Q&A with Karl Rohde About the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall
The Putnam Examiner recently spoke with Putnam County Veterans Affairs Director Karl Rohde about the arrival of the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall.
Q: Can you explain the meaning and significance of the traveling wall?
Karl Rohde: The traveling wall is a replica of the actual wall in Washington D.C. and a lot of people, veterans, and family members have not had the opportunity to travel down to D.C. and view the wall and they have an opportunity to view it now. For some people, it brings a bit of a closure. They can see their loved one’s name on there, they can do whatever they want to do at the wall that would leave them closure; leave an item, say a prayer, sit there and reflect so it gives them a chance to commiserate with their lost loved one.
Q: The wall has come to Putnam two other times. What reception has it received in the past?
Karl Rohde: Both times it was overwhelming and the best way I can describe it is we have to man this 24-hours a day and will have people not only visit the wall multiple times, but they’ll bring those that are volunteering food and meals. They’ll volunteer to read names, to take rubbings, to help guard it over night with us so it just brings the best out in people in the community.
Q: Because the Vietnam War was so controversial, do you think is some cases these opportunities give people a chance to make up for lack of prior action?
Karl Rohde: I think that’s part of it, but I think also the Vietnam veterans were very quiet, like nobody knew I was a veteran when I came home except my family. We’re not hiding out anymore, we’re out in public letting people know we served and we’re proud of our service. I think it’s a combination of people making up for what they should have done when we returned but I also think that we’re not going to sit quietly in the cheap seats and keep quiet. We’re going to be telling them about our service just as honorably as the service of any other person who put on the uniform.
Q: Can you elaborate on your experience?
Karl Rohde: The best way I can describe it is I came back from Fort Lewis in Seattle and we had to go to Seattle-Tacoma Airport to get our plane ticket. You had to be in uniform to get your plane ticket because they were military stand-by tickets. Most of us, including me, took our uniform off and put it in our luggage and wore civilian clothes. We tried to hide that we were veterans because we didn’t want anyone to spit on us. I was never spit on, and I don’t know if anyone ever was. I think it’s more of a metaphor, but if somebody had spit on me, it probably would have been the last time they ever spit on anyone, but that’s another story. I was just very quiet about it. I didn’t let a lot of people know. My family knew but other than that, I kept quiet about it. I don’t remember anything terrible ever done to me because I avoided it.
Q: What preparations are made prior to the wall arriving?
Karl Rohde: We have to get a crew to help us set the wall up when it arrives and then take it down. We have to greet the wall so we have to coordinate an escort around I-684 in through Brewster, Carmel, and then out to Kent, out to the park. It’ll be a massive escort. We had to get advertising done, and raise funds because this isn’t a free event, we have to pay for the wall to be here and there are certain contractual obligations that we have. We have to set up a tent with seating for a certain amount of people, because we’re working with an organization called Vet2Vet, doing outreach for them. Vet2Vet is going to have a quiet room if a veteran or family members need a place just to sit down, maybe talk with somebody and get away from the crowds. There are other things like coordinating with guest speakers and religious leaders to give blessing and benediction. We’ve been meeting regularly.
