Vietnam wall coming to Moses Lake
Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesMark Seeley of Boise, Idaho, kisses where his father John Seeley's name is inscribed in the Vietnam Veterans Memorial at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Plans are underway to bring a traveling version of the memorial to the Grant County Fairgrounds in June.
Informational meeting Thursday
MOSES LAKE - A traveling memorial wall honoring everyone who died serving in the U.S. military during the Vietnam War is coming to Moses Lake in June.
An informational meeting is scheduled for Thursday at 2 p.m. at the Moses Lake Fire Department located at 701 E. Third Ave.
The public is to be provided information about the wall, accompanying monuments and an all veterans and
patriots rally, said Richard Carpenter of Chapter 13 of the Northwest Combat Veteran's Motorcycle Association. He expects the meeting to be approximately one hour long.
He said the wall is scheduled to be at the Grant County Fairgrounds June 11 through June 15 for anyone interested in seeing a display of all the names and memorabilia.
Carpenter said the event is not exclusive to motorcycle enthusiasts or the combat veterans, it's for everyone. Several other events are being planned for the five-day event including a possible poker tournament.
He has his own military ties. Carpenter served in the U.S. military in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968.
He expects thousands of people to attend the event for Moses Lake and is need of donations of funds and hotel rooms. People interested in donating resources are encouraged to attend the Thursday meeting, Carpenter said.
He said the wall is approximately 370 feet long and 8 feet tall featuring more than 58,000 names of fallen war veterans. Several semi trucks are used to transport the wall, Carpenter added. The memorial wall has traveled all over the country making various stops at select cities.