VFW POST DEDICATES VIET NAM MEMORIAL
On Saturday, Jan. 14, members of the Kerman Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 8470 held a dedication ceremony for a plaque commemorating the local soldiers who lost their lives in the Viet Nam conflict (1965-1975). The plaque is located in Kerman's Plaza Veterans Park, on Madera Ave. Between C St. and California Ave. Other memrials in the park remember local men lost in World War II and other conflicts.
Family and friends of the Viet Nam era military men were also on hand for the ceremony. Richard De Kneff spoke for the local veterans, and Post Chaplain Haig Mosesian led the invocation.
"We are assembled here to pay tribute to the men of our community ... our neighbors, who have fought in defense of this country," said De Kneef. "We express our pride and gratitude ... They were aware of the dangers, yet they responded without hesitation."
The VFW is planning further memorials honoring those who took part in Desert Storm, and in the Afghan/Iraq conflict, and hoping it won't be necessary to add more names to the lists of the fallen, in Veteran's Park.