News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
A Vietnam Veterans Day event in Crossville Friday hopes to provide camaraderie for veterans, and a memorial for those who did not make it home.
Cumberland County Vietnam Veterans Association Membership Chairman Keith Seitzer said veterans benefit from a community that understands what they have been through. He said vets will meet at Memorial Park across from the Courthouse for a ceremony.
“We know what we went through,” Seitzer said. “We didn’t have much of a welcoming when we came home. In fact, we were kind of abused and looked down on. so it’s just our day.”
Seitzer said these events are as important as ever because nearly 55 years after the war, many members of the association are dying off. He said in years past, attendees have used the event to make new connections and have even run into veterans who served in their platoon.
“It’s a big support system,” Seitzer said. “Some people live with a lot of stuff and they just go into the shadows. There’s guys out there and ladies out there that just can’t let go of it. And now, all of a sudden, here’s a day.”
He said the group has 151 members in Cumberland County alone. Seitzer said those members will join veterans from Crossville’s Veterans of Foreign Wars to lower the flag at Memorial Park to half-staff. Veterans of Foreign Wars Treasurer Michael Ducheteau said veterans will be served a familiar meal of gravy over toast, scrambled eggs, and fruit.
“Appreciate anybody that comes out, and if you come out, just ring the door and we’ll let you in if you’re not a member,” Ducheteau said.
Seitzer said he hopes that veterans who may have fallen out of touch will attend and reunite with a supportive community that understands the hardship they endured, and want to celebrate the bravery they showed.
