Gary Peters honors local Vietnam veterans in Warren

In conjunction with National Veterans and Military Families Month and the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War, Sen. Gary Peters honored local Vietnam veterans Friday by presenting them with special lapel pins during a ceremony at Macomb Community College in Warren.

Peters, who is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and a former Lt. Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve, said it is important to thank veterans and their families for their service and sacrifice.

“You fought in dangerous and diverse combat situations, including guerilla warfare, and fought major battles from Hamburger Hill to Saigon in unbearable heat, soaking rains, dense jungles and waterlogged rice paddies,” said Peters. “You persevered through unimaginable conditions to complete your missions; tragically not everyone made it home.”

More than 40 Vietnam veterans were in attendance from all branches of the armed forces.

Peters said the ceremony not only honored those in attendance but the more than 58,000 service members who lost their lives, as well as 700 prisoners of war, and the 1,582 Americans still missing in action whose remains have never been found.

“Of the many lessons the conflict in Vietnam taught us, this is the most important: we must always honor the bravery and sacrifice of our service members who have put their lives on the line in the service of our country, especially those who have paid the ultimate price,” Peters said.

Peters talked about the struggles Vietnam veterans faced when they returned home from not getting enough help from their government to being painted as the face of an unpopular war.

The veterans themselves, he said, had to fight to get services they needed.

“Vietnam vets fought to get PTSD diagnosed as a mental health condition for the first time and worked to assure the Veterans Administration was giving you the resources you had earned,” said Peters. “Your commitment to your country and to each other never waivered.”

The national effort to honor the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War extends through Veterans Day 2025.