Wednesday is Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans’ Day

On March 29, the nation pays tribute to veterans of the Vietnam War, including those who were prisoners of war and who remain as missing in action.

Approximately 2.7 million American men and women served during the Vietnam War, which started in 1955 and lasted until 1975. The war had left 58,220 dead and 153,000 wounded soldiers.

While many years have passed, the horrors of  war and its impact are still vivid for some local veterans. 

“There’s physical ailments and post traumatic stress disorder, flashbacks, guilt,” said Alan Stelzer, president of Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) Pasadena chapter.

“I still have scars from wounds and injuries that I received in Vietnam. I have pinched nerves from when I fell,” Al Biernesser, treasurer at VVA Pasadena chapter said. “The only problem is when you have aches and pains of getting old, they exacerbate as you get older.”

Stelzer and Biernesser stressed the importance of remembering the contributions of the soldiers who had served the country on Vietnam Veterans’ Day.

“History has to be remembered… [It] is important for the community and the young people,” Stelzer, who served from 1965 to 1967, said. “Young people today do not have a sense of history but it’s important that it be available to them.”

He said VVA records all the activities that happened before the war, during the war, and after the war, so that history can be recorded properly.

“So much of the history is lost on today’s generation. It’s critical that you remember, because you don’t want to have to repeat it. You forget history, you’re doomed to repeat it. I believe it to be true. The kids today need to know the history,” said Biernesser, who served from 1969-1970.

According to Stelzer, the VVA Pasadena chapter will commemorate Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans by attending different events throughout Los Angeles.

Founded in 1978, VVA is a non-profit dedicated to Vietnam-era veterans and their families.

Currently, there are 106 Vietnam war veterans in Pasadena, as per Stelzer.

“We help them, financially, we help them with food, and we’re advocates for these veterans, getting them help. Some of them are not capable of asking for help. So we help them through that process,” Stelzer said.

“Our mission is never again will one generation of veterans be left. We hold true to that, whether it’s a World War II veteran, Korean veteran, or one of the veterans that served in the Gulf War.”

For more information on the programs being offered to veterans, visit: http://www.vva446.org