Groundbreaking for a Vietnam Memorial to be placed in Veterans Memorial Park is expected to take place later this month. Hoisington artist Bruce Bitter at B&B Metal Arts is hard at work on the project.

On June 19, B&B Metal Arts received a shipment of 45 stainless steel sheets for the project.

The north side of Veterans Lake already has several memorials. The Argonne Forest commemorates World War I, and there is a tank from World War II, as well as the Avenue of Flags to honor all veterans.

The Vietnam Memorial will consist of a wall that is 50 feet long. It will have the insignias of all the service branches serving in this war, the POWs, as well as the special medal given to all who returned from Vietnam. Troops are represented, including a medic with his medicine bottle in his helmet, his medical sack, and two canteens. Flying over the wall will be the replica of a Huey helicopter. While the Hueys are 58 feet long, this one will be one-fifth scale.

Working with carbon steel, a prototype of the Huey is being created at B&B Metal Arts. The final helicopter will be done in stainless steel to match the wall.

Bruce Bitter, half of B&B Metal Arts, said that the hardest part of the helicopter construction is the nose piece with all the curved surfaces. 

For Bitter, working on the memorial is one way to honor veterans; listening to their stories is another

“We need to remember those who fought in Vietnam, but a lot of those memories can’t be put in artwork,” Bitter said. “We need to hear the memories.”

The dedication ceremony is slated to be held on Veterans Day, Nov. 11. 

Donations for this project are being accepted at the Great Bend Foundation, PO Box 533, Great Bend, KS 67530. Contact Kim Nollette at 620-617-5270 or email kimnollette@hotmail.com for further information.

Story and memorial photos by Becky Gillette.

Cookbook photo courtesy of Kim Nollette