Sulphur Springs Public Library is pleased to announce our 2022 Hopkins County Reads program, designed to encourage the citizens of Hopkins County to connect through the reading and discussion of a common book. The library even has a giveaway cell phone stand with the Hopkins County Reads logo as a conversation starter.
Strength, Honor and Remember: the legacy of the Vietnam War is the subject of our program. The kickoff is Tuesday, November 9 at 10:30am at Sulphur Springs Public Library, 611 North Davis. We welcome author Allen B. Clark, of Dallas, TX, who has written 3 books including Wounded Soldier, Healing Warrior and has founded Combat Faith Ministry. This lay ministry is dedicated to educate, train, arm and equip individuals to utilize principles from the teachings of Jesus Christ to be healed from negative emotions and thoughts caused by sin, wrong choices, or by trauma or injury to body, soul, or spirit.
In addition, the Wall that Heals will be in Sulphur Springs Thursday, November 4 through Sunday, November 7. The library will be temporarily displaying all items left behind beginning Monday November 8 through November 19 in the music box displays. The Wall That Heals exhibit features a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. The replica is 375 feet in length and stands 7.5 feet high at its tallest point. Visitors experience The Wall rising above them as they walk towards the apex, a key feature of the design of The Wall in D.C.
The 53-foot trailer that carries The Wall That Heals transforms to become a mobile Education Center. The exterior of the trailer features a timeline of “The War and The Wall” and provides additional information about the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
Since the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (The Wall) was dedicated in November 1982, more than 400,000 items have been left by visitors as remembrances and tributes. The National Park Service collects, catalogs, and preserves these objects as part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial collection, with curatorial support from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. These items give visitors a better understanding of the legacy of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the collection of items left at The Wall.
Hopkins County Reads will continue the Strength, Honor and Remember program in 2022 with a Spring program (date to be announced). We will welcome Callie Wright, Director of Education, Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (virtually) to discuss the impact, importance and some items left mementos behind on the Washington wall specifically relating to soldiers from this area. The library will then present the stories of items left here in Sulphur Springs. After the program, the library will open a Question & Answer session for veterans hosted by Tommy Allison.
For more information visit www.vvmf.org ,call the Sulphur Springs Public Library 903-885-4926 or find us on Facebook @Sulphur Springs Public Library
