Alumna’s Artwork Honors Vietnam Vets

Bonnie French was 17, nearing the end of her senior year at Westminster High School, when several close friends left to fight in a faraway land--Vietnam. One returned missing a limb, another later committed suicide and others simply did not come home.

On Friday, 30 years later, French said goodbye.

In a ceremony preceding the Memorial Day holiday at her alma mater, she honored her friends and other veterans by donating a painting she did that features the names of all Westminster High School students and graduates who served in the war. It will hang as a permanent tribute.

“The Vietnam War took on a heavy meaning for me because so many of my friends enlisted to go over there,” French said. “I guess I’ve always felt something should be done for them, and this felt like the right time to do it.”

French’s painting is similar to an American flag, but with the field of stars replaced by the face of a lion--the high school’s mascot--over an outline of Vietnam. Along the red and white stripes are the names of the 190 men who either dropped out of Westminster High to enlist in the armed forces or who joined after graduation.

“It was horrible,” said French, now 47. “We were all so young.”

French, who now lives near San Diego, said her attitude changed greatly over the course of the war:

“At first, I was very naive about what war was. I thought it was like a John Wayne movie, where he always came home at the end.”

French said that the act of painting, and not just the finished product, helped her pay tribute to the veterans of the war.

“When I was putting those names on the painting, I felt so much spirit, so much of their spirits,” she said. “I felt very close to them.”

Some veterans who attended the ceremony, which included appearances by members of the Marine Color Guard and songs by the Westminster High School band, said they appreciated the gesture.

“I’m extremely proud,” said Michael Cochran, a Vietnam veteran and Westminster High graduate. “I hope this painting serves as a reminder of the sacrifices [veterans] made.”