The memorial itself stirs emotion. When anyone, young or old, looks into the polished volcanic rock of the wall, it looks back. At it's highest point the wall is over 10 feet tall. It envelops its visitors with names of those who lost their lives in a war which lasted nearly two decades.

It can be overwhelming to visit. For the hundreds of thousands of Vietnam veterans still alive, it is a place of eternal significance.

The wall itself is open to the public 24 hours a day 365 days a year. It is our nation's most embraceable monument. You can touch it, rest your head against it and cry on it. No one will stop you.

Paper and pencils are even provided at the memorial to encourage guests to make a stencil of an engraved name. Due to the hands-on nature of the memorial, it is imperative that the wall remains polished and immaculate, not just for the many millions of visitors a year, but for the legacies of the fallen etched within it.

However, the wall has not always been maintained at the level one would hope.

Veterans visiting the wall during the Clinton-era began to notice that the traffic to the memorial was increasing, yet it was only being cleaned once a month. It was becoming dingy. These veterans got angry and did something about it. The Washington Post reports:

In 1998, dissatisfied with the job that the National Park Service was doing and upset that bird droppings had filled in some of the engraved names, Jan Scruggs of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund took action. He handed 37 toothbrushes to visiting vets from Wisconsin, who scrubbed the filth away.

In order to keep the memorial in pristine condition, local veteran groups offered to help with maintenance of the hallowed ground. The Park Service agreed. Now, approximately once every weekend in peak tourist season (spring and summer), a different veteran group or community service will arrive at sunrise, long before the throngs of tourists show up, to wash the wall.

The labor is intensive but in the end, every inch of the 247-foot wall gets sprayed down, scrubbed by hand and polished.

Many of the men and women who show up to clean are veterans themselves, cleaning a memorial built in their honor.

So it was on the morning of Sunday, April 9, when Virginia and Maryland chapters of Rolling Thunder rode into the memorial before sunrise. Clad in leather motorcycle gear with a colorful array of patriotic patches sewn in, a dozen members of the iconic biker club, most of them veterans, readied for an hour of washing and scrubbing the black wall.

Today, however, they had some extra help. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke would be scrubbing alongside them.

Zinke has taken an immersive approach to his new job, which happens to include oversight of America's national parks and monuments. The Secretary rode a horse into the office on his first day, shoveled snow off the Lincoln Memorial steps after a snowstorm, gave stunned tourists a personal tour of the cavernous cathedral beneath the Lincoln Memorial, and has engaged in international sock diplomacy.

Today, the Trump appointee and Navy SEAL continued his hands-on approach to the office by hand-scrubbing the smudges and bird droppings off the Vietnam War Memorial. This Independent Journal Review reporter was invited to watch.

I ask Zinke why he showed up to wash the wall. His response: Rolling Thunder is here to wash the wall. I'm here to help them.

http://ijr.com/2017/04/843688-...today-powerful-help/

I didn't know much about this man prior to his taking over as Interior Secretary, but from what I've seen and read since, I like the guy. He seems to be a very genuine person. I wish him well in his efforts.

And sorry for posting this pic again, but I just love the imagery.

Seems to be a very good man. Hopefully, all Trump appointees turn out half as good!

RMD

I was probably 15 years old when we went for the first time. Wall had only been there a few years. It was just my dad and I on a trip to DC. He didn't really want to go but my questions got him to go.

Bit of background - my dad was navy petty officer who served until 1965, was almost extended to some duty in Vietnam but his Captain made sure his college acceptance was honored and he separated. We are from a small town in Maine - has its own memorial to the veterans that have passed and it has a LOT of names on it for such a small town. In my dad's circle of friends - almost all of then served. Quite a few did not come back, some came back but were pretty messed up mentally, physically, or both. None of them talked about it either, at least around me.

I never knew some of this until that morning we went to the wall, my dad was going to try and find "...a few names". He did and broke down, which at the time was surprising and hard for me to understand. I got a bit more detail about the what and why, and those names were his friends with strong memories. He was proud but sad, as was I.

