Rylin Kinzel • Shaler Area HS
The Wall That Heals is a three-fourths scale, mobile replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. The replica is designed to be able to travel all over the United States. It has visited nearly 800 communities across the country and will be showcased in Shaler Township this coming Memorial Day weekend.
The Wall That Heals was unveiled on Veterans Day in 1996. The replica is 375 feet long and stands 7.5 feet at its tallest point. It is constructed of 140 panels, all made of avonite.
Joel Coleman, Mrs. Alyssa Rihn’s grandfather
Mrs. Alyssa Rihn, a math teacher at Shaler Area High School, and her family have been working closely with the Vietnam Veterans Memorial for as long as she can remember. Her grandfather, Joel Coleman, was enlisted in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. He was killed in action in May of 1966, just seven months after he was deployed in October of 1965.
Rihn and her family travel to Washington, D.C. at least three times a year to visit the Memorial. They volunteer there, which has allowed them to develop strong connections and friendships with families of fallen veterans as well as veterans themselves.
Rihn’s mother, who was only six months old when her father died, joined Sons and Daughters in Touch, an organization of children that lost their fathers. Sons and Daughters in Touch is an all-volunteer organization that focuses on providing support and connections to the children, spouses and other family members of American soldiers who were either killed or missing in action.
“They have all gotten so close over the past years that they consider each other brothers and sisters. They really are a family. We are closer with some of them than we are with some people in our actual family. We call the other veterans our Wall Uncles.” Rihn said. “I’ve been involved with it since I was born. It’s just become a part of my life.”
Rihn and her family have tried for many years to bring The Wall That Heals to Shaler. As of now, there are 58,281 names on the wall, the same as the Memorial in D.C. It is an solemn reminder of just how many soldiers were lost during The Vietnam War. Names are still being added, with one of the newest being in 2024. Remains of fallen soldiers are still being found and identified, so the memorial tries its best to fit that name in the memorial.
It is a difficult process however. First, if new remains are found, they have to be evaluated and identified which could take multiple months, or even years. Then, the name has to be added to the wall. The only thing is, the names on both memorials are listed in chronological order from the day of death, not alphabetically.
Mrs. Rihn (2nd from left) and her family in D.C. visiting the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
“They’ll do the best they can to fit the name. It can’t be perfect, they get it as close as they can to the day of death. Majority of the time, they figure it out based on the group of people or company that particular soldier was in. If they were serving together, usually they all died around the same time.”
The Wall That Heals has traveled all over the country, making 31 stops across 23 states in 2024 alone. In 2025, the wall plans to visit 30 communities which started on March 6 in Sebring, Florida.
It will be on display in Shaler from May 23-26 and will be located at Matulevic Field at Shaler Area High School. The trailer that carries the wall transforms into a mobile education center. It showcases veterans from the particular community it is in and additional information about the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the war. It also carries a collection of items left at the wall.
“When it does come, it is going to highlight and show pictures of every soldier from Allegheny County whose names are on the wall,” Rihn said.
This content has been submitted by authors outside of this publisher and is not its editorial product. It could contain opinions, facts, and points of view that have not been reviewed or accepted by the publisher.