PERRYVILLE — One man’s promise inspired the Missouri National Veterans Memorial Wall. Now it is the focal point for the Missouri Vietnam Wall Run honoring veterans of the Vietnam War.
The Fourth Annual Missouri Vietnam Wall Run crossed Southeast Missouri Sept. 16-17, organized by the Veterans in Defense of Liberty, Liberty Riders of America and Bikers on the Square. The event included a two-day motorcycle rendezvous ride.
Riders joined together on several different routes passing through Carter, Butler and Stoddard counties. It traveled from Springfield and St. Louis in Missouri to cities in Illinois, and Indiana.
Once riders arrived to Perryville, they attended the POW/MIA candlelight vigil at the Missouri National Veterans Memorial Wall, plus a free concert with Dazed and Confused and a bike rally at Perryville Town Square, which included vendors, food and a bike show.
Saturday’s events started with bikers riding from Perryville to St. Louis to meet and have breakfast at Off Track Saloon. Bikers then rode from St. Louis to a Walmart in Fredericktown, the rendezvous point for the start of the Parade of Honor.
Once kickstands were up, veteran riders were escorted by the Springfield Motor Patrol, Joplin Motor Patrol and Greene County Sheriff Motor Patrol, and the entourage was followed by non-veteran riders.
The Parade of Honor reached Perryville and was greeted by the Saluting Marine, Tim Chambers, and Bikers on the Square for Veterans.
The parade was followed by guest speakers Donald “Doc” Ballard, the last living Missouri Medal of Honor recipient, and Col. John Clark, six-year Vietnam POW. Immediately following the ceremony, bikers took a short ride to the Missouri Veterans Memorial, which includes an identical sister wall to the Vietnam Wall in Washington, D.C., and a veteran’s museum. Once back to the town square, the public enjoyed vendors, food, live music by Infringement and Pyromaniacs (a Def Leppard tribute band), and a veterans salute along with a lantern release to end the night.
Jim Eddleman founded the Missouri Veterans Memorial. During the Tet Offensive in the Vietnam war, he carried several wounded soldiers to the evacuation helicopter. Right then, he made a promise that if he made it out alive, one day he would honor his comrades.
In 2011, he started his promise. Jim and his wife, Charlene, were involved in a veterans’ project and Jim spoke out about his promise to the organizers, who then helped connect him with the now-Board of Directors. Meeting with the officials in Washington, D.C., they gained support of Robinson Construction and so began the plans for the layout of the memorial. Volunteers checked about 60,000 names approximately three times to ensure spelling and order was correct. They were adamant that the memorial would be an exact replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and in 2018, it became just that.
The Missouri National Veterans Memorial has a mission to preserve military history, to honor all those who have served, and educate the American people about the cost of freedom. With that mission in mind, the annual Vietnam Veterans Wall Run began four years ago to honor all those who have served and sacrificed their lives to give the American people freedom, safety and protection.