Schools
Former POW To Speak At 'The Wall That Heals' Unveiling Ceremony
Arnold Mill Elementary School in Woodstock will host the 250-foot replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, which will open to the public.
WOODSTOCK, GA -- A former Vietnam War POW will be the guest speaker at Thursday's welcome ceremony for The Wall That Heals at Arnold Mill Elementary School in Woodstock.
The Rev. Robert Certain, a retired U.S. Air Force Colonel who was held as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War, will speak at the welcome ceremony at 10 a.m. Nov. 17.
The 250-foot replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, along with a mobile education center, is being displayed at the school by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund.
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The Rev. Certain has served as a military chaplain, parish priest and as an independent advisor to several cabinet-level federal departments. He also is an author and speaker, and has been called to such roles as leading the memorial services and presiding over the burial of President Gerald Ford and delivering the invocation at the 2008 Republican National Convention.
The welcome ceremony also will include patriotic songs by the school’s chorus and remarks from School Board Chair Kyla Cromer, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Brian Hightower and Principal Daniel Fuller. John Newport, commandant for the Marine Corps League Detachment in Woodstock, will share a poem, with the presentation of colors by the River Ridge High School Junior ROTC and the playing of Taps.
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The Wall is scheduled to arrive on campus, with a Patriot Guard and Warrior Watch escort (Northpoint Parkway to Highway 92 to Trickum Road to Arnold Mill Road), at approximately 10:45 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 16.
A media briefing is planned for 11 a.m., and the Wall then will be erected over the course of four hours.
Following the welcome ceremony on Nov. 17, the display then will be open to the public to view at no charge through 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 20.
Arnold Mill Elementary School is at 710 Arnold Mill Road.
Donations from the school community are funding the event, and donations still are being accepted. For more information about the Rev. Certain, visit his website.
Images via Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund
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