SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. — A traveling replica of the Vietnam War Memorial has made its way to the commonwealth.
What You Need To Know
- The Traveling Wall, a replica of the Vietnam War Memorial, has arrived in Shepherdsville
- The replica is 80% the size of the Washington, D.C. memorial
- More than 50 volunteers assembled The Traveling Wall, which has more than 58,000 names
- It will be open to visitors through Tuesday, July 30
In the matter of a few hours, Shepherdsville City Park was transformed from an open green space into a powerful monument, honoring American soldiers lost during the Vietnam War. Volunteers, many of them veterans, installed the largest panels of the memorial.
The panels are pieced together, locked into metal tracks and bolted into place.
More than 50 volunteers assembled a traveling replica of the Vietnam War Memorial wall, which is nearly the size of its permanent counterpart in the nation's capital.
"I'm 5-foot-5; I'd say this is probably pushing close to 8 feet," retired U.S. Marine Travis Whitworth said of the tallest span of The Traveling Wall.
Whitworth was born the same year the U.S. left Vietnam. His connection with the veterans of that time inspired him, in part, to serve then and now.
“Even if you don’t know a veteran, you can look at this and just really take it all in and respect the sacrifices that our men and women of the service have given,” Whitworth said.
The Traveling Wall is 80% the size of the D.C. memorial and stretches more than 300 feet.
“It has all the names on it, just like you would have if you went to D.C. to see the wall in person,” said Tony Cook.
The memorial, which arrived at Shepherdsville City Park Wednesday, July 24, travels around the country and posts up in towns big and small. With more than 58,000 names, it’ll be open to visitors in Shepherdsville until Tuesday, July 30.