Vietnam Veterans Memorial coming to St. Louis

Sunset Hills—A traveling exhibit of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial will be on display at the campus of Lindbergh High School June 13-16, it was announced recently by the Sunset Hills Historical Society, its sponsor. Several civic, business and veterans groups are supporting the effort.

The exhibit is a smaller replica of the black granite wall in Washington D.C. which honors veterans who died or were missing in action.  The wall has 58,000 names on it, including 1,412 Missouri soldiers and 2,938 from Illinois.

The exhibit is traveling the country to honor veterans and to help educate new generations of American citizens who have reached maturity since the end of the war in 1975. It will be on display 24 hours a day during its stay at Lindbergh High School, 4900 S. Lindbergh Boulevard, which is several miles south of Interstate 44.

“A lot of us would like to see young people go to visit the memorial to find out what the Vietnam War was all about,” said Don Aird, a member of a breakfast club of Vietnam veterans that is helping with arrangements for the exhibit.

Some statistics prepared by the sponsors of the exhibit include:

• The youngest American soldier killed in Vietnam was 15 years old.
• The oldest soldier was 63.
• At least five men were 16.
• At least 12 men were 17.
• At least 25,000 of those killed were less than 20 years old.
• More than 17,000 were married.
• There were 997 veterans killed on their first day in

Vietnam.

• More than 1400 were killed on their last day in Vietnam.
• There are eight women on the memorial wall.