by Jeremy Couso
A very special memorial is coming to Susanville for the Independence Day weekend – the Global War on Terror Wall of Remembrance will come to town on Thursday and be open at the Lassen County Fairgrounds 24 hours a day until noon on the 4th of July. The visit of the wall, which has traveled across the country, will be accompanied by a special #stop22tour concert at 7:00p.m., on Sunday, July 3rd at the Fairgrounds.
The Global War on Terror Wall of Remembrance is a little more than 100 feet long with one side dedicated to a timeline of the Global War on Terror from 1983 until now. The other side lists the names of nearly 11,000 victims who lost their lives in Beirut, the war in Iraq, the Sept. 11th, 2001 terror attacks, Iraq and Afghanistan and other recent conflicts.
The panels with lists of names are similar to the Vietnam memorial wall which came to Susanville in 2007.
The wall is the creation of US Marine David Brown and Richard Nichols, originally constructed for the 10th anniversary of the September 11th, 2001 terror attacks.
The timeline, which spans the length of the wall, includes pictures and a short description beginning with 1983 when 241 U.S. military personnel were killed by a truck bomb while stationed in Beirut, Lebanon. The three decades of history include the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The wall is set to arrive in Susanville on Thursday, along with a caravan of local law enforcement and Patriot Guard Riders.
First the group will meet up at the Mark in Herlong at 10:30, from there the procession will head en masse to Susanville. Before heading to the fairgrounds the wall will head up out of town to the break-check area on Highway 36. After everyone lines up the wall will come back down through town along Main Street on its way to the fairgrounds. The wall will enter the fairgrounds at the Armory entrance on Russell Avenue.
Organizers expect the wall to hit Susanville’s Main Street right around noon. The memorial will be open 24 hours a day at the fairgrounds beginning with opening ceremonies at 3:00 on Thursday.
According to organizer Brittany Sanchez volunteers are still needed for the event, and she thanked Lake 4H for volunteering to help.
For more information about the special #stop22tour concert click here and read our earlier story.
For more information about the visit of the Global War on Terror Wall of Remembrance click here and head over to Facebook.
