Diocese joins dedication of Passaic County Vietnam Memorial Wall

Passaic County dedicated a Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall on May 18 on the grounds of the Public Safety Academy in Wayne Township. Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney and Father J. Patrick Ryan, a retired priest of the Paterson Diocese, participated in the ceremony. Personnel from diocesan Catholic Charities, including David Pearson, assistant director of veteran services, also attended. The wall in Wayne is a replica of the memorial in Washington, D.C., built at 80 percent scale. It is etched with more than 58,000 names of fallen U.S. military men and women who died in the Vietnam War that appear on the memorial in Washington. The ceremony included reading aloud the 84 names of Passaic County residents, who were among the fallen, along with the ringing of a large brass bell, according to TAPinto Wayne. The ceremony also included attendance by veterans, public officials, law enforcement, military personnel, Knights of Columbus, and Boy Scouts.