That memorial is special and powerful, and the way the Secretary is handling himself brings the office and himself much respect. Great to see.

quote:

Originally posted by rduckwor:
Seems to be a very good man. Hopefully, all Trump appointees turn out half as good!

RMD

Indeed. Everything I have seen about Zinke is impressive. Devoted outdoorsman.

He did serve a term in Congress, though, but apparently wasn't hurt by it.

The article, pics, and timeline are pretty inspirational as well.

What a great picture.

I am proud to say he's from Montana. Also an ex Navy SEAL.

I truly believe he will be a noteworthy Secretary of the Interior.

Former, Navy SEAL.

quote:

Originally posted by FlyingScot:
I was probably 15 years old when we went for the first time. Wall had only been there a few years. It was just my dad and I on a trip to DC. He didn't really want to go but my questions got him to go.

Bit of background - my dad was navy petty officer who served until 1965, was almost extended to some duty in Vietnam but his Captain made sure his college acceptance was honored and he separated. We are from a small town in Maine - has its own memorial to the veterans that have passed and it has a LOT of names on it for such a small town. In my dad's circle of friends - almost all of then served. Quite a few did not come back, some came back but were pretty messed up mentally, physically, or both. None of them talked about it either, at least around me.

I never knew some of this until that morning we went to the wall, my dad was going to try and find "...a few names". He did and broke down, which at the time was surprising and hard for me to understand. I got a bit more detail about the what and why, and those names were his friends with strong memories. He was proud but sad, as was I.

That memorial is special and powerful, and the way the Secretary is handling himself brings the office and himself much respect. Great to see.

The myth that "real men never cry" is wrong. They just try not to do it publicly.

Personally, I find the Wall very moving--an emotional experience--and I didn't know a single person memorialized there (I've read through the names.)

There was quite a controversy, as I recall, when the Memorial was approved and built. Many folks and veterans thought it was too plain and not grand--a poor choice for a war memorial. Over the years I think it has been realized that the stark blackness pointing to the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument has a silent grandness of its own--an aura that encourages involvement by those who come. I've been there several times, and I have never heard anything but low whispers in its vicinity. It just inspires quiet meditation and reverence for those who died. It is awesome.

I applaud the efforts of Secretary Zinke to involve himself in the details of his oversight. It takes a great man to humble himself that way.

flashguy

Bit more to it that "ex-Navy SEAL". He was a SEAL officer, who did a stint with DEVGRU (ST6) in the early 90s, and then went on to command various teams. IIRC he retired as a Captain.

quote:

Originally posted by olfuzzy:

It can be overwhelming to visit.

Indeed it can.

I was first there in 2002. By the time I got there it was dark, and raining. It was miserable out that night but I think it made it all that much more moving.

As I walked along the wall I noticed a can of Budweiser leaning against it on some unknown panel beneath many different names. I thought back about my time in the service and the many Budweisers I had shared with the many friends I had made while in. That single can of Bud on that rainy night in DC, turned on the emotion in me and I just couldn't help but cry for all of those names.

Any Montana folks think that he will step down to run against Senator Tester in 2018?

Silent

quote:

Originally posted by Silent:
Any Montana folks think that he will step down to run against Senator Tester in 2018?

Silent

Doubtful. He has his sights set higher than the Senate, but it'll be awhile.

I'm just praying that we can come up with someone who can beat that fat piece of garbage Tester. He is one of the slimiest pieces of shit I've ever had the displeasure of meeting, but he was trained by his mentor Max Baucus who spent 30+ years in the Senate doing the same thing. For five years he'd vote with the leftists on everything and when election year rolled around he'd magically be concerned about how us back home wanted him to vote. It worked, and still does.

The only Interior Secretary I can remember being in the news for anything positive. He has a talent for Le beau geste.

Zinke is a friend of Andrew Wilkow and has been on his show many times, which I've always enjoyed. He's definitely one of us. Loves God, the Constitution, and guns. He doesn't exactly "fit" in D.C., but I don't think he cares.

-Rob