LOCKPORT, N.Y. (WKBW) — A half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., will be on display all weekend long at the Kenan Center in Lockport, allowing neighbors to experience the memorial firsthand.
Michael Tauro was one of the volunteers who helped build the wall. Tauro served in the Vietnam War from 1970 to 1971, and although he made it back home safely, his good friend Roger Wells never did.
"We went to jump school at Fort Benning. The day we left for Vietnam, we got split up. I went up to the Americal up north by Chu Lai. He went down to the 173rd Airborne," Tauro said. "20 years old, he was killed in action. He had a girlfriend. He had a family. We can't forget about these guys. I’m lucky I came back, so everywhere I went in my life, I would take my buddy Roger with me."
Rather than traveling to the nation's capital, a 500-foot Moving Wall, a half-sized replica, is in Lockport through the weekend, allowing Tauro and Annmarie Halt to find loved ones.
"I asked my uncle [who served] if he knew some people, and he gave me some names. He said Steven Giardina," Halt said. "So, I'm going to find him, take pictures and send them to my uncle so that he can see."
For two months, the Kenan Center has hosted its "I Was There: Unknown Stories of Vietnam" exhibit.
The exhibit has transformed part of the center into a Vietnam War history museum and has featured several speakers. Now, the two-month exhibit is culminating with this experience.
WATCH: 'Can't forget': Vietnam Veterans Memorial replica visits Lockport
If you want to see The Moving Wall, it will be outside of the Kenan Center 24 hours a day until 6 a.m. Monday morning. Lights are shining on it, so it can be visited throughout the night.
"I just hope and pray that they don’t forget about every veteran that gave their life for their country," Tauro said.
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