Welcome Home Vietnam Vets Day

On September 25, 2009 Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, accompanied by General Assembly member Paul Cook and Welcome Home Vietnam Vets Day (WHVVDF) founder Jose Ramos, appeared at Twenty-Nine Palms Marine Base to sign AB717 which established a Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day in California every March 30. March Field Air Museum has sponsored its own annual celebration since the legislation became official. This year will mark the fifth anniversary of the first WHVVDF with a program scheduled for Saturday March 29th beginning at 11 a.m. Museum Director Patricia Korzec shares, “this is a perfect opportunity for all of us to pay tribute to these once forgotten soldiers and give them the welcome home they deserved years ago. It’s an important day also for our youth who can learn more about the war and listen to the first hand experiences of the men and women who lived it.” The museum will honor Vietnam vets with presentations from all branches of service, special exhibits and an open microphone forum. The guest speaker will be Dick Haley, who flew over 400 combat missions as a Crew Chief on a UH-34 in Vietnam. Haley is currently a City of Corona council member. Admission for Vietnam vets and their immediate families is free for the day and a special lunch for these vets will be hosted by Marion Ashley, 5th District Supervisor for the County of Riverside. Lunch will begin immediately following the program. The museum gift store will be featuring hand made jewelry by Vietnam vet Bruce Smith who crafts beaded necklaces and bracelets for vets. The March Field Air Museum is located at 22550 Van Buren Blvd., Riverside CA 92518.