Galapagos Posted May 27, 2012 #1 Posted May 27, 2012 (edited) Let me begin this post with saying I am laying no blame for the condition of this memorial to the ones who at one time may have been responsible for its upkeep. I am also not looking for any thanks for cleaning up this memorial or the upkeep I will do in the future. I am an Ohio Patriot Guard and damn proud of what I can do for the Vets that served our country. I myself am not a Vet. I am an ex police officer and understand what sacrifice means. My girlfreind and I started walking our dogs at a local University. We discovered a memorial to the Vets of the Vietnam era that was in poor condition. I called the groundskeeper of the University and was directed to who knows who. Some guy called me back and I asked for permission to take care of the site. Sure he says, do your thing. I called the Dean and made sure I had permission. She was very cordial and said she would look into the matter and call back. I am still waiting for that call. My partner Char and I cleaned the stone and killed the weeds. We laid mulch and straightened the flags. I added a proper 3x5 American flag to the site. I feel better now. I have enclosed a pic of Char with our results. What I would like the members here is to check on the sites they know about that may need some care. I will retire in a number of years. I know the PGR would keep me busy. In addition to those duties I am now considering making it an ambition to hunt these places. WW1 Vets, Civil War Vets or any forgotton place. My Uncle Johnny died in Nam. This is special to me. http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w109/chromeandleather/100_2447.jpg Edited May 27, 2012 by Man of Steel
etcswjoe Posted May 27, 2012 #2 Posted May 27, 2012 It is great Americans like you that make me proud to have served.
mini-muffin Posted May 27, 2012 #3 Posted May 27, 2012 Congrat's on filling a need. I don't know of any in this area, it's a small town area and they are very proud of the few memorials we have. As far as I know the only memorials we have are up at the courthouse. Nice to know there are some people willing to go out of there way like you have. Margaret
Galapagos Posted May 27, 2012 Author #4 Posted May 27, 2012 It is great Americans like you that make me proud to have served. I deserve no thanks. I am honored to give thanks to all the vets that served our great country and sacrified more than I could ever give. I just want to make sure they are remembered in the proper fashion and honored for their service.
BOO Posted May 27, 2012 #5 Posted May 27, 2012 I'm afraid there are probably several of those kind of memorials around the country that are not being taken care of. We had one here in our village and the public works workers recently cleaned up the spot and the local Brownie Troop planted some flowers a couple of weekend ago. When I get a chance I will take some pictures and post on this thread. Thanks, BOO
Aimhigh Posted May 28, 2012 #6 Posted May 28, 2012 It is great Americans like you that make me proud to have served. Could not have said it better!!!!
bongobobny Posted May 28, 2012 #8 Posted May 28, 2012 Thank you VERY much my friend!!! As a Vietnam Veteran myself I can not begin to express our gratitude! At the time we weren't received very well and though we weren't looking for any kind of hero's welcome (we didn't feel like we were heros, we just did our job) we certainly were not expecting to be spat upon and to be called baby killers either!! There shouldn't have been any reason for any of us to feel shame for serving but unfortunately many of us did begin to feel that way.
Phoneman1981 Posted May 28, 2012 #9 Posted May 28, 2012 Thanks to the both of you. It looks nice. Thanks for posting.
Yama Mama Posted May 28, 2012 #10 Posted May 28, 2012 That was so nice of you to do! It looks beautiful. I am sure there are many other Memorials unfortunately that have been forgotten. Thank you and Char for caring. We Americans need to remember all the people who gave their lives in past wars and not just the present conflicts we are involved in. Beautiful story, thank you for sharing. Yama Mama:smile5:
Galapagos Posted November 11, 2012 Author #11 Posted November 11, 2012 I find myself needing some help. Anybody know where I can get flags for this memorial marker? I have contacted the Vietnam Vets and Legion and not heard any thing. I would take the project on myself but I have to admit I do not have the funds right now. Mulch is one thing, flags and holders are something else. The company I work for is not doing that great right now. I am at a 10% wage cut and we have about half our workforce. My job may not be there come spring time. I am looking for flags from all the services. Marines, Army, Navy, Coast guard, Air Force. I would also like to find some type of flag for Police Officers. If someone has a source for these please PM me. Thanks, MoS
Freebird Posted November 11, 2012 #12 Posted November 11, 2012 Have you found a place to BUY them. If so, maybe we can help. I would be willing to pay for one.
Galapagos Posted November 11, 2012 Author #13 Posted November 11, 2012 I think the holders are OK. I need flags. I think they are 12x15 inch flags. I am asking for Legion, Vietnam Vets, Eagles or any organization to help out. I hate to say this, I contacted my local Legion and they said they would get back to me. They had the flags and had to get an OK. I never got a call back and I ride with these folks sometimes. If I could do this I would not ask anyones help. Circumstances have hade if difficult for me to do anything at this time. It is very frustrating. Thanks, MoS
etcswjoe Posted November 12, 2012 #14 Posted November 12, 2012 http://www.waymarking.com/ can help find memorials.
Freebird Posted November 12, 2012 #15 Posted November 12, 2012 Well all the flags would probably need to come from the same place to ensure that they match. If you find a source, let us know. I can't imagine that they are too terribly expensive.
Galapagos Posted November 14, 2012 Author #16 Posted November 14, 2012 I have some really great news. I received a phone call from a member of this site that wishes to remain unnamed. He is shipping me a high quality flag for each service. I have to do a slight modification to mount them on the markers. I am a former police officer, Sheriffs Deputy and firefighter. I am tearing up as I type the words in this post. I cannot express my graditude to you Sir. This monument has become a personal thing with me and I thank you for helping me out. This site is also wonderful. I will be here for life. Thanks folks, Geo
Galapagos Posted November 26, 2012 Author #18 Posted November 26, 2012 I received the flags today. They are great! With slight modification I should be able to use these with the marker supports. My thanks again for the persons responsible for donating these high quality flags. I will try and have them in place this weekend. I know I talk too much but I have one more comment. America is the land of the free because we do not forget our service people who had to endure terrible things to give us this way of life. I lost an uncle in Nam and had five uncles all see combat in different wars. My father landed on the beach the second day of D-Day. When you see a Vet thank her or him for their service. And thanks again to this site and the members here, Vet or not. You people rock!
Galapagos Posted April 5, 2013 Author #19 Posted April 5, 2013 Update. Winter and some old age issues have kept me away from my pet project of this Vietnam Vets memorial. Now that the weather has lightened up in NE Ohio I am in the process of installing the flags that were donated by another member who is a proud American and came to my call when I needed help on this project. Pictures, progress and details to follow in the next few weeks. Thanks to all here.
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