by Presley Hughes, reporter

FAIRHOPE Ala.– Downtown Robertsdale hosted the first of a four day opening of a memorial wall for the veterans of Vietnam called, “The Wall that Heals.” The wall is meant to be an exhibit that resembles the Vietnam veterans memorial wall in Washington D.C. and is over 375 feet in length and is over seven feet tall, towering over its onlookers. 

“The Wall that Heals” was a name given to the memorial as a metaphor, representing both the thousands of young men who served and died in Vietnam, but also representing families of the veterans who have lost their loved ones in the fight for freedom.

Numerous volunteers from the City of Robertsdale assembled the exhibit, requiring multiple hours of hard labor and careful calculations to keep it from cracking, breaking, scratching or falling. 

“When I heard that the city needed volunteers, I automatically went to my friend group and got everyone to sign up,” said Austin Hudges, volunteer. “I never had anyone in my family get drafted in the war but I know some people whose family members have and they’ve taught me how important it is to remember those who bravely gave away their lives for their country and I wanted to do my part in helping others remember them.”

The trailer that carried the Wall into Robertsdale also serves another purpose, the trailer, called the “Mobile Education Center,” turns into a large timeline of the war and has a lot of additional information for the guests to read through which will give them an easy-to-understand explanation of the war and the American fighters who lost their lives in it.

“The Wall makes me very emotional, my grandfather was in the war and he lost his life in Vietnam,” said Jessica (Jessy) Burns. “I never got to see his name on the memorial but now I finally can. It means so much to our family and it seems to mean a lot to others here too.”

When walking through the memorial, onlookers will find hundreds of names, all of which were owned by brave American soldiers. Family and friends walk through the exhibit, remembering the family members they’ve lost, whose memories will live on forever in the hearts of those they loved and who loved them. Free parking and admissions will continue through to May 12 and everyone is welcome to come and pay their respects. No photography is not currently allowed for quests.