MONROE: REFLECTIONS AND REMEMBRANCE

NBR viethall21p B August 21, 2004-- Vietnam veteran Rick Wingle watches the Monroe County Vietnam War Museum Dedication Ceremony Saturday at Norman W. Heck Park in Monroe. Blade photo by Andy Morrison

With the site reflected in his glasses, Vietnam veteran Rick Wingle watches the dedication of the Monroe County Vietnam War Museum at Norman W. Heck Park in Monroe on Saturday. The $160,000 structure was paid for by the county and includes a pavilion and a small, attached museum. Inside the museum are artifacts and memorabilia from the war donated by the county's Vietnam veterans.

The building evolved out of several ideas for the museum, including housing it in a large helicopter or a trailer, before settling on a 700-square-foot brick building and pavilion.

The Monroe County Historical Department will oversee day-to-day operations of the museum, on North Dixie Highway about a 1/4 mile west of I-75, while the Monroe County Vietnam Veterans Historical Society will provide volunteer veterans to serve as guides and screen proposed contributions to the museum.