A three-quarter-scale replica of Washington D.C.’s Vietnam Veterans Memorial, has been shown throughout the nation and will be in Davie, Fla. between Oct. 19-21.
The memorial will be open 24 hours a day for free public viewing, activities, and ceremonies throughout that weekend at Forest Lawn Funeral Home & Memorial Gardens South.
This traveling memorial, the first of its kind, has been brought to more than 200 cities across the nation since 1990.
The memorial will be open to the public on Oct. 19 with a formal ceremony at 11 a.m. During its three-day stay in Davie, there will be a 6 p.m. candlelight vigil on Oct. 20, and a closing ceremony on Oct. 21 to honor veterans with the releasing of doves.
Melissa Pitalo, Fort Lauderdale director for Dignity Memorial, the company that built the replica, said, “The monument was created as a service to those who might never travel to the nation’s capital to experience the Vietnam Veterans Memorial firsthand. [It] offers visitors a chance for healing and reflections, and we are very pleased to be able to share it with the community.”
Referred to as “the wall” in Washington D.C., the Vietnam Veterans Memorial pays tribute to the inscribed the names of 58, 272 casualties, POW, and MIA soldiers. Made of rare Indian black granite, the wall was originally built so veterans’ families could honor their loved ones, as many did not have remains to formally bury.
The original memorial is made of 70 walls — each 247 feet long, with up to 137 lines of names per panel. The replica stands at eight feet tall and 240 feet long. Paper and pencils will be provided so visitors can create rubbings of the engraved names, just as many do in D.C.
The memorial will be at 2401 Davie Road, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. For schedule and other information, please visit www.DMVietnamWall.com/FortLauderdale or call 954-792-9360.
