Honoring our heroes
A long-overdue welcome for Vietnam veterans
Over 58,000 died. Another 1,582 are still missing. More than 300,000 made it home but had been wounded in combat. And those who returned weren’t always welcomed back to their native land.
“We Vietnam Veterans truly appreciate this recognition,” said Commander Lorri Gilchrist of Sequim, a Navy veteran, as she addressed the commissioners on Tuesday after they presented a proclamation honoring local Vietnam veterans.
“It took a long time,” Gilchrist recalled. “We were not really greeted very friendly when this was all happening back in the day,” she said before thanking the commissioners and the gallery for gathering to recognize the service of Gilchrist and other veterans who stood at the podium.
It’s been nearly 52 years since the end of American involvement in the Vietnam conflict, but for many veterans, the war never truly ended. Public hostility and indifference, lack of government support, PTSD and mental struggles, and difficulty adjusting to civilian life are just some of the challenges that many Vietnam veterans faced.
Commissioner Johnson explained that the County’s Northwest Veterans Resource Center is working to start a class called My Healthy Vet, which will help veterans navigate computer registration to access critical resources.
The Northwest Veterans Resource Center (NWVRC) is also home to the Clallam County Veterans Relief Fund, a program providing emergency assistance to qualified veterans and their families. These programs rely on community support and participation to ensure that no veteran is left without the help they need. Connect with this county resource here.
Now, our community has an opportunity to show appreciation for those who served. A “Welcome Home” ceremony honoring Vietnam War Veterans will be held tomorrow, on Saturday, March 29, 2025, at 2:00 PM at 107 East Prairie Street in Sequim, at the Jack Grennan American Legion.
This is more than just an event—it’s a chance to finally give these veterans the warm welcome and gratitude they deserve. Come stand alongside those who served and let them know they are valued, respected, and never forgotten.
It was another lifetime, that I don't think much about; and possibly, that is what got me to this point. I spent most of 1972 off the coast of North Vietnam, serving our Republic as my Dad did prior, during WWII and the Korean Conflict; he didn't believe he was a hero either. My years at Port Angeles High School were spent having the best time of my life, at that point, knowing what lie ahead, being reminded every single day on the 6:00 News with Walter Cronkite. In all honesty, I am embarrassed when people thank me for my service, because for many it was a one way journey, who came home in a body bag. It's been over half a century ago, with a lot of life and living having transpired during the interim. I came back home. and tried to relate to the social circle I had known prior; I didn't fit any longer and began my new life that many of my Brothers and Sisters never got the opportunity to live. I was discharged two weeks before the Fall of Saigon. I celebrate life every day; good, challenging, or whatever prevails, "living is the chief cause of death". Thank you all for your sentiments.
I was in high school when my father was sent to Vietnam. He was a Col in the Marine Corps and had a "Huey" helicopter squadron who flew Medevac missions. He was awarded the Silver Star among other medals while in Vietnam. I don't think you will ever find a closer union forged between the "band of brothers" who fight in any war. It's something no one else can understand, but I would see the love they carried for each other at every reunion. When my father died, the Marines lined the street in front of our house, made a speech and gave him the Bugle Taps. He was later buried in Arlington Cemetery with a fly over in the missing man formation and the twenty one gun salute. I was never prouder of my father and all those that have served than on that day. I thank all you who served our country and in Vietnam!