Vietnam veterans thanked as governor signs 3 bills into law


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SALT LAKE CITY — When Vietnam veterans returned home from war about 40 years ago they were greeted with the bitterness of a nation in political discord over the war.

“The Vietnam War was an extremely divisive issue and a conflict that caused a generation of veterans to wait too long for the American public to acknowledge and honor their efforts and services,” states a resolution that Gov. Gary Herbert signed Monday during the first ever Utah Vietnam Veterans Recognition Day ceremony.

The resolution, SCR6, urges Utah communities to express appropriate support for Vietnam veterans, no matter the political disagreements over the war, and states a “heartfelt, belated welcome home” to all Vietnam veterans.

“We can’t thank our servicemen enough, in particular those who served in Vietnam,” Herbert said after the ceremony. “It was a difficult war. The politics of it were not the best. Our veterans who returned home were not appreciated, so I’m pleased that we had this opportunity today to memorialize some additional legislation to help our Vietnam War veterans.”

Vietnam Veterans Recognition Day

Local Vietnam veterans and their families gathered in the state Capitol to be honored thanks to a bill passed by the state Legislature last year that designated March 29 as Vietnam Veterans Recognition Day.


“It was a difficult war. ... Our veterans who returned home were not appreciated, so I’m pleased that we had this opportunity today to memorialize some additional legislation to help our Vietnam War veterans.” -Gov. Gary Herbert

The date mirrors March 29, 1973, the date the last U.S. combat troops withdrew from Vietnam. The ceremony took place Monday because the date fell on a Sunday this year.

The Vietnam War resulted in more than 58,000 American deaths and about 2 million Vietnamese deaths. Today, Utah is home to about 46,000 Vietnam veterans.

“Our war was unwanted due to confused and frustrated politics, not much different than what we’re dealing with today, ” said Dennis Howland, president of the Utah Vietnam Veterans of America.

Howland said troops who serve in the current conflicts shouldn't be treated the same way when they return home, because the nation learned from the Vietnam War.

“Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another,” Howland said.

HB275 and SB214

The veterans and their families rose for a standing ovation after Herbert signed SCR6 along with two other bills created during the 2015 Legislature to honor and support Vietnam veterans.

He signed HB275, which names Interstate 84 as the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway, and SB214, which creates statewide veterans courts to help rehabilitate troubled veterans who become entangled in the justice system for nonviolent offenses.

“These are wonderful people and we feel very strongly as a Legislature that we need to do all we can to show not only our respect and thanks, but also give them something truly meaningful as they go forward with their lives,” said SB214 sponsor Sen. Peter Knudson, R-Brigham City.

Knudson said the statewide veterans courts will provide a special path in the criminal justice system that is “sensitive to the sacrifices” Vietnam veterans have made and seeks to “help them with their problems, rather than put them behind bars.”

Rep. Justin Fawson, R-North Ogden, sponsored HB275 and said as a war veteran himself, his warm welcome back in 2005 was “far different” than the homecoming Vietnam veterans experienced.

“It’s the hope of HB275 that as those 110,000 vehicles travel that highway every year, they will recognize the sacrifices of our Vietnam veterans, and we’ll be able to increase their education in understanding those sacrifices,” Fawson said.

Grateful veterans

Lt. Col. Jay Hess, a former Vietnam prisoner of war, told his story at the ceremony. Hess, a fighter pilot, was shot down in 1967 and imprisoned for five years. He said as a war prisoner, he received an overwhelmingly warm welcome home, which he supposes was to “make up” for what others were met with: “protest signs, defamatory chants, spits, maybe worse,” he said.

“Thank you for teaching all of us to welcome home with open arms those who served in harms way,” Hess said.

Frank Ferrante, a Vietnam veteran from Kaysville who said he served in the Marine Corps for 24 years and in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968, said it was “tremendous” to receive recognition at the ceremony, and it was a “big step forward” on part of the Utah Legislature.

“I wasn’t too welcomed when I came back, and I had to overcome some situations where I had to defend myself, my actions in Vietnam,” Ferrante said. “So this has been a great experience. It was well-presented and well overdue for those veterans who served in Vietnam.”


Katie McKellar is a Dixie State University graduate with a bachelor of science in mass communication. Before interning at Deseret News, she reported and edited news content for Dixie Sun News, first as Photo Editor, then as Features Editor. Email: kmckellar@deseretnews.com

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