By Marty Mayfield
KRTN Multi-Media
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial built by Dr Victor Westphall and his wife Jeanne was built to honor their eldest son Lt. Victor David Westphall who was killed in action in Vietnam.
The Memorial they built stands on a hill at the foot of the Sangre De Cristo Mountains in the picturesque Moreno Valley of northern New Mexico and is now flanked by a half scale model of the National Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington DC. The wall sits on a plot of land just north of the original memorial and greets visitors on the right as they drive up the road to the beautiful white memorial.
The wall faces the south with flags flying in front of it. Each panel of the black granite bears the names of those lost in the Vietnam War. 58,318 men and women’s names are etched in the shiny black stone including 398 New Mexicans. While it is only a half scale model the 250-foot-long monument still evokes the emotion of the loss of life this country suffered during the Vietnam War.
The $1.7 million project broke ground last summer with the help in part from capital outlay funds and help from the Governor’s office. The original funding for the project began over seven years ago through a grass roots effort by the Vietnam Veterans of America Northern NM Chapter 996 in Santa Fe. The memorial wall was dedicated on June 28, 2024, in a small ceremony at the site.
In 1982 the Disabled American Veterans assumed ownership of the Memorial. In 1985 construction began on the visitor’s center and museum which was completed in 1986. The David Westphall Veterans Foundation took ownership in 1998. In 2004 the New Mexico State Parks took over management of the memorial and on Veterans Day in 2005 the site officially became the Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park. On July 3, 2017 ownership of the site was turned over to the New Mexico Department of Veterans Services whose mission is to serve those who served.
Editorial Note; Having seen the National Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington DC I did not expect a half scale model to create the feelings and emotions that it did. It’s not about the scale of the memorial it’s about the names etched in that black granite wall. Each and every one of those 58,318 names belongs to a son, daughter, dad, brother, sister or mother. If you are unable to make a trip to see the National Memorial Wall in Washington DC then make a trip to Angel Fire and see this one. It is a trip well worth the ride.
