Veteran’s Stories: Lehi’s Jim Slade worked to honor Utah’s Vietnam veterans with memorial
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- The Utah State Vietnam Memorial at the Utah State Capitol in Salt Lake City.
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- Jim Slade showing a map of Vietnam used during the war.
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- Jim Slade of Lehi holds a captured Chinese-made rifle he brought home from Vietnam.
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- Wall display showing Jim Slade’s many medals and commendations over his 30 years of service in the US Army.
Americans everywhere owe an enormous debt to the men and women who fought for their country. To remember these brave individuals, the Daily Herald is pleased to share some of their stories.
This is the last article in a weekly series which will share the experiences of Jim Slade of Lehi, who served as a soldier during the Vietnam War. It was not Jim Slade’s choice to serve in that war but when he was asked, he answered the call. A loyal American who has served admirably and who loves his country, Slade tells his children and grandchildren, “Freedom is not free!”
When the Vietnam War ended, most Americans were glad to see it end and some just wanted to forget that it ever happened. Older citizens will remember the intense controversy when American soldiers were inducted and essentially forced to serve in an overseas and very unpopular war in Southeast Asia.
Jim Slade was one of those men who was given a draft number and told to go. He did not want to go fight in a foreign war in a country that he had no idea where it was even located. But he had no other choice except to flee to Canada as a draft dogger and for him that was not an option. He was taught when your country calls, you do your duty.
Jim served a one-year tour plus two extra months in Vietnam as an Army Ranger. His job was to go out on a 5-man team into the jungle on very dangerous reconnaissance missions. Out of 42 missions, Jim was in combat 36 times.
After the war was over, a group of vets from Utah observed there were few — if any — Vietnam Memorials in the country. They thought it was wrong. Jim was approached by this group of veterans. They had been trying to raise money for a Vietnam Memorial in Utah for four years with little success. They asked Jim to see if he could make it happen. Even though the war was not popular, 58,000 American men and women nationally, including over 400 from the State of Utah, had lost their lives protecting others and they deserved to be remembered.
It took over a year to raise the $425,000 needed to build the Utah Vietnam Memorial At first, the money came in slowly. Jim received numerous “no’s” from wealthy private entities and defense contractors in the Utah area which had manufactured war munitions used in the Vietnam War and had profited a great deal.
But Jim did not give up. He talked to dozens of private companies and the State legislature. He wrote editorials, got articles written in the newspapers, and even approached one foundation that only supported The Arts. Through persistence and sometimes a little figurative arm twisting, eventually, hearts softened, pocket books were opened. Many good people would send in a check for as little as $5 every month. By contrast the Investment Arm of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and Coors Beer were equally generous.
On October 14, 1989, the Utah State Vietnam Memorial was dedicated. Among the 20,000 in attendance was a local motorcycle club of Vietnam Vets who rode in on Harleys to show their support.
About four months after the dedication, Jim was visiting the memorial one cold winter evening. On a marble bench at the back of the memorial, Jim noticed a man sitting there all alone. He appeared well dressed, but Jim saw he had been crying and there was a bottle of liquor on the floor by him. Jim approached him and asked, “Are you OK, buddy? Is there anything I can do for you?”
The man had been one of those who had answered the call and had gone to Vietnam. He had been in many harrowing fights with the enemy and had lost many friends there.
When he returned home from the war, his father (who was a WWII veteran) said to him, “I’m tired of the Vietnam Vets whining about their war. All they do is complain! I was in a real war.” The man told Jim he turned around and walked out the door of his home and had not been back for 20 years. This experience had left him scarred and saddened.
The man went on to say that seeing this memorial and the honor it had given so many from Utah who had served and died in Vietnam that maybe, just maybe, his family and others would now recognize the sacrifice of his generation. He thought he might try to go home now.
To end this series, we want to invite everyone who would care to to visit the Utah State Vietnam Memorial, entitled, “But Not Forgotten.” This beautiful stirring memorial which includes a statue, sculpted by Clyde Ross Morgan, is of a soldier carrying his fallen buddy’s rifle.
It currently sits on the west lawn of the Utah State Capitol grounds.
