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The program honors Vietnam veterans whose lives were cut short as a result of their service in Vietnam, but are not eligible for inscription on The Wall under Department of Defense guidelines. In many cases, these are veterans who died after the war. The VVMF lists the following as some of the reasons someone might be eligible for the In Memory program but not an inscription on The Wall:
• PTSD related illnesses / events
• Exposure to Agent Orange and similar chemicals
• Diabetes
• Cancer
• Heart Attack
• Cholangiocarcinoma
Carroll will be on of more than 300 Vietnam veterans inducted into the program this year. Two others from Connecticut, James Norman Sr. and Frank Edward Nowicki, will also be inducted.
VVMF expects more than 2,000 attendees at the annual ceremony on the East Knoll of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The master of ceremonies will be Capt. Denis Faherty.
During the In Memory ceremony, the names of all the honorees are read aloud and certificates bearing the honorees’ names are placed at The Wall. These certificates are later collected by the National Park Service and stored in a permanent archive.
In Memory began in 1999 and has since honored more than 2,500 veterans. The plaque that honors these veterans was dedicated as a part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in 2004. It reads: “In Memory of the men and women who served in the Vietnam War and later died as a result of their service. We honor and remember their sacrifice.”
For more information on the In Memory program, please visit: www.vvmf.org/inmemory.