A groundbreaking ceremony for the permanent installation of “The Wall that Heals,” a replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., will be held Wednesday, July 3, in Johns Creek, the city announced.
The event is to begin at 5 p.m. at Newtown Park, 3150 Old Alabama Road. Johns Creek Mayor Mike Bodker and Walkway Memorial Chairman Mike Mizell will be among the guest speakers.
Johns Creek will be the permanent home of what had been a traveling exhibit of the nonprofit Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. The fund retired the wall after more than 10 years on the road and last year accepted Johns Creek’s proposal, maintenance plan and $80,000 bid to place the memorial at the Veterans Memorial Walk at Newtown Park.
The replica wall is chevron-shaped and about 250 feet in length, and has 24 individual panels, each containing six columns of names, a total of 58,000 American service personnel who died in the Vietnam War. The Johns Creek Veterans Association has led fund-raising efforts for the installation, estimated to cost $256,750 total.
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