To the editor:

I attended the dedication of the New Ulm Vietnam Veterans Memorial in October; it has taken time for the feelings of that day to settle in.

The dedication was a profound moment in time for six families, where the shackles of sadness from a haunting war, were finally loosened.

Our Vietnam Veterans traveled near and far to attend the dedication at a filled-to-capacity amphitheater in German Park. The reflection in the monument’s marble panels tells their stories: patrolling rice paddies in mosquito-infested deltas; deafening sound of an incoming helicopter to rescue their wounded; unspeakable loss.

A war, fought over 50 years ago, will be forever etched on marble panels firmly rooted in German Park. Straight and tall they stand. The panels trace a war fought by our young soldiers 8,000 miles from home in New Ulm, Minnesota.

Children will learn from this.

We also felt a spiritual closeness to the late parents of the soldiers. Mrs Cleo Polzin, our Gold-Star Mother, laid a wreath at the monument to represent parents of all sons KIA: Dennis Wellmann, Daniel Lloyd, Henry Polzin, Timothy Sullivan, Steven Seemann, Rickey Slander.

A long-awaited dream came true on October 13, 2022.

Our sincere and very grateful appreciation to Mr. Bruce Lambrecht and Ms. Jeanne Braun who created the concept and provided the financial support for the New Ulm Vietnam Veterans Memorial. And to our own Vietnam Veterans who summoned the strength to publicly tell their personal stories before the New Ulm City Council, we say bravo. And finally, we give thanks to the fine and supportive community of New Ulm, Minnesota.

Kathleen Sullivan,

Sister of Sergeant Timothy E. Sullivan

Mechanicsville, Virginia