Manhattan displays Moving Wall honoring service members who died in Vietnam

“Do you know the most unusual name on this wall?” Paul Chen of New Lenox asked as he pointed to a to the top of a panel on The Moving Wall on Saturday in Manhattan.

Paul Chen of New Lenox, along with his wife Kim Chen, is the caretaker and driver for the Moving Wall. The Moving Wall is a half-size replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC.

“Frank W. Jealous-Of Him,” Paul Chen said. “He was a Native American from North Dakota. There are seven, eight women on the wall – all nurses. Of course, Dan Bullock is the youngest. There are some Canadians on the wall who fought with us.”

Daniel Bullock was a 15-year-old U.S. Marine who was killed in action in Vietnam in 1969.

The Moving Wall is available for viewing 24 hours a day through July 5 in the Wabash parking lot in front of the Manhattan Township Building at 230 S. Wabash St.

Who visits the Moving Wall?

Larry Ricci of Lynwood is a Vietnam veteran who decided to volunteer for the event to honor veterans. He’s seen the “actual wall” seven times, Ricci said.

“I could sit here and cry. A lot of them were kids. The ones are who made it home are honestly scarred for life. A lot of kids today do not realize it. They do not understand history. They do not appreciate what these people did for our country.”

—  Lisa Burton, attending Moving Wall ceremony in Manhattan

Ricci said not everyone who attends is a veteran. Some people are simply “interested in seeing what it’s about” and he’s glad for it.

“You don’t want to forget the guys who gave their lives for freedom,” Ricci said. “They shouldn’t be forgotten.”

Lisa Burton of Bradley and former Manhattan resident said she isn’t a veteran, and she hasn’t any children. Neither is anyone she knows represented on the wall, she said.

But Burton said she loves the United States and has a flag hanging outside her home year-round. Burton said she saw The Moving Wall in New Lenox several years ago and said the experience was “as emotional as it is today.”

“There’s a lot of history here, a lot of people who died for their country,” Burton said.

Visiting The Moving Wall one way to thank the people represented on the wall for their service, she said.

“I could sit here and cry,” Burton said. “A lot of them were kids. The ones are who made it home are honestly scarred for life. A lot of kids today do not realize it. They do not understand history. They do not appreciate what these people did for our country.”

The importance of the Moving Wall

Paul Chen, a Navy veteran who said he retired 14 years ago as a structural line worker, left a well-paying job at a country club locker room to give his time to The Moving Wall as a volunteer, he said.

“This July will be 12 years,” Paul Chen said.

Paul Chen said he first saw The Moving Wall in 1986 in Chicago and later met the founder in 2006. Paul Chen said the founder invited him to help put the wall together on two separate occasions and then asked Paul Chen to “go out on the road” with The Moving Wall “for a couple of years.”

“It’s a labor of love,” Paul Chen said.

Paul Chen said he meets people at motels, rest stops and restaurants, who come up to him to share their story and see the Moving Wall.

“One person comes out of a restaurant and then they all come out, crying,” Paul Chen said.

Paul Chen said one man followed him more than 100 miles just to see the Moving Wall and was prepared to keep him following him until he did.

“He was 75, 76, and it was the first time he had seen The Moving Wall,” Paul Chen said.

Paul Chen said anytime he “has a blowout,” five to six cars pull up to help him change the tire the moment he pulls to the side of the road. He views his role with The Moving Wall as an extension of his military service.

“I served and I’m still serving,” Paul Chen said. “I’m still bringing soldiers home. That’s the main thing: to bring them home. It’s a big responsibility.”

A Healing Field at Central Park, 110 S. Park Road in Manhattan is also available from viewing from dawn to dusk each day, according to the village of Manhattan website.

For more information, visit villageofmanhattan.org.

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Wreaths for each of the five Armed Forces sits along the Vietnam Moving Wall on Saturday, July 1st, 2023, in Manhattan. (Gary Middendorf – gmiddendorf@shawmedia/Gary Middendorf)