“We’re in the catch-up mode for what we didn’t do right in the 60s and 70s”--

  The Dog Tag Memorial, honoring the dozens of men from Clark County who lost their lives in the Vietnam War, was officially dedicated Saturday afternoon, September 26 in Veterans’ Memorial Park.

The memorial is the idea of veteran Dave Bauer, who presented the idea to Vietnam medic Randy Ark two years ago.   Bauer, who was then named State Commander of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, passed the project along to Ark, who has spent the past two years gathering the funds necessary to complete the monument, created in the shape of a large dog tag. 

The names of 63 men from Clark County are engraved in the stone, all of whom lost their lives while serving in Vietnam.  Ark said Saturday that the survivors have a responsibility to honor the fallen by “living honorable lives…and serving the community because we have the opportunity to do so.”

County Commissioner Rick Lohnes was the keynote speaker at the event, pondering aloud why it took so long for Americans to properly recognize and respect the service of Vietnam veterans. 

“I don't know if Americans wanted to forget the war…I don't know if the war was just too ugly for us to comprehend,” said Lohnes, who also noted that it took far too long for PTSD to be acknowledged as a legitimate medical condition.

Lohnes called the Vietnam War “a psychological war,” saying that American soldiers spent an average of 240 days per year actively engaged in combat, while World War II soldiers spent about 40 days per year fighting.  “Their experience was intense…the enemy was hard to find, hard to catch—they looked like kids, they had no uniforms,” Lohnes said, speaking out against the way American soldiers were treated upon their return home.

“We’re in catch-up mode for what we didn't do right in the 60s and 70s,” said Lohnes.

Bret DeLong of Enon attended the dedication, as his father's name is one of the 63 engraved on the memorial.  Willard DeLong, Jr., a front line sniper,  was killed in Vietnam in 1969, four months before Bret was born.  Bret said his family kept his father's memory alive through stories they told him growing up.

Bret was one of dozens of relatives of the men on the stone who were present and received a wearable dog tag engraved with their loved one’s name.

“It means a lot,” DeLong said of the local memorial, saying: “I always go to the traveling wall, but now I can come here.”

Al Woosley, Eric Blair, Derek Brocious, and Alex Siemann, students from Tecumseh Jr. ROTC, presented the colors at the event, having been invited by Ark.

The Vietnam Dog Tag Memorial is located in Springfield’s Veterans’ Memorial Park, next to the art museum.

First Group 2x2
First Group 2x2
Local News

Stories on people, places, events and businesses right here in Western Clark County.

Local Government

Meetings and news from local Boards of Education, Township Trustees and County Commissioners.

Sports

Arrows, Bees & Warriors; we cover all local high school sports, as well as local semi-pro and adult leagues