A Georgia Girl in Germany

It’s been a while since I’ve been to Washington, D.C., so we made a day out of going to see some monuments. Zachary and MacKenzie were troopers (more on Benjamin’s behavior later), and willingly trekked from monument to monument.

Our first stop was the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. I remember the controversy surrounding the memorial’s design when it was originally approved and dedicated. We moved to D.C. within a year of its dedication.

I made the trip an educational stop for Zachary and MacKenzie by telling them about Dad’s friend from pilot training who’s listed on the wall. Of course, we had to find the engraving of his name: Joseph P. Fanning.

It’s difficult to see, but there’s a cross in from of his name. Of the more than 58,200 names on the wall, only about 1,200 have a cross -- which identifies them as missing (MIAs, POWs and others) as opposed to confirmed dead. If the missing servicemembers are confirmed dead, a diamond will be superimposed over the cross. If they return alive, the cross will be circumscribed by a circle (which has never happened).



Benjamin saw the other two taking photos of Fanning’s name, so he had to take a close-up of the wall too.

We also stopped by the Korean War Veterans Memorial. This part of the memorial includes a larger-than-life19-person squad on patrol in full combat gear. The squad members are walking dispersed among strips of granite and juniper bushes representing the rugged terrain of Korea.

Zachary and MacKenzie really took notice of the sand-blasted images on the black granite wall depicting soldiers, equipment and people involved in the war.

Benjamin had a rough time at the Lincoln Memorial just before heading here, so opted to rest with Nana and Papa to settle himself down and get ready for the next few stops.

Labels: Benjamin, MacKenzie, Nana and Papa, Stateside visits, Zachary