Veteran Photos Needed for Wisconsin Public Radio Project
(Contributed photo)
For the City-Times
Wisconsin Public Radio and their public broadcasting partners are seeking volunteers to find photos of the 1,244 Wisconsinites whose names are listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington D.C. Nearly 1,000 photos have been found as part of the “A Face for Every Name Project,” but images of service men from the North Central Wisconsin region who lost their lives during the Vietnam War are still needed.
“The response from volunteers around the state has been wonderful — this project has really moved forward with their involvement,” noted Mike Crane, Director of Wisconsin Public Radio. “We’re committed to finding every Wisconsin photo and hope more folks will join our effort this summer,” he added. The photos will be part of a “Wall of Faces” in a new Education Center in Washington D.C. being developed by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, the organization behind “the Wall.”
Madison-based volunteer David Reichenberger said the project was a great way to honor those who lost their lives in the war. “I enjoy the sense of reverie that the process of searching for and finding pictures creates…this sense of being with them, all these years later,” he said. “Two, I knew, and this project brought them and the others into sharper focus and gave good attention to their sad, but true, reality,” Reichenberger added.
The following men from the greater Stevens Point area still need a photo for the wall:
| WALL_NAME | HOME_RECRD | COUNTY | STATE | BIRTH_DATE | CASUL_DATE |
| GERALD J BANNACH | STEVENS POINT | Portage | WI | 11/13/1939 | 9/24/1966 |
| GARY R DOPP | ALMOND | Portage | WI | 9/28/1943 | 9/25/1966 |
| GEORGE T MURRAY | STEVENS POINT | Portage | WI | 12/10/1928 | 6/17/1967 |
| CLARENCE M SUCHON | STEVENS POINT | Portage | WI | 2/17/1951 | 3/22/1971 |
| ROBERT G ZINK | STEVENS POINT | Portage | WI | 4/9/1947 | 6/19/1968 |
| THOMAS R BURNS | FREMONT | Waupaca | WI | 2/10/1948 | 5/26/1967 |
| GORDON W WILL | WAUPACA | Waupaca | WI | 12/20/1945 | 10/19/1967 |
Reichenberger says focusing on service members from specific regions of the state will help finish this project and school photos are a good place to start a search. “If you know the town the veteran was from, you could meet with the local high school principal, explain what you are trying to do, ask to see the yearbooks in the library from that era, find his picture, make a copy — done,” he concluded.
WPR has set up a dedicated webpage with more information about the project, the partners involved, tips for finding photos and links to upload photos. To get started go to: www.wpr.org/veterans