A moving experience

Visiting memorial brings home cost of Vietnam: 58,228 lives

Downers Grove, IL - - When the Moving Wall, the traveling, half-size replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., came to Downers Grove last week, the emotional impact was immense.

Veterans arrived in wheelchairs and with walkers to run their fingers along the wall and find the names of their fallen friends. With tears streaming down their faces, people took rubbings of the names of loved ones. School children stared in awe at the vast expanse of names. Some of them carried letters or souvenirs. One man walked the length of the wall -- roughly equal to a football field -- and read silently from the roster of 58,228 names.

"Probably the hardest were the mothers whose sons' names were on the wall," said Woody Kawaters, commander of Downers Grove American Legion Post 80, which sponsored the event. "There were a sufficient number of them that I'll dream about it. We'll never know what those 58,228 people could have done for society."

The Moving Wall was created in 1984 by a man who attended the dedication of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington in 1982. Struck by the powerful presence of the wall, John Devitt felt compelled to make it accessible to people not able or willing to travel to Washington.

The Moving Wall, like the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, lists the names of the 58,228 Americans who died in the war. It is one of two moving walls that tour the country.

The Moving Wall was warmly welcomed by the members of the community, starting with an escort into town by area fire departments, police and veteran bikers. Musical groups performed throughout the course of its stay, Oct. 1-5. The state commander of the American Legion as well as Vietnam veterans spoke.

The wall was never left alone throughout its stay, guarded around the clock by volunteers. Kawaters said there was a constant flow of visitors to the wall.

One of the chief reasons for bringing the Moving Wall to the area was the hope of providing closure.

"I was surprised by how many people haven't been able to go to Washington to see the wall," Kawaters said. "This is a good way for them to see the wall and hopefully find some peace."

The wall also helps educate people about the Vietnam War, said Kawaters who was pleased by the large turnout from schools.

"When people talk about war, they talk about dollars and cents," he said. "Those names on the wall are the real cost of the war. We try to bring that home to the schools that come over."

During the wall's presence in Downers Grove, the American Legion opened its library as a museum featuring memorabilia from the Vietnam War.

"The school kids got to see it," Kawaters said. "One gentleman brought in four drawings. He was a platoon officer and someone in his platoon was an artist who did charcoal sketches of four of their guys. Two of their names are on the wall."

Kawaters said an additional objective of bringing the wall to Downers Grove was to serve as a reminder of the great sacrifice of the people whose names are on the wall. Lt. Philip Lazzara of the Downers Grove Fire Department said he has made a ritual of reading each of the names on the wall during his visits to Washington, D.C., as well as to sites hosting the Moving Wall.

"Those people who are on the wall were sons and daughters and fathers and grandfathers and husbands and wives," he said. "I guess that's why I read all of their names. I want them to know that they're not forgotten. I want them to know that someone, somewhere in the U.S., is recognizing them for their sacrifice. I want them to know that someone out there is saying their name."

Kawaters is proud of the way the community embraced the presence of the wall. More than 250 people donated a total of $10,000 to sponsor the wall, he said, and countless volunteers helped throughout the wall's stay in Downers.

"I expected to get some crusty old vets who would donate a couple of bucks but I never expected the support that we got," he said. "I'm going to be writing thank you notes for the next three months."

Lazzara said he hopes people left the wall mindful of the greatness of America and the sacrifices made to ensure our continued freedom.

"We live in the greatest country ever," he said.