Exhibit is almost full-scale replica of Washington D.C. memorial
A replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall in Washington, D.C. is coming back to Ellijay.
The American Veterans Traveling Tribute (AVTT) wall has been on display here twice before — first in 2014 and again in 2018.
It will return to the Ellijay Lions Club Fairgrounds, 1729 South Main Street, June 19-24.
The wall should be up for display by late in the day on June 19, but the first full day of the exhibit will be June 20, noted Ellijay Legion Riders chaplain Fred McGill.
Like before, the Post 82 American Legion Riders and Ellijay Lions Club are involved with bringing the traveling military tribute to town.
The Ellijay Legion Riders, a charitable motorcycle wing of the local American Legion post, has been conducting various fundraisers over the past year to raise the $13,000 needed to bring the display back.
“It’s been a while since it was here, and everybody has always really enjoyed it. We had a few bucket drives, and we’ve already got all the money raised and got it paid for,” said McGill.
“I’ve had several people tell me they didn’t get to see it the last time we brought it in, or they didn’t realize we had brought it in one time before that,” said Brian Shedd, Ellijay Legion Riders director.
The replica wall owned by the AVTT organization of Flint, Texas, is the largest traveling exhibit of its kind in the U.S. — an 80-percent size replica of the Washington, D.C. memorial, which chronologically lists the names of 58,318 Americans who died serving in the Vietnam War. Like at the D.C. wall, people can locate names on the AVTT wall and trace them onto paper for keepsakes.
McGill said, this time, there will be additional panel displays focused on other wars that have not been seen here before.
“It’s got a significant increase on the information,” he added. “(It will include) tributes for the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars, Sept. 11 and (wars and conflicts from) 1914-1968, 1979-1989 and 1990-2012. All that wasn’t here the last time.”
The wall display will be open for public viewing on a 24-hour basis. No admission charge will be asked as the exhibit is free to view and open to the public, but the Legion will be accepting donations.
“We have to provide security 24/7 so people can come see it at any time,” McGill said.
“We’ll have people there every day to help find names and answer questions till about 5-6 p.m. After that, if anyone wants to just come in and look, they are more than welcome to,” Shedd said.
Trucks hauling the wall will be escorted in by a motorcycle convoy led by the Legion Riders and police on Wednesday, June 19. McGill said the route will begin in Chatsworth.
The arrival time in Ellijay is subject to traffic and weather among other things, but it’s expected to get here around noon.
“It will be coming here from Pennsylvania,” said McGill.
The Legion Riders not only raise the money to bring the wall here, they will also be assembling the displays leading up to the opening.
“We have to provide about 15 people to help set it up. We’ve always done it in a record time, and we’ll be taking care of it when it gets here. We should start setting it up that afternoon,” McGill said.