Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans

Yesterday, the nation recognized the sacrifices of all Vietnam veterans with Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day.

The Senate passed a resolution on March 7, declaring March 30 "Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day," and organizations around the country, including AMVETS, hosted events throughout the week to honor those who served in Southeast Asia during the conflict.

In California, Irwindale AMVETS Post 113 also worked closely with local Vietnam veteran Jose Ramos to support his Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans, Inc., which hosted its "Welcome Home" ceremony on Sunday, March 27. To learn more about Ramos' work, Click Here.

To read about Post 113's support to the event, Click Here.

In Vinton, Iowa, AMVETS Post 218 helped to organize their local "Welcome Home" cermony and AMVET Denny Miller spoke at the event. To read about AMVETS' support organizing the ceremony, Click Here. To read highlights from the event, Click Here.

If your post or department has highlights from a Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day ceremony that you would like to share with American Veteran, please send digital photos and details to rgallucci@amvets.org for possible publication on this blog and the print edition of the magazine.

March 30, 1973 was the last day marking the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Vietnam. However, an ungrateful American public chose not to delineate politics of the day from the brave American men and women tasked with fighting the war.

American service members were greeted with hostility and disdain by the very country they had sworn to protect and defend.

In nearly 30 years since the conflict officially ended, groups like AMVETS have consistently sought out ways to right the tremendous injustices done to America's Vietnam veterans.

The Senate's resolution honoring the sacrifices of the Vietnam generation was the latest step in ensuring that all American war heroes receive the honor and recognition they have earned.

Keeping Posted Online: Tennessee Riders Honor Vietnam Vets

Riders from AMVETS Riders Chapter 104 in Strawberry Plains, Tenn., came together on Monday, March 29 to honor those who served in Vietnam.

The Chapter 104 Riders held a brief ceremony at the East Tennessee Veterans Memorial in Knoxville, then rode to the East Tennessee Veterans Cemetery to memorialize Vietnam veterans Hugh "Rabbit" Snow and others who had fallen in the conflict.

March 30 is considered Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day by many states across the country, including Tennessee, marking the final withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Vietnam.

Links to other AMVETS-supported Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans ceremonies around the country are included below:

AMVETS Post No. 113, Irwindale, Calif. Click Here.

AMVETS Post No. 6, Gary, Ind., Click Here.

AMVETS National Service Foundation also hosted a Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans ceremony at AMVETS National Headquarters last week.

If your post or department has a Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans story you would like to share, please send photos and details to rgallucci@amvets.org.

(Photos: Top: Vietnam veteran Jerry Taylor takes an etching at the East Tennessee Veterans Memorial. Bottom: AMVETS Riders National 2nd Vice Commander Bruce "Bruiser" McElhaney clears the headstone of Hugh "Rabbit" Snow at the East Tennessee Veterans Cemetery. Photos courtesy of Bruce McElhaney and AMVETS Riders Chapter 104.)

Women in Service: Air Force Brig. Gen. Wilma L. Vaught

For the next installment of our Women in Service series, American Veteran has chosen to highlight retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Wilma L. Vaught, one of the most-decorated female service members in American history and the visionary behind the Women In Military Service For America Memorial at the gateway to Arlington National Cemetery.

Raised in Scottland, Ill., Vaught decided to join the Air Force, seeking opportunities to lead. Her distinguished career took her around the world in a variety of command roles. In 1966, Vaught was the first woman to deploy with an operational unit as part of the Strategic Air Command bombardment wing to Guam, and later became one of the only non-nurses deployed to Vietnam.

After President Lyndon Johnson signed a law permitting women to serve at the flag and general officer level, Vaught was the first woman in the military's comptroller field to receive the distinction.

Prior to her retirement from the Air Force in 1985, Vaught commanded the U.S. Military Entrance Processing Command in North Chicago, Ill., where her unit was the first commanded by a female officer to receive the Joint Meritorious Unit Award, the nation's highest peacetime award for a military unit.

Through the course of her distinguished military career Vaught received such notable awards as the Defense and Air Force Distinguished Service medals, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross, and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal.

