The first Avoyelles Parish Veterans Vietnam War Memorial sign will be finished and erected on La. Hwy 1 in time to be dedicated on Veterans Day. The Marksville chapter of VFW 3139, American Legion Post 130 and Cenla Honor Guard spearheaded the effort to create a memorial monument and to have that section of La. Hwy 1 (Tunica Drive) through Marksville dedicated to honor the 15 Avoyelles Parish servicemen who died in Vietnam.
GibKo Nursery and Signs of Bunkie was selected to design and create the memorial. The company has also donated to the project.
The monument will be 8 ft. tall, including a 1 ft.. base and 7 ft. aluminum sign. It will be 11 1/2 ft. long.
The monument will be an aluminum frame wrapped in aluminum sheets. On the face will be the names of those men who died in Vietnam between 1965 and 1971 and include an American flag and a “battlefield grave” -- the silhouette of rifle planted in the ground with a helmet atop it and combat boots in front of it.
The monument will be erected on the property of the Elvis and Ethel Caubarreaux family at the intersection of La. Hwy 1 and Cocoville Road in Mansura.
“Through the generosity of the Caubarreaux family, the memorial monument will have tremendous exposure on the much-traveled Hwy 1,” GibKo project manager/sales representative Nicky Bordelon said.
VFW Post Commander Nulen Moses said the organizations are accepting donations to pay for this memorial and a similar one to be placed at the north end of Marksville on La. Hwy 1.
“We decided to do this because there is nothing else in Avoyelles like it,” Moses said. “We have to remember these men. The next generation has to remember what this war was all about, just like we have to remember World War II, Korea and our other wars. “These men deserve to be remembered.”
Moses said the organizations are trying to contact family members of all 15 men so they can be present at the dedication ceremony Nov. 11.
The latest name added to the list is that of Carver J. English Jr., a Cottonport native who was living in Kenner when he entered the Army and was sent to Viet- nam. Carver died Jan. 5, 1966 -- six months after the parish’s first casualty, Marine Cpl. Brian Gauthier of Mansura, who died July 11, 1965.
Moses said every effort was made to ensure that all Avoyelles Parish men who died in Vietnam are included on this memorial. However, he noted, there is always the possibility that someone from this parish who was living in another city or state has been missed.
Donations can be mailed to American Legion Post 130, PO Box 989, Marksville LA 71351.
For additional information, call Moses at 318-305-5974.