Traveling Vietnam War memorial arrives in Huntington

A traveling memorial in remembrance of those lost during the Vietnam War has arrived in Huntington.

The Dignity Memorial Vietnam Wall, a three-quarter-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C., came to Huntington Station this week, escorted from Queens by more than 100 motorcyclists, who rode part of the way in pouring rain.

The wall is 240 feet long, 8 feet high, and made of faux granite, and, like its stationary counterpart, has the names of the 58,000 Americans who died or who are missing in Vietnam inscribed on its mirror-like surface.

"The wall is simply a faux granite replica but it's the stories behind every name that bring the wall alive," said Charles Spencer, a West Islip funeral director with Dignity Memorials, which oversees the replica. "This is a living memorial."

The exhibit, at Peter Nelson Park on Oakwood Road in Huntington Station, will be open around-the-clock and lit for the weekend, beginning Friday at 9 a.m. through 4 p.m. Sunday.

Events planned for the weekend include wreath layings, a reading of the names of local residents who perished in Vietnam or remain missing, musical dedications, theatrical performances, a gun salute and a display of Vietnam-era military equipment.

Since the memorial arrived on Tuesday, about 200 volunteers have worked to set up the wall and landscape its surroundings with potted plants and lights. Donations have come in the form of food to feed volunteers and golf carts to transport those attending between parking lots.

Town board member Mark Cuthbertson, the driving force in bringing the memorial to Huntington, said the outpouring of support is a reflection of the public's appreciation for veterans, particularly those who fought in Vietnam.

"I think there is some remorse about the way Vietnam veterans were treated and this is a way of showing them respect," Cuthbertson said.

The replica was created in 1990 as a service to those who might never travel to the nation's capital to experience the original Vietnam Veterans Memorial firsthand. The memorial has traveled to more than 200 cities nationwide, including four prior visits to Long Island starting in 1995 in Babylon. It will next stop in West Islip Oct. 8-10, where it will be displayed at Higbie Lane and Montauk Highway.

"There are a lot of people in their life who are not going to make the journey to Washington, D.C., to see the wall, and this an opportunity for them to get a feel for that experience," Cuthbertson said.

With Jennifer Maloney