VVMF Organizational Brochure

“We need to ensure that in this place of memory, lives as well as names are recorded...lives with smiling faces, remarkable accomplishments, engaging personalities and with dreams to pursue. We do this for them, for history and for those in the future...�

JAMES WRIGHT, PRESIDENT EMERITUS, DARTMOUTH COLLEGE

The Education Center at The Wall For many, the Vietnam War is from the distant past.

Nearly 40 percent of the 4 million people who visit The Wall today are too young to remember. To them the long list of names cut in the smooth black granite are faceless; they have no context, no connection.

Through interactive exhibits and primary source materials, visitors will be able to better understand the profound impact the Vietnam War had on their family members, their home towns, their communities and the nation. Visitors will understand the importance of The Wall and the role it continues to play in healing the deep physical, emotional and societal wounds left by the war.

YOU CAN ENSURE THESE FACES ARE NEVER FORGOTTEN National Call For Photos Behind every name, a story. Our goal is to collect photos for all of the more than 58,000 names on The Wall.

It was thousands of individuals who helped build the Memorial; now we are calling on you once again.

If you have a photo of a friend or loved one who is on The Wall please visit www.vvmf.org/CallforPhotos and help us collect every story and every photo.

Please visit www.BuildTheCenter.org to find out how you can get involved.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund Web Site: www.vvmf.org Email: vvmf@vvmf.org Telephone: (202) 393-0090

VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL FUND

IN YOUR COMMUNITY

VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL

Founded in 1979 by Vietnam veteran Jan C. Scruggs, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) is the non-profit organization that built and dedicated the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (The Wall) in 1982.

The Wall That Heals VVMF coordinates and manages The Wall That Heals touring exhibition, featuring a half-scale replica of The Wall and a museum that takes the Memorial’s healing legacy to communities nationwide. Millions of people have visited The Wall That Heals since its 1996 inception.

There are more than 58,000 names inscribed on the black granite Memorial. The list of names begins at the vertex of the walls below the year of the first casualty, and continues to the end of the east wall. It resumes at the tip of the west wall, ending at the vertex, above the year of the last death. With the meeting of the beginning and ending, a major epoch in American history is signified.

The Mission of VVMF is to preserve the legacy of The Wall, promote healing and education about the impact of the Vietnam War. Today VVMF assists the National Park Service in maintaining the site of the Memorial and carries out its mission through numerous programs and initiatives.

Remembrance VVMF holds six ceremonies a year at The Wall to honor and remember Vietnam veterans and veterans of all wars: In Memory Day Mothers Day Name Additions Memorial Day Fathers Day Rose Remembrance Ceremony Veterans Day Christmas Tree Ceremony In Memory Program The In Memory program honors those Vietnam veterans who died after service in Vietnam, but as a direct result of that service, and whose names are not eligible for placement on the Memorial. In Memory gives proper due to sacrifices of both the service members and the loved ones who stood by them. These individuals are honored every year during In Memory Day. You can learn more at: www.vvmf.org/InMemoryProgram

In 2010 The Wall That Heals visited 28 communities and was experienced by nearly 260,000 people.

The Wall That Heals is also equipped with a scanner to help in the collection of photos of service members who are on The Wall as part of the National Call for Photos.

Visit www.vvmf.org/twth to find out how to bring The Wall That Heals to your town.

Education Since 1998 VVMF has developed and distributed free comprehensive and balanced educational materials that incorporate the lessons of the Vietnam War era to provide students with a greater sense of responsibility, leadership and global understanding.

Echoes From The Wall, a multimedia teachers guide Hometown Heroes Service Learning Project, which helps teachers connect with veterans in the community to bring their stories to the classroom Dreams Unfulfilled, which tell the stories of the Vietnam generation

Each of the walls is 246-feet, 8-inches long. They meet at an angle of 125 degrees, 12 minutes, pointing exactly to the northeast corners of the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. At their vertex, the walls are 10-feet and 1 1/2-inches in height.

Other elements of The Wall include; Three Servicemen Statue and Flag Pole (1984) Vietnam Women’s Memorial (1993) In Memory Plaque (2004) Memorial Preservation The Memorial Fund takes an active role concerning the physical needs of The Wall, The Three Serviceman statue and flagpole, and the rest of the three-acre site on which the Vietnam Veterans Memorial rests.

Services provided by the Memorial Fund include the insurance of The Wall against damages, provision of copies of the Directory of Names to assist visitors on-site, Wall cleaning and maintenance. The Memorial Fund also adds names to The Wall and makes status changes for those whose remains have been returned home.