Fallen: Never Forgotten: Vietnam Memorials in the USA (RU Airborne, 268 pp., $34.95) is a large-format book put together by Ronny Ymbras, Matt Ymbras, and Eric Rovelto that devotes one chapter to a Vietnam veterans memorial in each state.
“We sought to choose the state memorial, a memorial closer to people’s hearts, or a new memorial,” Ronny Ymbras, who served with the 101st Airborne Division in the Vietnam War, writes in the book’s Foreword.
Each state’s page contains photos of a memorial or monument, along with a brief history, and an alphabetical listing of the names of those from that state who died in the Vietnam War.
The authors include iconic state memorials such as the unique and powerful Kentucky Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Frankfort, which contains a sundial that places a shadow on the name of each that state’s Vietnam War KIA on the anniversary of the death. There’s also the eight-acre Vietnam Veterans Memorial of Oregon, also known as the “Garden of Solace,” located in an arboretum in Portland, which includes a 1,200-foot walking path surrounded by pine trees.
Not to mention the iconic Angel Fire memorial in Northern New Mexico and the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans Memorial and its Vietnam Era Museum & Educational Center in Holmdel.
The “Garden of Solace” Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial
There also are lesser-known memorials, including the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Lasdon Park in Westchester County, New York. Using that memorial in the book, Ronny Ymbras says, “is personal for me. I was there for its dedication, carried the 101st chapter flag in the parade and honored three guys I went to school and played ball with. May they rest in peace, Pete Mitchell, Peter Bushey, and Jeff Dodge.
Altogether, this coffee-table book is a top-quality tribute to American service personnel –living and dead—who served in the Vietnam War.
For more info and to order, go to fallenneverforgotten.com
—Marc Leepson
Books in Review II 