Vietnam-era veterans invited to welcome home commemoration at Patriot Plaza

MANATEE -- Uncle Sam wants you, Vietnam War-era veterans, to attend a commemoration ceremony at 5 p.m. March 29, where you will be thanked for your service.

The ceremony is for all who served between Nov. 1, 1955, and May 15, 1975, whether in Vietnam or elsewhere.

Retired Brig. Gen. James M. Hesson will be presenting a commemorative 50th anniversary pin inscribed on the reverse with "A Grateful Nation Thanks and Honors You" to each veteran who has not previously received one, said Ted Smith, president and chaplain of the Sarasota County Veterans Commission.

Smith attended the Manatee County Veterans Council meeting Thursday to extend an invitation to the welcome home event set for Patriot Plaza at Sarasota National Cemetery, 9810 State Road 72.

After the meeting, Smith said the welcome home is appropriate, considering that most military personnel were told not to wear their uniform off post during the war, which had become divisive in the United States.

"Some veterans organizations were not accepting Vietnam vets," Smith said.

John Rosentrater, director of Sarasota National Cemetery, also attended Thursday's meeting and said that he is thrilled to be able to use Patriot Plaza to honor Vietnam-era veterans.

"It's always a privilege to say thank you for your service and welcome home," Rosentrater said.

At a recent Pittsburgh Pirates spring baseball game at McKechnie field, Veterans Affairs staff distributed 50th anniversary pins to Vietnam vets who were in the stands that day, Rosentrater said.

"You could see the emotion rising," he said.

The 50th anniversary commemoration was initiated by the 2008 Defense Authorization Act.

The March 29 commemoration will include music, reading of a proclamation to welcome home Vietnam veterans, and a keynote address by a local resident who was a Vietnam Medevac helicopter pilot. His aircraft was shot down by an enemy missile, but he and his copilot survived the crash, and evaded capture for three days before being rescued.

Members of a family whose Vietnam veteran is unable to attend or has passed away will also receive a commemorative pin. All Vietnam era veterans and their families are invited.

In other business Thursday, the Manatee Concert Band offered to present a concert of patriotic music on Veterans Day to honor vets. The auditorium at Manatee High School has been reserved for the concert.

James A. Jones Jr., Herald reporter, can be contacted at 941-745-7053 or on Twitter@jajones1.

This story was originally published March 18, 2016 at 11:14 AM with the headline "Vietnam-era veterans invited to welcome home commemoration at Patriot Plaza ."