BISHOP, CA: Vietnam Veterans' Memorial Wall on display May 27-June 2

[pinboy3niner]

Point Man Antelope Valley photo


A half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans' Memorial will be on display in Bishop over the Memorial Day period (during Bishop's annual "Mule Days") from this Friday afternoon, May 27, until the morning of June 2. Engraved on the Wall are the names of the 58,272 U.S. servicemen and women we lost. Special forms and pencils will be available to make name rubbings.

LOCATION: The ballfield adjacent to Bishop Park. The park is located on Main Street, across from Erick Schat's Bakery.


TIME: From opening day this Friday until takedown June 2 the Wall will be open 24/7.


VOLUNTEERS WELCOME: Volunteers are welcome to help put up the panels during setup at noon this Friday, and to help with takedown around 10am June 2. People who wish to volunteer during the display period may see the local sponsors on-site at any time.

This replica (one of five traveling replicas operated by different organizations) is the Mobile Vietnam Veterans Memorial for the Antelope Valley (the "AV Wall," for short), operated by Point Man Antelope Valley. It is the only one of the five that was created for local use; unlike the others, it does not travel the country. While Bishop is not in the defined display area for the AV Wall (it's about a 3 1/2 hour drive from the Antelope Valley), an exception was made to display the AV Wall there in order to have the Wall displayed for Memorial Day.


The AV Wall convoy will arrive in Bishop between 11:30am and noon this Friday, accompanied by a motorcycle escort made up of Northern California and Southern California riders. If you're in Bishop at that time, don't look for a tractor-semitrailer. The AV Wall is entirely contained in this trailer, custom designed by Mike Bertell of Point Man Antelope Valley:


Photo by Yvette Castillo, a student at Lancaster High School


________________________________________________________

I will be onsite at the Wall in Bishop for the duration as a member of the AV Wall Team, and would love to meet any DUers who are in Bishop during that time. If you mention my username you'll be directed to me. I should be easy to spot:


Photo by Yvette Castillo

The photo was taken 2 days ago just before we took down the Wall after its display for 9 days at Lancaster High School in Lancaster CA. The students wanted a photo showing the medal they designed and had custom-made to present to veterans. I'd had very little sleep and was squinting against the sun. But, well-rested and without the sun in my eyes, I look about the same. :)

[DesertDiamond]

1. Well done, fellow AV DUer! :-)

[pinboy3niner]

2. As someone once said to me...

...after spotting Kerry stickers on my car, "So YOU'RE the other Democrat in the Antelope Valley." :)

And now we are three. We few, we happy few, we band of AV Democrats... :toast:

[joshcryer]

3. K&R, wonderful post pinboy3niner! :)

[bemildred]

4. Cool. Bishop ought to be a fine place to be the end of May, and bustling. nt

[catchnrelease]

5. I wish we could have made it.

My husband and I are frequent visitors to Bishop and the Eastern Sierra. In addition to going on our own to fish and hike, my husband is a member of Project Healing Waters, a volunteer group that works with disabled vets. The group teaches them to tie flies, make rods and fly fish, including taking them on fishing trips. They've gone on several trips to the Owens River and the vets all love it.

The VFW group there in Bishop has been really supportive and goes all out for the guys when they go up to fish. They have gone so far as to have flags all along the main highway and a police and fire truck escort into town, plus a free bar-be-que when the group gets there! It was pretty awesome. (That was last Veterans Day)

My husband, who is also a disabled Vietnam Vet and avid fly-fisherman, really loves working with PHW as he feels nothing lightens a mind like being out in the wild with nothing to worry about except snagging that elusive trout. He has told me many times that he doesn't think he could go and look at the Wall, either the original or a replica. Years ago, his mother got him a really nice book on it, and he's only opened it once and won't go back to it. He's a tough old bird, but this does get to him.

Thanks for your service then and now!!:patriot:

[pinboy3niner]

6. I wish I could have met you here, too

It's okay--I suspect we have a CA meetup in our future.

PHW sounds wonderful. But I doubt that your husband could be doing that without you. VN vet spouses often are put through their own ordeal, and many marriages don't survive that. I have the utmost respect and admiration for those partners who somehow manage to survive those challenges and continue to hang in there with their understanding, love and support.

The folks up here have been great. A local radio station live-tracked the AV Wall convoy's progress to Bishop, and as it passed, there were tractor-semitrailers, UPS trucks, even a cement mixer pulled to the roadside, their drivers standing outside, saluting. In town, people lined the roadsides to greet the convoy.

The local VFW bunch--Post 8988--went all out to bring the Wall here and to support it throughout. There are too many to name them all, but Earl McWilliams took the lead and really pushed to make this happen. He's been out there at the Wall every day, with all of the post's volunteers, and it's been an honor and a privilege to work with Earl and all the local crew.

With life memberships in DAV and VVA, I rarely do a 1-yr membership in a VFW post. But, as a small token of appreciation, before I leave town I plan to join Bishop Post 8988.

Please give Mr. catchnrelease a big welcome home from an old Screaming Eagle vet from I Corps, '69-'70. And a big thanks to you both for all you are doing.

Love & Peace,
pinboy3niner

:patriot:

[mike_c]

7. bummer, my partner and I were in Bishop then and we didn't see it....

We were camping nearby and had a camp stove failure, so we were in Bishop for four or five hours Tuesday, May 31, looking for repair parts. We even parked right in front of the park, on Main St. We never saw the wall. Wish I'd seen this post before we left.

Damn but it was windy and chilly all week, too! Not so much down in Bishop, but we were camped at 7000 ft and there were supposedly 70 mph wind gusts on the ridge tops-- damn sure blew us out of our first campsite and down into a more sheltered location, alas without the amazing view of both the wall-o-Sierras and the White Mtns simultaneously.

Anyway, damned sorry to have missed you!