Local events mark 5th annual National Vietnam War Veterans Day

The national recognition of Vietnam War veterans this week is a way of showing appreciation to a group who likely did not get the welcome home they deserved, a Westmoreland County veterans affairs official said.

“The Vietnam War veterans came home to a different welcome than previous generations,” said Matt Zamosky, county veterans affairs director. “They had to fight for everything they got. The veterans of previous wars have had a much better welcome.”

With the passage of time, the numbers of veterans who served during World War II and the Korean War are dwindling. Vietnam War-era veterans now comprise 35% to 40% of all veterans in the county, Zamosky said. Their average age is 67, he noted.

Paul Foresman, commander of White Valley AMVETS Post 85 in Murrysville, said it saddens him to think about the way Vietnam War veterans were treated when they arrived home.

“Most of those guys were drawn in from the draft, didn’t know what was going and were really shunned afterwards,” Foresman said. “And because of the way they were treated, we decided that we’d never let that happen again.”

More intense media coverage of Vietnam than previous conflicts helped fuel the anti-­war movement in the U.S., and the war’s increasing unpopularity spilled over to the cold reception many soldiers received upon returning home.

It wasn’t until 2017 that a National Vietnam War Veterans Day was declared — on March 29 of every year — and because of pandemic restrictions, many local veterans groups didn’t have a chance to observe it in 2020 or 2021.

March 29, 1973, marks the day the U.S. Military Assistance Command was officially disbanded and the final combat troops departed from Vietnam.

This year, it will be remembered with a variety of events throughout the region, kicking off Tuesday morning with a ceremony and luncheon at noon at the Norwin Elks, as well as a 6 p.m. event at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall in Pittsburgh.

At 2 p.m. Thursday, the J. Howard Snyder VFW Post 781 in North Huntingdon will host a ceremony presenting commemorative pins to Vietnam veterans. Vietnam War-era veterans wishing to attend are asked to call 724-830-3530.

In Johnstown, Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler, head of the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, plans to serve as guest speaker at a ceremony Tuesday morning at the Cambria County War Memorial.

“As time passes, it is crucial that we do not let the memory of our fallen war heroes fade,” Schindler said. “We must also continue to honor and search for the more than 1,600 service members who are still listed as missing in action. Everyone who served in this war deserves our admiration and thanks — not just today, but every day.”

Officials at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies in Cecil, Washington County, planned a morning commemoration event at the cemetery’s assembly area, where veterans who served between Nov. 1, 1955, and May 15, 1975, would be presented with lapel pins.

“When these veterans came back, they didn’t receive the fanfare that other veterans got,” cemetery director Edward Hajduk said. “But when the nation called, they answered. We have to remember.”