The Wall That Heals 

In the United States, veterans and service members are recognized on three separate days during the year. Armed Forces Day, on the third Saturday of May, honors currently serving personnel across all six branches of the military. Veterans Day is always celebrated on November 11, honoring all who have served. Memorial Day is observed on the last Monday of May and is dedicated to honoring and mourning those who died in service to our country. 

Washington, D.C. has over 15 war memorials located throughout the District. One of the most iconic is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, dedicated to the 58,318 men and women who died or are listed as missing in action during the conflict. They are listed in chronological order of death, from the first in 1959 to the last in 1975. In 1996, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, the organization authorized by Congress to build The Wall, created a mobile three-quarter-scale replica called “The Wall That Heals” that travels to communities across the country. In 2025, it visited 31 cities. 

May 14–17, The Wall That Heals will be in Edmond’s Mitch Park. Alongside the replica, there is a 53 foot long Mobile Education Center, which features a “Wall of Faces,” dedicated to pairing a photo with every name on the wall. There is also a “Hometown Heroes” display that recognizes the service members who listed the visiting town as their home of record. Additionally, an “In Memory Honor Roll” lists local Vietnam veterans who have passed on since returning home from any cause, whether service-related or not. 

For Edmond resident and Vietnam veteran Eddie Beesley, The Wall represented a chance to face the demons that plagued his dreams. Four months after his arrival in Vietnam, at age 18, he lost both his legs and many friends in a minefield explosion. “My first time in D.C. was tough. I had to go back several times because I couldn’t take looking at their names alone.” He would go back often, sometimes in the dead of night, where he’d see other vets sitting alone. “The Wall gave us a chance to decompress together. We didn’t do crowds; the public often looked at us veterans with disdain.” 

The Wall That Heals offers many Vietnam veterans who do not or cannot go to D.C. a chance to soften the war’s wounds. Fresh out of flight school, Col. (Ret) Mark Tarpley of Edmond flew numerous close air support missions over Vietnam in the AC-119K gunship. He lost two close friends during the war and visited The Wall. “I served with George MacDonald and John Rucker, both of whom were among the last killed in action. It was important for me to see that they’ll be forever remembered.” 

Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4938 of Edmond will host The Wall That Heals and has events planned, including a motorcycle parade, Native American ceremonies by the 39 Nations of Oklahoma, and an honoring of Hmong Veterans of Oklahoma, designated by Governor Stitt for May 15. More information is available at vfw4938.org. 

The Vietnam War remains complex and often debated, but for many who served, remembrance and recognition continue to carry deep personal meaning. For Edmond resident Col. (Ret) Chuck DeBellevue, one of the last American Flying Aces credited with six air-to-air kills, that meaning is rooted in a sense of duty. Reflecting on his time overseas, he said, “I slept good at night because I knew I was paying back a debt I had incurred by being a citizen of this great country.”