Vietnam Memorial dedicated in Lower Bucks County
More than 350 people paid tribute to the 95 servicemen from Lower Bucks County who were killed or missing in action during the Vietnam War, those who suffered the aftereffects of Agent Orange and PTSD and all who served in the conflict.
Local Vietnam veterans, U.S. Representative Brian Fitzpatrick and former U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy were among those who recounted the heroism and selflessness of individual soldiers who died or went missing during the conflict.
Sculptor Abbe Godwin, whose works include the statue of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Gardens in Raleigh, N.C.; the Stephen Foster sculpture in the Smithsonian American Art Museum; the North Carolina Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the grounds of the state capitol in Raleigh; and more, talked about the inspiration behind the 600-pound bronze statue that is the centerpiece of the memorial.
From the 11-person Armed Forces Color Guard from the Military District of Washington, D.C., and a military helicopter flyover to a final roll call of both living Vietnam veterans and the dead and missing, the event gave overdue recognition to those who served in the war.
The memorial — which includes the names of the 94 dead and one missing from Lower Bucks County — is a permanent reminder not to forget their service, their sacrifice and their suffering.
“One of greatest spiritual leaders, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., once said if a man doesn’t have anything worth dying for, he isn’t fit to live,” said Godwin in her remarks. “It is deeply sobering to realize that our freedom to simply gather here and to say what we think and feel was bought by the blood and suffering of thousands and thousands of Americans through our nation’s history — leaving families with a lifetime of loss. Giving their lives, suffering grievous wounds to their bodies, their minds, and their hearts — all for us, for the freedom that we take for granted every single day.”
The memorial honors sons of Bensalem Township, Bristol Borough, Bristol Township, Falls Township, Hulmeville Borough, Langhorne Borough, Langhorne Manor Borough, Lower Makefield Township, Lower Southampton Township, Middletown Township, Morrisville Borough,
Newtown Borough, Newtown Township, Northampton Township, Penndel Borough, Upper Makefield Township, Upper Southampton Township, and Wrightstown Township.
The memorial was funded by state and local grants, and through various fund-raising efforts. Donations to current and future projects can be made at www.lbcvvm.org.
The memorial has been created by the PA Vietnam Veterans Memorial Foundation, a grass-roots organization that includes many members of the team that brought the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall to the area in 2017. The Wall in Bucks County drew upwards of 25,000 people during its July 14-16 run in Penndel. The event also raised more than $31,000 in money and goods that was donated to local and national veterans causes. The PA Vietnam Veterans Memorial Foundation is chaired by Ed Preston, who also chaired The Wall
in Bucks County and chair the Penndel-Hulmeville Memorial Day Parade.
The Pennsylvania Vietnam Veterans Memorial Foundation is 501(c)(3) organization that is dedicated
to preserving the legacy and memory of those from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as well as from Lower Bucks County, who served in Vietnam War, including those who were killed or are missing in action and those who returned only to suffer the effects of the war for the remainder of their lives. More information is available at www.lbcvvm.org.