Utah veteran to be honored in Washington

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Sarah Dallof reportingA Utah veteran will be will be honored posthumously on Monday in Washington, D.C. He's one of 75 men selected by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund for the In Memory Day ceremony. However, none of their names appears on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall.

Only veterans who died of injuries suffered in combat zones can be memorialized on the wall, but there are those who died due to non-combat injuries or emotional suffering due to their experience in Vietnam. That's what In Memory Day is for: to recognize their service.

Nancy Bishop is looking at photos of her nephew Stephen Seaquist. "He was full of fun, full of love, happy," she said.

Seaquist grew up in the suburbs of Salt Lake before moving to California. He was drafted into the Army, and his first assignment out of basic training was Vietnam.

"I think he had the idea in his head that he might never come back, that was the impression we got," Bishop said.

But he did come back a decorated veteran with a bronze star and a lot of mental scars. "He was quite withdrawn," Bishop explained. "He was not the same young man who left."

Seaquist also struggled with the knowledge he'd been exposed to Agent Orange, a chemical used by the military in Vietnam to destroy heavy foliage.

Utah veteran to be honored in Washington

Several studies show a link between the herbicide and cancers. Seaquist was eventually diagnosed with cancer. "They felt like that particular agent may have contributed to the fast advancement and progression of the disease," Bishop said.

Seaquist died in 2005 at the age of 57, leaving behind a wife, a son and a stepdaughter. He's remembered daily by family and will be recognized with 74 others on Monday in Washington, D.C.

For his Aunt Nancy, it's a good start. "I do think those servicemen deserve the recognition. They served our country, put their lives on the line," she said.

During Monday's ceremony the names of the 75 will be read, then small tributes will be laid at the base of the wall near the dates they served.

More than 1,700 men and women are now listed on the In Memory honor roll.

E-mail: sdallof@ksl.com