Vietnam Memorial Wall Goes on Display

Ed Roman fought in Southeast Asia more than 25 years ago, but as he solemnly stood before the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Moving Wall on Tuesday, he felt as if the war could have been yesterday.

“I still get choked up,” said Roman, who was 20 years old when he went to Vietnam in 1971. “Those names on the wall aren’t just names to me, they’re real people. They all came from somewhere.”

The Moving Wall, a half-scale replica of the granite monument in Washington, will be on display in Westminster’s Civic Center through Monday. Amid American flags and flower wreaths, nearly 300 people gathered Tuesday to celebrate the wall’s arrival.

The 252-foot-long memorial contains the names of 58,202 soldiers who died in the Vietnam War. Roman, a Costa Mesa resident, came to see the name of his friend Michael Walter North, also from Orange County, who was cut down by a sniper’s bullet at age 21.

Plans to display the Moving Wall in Westminster began about three years ago, when city officials sent a letter to the Moving Wall committee, Community Services Director Penny Loomer said. Officials had almost forgotten about the proposal when they received a reply from the group late last year, Loomer said.

In February, the City Council unanimously approved the $10,000 cost.

The Moving Wall, constructed of black aluminum panels with silk-screened names, was built in 1984 for those on the West Coast who might not be able to travel to the nation’s capital to see the real thing. Like the Washington memorial, it was built with public donations.

The wall and the names written on it stirred painful memories for many people who came to see the memorial on its first day in Westminster. Volunteer workers said they saw a man in a wheelchair spend several hours sitting behind the wall before he left, apparently unable to look at the names.

Some veterans, however, said the wall can play an important role in helping deal with those painful emotions.

“This wall means a lot to Vietnam veterans as a healing process,” said Bob Kakuk, 50, a former infantryman who lives in Huntington Beach. “We can come here and cry and meet other vets. A lot of hurting goes on at the wall, and a lot of crying, but also a lot of healing.”

The Moving Wall will be on display 24 hours a day, and Taps will be played at 9 each night. The Civic Center is at 8200 Westminster Blvd.