Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund Launches Hometown Heroes Service Learning Project

WASHINGTON, June 23, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) today announced the launch of the Hometown Heroes Service Learning Project. The Hometown Heroes curriculum is designed to give students an opportunity to learn about local veterans who served and sacrificed not just during the Vietnam War, but also in other military conflicts in our nation's history. The nationwide launch will be celebrated at a reception on Wednesday at the Library of Congress. 

VVMF developed the Hometown Heroes Service Learning Project curriculum in conjunction with educators, corporate partners, and the Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress. Participating students have the opportunity to hear personal stories from veterans and their loved ones as well as to plan a commemoration to honor their Hometown Heroes or to design a local memorial to honor veterans.

"Through this project, one generation will touch another and history will be given a human face. One of the goals of the Hometown Heroes Service Learning Project is to collect photos and stories of those veterans whose names are on The Wall and those who returned home from the Vietnam War. It is important because it will help us connect a story and a face with every name on The Wall and preserve the stories of those who came home. Those photos and stories can then be displayed in our Education Center at The Wall," said Jan Scruggs, founder and president of VVMF.

Speakers at the reception will include: Brigadier General George Price, USA (Ret); Senator John Cornyn (Texas); Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (Oregon); Congressman Jason T. Smith (Missouri); Lindy Poling, retired history teacher; Jan Scruggs; and Sharon Deane, director of education for VVMF.

Hometown Heroes Service Project curriculum includes four key elements:

• Remembering Those Who Sacrificed encourages students to learn more about local veterans whose names are on The Wall by researching their biographical information, gathering photos, and identifying them by hometown or locality.
• Preserving Veterans' Personal Stories encourages students to preserve the oral histories of local veterans who served in all of our nation's military conflicts through research and personal interviews.
• Commemorating Our Veterans encourages students to volunteer in their community or plan a ceremony honoring local veterans to coincide with Memorial Day or Veterans Day.
• Understanding Healing Through Memorials encourages teachers and students to take a field trip to The Wall in Washington, D.C., visit The Wall That Heals (a traveling half-scale replica of The Wall), or visit a local war memorial.

VVMF would like to thank the generous sponsors and partners who have made the Hometown Heroes Service Learning Project possible:  TimeWarner Foundation, GM Foundation, Disabled American Veterans, National Endowment for the Humanities, GE Foundation, History Channel, POW-MIA Families, National Park Service, Veterans History Project, Sons and Daughters In Touch, Johannesburg-Lewsiton Area Schools, and Gold Star Children.

To learn more about the project, please email [email protected] or call VVMF at 202-330-0962. You may also visit: www.vvmf.org for more information or connect with us on social media: Facebook: www.facebook.com/vietnamveteransmemorialfund; Twitter: @VVMF; and Instagram: Instragram.com/vnveteransmemorial.

About VVMF and the Education Center at The Wall

Established in 1979, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund is dedicated to preserving the legacy of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., promoting healing and educating about the impact of the Vietnam War.

The Education Center at The Wall will be a place on our National Mall where our military heroes' stories and sacrifice will never be forgotten. With plans to begin construction in 2016, the Center is a technologically-innovative learning facility to be built on the grounds of the Vietnam Veterans and Lincoln Memorials. Visitors will better understand the profound impact that the Vietnam War and other wars had on their friends and family members, their hometowns and the nation. The Center will feature the faces and stories of the more than 58,000 men and women on The Wall, honoring those who fell in Vietnam, those who fought and returned, as well as the friends and families of all who served. The Center will also celebrate the legacy of service that links the heroes of America's past to those still serving today.

Learn more about the Education Center at The Wall by visiting www.vvmf.org or by calling 866-990-WALL.

SOURCE Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund