Saturday Ceremony In Pittsfield To Honor Vietnam Veterans

Folks, there's going to be a special ceremony taking place this Saturday in downtown Pittsfield and hopefully, Mother Nature will be kind and the weather will be nice as we honor our veterans of the Vietnam War.

Coming up on March 29 is National Vietnam War Veterans Day where we honor, remember, and commemorate those who fought in that brutal and violent campaign. An overwhelming number of people either forget or simply never realized that the war in Vietnam lasted 20 years with over 3 million casualties.

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A media statement from the City of Pittsfield and the Mayor's Office reports there will be a ceremony to commemorate National Vietnam War Veterans Day this Saturday in Park Square at 10 a.m.

The event is sponsored by the James E. Callahan Berkshire Chapter 65 of the Vietnam Veterans of America. Also, the event will observe special recognition for the 27 members of the military from Berkshire County who were killed in action in Vietnam.

The keynote speaker will be Marine Corps veteran John Harding. Other guests expected to take part in Saturday's ceremony include members of the Pittsfield City Council, area veterans, and Color Guard details, including Dalton American Legion Riders Post 155, Dalton A.L. Post 155 Honor Guard, VVA Chapter 65, Marine Corps League Det. 137, VFW Post 448, A.L. Post 68, Jewish War Veterans Post 140, and Italian War Veterans Post 75. Quite the guest list and very impressive.

But wait, there's more. The volley will be conducted by the Dalton American Legion Post 155 Honor Guard. Joseph DiFilippo, a Vietnam veteran, will be on hand to play Taps and Don Fyfe of First Church of Christ will provide the benediction. Hopefully, many locals will turn out for what promises to be a very special day.