Vietnam Veterans Memorial Replica Coming to Hilo and Maui

The Wall That Heals, a traveling replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, will make its first-ever stop in Hawai`i on Hawai`i island in January and Maui in February.

The exhibit-- a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial along with a mobile Education Center – will first be set up at the Hilo Bayfront. It will arrive in Hilo on Jan. 22^nd with a motorcycle and first responder escort. Set up is on Jan. 23 and it be on display 24 hour a day from Jan. 24 to Jan. 28 at 2 p.m. The Education Center will be open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. while the wall is open.

On Maui, The Wall That Heals and mobile Education Center will arrive and be escorted to the War Memorial Stadium on Feb. 7^th. Set up is on Feb. 8 and it will be on display from Feb. 9 to Feb. 13 at 2 p.m.

The traveling exhibit honors the 3-million Americans who served in the U.S. Armed Forces in the Vietnam War and it bears the names of the 59,281 men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in Vietnam.

Volunteers who want to help with the exhibit’s visit to Hawai`i island and those interested in setting up a tour can go to thewallthatheals-hawaiicounty.org. On Maui, those interested in volunteering and learning more about the exhibit can go to thewallthathealsmaui.com or email TWTHMaui@gmail.com.

AARP Hawai`i is a sponsor of the Hawai`i island and Maui visits along with Mayor Mitch Roth, Hawai`i County, the Hawai`i Island Veterans Memorial, Inc., Maui County and the Maui County Veterans Council.

Since its debut in 1996, the exhibit has been on display in more than 700 U.S. communities in addition to an April 1999 tour of Ireland and a visit to Canada in 2005. The Wall That Heals is a program of VVMF, the nonprofit organization that built the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. in 1982. The Wall That Heals is the only traveling exhibit affiliated with The Wall in Washington, D.C. and includes the largest Wall replica that travels the country.

The mobile Education Center exhibit includes: photos of “Hometown Heroes” – service members whose names are on The Wall that list their home of record within the area of a visit; photos of Vietnam veterans from the local area honored through VVMF’s In Memory program which honors veterans who returned home from Vietnam and later died; video displays that teach about the history and impact of The Wall; items representative of those left at The Wall in D.C.; a map of Vietnam and a chronological overview of the Vietnam War.