Legion member who led decade-long effort joins her fellow veterans as keynote speaker for event on the National Mall.
Thirty years ago, women who served during the Vietnam War – about 265,000, military and civilian combined – celebrated an achievement a decade in the making. The Vietnam Women’s Memorial, a project strongly supported by The American Legion, was finally dedicated, and television cameras rolled.
On the 30th anniversary of the 1993 dedication, American Legion member and Vietnam War combat nurse Diane Carlson Evans returns to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., for Veterans Day ceremonies that will be streamed live at www.vvmf.org/live. The American Legion Media & Communications Division will also cover the day’s events.
Carlson Evans, who spearheaded the effort to build a memorial to women of the Vietnam War, is keynote speaker for the annual Veterans Day Observance at the Wall at 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 11.
Observances at the National Mall begin Friday, Nov. 10, with a candlelight ceremony from 6-7 p.m. The following morning, from 9-11:30 a.m. on Veterans Day, a storytelling program will be conducted at the Vietnam Women’s Memorial Statue, about 300 feet from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. That program will be followed by the main event at 1 p.m.
Retired U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Dr. Sharon R. Bannister will serve as master of ceremonies for the Veterans Day Observance at the Wall. Other speakers include President and CEO of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Jim Knotts; retired Lt. Col. Janis Nark, a Vietnam War veteran; and Col. Courtney Sugai, U.S. Army, active duty.
On Nov. 10, a commemoration is also planned at the Military Women’s Memorial at the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery, 2-4:45 p.m., sponsored by Vietnam Veterans of America.
Hosting the observances on the National Mall is Eastern National, in coordination with the Vietnam Women’s Memorial Advisory Group, the National Park Service and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund.
Reservation and seating information is available at www.vvmf.org.
Carlson Evans’ Vietnam War story is shared in a 2017 video and story that appeared in The American Legion Magazine. She later received the Legion’s Patriot Award and Distinguished Service Medal and also served as a member of The American Legion’s 100th Anniversary Honorary Committee.
- Honor & Remembrance