Sevier News Messenger Sevier County News and Opinion
A group of Vietnam veterans staging its annual reunion in Pigeon Forge is doing more than reminiscing about service overseas – they are remembering all veterans and doing a good deed for Pigeon Forge’s parks in the process.
The Tan Son Nhut Association, whose members are mainly Air Force veterans who served at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, will dedicate a bench outside the LeConte Center at Pigeon Forge to all veterans. A $2,500 gift from the association to the Forever Parks Foundation will benefit the Rotary Discovery Playground at Wear Farm City Park.
“We are honored that the association is meeting in Pigeon Forge. Beyond that, we are humbled that they want to recognize other visiting veterans and help our parks, too,” said Simon Bradbury, assistant director of the Pigeon Forge Parks and Recreation Department and coordinator of the Forever Parks Foundation.
The Tan Son Nhut Association bench dedication plaque to Vietnam Veterans, made through the Forever Parks Foundation and benefitting the Rotary Discovery Playground at Wear Farm City Park.
The dedication will be held 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 30, 2015 at the LeConte Event Center. The public is invited to attend. The ceremony will include a bald eagle from the American Eagle Association, participation by Girl Scouts from the Smoky Saddles Girl Scouts of Sevier County and a talk from Paul Galanti, a prisoner of war in North Vietnam for almost seven years.
George Plunkett, president of the Tan Son Nhut Association, said more than 170 people will attend this year’s reunion.
The Forever Parks Foundation is a private-sector organization that supports Pigeon Forge’s parks.
Photos courtesy Forever Parks Foundation
