COLORADO SPRINGS — As Rosey Dudden visited the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. as part of the first all-women's Honor Flight of Southern Colorado, she stared at the many names that often go unrecognized, much like the faces from combat.
The trip in late April allowed 30 local female veterans to our nation's capitol to visit memorials free of cost. The tour included visits to the World War II Memorial, the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial, and the Women in Military Service for America Memorial.
Dudden served as a nurse during the Vietnam War. In reflection, she told News5, “To see these people coming in and what they did suffer. And as we took care of them in the hospital, we realized that we realized that there is a great, great price for freedom.”
Each name echoes a hero’s story etched in our fight for freedom.
“These people died in a way that they gave their lives to their country, but they didn’t die with respect necessarily in a way that they wanted to. It was dying for freedom,” said Dudden.
Organizers for the Honor Flight of Southern Colorado say Vietnam veterans probably have the most emotional reactions because they were shunned upon returning home.
“There were a lot of things surrounding her time in Vietnam that she never said. Never told anybody,” said Alicia Schulz, Dudden’s daughter.
“Just seeing how long she has carried some of those burdens... and so much pain, it was very emotional, and my heart just breaks for her and all of the veterans. They all have so many amazing stories.”
The lack of a homecoming is something that still lingers. “So many of us carried that for many, many years,” said Dudden.
This trip alongside her comrades that understand changed that.
“She’s so strong and she doesn’t see herself like that. She doesn’t see how many lives she has touched,” her daughter told News5.
Learn more about the mission of Honor Flight of Southern Colorado, including how you can help.
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