Each Memorial Day one of the city’s newest monuments hosts a select group of mourners – those who lost someone during the Vietnam War.

Before a crowd of about 50 onlookers, Douglas Graves led Marine Corps League volunteers through a brief, solemn ceremony at city hall, recalling the honor of service, sacrifice, and the names of the dead. “I know this is a bittersweet occasion, but thank you all for coming back again,” he said.

After a prayer and rendition of the national anthem, keynote speaker Robert Marshall, who served as a U.S. Navy corpsman, addressed the gathering. “I served with a company of Marines in South Vietnam in 1966 and 1967. I count my blessings every day and am thankful for surviving my 13 months in combat. Although I was raised just outside of Boston, Mass. I’ve lived in the Valley for 50 years.

“This memorial was erected in 2019,” Marshall continued, “listing the names of the 35 men who lost their lives in a faraway war. Twenty-four of them graduated from Liberty HS, their ages ranged from 18-28, with one who was age 35, and they represented all four branches of the military. But that is only statistics. The reality of their deaths and the memories of their brief lives may be bittersweet for their surviving family and those who knew them in life.

“Bethlehem is a good place to live, even will all the changes we see year-to-year. But would it not have been that much better, brighter and happier had these young men lived to come home? What would they have become? By now they would be enjoying their retirement years, enjoying life’s adventures. But they all gave up their futures to honorably serve their country, knowing the perils they would face. They sacrificed all, as had so many before them and after them, and we honor all of them today.”

Marshall said 75 percent of those who served in Vietnam have now passed on.

“Think of them when you watch a parade, when you go out to eat or when you watch a high school football game. They could have been standing next to you on Main Street or sitting next to you in the bleachers. It is easy to forget those you cannot see. Keep them in your hearts and offer a prayer for them.”