However, Vaught continued to serve her fellow veterans and her country once she left the military. Throughout the 1990s, Vaught campaigned for a national memorial honoring America's female service members, a vision that came to fruition with the opening of the Women's Memorial, the only national memorial honoring all of our nation's military women, on Oct. 18, 1997.

Today, Vaught is recognized as one of the chief advocates and leaders for America's female service members through her work as president of the Women In Military Service For America Memorial Foundation, the organization responsible for building and now maintaining and operating the memorial.

Today, the memorial stands as a testament to the contributions more than 2.5 million American military women have made to our nation's storied military history. The memorial and its expansive education facilities house a gallery dedicated to the service of America's military women dating back to the American Revolution, as well as a Hall of Honor and registry chronicling the experiences of thousands of individual female veterans, past and present. Artifacts, photos and exhibits are maintained by the foundation to preserve the legacy of our female veterans and inspire generations to come.

Thousands of veterans and their loved ones visit the memorial each year. In 2007, the memorial celebrated its 10th anniversary with a series of events around the nation's Capitol, including a gala, reunion, an anniversary ceremony, and memorial services. An all-female color guard from AMVETS Post 1912 in Farmington, N.M., presented the nation's colors for the candlelight march from the Lincoln Memorial, across the Potomac River, to the Service of Remembrance on the memorial's plaza. To view a DoD photo essay from the 10th anniversary, Click Here.

Vaught continues to muster public support for the Women's Memorial, honoring the sacrifices and valor of America's female service members. She continues to speak nationally on her work and the work of American military women, bringing female veterans' contributions and their unique needs and concerns to the forefront of the national discourse.

(Photos: Top: In March 2009, retired Brig. Gen. Wilma L. Vaught takes First Lady Michelle Obama on a tour of the Women In Military Service For America Memorial during an event honoring Women's History Month and military families. White House photo by Joyce N. Boghosian. Middle: in 1968, then-Air Force Maj. Wilma L. Vaught poses for a photo while serving with Military Assistance Command in Saigon, Vietnam. Photo courtesy of retired Brig. Gen. Vaught. Bottom: Gen. Vaught greets her fellow female veterans at the dedication of the Women's Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery on Oct. 18, 1997. Department of Defense photo by Staff Sgt. Renee L. Sitler. All photos are property of the Women In Military Service For America Memorial Foundation and have been furnished solely for use on the American Veteran Online blog.)

AMVETS National Commander to visit American Huey 369

Tomorrow afternoon, AMVETS National Commander John C. Hapner will visit with a unique Indiana non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the memory of Bell's Huey helicopters. American Huey 369, a 501 (c)(3) out of Peru, Ind., will host Hapner for a tour of their facilities and a possible ride on one of their restored helicopters, should conditions permit.

Named after the tail number of their first salvaged aircraft, American Huey 369 has worked for years to preserve the Huey as a symbolic gesture to America's veterans--particularly from the Vietnam era--who remember the Huey as a symbol of hope on the battlefield.

American Huey 369 founded Johnnie Walker says the distinctive sound of the Huey's supersonic blades often signified imminent rescue or resupply for troops pinned down deep in the jungles of Southeast Asia.

Since American Huey 369 was founded, they have managed to purchase two surplus Huey helicopters, numbers 369 and 803, restoring each to flight status through the work of an extensive volunteer network.

The organization, which now boasts a membership of more than 1,000, offers annual rides on the Hueys in exchange for volunteer work in support of the organization's mission.

Each year, American Huey 369 takes part in dozens of military and veterans' support events across Indiana and the upper Midwest, such as visits from the roving Vietnam Memorial Wall.

American Huey 369 is constantly looking to expand its reach and showcase its programs on the national stage. If you are interested in becoming involved with American Huey 369, visit their Web page, www.americanhuey369.org.



(Media: Top: Huey 369 is guided in for a landing during an event in 2008. Middle: Volunteers work on Huey 803 at the organization's hanger in 2009. Bottom: Huey 369 hovers over the roving Vietnam Memorial Wall during a Fourth of July weekend veterans' memorial celebration in Auburn, Ind. Video: American Huey 369 call-to-action video. All media courtesy of American Huey 369, used with permission.)