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Ceremony honors fallen Vietnam vets not on wall

WASHINGTON — Sisters, brothers, wives, daughters, sons, grandchildren, friends and volunteers took turns at a memorial service Monday reading the names of 97 members of the armed forces who died as a result of their service in Vietnam.

Among the names: William Howard Hegge of Cincinnati, who died six years ago of pancreatic cancer at the age of 54. Donald Dwight McCans of Gettysburg, Pa., also died of cancer. He was 60. So did William Black St. John of Hobe Sound, Fla., who was 67.

As family members read aloud the names of their loved ones, many noted the branch of service they were in, their rank and the dates served. Most also tacked on a too-common postscript: Agent Orange.

These service personnel, many of whom died of cancer decades after the war ended, don’t qualify to have their names etched onto the actual Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall in Washington.

Under Defense Department guidelines, only men and women who died from wounds suffered in combat zones are eligible. The wall contains 58,261 such names.

But the scars of war stretch far beyond those 58,261 deaths. Each year, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund honors men and women whose noncombat deaths are related to their service, through either emotional suffering caused by their service or complications associated with exposure to Agent Orange, a herbicide used by the U.S. military to remove plants and leaves from foliage that provided enemy cover.

Nearly 2,000 veterans have been honored since the annual memorial service began.

For many, seeing their loved ones honored is an overdue but appreciated recognition for their sacrifice.

“It’s closure, accountability and respect for the history and his service,” Kelly Ongpin said of her father, St. John, whose May 2009 death was tied to Agent Orange.

Carolyn DeWeese said her brother, McCans, was absolutely devoted to his country and would have been proud to see his service remembered and honored. McCans died in September 2008, also due to Agent Orange exposure.

“He came home sick and he fought for every day of his life,” DeWeese said.

Hegge, who served in the Marine Corps, was wounded from mortar rounds during a battle in June 1969, for which he received the Purple Heart. He lived nearly 40 more years, going on to become an environmental biologist for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and an adjunct faculty member at Miami University in Ohio. He died in March 2004.

Hegge’s younger brother, David, said that family members were at the last minute unable at attend the service but that he was honored to see his brother honored.

“It’s a good feeling that he’s being recognized for what he did in Vietnam. It certainly pays tribute for what he did for the country and the sacrifices that he made,” Hegge said.