Vietnam Veterans Memorial replica coming to West Dundee
All was silent as Harry Mierisch boarded the plane carrying him out of Vietnam in 1968.
There were no cheers from his fellow soldiers as they took off. Just the glow of firefights beneath them, and disbelief they were making it out alive.
When they landed stateside, Mierisch made his way through the airport, dodging cruel comments and objects thrown by passersby. He went home, took off his uniform, hung it in his closet.
And he tried to forget.
For decades, the Army veteran rarely spoke of the 10 months he served overseas, hardened by life in a war zone and by the mistreatment he received upon his return. He avoided military events and refused to join organizations.
He frequently visited his twin brother in Washington, D.C., but couldn't bring himself to see the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. There were too many familiar names inscribed in the granite.
This week, a traveling three-fourths replica of that memorial - aptly called The Wall That Heals - will come to West Dundee, where thousands are expected to pay their respects. Some will search among the more than 58,000 names for friends, family and loved ones who died in combat. For others, the wall will evoke memories of fear, pain and loss.
There was a time when Mierisch wanted to put all that behind him. He knows some Vietnam veterans still feel that way. But in the 10 years since he finally built up the courage to visit the memorial in D.C., every event, every conversation, every encounter with the wall has brought him a bit more peace.
Forgetting, he realized, isn't the same as healing.
The Wall
Mierisch, who now lives in Huntley, can pinpoint one distinctive moment in 2009 that helped him "cross the bridge of healing."
It was Memorial Day weekend, and his wife suggested they visit a large flag display she heard about in Carpentersville. As they pulled up to Carpenter Park, he was touched to see more than 1,600 American flags honoring servicemen who were missing in action or prisoners of war in Vietnam.
Then he noticed the sign: "Welcome Home, Veterans."
That Healing Field was the first event put on by the True Patriots Care Foundation, which honors military personnel and first responders. President Jerry Christopherson of Elgin also was drafted into the Army during the Vietnam War, and though he didn't serve in country, he saw the way soldiers were treated when they returned home.
He wants to make sure they're never treated that way again.
West Dundee was among 34 communities nationwide chosen to host The Wall That Heals this year. The local efforts are spearheaded by True Patriots Care and the American Legion Post 679, small groups that have worked tirelessly to raise money and secure sponsorships from municipalities, organizations and businesses.
"It's a rare moment in our lives when we get to correct our mistakes," Christopherson said. "This, I hope, brings a healing."
Standing 7½ feet tall and 375 feet long, the traveling wall will arrive at Randall Oaks Park on Tuesday, be assembled Wednesday and be on display from Thursday through Sunday. The exhibit is open 24 hours a day, with various events held throughout the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
The goal, organizers say, is to provide a solemn, peaceful place to grieve, reflect and find closure.
"The whole idea is to help veterans get over that bridge or whatever mental (barrier) they may have that prevents them from moving on," said Mierisch, who is involved with both organizations. "We want people to come, we want people to recognize what Vietnam veterans had to go through, we want them to recognize those on the wall."
The cost of freedom
The den in Pat Green's Carpentersville house is full of mementos from his time in the Marine Corps.
There's a photo of his platoon in California before they shipped out to Vietnam. Knives and rifles are mounted to the ceiling beams. A shadow box with a gun, a dog tag and medals - including his Purple Heart - hangs above the fireplace.
His favorite picture, tucked on a shelf among other keepsakes, shows Green standing beside a 105 mm howitzer, one foot resting on the artillery piece. He's a sergeant, about 20 years old, with a rifle in hand and a pistol on his hip.
"I was a young pup then," he says before pausing. "Mosquitoes are bad there, I'll tell ya."
Being a Marine is in Green's blood. He still folds his clothes a certain way and needs tasks to be completed just right. He values order and honesty, and has a strong competitive streak.
But one thing he'll never understand is why he came home from Vietnam when so many of his friends didn't.
Green has been to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., three times. The first and third trips, he rushed through the site without taking a close look. During the second visit, he spotted a name he recognized, and he fell to the ground.
"Freedom is not free," Green said. "This is part of the cost."
That's the message he hopes will be translated to those visiting the traveling wall in West Dundee. Through his involvement with the American Legion, he helped raise money and has done whatever he could to make the exhibit a reality. His fellow members deserve it. The warriors on the wall deserve it.
"I've never seen a group of guys so dedicated to what they do," Green said. "This is a huge project for them, and it's all coming together. That makes me proud."
Green still isn't sure whether he'll to go to the wall. If he does, he certainly won't search for a specific name. But he wants everybody else to see it.
He wants his children and grandchildren to understand the history. He wants those who have never been to the D.C. memorial to reflect. He wants visitors to focus on the individual names who made the ultimate sacrifice.
"Everybody up there is somebody to somebody," Green said. "They died fighting for this country."
Healing
There was a moment in Vietnam when Mierisch was feet away from becoming a name on the wall.
During the Tet Offensive, a series of surprise attacks by the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces, he and his troops were sweeping an ammunition depot when he saw something glisten in front of him. It was a tripwire attached to an explosive, and had it been triggered, he would have been killed instantly.
There were nights their base camp would come under mortar fire, setting off alarms and blowing soldiers out of their cots. There were things he doesn't like to talk about to this day, images he can't unsee.
"You go overseas into a combat zone, and your life changes. You look at things differently," he says. "You try to adapt, you try to stay alive. That's it."
Mierisch still has post-traumatic stress disorder and other health effects linked to Agent Orange exposure. He still gets choked up when he thinks about his friends who didn't come home. It's painful to think about how veterans were treated for decades after the war.
But he no longer shies away from events. He takes pride in his involvement with the American Legion and VFW. He wears his Vietnam veteran hat everywhere he goes.
Healing is a process, he says, but he doesn't do it only for himself.
"I do this for the guys on the wall."
Plan your visit to The Wall that Heals
The Wall That Heals will be on display from Thursday through Sunday at Randall Oaks Park, 750 Randall Road, West Dundee. The site is open and staffed with volunteers 24 hours a day.
Visitors can touch the memorial but are encouraged to reflect and speak quietly. It is disrespectful to eat, litter, smoke or cause a scene at the site. Small tokens or gifts of remembrance can be left at the wall; they will be collected each night and stored for a future project.
Coordinating events:
• Tuesday, July 2: Police will escort the truck carrying the wall from Woodstock to West Dundee. Community members are encouraged to gather on Main Street in downtown East and West Dundee to welcome the wall. Large flags can be picked up at Emmett’s Brewing Co., 128 W. Main St., and small flags will be distributed to children. The wall will go through the Dundees between 4 and 5 p.m.
• Wednesday, July 3: The wall’s 140 panels will be installed by volunteers.
• Thursday, July 4: An opening ceremony will be held at 2 p.m. at the site. The event will include speeches by Vietnam veterans, the posting of the colors, a bagpipes performance and more.
• Saturday, July 6: Music, prayer and a reading of local veterans on the wall will be included in a candlelight service scheduled for 7 p.m.
Sunday, July 7: A closing ceremony is scheduled for 2 p.m.