‘Lot of my brothers and sisters up there’: Veterans honor the fallen at Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) – Hundreds of people stood in the rain and wind for the opening ceremony Friday afternoon at the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall in Myrtle Beach.

It was a somber moment where they paid homage to the more than 58,000 people who lost their lives during the Vietnam War.

It’s been nearly a decade since the wall was brought to the Myrtle Beach area.

John Tranum said the names of his two sergeants are on the wall, and seeing the names brings up a lot of emotions.

“Them and I went out into the field together. The following day, his check was cashed for his life,” Tranum remembered. “I attended the national wall. I couldn’t go back. It’s hard for me to go up there to that wall. It’s a lot of my brothers and sisters up there.”

The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall serves as a reminder of the men and women who didn’t get to return home.

For Tranum, he said seeing the wall and all the names on it will stick with him for a long time.

“Anything that has to do with the names on that wall to me is a duty. That’s what I signed up for when I made it my career. It’s a duty I have,” Tranum said.

The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall is open 24 hours a day at 1004 Crabtree Lane until it is packed up at 2 p.m. Sunday, May 28.

The following events are planned this weekend at the traveling wall:

Saturday, May 27:

• 2 p.m. Ceremony
• 5 p.m Candlelight Vigil

Sunday, May 28:

• 1 p.m. Closing Ceremony

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