Danbury's Vietnam War Memorial Chosen for National Monuments Book

Danbury Patch: Danbury's Vietnam War Memorial Chosen for National Monuments Book
Author Col. Albert Nahas, a former U.S. Army Vietnam veteran, wrote "Warriors Remembered," by visiting all 50 states, picking his favorite Vietnam War memorials, and writing a story about each. Danbury's was honored at Tuesday's City Council meeting.

The Danbury memorial was created after two years of conversations in the early 1980s between Richard Cacace a Vietnam veteran, and John Hill, a Vietnam veteran.

That led to five years of fundraising and work from 1982 to 1988, the year it was dedicated on Memorial Day.

"The inclusion of this memorial in "Warriors Remembered," says that this goal was not only achieved locally in the greater Danbury area, but is now being recognized nationally," Cacace said, as he and the Danbury Veterans Council donated a copy of "Warriors Remembered," to the City of Danbury at the City Council meeting.

Cacace thanked Hill, who attended the ceremony, Jim Purcell, a World War II veteran and treasurer for the group, Pat Waldron, the Veterans Services Officer and a Korean War Veteran in Danbury, and Jack Barrows, a Korean War era veteran and artist who drew the memorial, which created the image that was used to raise money for the monument.

The Danbury Veterans Council Color Guard led the Pledge of Allegiance, and Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton and City Council President Joe Cavo thanked them for the book and their service.

"I'd like to thank the veteran's council of Danbury for their hard work through the years. Welcome home. Welcome home," Boughton said.