• DALLAS
March 29 marked a special occasion at Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) PXs and BXs, as Vietnam War veterans were honored during the Vietnam War Commemoration’s final Vietnam War Veterans Day pinning ceremonies.
The Exchange hosted worldwide ceremonies for veterans of all service branches who served from Nov. 1, 1955, to May 15, 1975, at various locations from Camp Foster in Okinawa to JB San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston in Texas.
All veterans received a commemorative lapel pin inscribed with “A Grateful Nation Thanks and Honors You.”
The Exchange has been a Commemorative Partner of the Vietnam War Commemoration since 2013, honoring the service of Vietnam veterans and their families.
The Commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War was authorized by Congress, established under the secretary of defense and launched in 2012 to thank and honor Vietnam veterans and their families through Veterans Day 2025.
HONOREES’ STORIES
“Events like this are truly appreciated by the Vietnam veterans like me and we love what the Exchange is doing,” said retired Army Corporal Michael Richter, who returned home from Vietnam in October 1967 and is currently in Ramstein, Germany.
“I think it’s a great thing that the Exchange wants to recognize veterans for their service, and I think it’s a good thing that the Exchange is able and willing to do that,” Richter added.
Clinton Ray Willesen, a retired Air Force chief master sergeant who served in Vietnam, participated in the pinning ceremony at the NASJRB Fort Worth, Texas, Exchange.
“When I came back from Vietnam and landed at Travis Air Force Base in California, it was about 3 in the morning,” Willesen recalled.
“There wasn’t anybody in the terminal,” he said. “I can’t speak to the way other people were treated when they came back, but another time I had to go back home, and I didn’t have time to change out of my uniform. I had to go through the airport terminal, and I was stunned a little bit at some of the things people said.”
Source: AAFES
Edited by Larry Lapka
