Vietnam vets get fair shout-out

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — Vietnam War veterans gave all subsequent veterans a great gift, said John Hilgert, director of the Nebraska Department of Veterans Affairs.

Hilgert was the guest speaker Monday during the Nebraska State Fair Veterans Day Celebration. The event was a salute to all veterans but gave special recognition to Vietnam War veterans.

"Certainly the sacrifice of the Vietnam veteran is well documented," Hilgert said, adding that as a Gulf War veteran he wanted to thank those veterans for the treatment he received.

"The Vietnam veteran taught this country a valuable lesson on how to treat the warrior upon their return. Never again will America question the commitment of the men and women they sent into harm's way.

"That is a special gift that the Vietnam veterans not only gave to this Gulf War veteran but to all veterans who came afterward."

About 250 veterans, their spouses and families attended the celebration in the Heartland Events Center. When asked to stand according to their era of service, most were Vietnam veterans, with a handful of World War II veterans and even fewer who served in Grenada, Panama, the Persian Gulf, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Afghanistan.

Col. Doug Ladd of the Army National Guard, a 34-year veteran who served in Vietnam and Iraq, said every American has the responsibility to keep alive the memory of those killed and missing in action.

"Veterans Day celebrations are a day for remembering, a day for learning and a day for healing," Ladd said.

"It is imperative that Americans never stop supporting the armed forces, regardless of whether or not they support the war or any military conflict America becomes involved with," Ladd said, adding that many Vietnam veterans suffered for years from hatred and lack of support.

"When I look at the Vietnam conflict through the eyes of a 19-year-old, as most of us were, I don't see the politics that got in the way. I see the efforts of my brothers and sisters in arms."

Leo Heck of Omaha, who served from 1972 to 1974, attended the State Fair as part of a group from the Grand Island Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Ladd challenged everyone to remind America of why people gave their lives.

"All too often we forget how fortunate we are to live in a democracy where there is no fear of oppression," he said, adding a quote from Franklin D. Roosevelt: "Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy forget in time that men have died to win them."

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