Milwaukee Vietnam Veterans Memorial restored

Going to continue to highlight Veterans Day throughout this next hour here on Fox 6 Now and of course in our early and evening newscast. So I actually want to bring in General Brian Winskey, the president and CEO of the War Memorial Center in Milwaukee. General Winskey, thanks so much for joining me today on Fox 6 Now. Thanks for having me. And I know busy day for you guys after the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Vietnam Veterans Memorial. We actually have a look at it right here. And I want to talk all about this and about your work at the Veterans Center that we have here in Milwaukee. But first, I know you've served 37 years in the Army. First, thank you for your service. And second, I'm just curious to hear about your story and how your... brought you here today. Yeah, I grew up here in Milwaukee. I was always drawn to service. I joined the Army as soon as I could, the Army Reserve, on my 17th birthday, in fact, and went to basic training between my junior and senior year and finished it up after high school. And I knew then that I really wanted to go. make a career in the Army. So that was my path to go to UWM. I got a commission when I graduated, and I came down to active duty in the late 80s and had assignments all over the globe. A lot of time at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, which was my first and my last assignment. And when I retired, I knew everything great in my life was a result of my service in the Army, and I wanted to give back. And this opportunity at the War Memorial here surfaced, and I jumped on it. And I've been in the saddle now for about a year. And proud that we just renovated the Vietnam Memorial that's here on the War Memorial Grounds. Yeah, and just looking, too, at the unveiling right here. And, I mean, it's a stunning sight to see here. But I know that there's quite the story behind the decision to restore it. So for you, being in this position, what kind of sparked that decision and what was that process like? Yeah, so the memorial, you know, the Vietnam veterans in the 80s decided, and that's when public sentiment really turned in a positive way, where in the 60s, 70s, a lot of America's public conveyed. Their frustration with the Vietnam War, and they took that out on those who, when were asked, stepped forward, went forward, and fought, and America took their ire out on the war, on the veterans, and that's something that changed pretty significantly in the 80s, and by the late 80s, Vietnam groups here in southeast Wisconsin decided to get the resources together, the money together, and the design to build a memorial in their honor, and it was built in the latter part of 1990. Opened in 1991 and stood tall and stood proud ever since. But especially over the last eight or nine years or so, the weather's taken its toll. The whole base of it is all paver bricks and they were buckling and cracking and unreadable. So it was definitely time for a wholesale restoration. And that's what we began just a few short months ago. We excavated it all, replaced all the pavers with a new, more resilient. Base layer with a new, more resilient interlocking pattern with the bricks and the pavers, and it looks really nice. We also enhanced it in a couple ways. If you're familiar with the design, there's three main pillars. One represents those who went to Vietnam, fought, and came home. The second, those who went and were killed in action, and then third, those who went and were declared missing or prisoner. There's 11 smaller ones in a semi-circle around that reflecting each year of the conflict, but they didn't have anything on them. So we put an inscribed piece of temper glass on each that kind of gives the casualty figures for that year, how many Wisconsin troops were in Vietnam that year, that sort of thing. And there's so many other Wisconsinites and people in the Milwaukee area, just like yourself, who grew up here, went into the line of duty and served our country. And now being in this position and being part of the restoration process of this memorial, what does it mean to you to now have this complete for so many people who served our country to go to and just feel that great honor? You hit it right there at the end. It was a great honor to be part of the team that executed this restoration. My generation of veterans, and I'm an 80s, 2020s, Desert Shield, Desert Storm, first major combat action, and then subsequently Iraq and Afghanistan. It was the Vietnam generation that trained my generation or prepared my generation for the things that awaited us in Desert Storm and Iraq and Afghanistan. So we owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude because they passed on those hard-fought lessons learned from their time in Vietnam to us. And I can't begin to express how important that was for me as a young infantryman so many years ago. I knew as soon as I saw the monument when I came back to Milwaukee and assumed this role here that it was in need of a restoration. And that was widely known across the veterans community. And what we committed ourselves to is making sure that when we restore this thing, it is going to be as rock solid and as high quality as was the quality of the service of our Vietnam veterans. And I'm proud to say it is. And that's the feedback I got from the over 125 veterans that we had there throughout the course of the day today. Just positive feedback. And they're really proud of it. Grateful that it was restored. Yeah, and such great timing, too, with it being Veterans Day as well. And I know at the War Memorial Center, I mean, it's hard to miss. I always see it along the lakefront there. You do so much more beyond than just having this memorial. It's about the community aspect, too, and it's really a generational thing. I mean, you said that Vietnam War veterans trained your generation as well. What does that community mean? And, I mean, I know you said you've had this role for a year now, and how are you still trying to cultivate that at the center? Yeah, here's some things we do to inspire all generations through the service of our veterans, from our Vietnam veterans to our current contemporary veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. You know, it's a unique facility, a