its week here," Grubbs said. "People who want to see it will have no excuse not to go."

The traveling wall will be on display Wednesday through Dec. 7 on the lawn near the rear of the Eagles Lodge, 1601 E. Washington Ave. It is being sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion and the Fraternal Order of the Eagles Aerie 1213. Admission is free.

"The outpouring from the community to help us raise money to bring the wall here has been tremendous," Libby said. "We have raised about $10,000."

Organizers estimate they will spend about $5,000 to ship and erect the wall and bring in ceremony participants, including the 43-member Marine Band from Twentynine Palms, Calif.

The amount of money remaining after those and other expenses will be given to local charities to help them through the Christmas season, Libby said.

The wall will cross into Nevada from Hoover Dam on Tuesday at 10 a.m. with its traditional escort, the Vietnam Veterans Motorcycle Club, members of which will serve as guards for the monument during its Las Vegas stay.

As the caravan crosses the dam, a banner heralded as the world's largest American flag will be on display down the face of the structure. The procession will travel through Boulder City, Henderson and up the Las Vegas Strip to the Eagles Lodge, Libby said.

The opening day ceremony will be 3 p.m. Wednesday, featuring as guest speaker retired Navy Capt. Ray Alcorn, who was a Vietnam prisoner of war and survivor of the infamous Hanoi Hilton. Alcorn also is the former commanding officer of the Fallon Naval Air Station and currently is director of Veterans Affairs for the state.

Also taking part in the ceremony will be representatives of Nevada's congressional delegation, the Las Vegas mayor's office and the governor's office. The creator of the traveling wall, John Divett, also will address the gathering on the wall's history.

Two flyovers will also be part of the festivities -- one by Nellis Air Force Base jets in the missing man formation and another by the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association in Vietnam-era choppers, Libby said.

Closing ceremonies will be on the anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, which led to the United States entering World War II in 1941. Members of the Nevada Pearl Harbor Survivors Association will participate, Libby said.

Visits to the traveling wall and the permanent monument "can be very emotional," Libby said, noting that people often sob as they etch with pencil or crayon on paper against the names of the war dead -- a cherished keepsake.