Wall That Heals seeks local families to help bring tribute home

ST. CLAIRSVILLE - As Belmont County prepares to welcome The Wall That Heals from Oct. 1-4, the committee is asking the community to help make the historic tribute a deeply personal experience for local families.

The Wall That Heals is a traveling replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and will be on display at the Belmont County Fairgrounds around the clock for those four days.

Family members and friends of Belmont County-area Vietnam veterans whose names appear on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial are being invited to participate in the arrival and installation of The Wall.

Families will have the opportunity to carry and install the panel bearing their loved one's name.

"It’s an opportunity for our veterans and our community members to have a healing moment, have a reflective moment, and have an educational moment where they can learn about really the impact that the Vietnam War had on everyone," Belmont County Tourism Council Executive Director Jackee Pugh said. "There’s 58,000 names of servicemen who died in service during the war, and 26 of them are from Belmont County. So there’s a good chance that someone in your life was touched by this war, and it’s an opportunity to educate the youth about it and add a reflective healing moment for people that remember it very well."

Pugh added that she believes The Wall That Heals is an amazing opportunity for someone who has a loved one’s name on the wall to be a part of an unforgettable experience.

"Those family members, loved ones, and acquaintances get the opportunity to carry and install the panel with the person that they know and love’s name on it," Pugh said. "It’s just another way that the community can be involved in this and have a special moment to reflect and remember."

Committee member Emily Kessler added that her responsibility with the committee is to help find those family members of the veterans who are listed on the wall.

The family or friends can participate in carrying the nameplate panel during the setup of the wall and can also participate in the Welcome Home Ceremony.

"Of course, everyone is welcome to come out to The Wall That Heals at any time. But these are two special opportunities for families of those that have lost someone, and their name appears on the wall that they can participate in a special way," Kessler said.

She added that family or friends can reach out to emily.a.kessler@icloud.com or call 740-827-1644 to participate.

Kessler said that community members are encouraged to share the message so that no family who may wish to participate is overlooked.

She added that in efforts to find these family members, she's spoken with various Rotary clubs, mayors’ offices, civic organizations and funeral homes, searching for information about the 26 Belmont County veterans who are on the Vietnam Wall.

Charles Leroy Adkins of Barnesville, Tom Lew Austin of West Carrollton, William Stephen Barritt of Bridgeport, Vernon Webb Christian Jr. of Stewartsville, James Author Christy of Bellaire, William Carl Freund of Bridgeport, Gary Roy Goudy of Powhatan Point, William Russell Hinerman of Martins Ferry, John Wyne Hines of Belmont, George Robert Kelley of Bellaire, Frederick M. Koss of Bridgeport, Richard Norman Mamie of St. Clairsville, David Lee McPherson of Martins Ferry, Francis Marion Monroe of Bellaire, Quinlan Roberts Orell of Barnesville, Gary Pat Polley of Bellaire, William Clarence Rouse of Stewartsville, James Daid Serena of Bellaire, Andrew Michael Simko of Bellaire, Ronald Dean Starr of Martins Ferry, Louis Robert Sustersic of Blaine, Kenna Clyde Taylor of Shadyside, Kenneth Allen Tuttle of Martins Ferry, Donald Gene Wehr of Barnesville, William Russell Young Jr. of Barnesville and Richard King Zimmerman of St. Clairsville are all of the Belmont County veterans who are on the Vietnam Wall whose family and friends are being searched for.

"If you haven’t touched base with a volunteer, reach out. We’re looking to help you," Kessler said.

Pugh added the wall will be escorted from the Highlands to the fairgrounds on Sept. 29. The committee is inviting community members to line the streets and follow along as the truck and the motorcade go through towns.

The tentative route will kick off at Bass Pro Shops at the Highlands at noon. It will then take the Elm Grove Exit and pass Bridge Street Middle School at 12:08 p.m., then pass by Wheeling Park's entrance and go past Triadelphia/Steenrod schools at 12:12 p.m. It will then pass St. Michael Parish at 12:14 p.m. before going by Woodsdale Elementary School at 12:16 p.m.

The Wall will then make its way past Madison Elementary School at 12:21 p.m. before crossing the border into Ohio.

The first Belmont County location it'll drive past is Bridgeport Village Hall at 12:23 p.m., before making its way to Bridgeport High School at 12:27 p.m.

The Wall will then make its way to St. Clairsville High School at 12:41 p.m. before making its way to the Belmont County Courthouse at 12:43 p.m. The last location it will pass is St. Mary's Central School at 12:45 p.m. before making its arrival at the Belmont County Fairgrounds at 12:56 p.m.

Pugh said that her office has been working toward Oct. 1-4 for two years and couldn't be more excited for it to finally happen.

"The Wall That Heals is very strategic on their route, they don’t pick locations that are nearby when they’re selecting their sites. So we’re one of two stops in Ohio this year and there’s no other location within a two-hour radius where The Wall That Heals will be," Pugh said. "We anticipate a large surge in not only our community members and local Ohio Valley residents coming to experience this, but also visitors from outside the area. In the last five or six years, The Wall That Heals had been in Noble County and Athens County, and both of those locations saw a surge of about 20,000 visitors during the course of the four-day event."

She added that from a tourism perspective, she is really excited to be able to invite and welcome new visitors to Belmont County to experience it.

Pugh added that in addition to visitors coming to see the wall, they will also get to go out and explore the restaurants, parks and everything else that Belmont County has to offer.

"They'll get to experience all of these great amenities that we have right here in our backyard so this is a chance for us to get to experience that with new visitors that are coming to the area for The Wall That Heals," Pugh said.

The Wall will be installed on Sept. 30. The wall will then have an opening ceremony, which is called the Welcome Home Ceremony, on Oct. 1 at noon at the fairgrounds.

Pugh said that the Welcome Home Ceremony is because so many of the Vietnam veterans did not have a pleasant welcome home when returning from Vietnam.

"This is our opportunity to kick off the event and give them some of the dignity and respect that they deserve," Pugh said.