thedrifter
09-26-07, 06:36 AM
Paddle-out a tribute to troops killed Vietnam
By: ADAM KAYE - Staff Writer
Cardiff man organizing event set for Sunday in Oceanside
ENCINITAS -- In Jerry Anderson's mind, Sunday's Vietnam Veterans Memorial Paddle-out in Oceanside is all about remembering.
Exactly who and what participants will remember will be up to the individual, but Anderson said Tuesday he hopes many, many people will gather to recognize the sacrifices of 58,164 American troops who died in the unpopular war.
"We need to have a paddle-out, a remembrance of the men and women who died in Vietnam," Anderson said. "It's a traditional, Hawaiian way of remembering people who died. The paddle-out creates closure for people."
In 1970, Anderson completed one combat tour as a grunt with the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines, stationed outside of Da Nang.
During Sunday's gathering at the Oceanside Municipal Pier, he said he would devote his thoughts to Art Councill, a Marine and boyhood pal from Hawthorne, and to Rodney Todd, a Marine and close friend who suffered serious injuries in Vietnam and died from them 15 years later.
He said he also would reflect on Marines from his unit who were killed in action.
Everyday civilians can participate join in a remembrance of friends and colleagues.
Anderson said one man told him he felt guilty about avoiding the draft and would paddle on Sunday as a kind of catharsis.
Contacted by telephone Tuesday, Mark Fitzgerald of Carlsbad said he would paddle in memory of a father he never knew.
A helicopter pilot, 1st Lt. Mark Joseph Fitzgerald Sr., died when his son was 6 months old and his wife was 21, the younger Fitzgerald said.
Now 35, he said that more than ever -- as their country is at war -- Americans must recognize sacrifices by the troops.
"It's not something you shake," Fitzgerald said. "I was affected and have spent a lifetime trying to understand what's going on."
Anderson, who owns a graphic design firm in Cardiff, will add to that understanding Sunday by displaying 4-by-8-foot panels he has produced bearing images from the combat zone. He took some of the images; others are from the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Museum Historical Society.
Thirteen of the 33 panels will bear the names of Americans who died in the Vietnam War.
The installation will fill the Oceanside Municipal Bandshell, just south of the pier, at 300 N. Pacific Street, where the event begins at 11:30 a.m. The paddle-out ceremony starts at 1 p.m.
Anderson said he chose Sunday for the event simply because the venue was available that day and not because Sept. 30 is a historically significant date for the war.
Participants are asked to pay $50 to register; the fee is $15 for children ages 6 to 14. The price includes lunch. Others can come for free to mingle and view the photo display.
Proceeds will benefit the following charities: Fisher House, Freedom Is Not Free, Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund, Marine Corps Recruit Depot Museum Historical Society, Nice Guys of San Diego Victory Fund and San Diego Veterans Memorial Association.
Ceremonies will include a 21-gun salute, Marine Corps Color Guard and speeches by Medal of Honor recipients and other speakers. County Supervisor Bill Horn, a retired Marine, is scheduled to deliver an official proclamation. Anderson said he's also trying to arrange a helicopter flyover.
He said he hopes "closet veterans" -- the ones who lock away their feelings -- will join in Sunday's fellowship. Anderson became tearful as he considered their distress.
"The problem is the closet vets, and there's a lot of them," he said. "It's an opportunity for them to participate."
-- Contact staff writer Adam Kaye at (760) 901-4074 or akaye@nctimes.com.
Vietnam Veterans Memorial Paddle-out
When: 11:30 a.m. Sunday
Where: Oceanside Municipal Bandshell and Pier, 300 N. Pacific St.
Program includes: Paddle-out ceremony in remembrance of more than 58,000 U.S. servicemen and women who died in the Vietnam War; speeches by Medal of Honor recipients and other dignitaries; 21-gun salute; Hawaiian music and dancers; possible helicopter flyover.
Cost to participate: $50 donation from adults; $15 from children 6 to 14. All proceeds will be donated to charities.
