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    Letters on the Wall: Offerings and Remembrances from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
    Letters on the Wall: Offerings and Remembrances from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
    Letters on the Wall: Offerings and Remembrances from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
    Ebook221 pages

    Letters on the Wall: Offerings and Remembrances from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial

    By Michael Sofarelli and Maya Lin

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    About this ebook

    Since its creation in 1982, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial has become the most visited National Park Services site. Each year, 4.5 million people come to the Wall. Many of them leave letters or other special objects. Every night, park rangers collect and inventory these mementos—now numbering well over 90,000—and put them into government storage.

    Michael Sofarelli, the son of a Vietnam War veteran, has combed through the archives searching for the most gripping letters and objects: a mother awaiting word of her missing son, a former comrade recounting a battle story, a pair of well-worn ballet slippers, and a collection of cigars. These items are not only a tribute to the fallen soldiers; they pay tribute as well to the families and friends who waited at home and the comrades who have never forgotten their brothers. They tell the story of a war that is still being fought by many who served and a conflict that changed the lives of many Americans forever.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOpen Road Integrated Media
    Release dateNov 30, 2010
    ISBN9780062043375
    Letters on the Wall: Offerings and Remembrances from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
    Author

    Michael Sofarelli

    Michael Sofarelli is an award-winning creative director and graphic designer. He is the son of a United States Marine who received the Purple Heart for wounds suffered in combat during the Vietnam War. He lives with his family on Long Island, New York.

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    • 5/5
      I received this book as a gift from a loved one who knows my intense interest in American History. Thumbing through initially, I was taken by the photographs of diverse offerings left at the Wall which immediately brought me back to 1984. I was 12 years old and visiting Washington DC for the first time. My mother had taken my younger brother and I on vacation to see Washington and tour the memorials and sites over spring break. I remember being awestruck by the immense size of the Wall and all of the very small names inscribed there on. I noticed papers, a baseball, and a military medal left at the site and asked why people would do this, when anyone could easily take them home as souvenirs. My mother did not respond and said cheerfully that we had to search and find a name. After consulting the guide, the race was on between my brother and I to see who could find it first. We arrived at the same time to a section of the Wall and found "BERNARD GEORGE OLIVER JR PFC MARINE CORPS WILLSBORO NY 5/25/1950-4/21/1969" chiseled in block letters on the cold granite surface. My mother explained that Bernie had been the older brother of her best friend and had been killed in action when he stepped on a landmine. Her demeanor changed and I understood why we were at this memorial. I was ashamed that I had thought someone could take the mementos and that I had played a game to find the name of a 19 year old man, who I had never met, but who had been important to my mother and who had died serving his country. This was one of the most somber and revelatory experiences of my life. I would use this book in a high school history class while discussing the Vietnam War and purposely before taking a class trip to Washington DC. I would have the students each randomly open to a page and read what they found to recognize the emotion felt by those who lost friends and loved ones. I would have them read to individually instill an understanding and respect prior to visiting this important memorial dedicated to those who gave their lives in service for our country.

    Book preview

    Letters on the Wall - Michael Sofarelli

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