Ex-POW says honor the troops
Veteran follows The Wall
Stacia Glenn, Staff Writer
REDLANDS - Former prisoner of war John Cavaiani felt more courageous facing the North Vietnamese Army than he does the Vietnam Memorial Wall.
It took him seven years to face his biggest fear - seeing the names of all the comrades who died for their country so far from home.
Yet he travels from state to state with The Moving Wall, a half-size replica of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C.
In full Army regalia, the 59-year-old Medal of Honor recipient spoke to hundreds of people at Sylvan Park on Saturday about the importance of honoring our soldiers and teaching our children what America stands for.
Cavaiani, then 26, was a POW for 23 months, 11 days and 7 1/2 hours. He evaded enemy soldiers for 11 days after an attack on June 4 and 5, 1971 before he was captured trying to sneak into an American camp.
He spent time in Plantation Garden camp and interrogation center before being taken to the Hanoi Hilton. Cavaiani lost 106 pounds while he was incarcerated and had 120 shrapnel holes in him when he was taken prisoner.
Being a POW "brings out the best and worst in people," Cavaiani said. "It's reality."
Born in England, he joined the U.S. Army in 1968, immediately after he became a naturalized citizen. Cavaiani qualified for Special Forces and left for Vietnam in 1970.
He proudly shook hands and posed for photographs Saturday with dozens of veterans and others who wanted the opportunity to thank him for his service or trade war stories.
It is an obligation to talk about war experiences, Cavaiani said, though it is not one many want.
"We rely upon our soldiers, men and women, and if we forget the sacrifices they made, then they died in vain," he told the crowd.
He paid homage to those serving in Iraq, and implored the audience to take more responsibility for teaching children about the Vietnam War and honoring soldiers.
It was just one of several moving scenes that inspired tears during the opening ceremony for The Wall, which has been here since Thursday.
Volunteers, who guard the memorial around the clock in four-hour shifts, will disassemble it Monday morning and take the pieces of history to San Jacinto.
But in the meantime, a steady flow of people walked by the 262-foot-long wall with 58,253 names listed on the black panels. Some visitors Saturday reached a hand out to lovingly stroke a name; others crumpled in pain and sorrow, turning away only when a volunteer brought a box of tissue.
Cavaiani kept his distance from The Wall, saying he liked to do his viewing privately. After all, 57 of those names were young men from his unit and dozens of others were friends he served alongside.
His honors and awards impressed many people Saturday - Medal of Honor, Medal of Merit, Purple Heart, the 19th honorary Marine - but he shrugged them off, preferring to talk about those who have and do sacrifice for the U.S.
"We leave the silent Wall, knowing we are better for it," Cavaiani said.
"Remember, freedom is not free."
© 2007 Los Angeles Newspaper Group