Information: (760) 707-6831 or www.VVMPaddleout.org
Ellie
By: ADAM KAYE - Staff Writer
Cardiff man organizing event set for Sunday in Oceanside
ENCINITAS -- In Jerry Anderson's mind, Sunday's Vietnam Veterans Memorial Paddle-out in Oceanside is all about remembering.
Exactly who and what participants will remember will be up to the individual, but Anderson said Tuesday he hopes many, many people will gather to recognize the sacrifices of 58,164 American troops who died in the unpopular war.
"We need to have a paddle-out, a remembrance of the men and women who died in Vietnam," Anderson said. "It's a traditional, Hawaiian way of remembering people who died. The paddle-out creates closure for people."
In 1970, Anderson completed one combat tour as a grunt with the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines, stationed outside of Da Nang.
During Sunday's gathering at the Oceanside Municipal Pier, he said he would devote his thoughts to Art Councill, a Marine and boyhood pal from Hawthorne, and to Rodney Todd, a Marine and close friend who suffered serious injuries in Vietnam and died from them 15 years later.
He said he also would reflect on Marines from his unit who were killed in action.
Everyday civilians can participate join in a remembrance of friends and colleagues.
Anderson said one man told him he felt guilty about avoiding the draft and would paddle on Sunday as a kind of catharsis.
Contacted by telephone Tuesday, Mark Fitzgerald of Carlsbad said he would paddle in memory of a father he never knew.
A helicopter pilot, 1st Lt. Mark Joseph Fitzgerald Sr., died when his son was 6 months old and his wife was 21, the younger Fitzgerald said.
Now 35, he said that more than ever -- as their country is at war -- Americans must recognize sacrifices by the troops.
"It's not something you shake," Fitzgerald said. "I was affected and have spent a lifetime trying to understand what's going on."
Anderson, who owns a graphic design firm in Cardiff, will add to that understanding Sunday by displaying 4-by-8-foot panels he has produced bearing images from the combat zone. He took some of the images; others are from the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Museum Historical Society.
Thirteen of the 33 panels will bear the names of Americans who died in the Vietnam War.
The installation will fill the Oceanside Municipal Bandshell, just south of the pier, at 300 N. Pacific Street, where the event begins at 11:30 a.m. The paddle-out ceremony starts at 1 p.m.
Anderson said he chose Sunday for the event simply because the venue was available that day and not because Sept. 30 is a historically significant date for the war.
Participants are asked to pay $50 to register; the fee is $15 for children ages 6 to 14. The price includes lunch. Others can come for free to mingle and view the photo display.
Proceeds will benefit the following charities: Fisher House, Freedom Is Not Free, Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund, Marine Corps Recruit Depot Museum Historical Society, Nice Guys of San Diego Victory Fund and San Diego Veterans Memorial Association.
Ceremonies will include a 21-gun salute, Marine Corps Color Guard and speeches by Medal of Honor recipients and other speakers. County Supervisor Bill Horn, a retired Marine, is scheduled to deliver an official proclamation. Anderson said he's also trying to arrange a helicopter flyover.
He said he hopes "closet veterans" -- the ones who lock away their feelings -- will join in Sunday's fellowship. Anderson became tearful as he considered their distress.
"The problem is the closet vets, and there's a lot of them," he said. "It's an opportunity for them to participate."
-- Contact staff writer Adam Kaye at (760) 901-4074 or akaye@nctimes.com.
Vietnam Veterans Memorial Paddle-out
When: 11:30 a.m. Sunday
Where: Oceanside Municipal Bandshell and Pier, 300 N. Pacific St.
Program includes: Paddle-out ceremony in remembrance of more than 58,000 U.S. servicemen and women who died in the Vietnam War; speeches by Medal of Honor recipients and other dignitaries; 21-gun salute; Hawaiian music and dancers; possible helicopter flyover.
Cost to participate: $50 donation from adults; $15 from children 6 to 14. All proceeds will be donated to charities.
Information: (760) 707-6831 or www.VVMPaddleout.org
Ellie