BEDFORD, Va. (WDBJ) - A crowd filled Main Street in Bedford on Saturday morning as the community came together to dedicate a new Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a project nearly two decades in the making and one that many say carries decades of grief, love, and healing.

The memorial honors the 14 Bedford men who never returned home from Vietnam, along with all Vietnam and Vietnam-era veterans who carried the weight of that conflict long after the fighting stopped. For families who have waited more than 50 years for this recognition, seeing the monument unveiled brought a wave of emotion.

“We are here today to try and honor the memory of the man he would have been,” said Cathy Whitten, cousin of veteran Tucker Oliver, whose name is etched into the memorial. “He was such a fine example, as were

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