American and POW-MIA flags cover every inch of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Eden Park. Men, women and children place them solemnly, some with tears in their eyes, at the end of the annual Memorial Day ceremony.Members of Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 10 host the event, complete with rifle salute, music from the UC Bearcat Bands, and a guest speaker.
Ohio Sen. Lou Terhar, a retired Navy commander and Vietnam Veteran, addressed the gathering. Keeping his remarks brief, Terhar encouraged everyone to help reduce the suicide rate among veterans.
"It must be stopped," Terhar said of the increasing rate of veterans taking their own lives.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reports in the past decade veterans' suicide surpassed civilians' for the first time.
A veteran is best able to identify another veteran in trouble, Terhar said. "We must help each other."
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