Traveling Vietnam veterans memorial coming to SoCal

A traveling exhibit that serves as a mobile replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., will be on display in Menifee for four days in April, providing an opportunity for residents to feel the impact of the memorial and pay homage to the men and women whose names are on it, officials announced Monday.

“The Wall That Heals” is scheduled to arrive on April 4 and be open for public viewing from April 5 to 9 at Miller Jones Menifee Memorial Park, 26770 Murrieta Road.

“The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund is pleased to bring The Wall That Heals mobile exhibit to Menifee to allow local veterans and their family members a chance to experience The Wall,” VVMF CEO Jim Knotts said. “Hosting The Wall That Heals provides an opportunity to honor and remember all those who served and sacrificed in the Vietnam War and educate visitors on the continuing impact of the Vietnam War on America.”

The wall, which is 375 feet long and almost eight feet high at the center, serves as a scaled down reflection of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, on which the names of 58,282 service members who died in the Vietnam War are inscribed.

“Menifee is one of only two stops for the traveling exhibit in southern California and the only stop in the Inland Empire,” according to a city statement.

The mobile exhibit makes the rounds nationally every year and has been on display at various times in other parts of Riverside County over the last decade. It is transported via a 53-foot trailer.

An education center accompanies the exhibit, featuring digital photos of “hometown heroes,” who will be Riverside County residents with military service in Vietnam for purposes of the April 5-9 display. Other features include videos about the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, maps of Vietnam and a chronological narrative of the war.

Everything can be viewed for free.