Napa Valley Register: Vietnam Veterans welcomed home after 50 years

McConnell served three combat tours in South Vietnam and 11 total years in the military– he still has a scar on his left arm from where he was hit with shrapnel.

Coming back from Vietnam to angry Americans who opposed the war also was frightening, McConnell said.

Buses transporting veterans coming back from the war were pummeled with tomatoes, eggs and rocks, said Malcolm Higdon, 78. “’Welcome home, baby killers,’ they would say.”

In such situations, “Sweetheart, if you weren’t scared there was something wrong with you,” said McConnell.

The Veterans Home of California sponsored a ceremony Tuesday in the Lincoln Theater to honor Vietnam vets as part of 50th anniversary events tied to the unpopular war.

Three Vietnam veterans — Rep. Mike Thompson, Veterans Home Administrator Don Veverka, and Jeff Jewell, director of the Concord Vet Center — spoke during the ceremony.

“It’s about time we got some recognition,” Thompson said. When people think about the Vietnam War, they remember protests in the streets, he said. Whether or not someone agrees with a war, they should always honor the warriors, he said.

“We served in an unpopular war,” echoed Veverka. “The Vietnam War is a war we would like to forget. It’s a war we can’t.”

Veverka asked those who were drafted into the war to raise their hands. Fewer than a dozen out of 50 people raised their hands.

“I’m sure you can remember the day that manila folder came in the mail,” congratulating you that you would be serving your country, he said. “My mother cried.”

“Honor to our country should never be unpopular, but embraced and valued as a core value of freedom,” Veverka said. “Welcome home, Vietnam heroes.”

Following the speeches, county Supervisors Brad Wagenknecht and Alfredo Pedroza presented a proclamation from the Board of Supervisors thanking the veterans for their service. Pins, bumper stickers were handed out, as well as certificates from President Obama.

“It was a good effort,” McConnell said of the ceremony. Getting recognized “feels pretty good,” he said, even if it is late. “I think we’re getting more respect now then we were.”

McConnell, who wears his Vietnam veteran cap, said that the last two times he went out to eat at restaurants, the check was picked up by someone else in the restaurant. He was surprised, but grateful, he said.

“I’m proud of my service,” McConnell said. “We went because we thought it was our duty.”

The 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War began on Memorial Day, May 28, 2012 and will end on Veterans Day, November 11, 2025, according to the United States of America Vietnam War Commemoration. The anniversary is being commemorated over a long period of time to reflect the amount of time that Americans served in the war, which lasted from 1955 until 1975.