RICHMOND, Va. -- Clay Mountcastle can’t contain his excitement as artifacts and keepsakes from complete strangers fill his mailbox almost daily. The executive director of the Virginia War Memorial is embarking on a mission to document stories of veterans who have largely been ignored.
The exhibit “50 Years Beyond the Vietnam Veteran Experience” opens at the end of January and coincides with the anniversary of the Paris Peace Accords.
When he started searching veterans Dr. Mountcastle didn’t know how many warriors would respond.
“I was hopeful to get 50 because we wanted to do 50 years beyond 50 veterans and we got over 1,000 submissions,” Mountcastle said.
Mountcastle and his colleague Crystal Coon spent months traveling the Commonwealth interviewing people who lived to tell their tales.
“It really makes the two-dimensional war become a three-dimensional thing,” Coon said. “We had a gentleman who served in the Marine Corps and he pulled out his wallet and he still carries the list of men in his unit that didn’t come home.”
For Mountcastle, the gathering of materials is a race against Father Time.
“We have fewer than 50% of our Vietnam veterans still alive with us. More and more are leaving us. There needs to be a sense of urgency,” he said.
The stories allow visitors to hear from witnesses in their own words.
“There is a certain personal connection hearing a story from the person who experienced it,” Mountcastle said.
This journey is a learning experience even for fellow veterans like Mountcastle.
“One thing I’ve found doing this exhibit is that you will find no greater pride in this country than you will with Vietnam veterans,” Mountcastle said.
The exhibit is more than just honoring forgotten heroes, it is also allowing the veterans, in a small way, to heal.
“They had to endure decades of living in that shadow and in large part being ignored. Being ignored by their country. Well no longer,” Mountcastle said.
“50 Years Beyond the Vietnam Veteran Experience" opens on January 28, 2023, and will run through the spring of 2024 at the Virginia War Memorial.
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