unique building. It's where Milwaukee's downtown meets Milwaukee's lakefront. Very unique design, intended to look like a blockhouse bunker defending the shores, as would a blockhouse bunker in Normandy look like. You know, unique design, and it's filled with a number of unique artifacts, exhibits, interactives, etc. We just had a great event about a week and a half ago called Service Experience Days, where we had about 300 students from MPS, private schools, parochial schools, home schools converge here at the War Memorial. And we set up stations, if you will, where they get a little exposure of the Army and see a Humvee and talk to some soldiers. The Coast Guard, where they see a patrol boat, get to crawl on it and talk to Coast Guardsmen. The inflatable sub replica of the USS Wisconsin ballistic missile sub and talk to folks that are part of that association. And then most importantly, one of the stations was to sit down two or three students at a time with a veteran and hear their stories and hear things that inspired them to decide to join the Army. Armed Forces and serving the country in the serving the forces which protect our country and our way of life. So events like that have an educational and an inspirational component to it. And we're just proud to host them here at the War Memorial. That's exactly why we exist to honor the dead and serve the living. So serving the living means inspiring other generations through the the stories of our veterans. We got some great interactives, one of which It goes into detail on the 64 Wisconsin Medal of Honor recipients, where you can read the citations, hear videotaped interviews with them, and things of that nature. Very inspiring. We house monuments from all branches of the service for all conflicts that the armed forces have been involved in. So it's just a great resource for the community. It's free. It's always open. It's always open to the public. And we would love to, you know, and a standing invitation to all of southeast Wisconsin to come and explore it. Yeah. And I think, you know, as you said, like honor, honor the dead and then serve the living as well. And I mean, serving the next generation, too. And I think part of that is also the preservation of the center and then also the memorial itself, as we saw the restoration there. And I know it's all from funding for something called Operation Advance. Talk a little bit about what that is. Yeah, that's a campaign we launched about two years ago now, and our intent is to get a preservation fund established that allows the community to have the war memorial as they know it in perpetuity. We're a 70-year-old building, so we've got to take care of the building. We want to constantly upgrade our artifacts and our interactives and our displays and our exhibits. We want to make it. you know relevant and up-to-date and useful as an educational resource and we want to again serve as a rally point for all veterans all veteran organizations all organizations that support veterans on the great facility that we have here and it is a great facility and it's available to the public a lot of folks i talk to say oh yeah i know where the I don't know where the war memorial is, but I... Didn't realize it was open. I go by there all the time, but I wasn't quite sure what it was. Well, our doors are open. Please come and visit and consider using the War Memorial for your events. You know, the best advantage we have is, in addition to this awesome view of Lake Michigan right outside our east side windows here, any and all proceeds, net profit wise, that come out of use of the War Memorial are applied to veterans groups, veterans priorities, veterans. Organizations are improving the War Memorial itself. So for no other reason, you know, choose us as your choice for event locations and venues. Yeah, I will say, General Wenske, I am one of those people who pass it all the time and didn't know, wasn't aware that it was open to the public. So that's something I'll definitely have to check out for sure. And I think today it's such a it's a day to honor, but also a day. To educate and to remember and to be educated and just hearing your story and hearing the stories of other veterans or people who are currently in the line of duty, I think are so important to keep alive and to remember. And so I want to ask you, and I know you had touched on it a little bit saying, take this opportunity to come to the War Memorial Center, but anything else that you feel like is a good message to put out today to people watching who may not have any connection to the military or maybe those who do as well? Yeah, you know, there's 300,000 veterans in Wisconsin, most of which are in the southeast part of the state, of course. You know, for members of the community, get to know a veteran and get to learn a little bit from them. Veterans are, you know, they're self-starters. I'm talking young veterans now, those that have recently separated from the service, you know, with an eye towards employers, etc. Veterans bring discipline, they're self-starters, they're They're motivated. They'll exercise initiative. And, you know, bring them on your team, and they'll be, I guarantee, valued contributors no matter what role they're in and no matter what your company does. So for employers, hire veterans. For members of the community, get to know your veterans in their community and learn from their stories. And, you know, they'd love to share them with you, but sometimes you've got to pull them out a little bit. And, you know, once you get them going, they'll share more than you want, probably. But get to know your veterans and hear their stories and understand them. And that's how you can truly do things that, in a meaningful way, thank them for their service. Yeah, and I think human connection, I think, is the best way to learn. To hear those stories firsthand is something that's really special and a great opportunity that I know I always try to take advantage of. So I hope other people do as well. General Winski, anything else you feel like is important for people to know today? Just, you know, thank a veteran and recognize they voluntarily stepped forward and said, I want to serve in the forces which protect our country and our way of life. And I do that knowing I may give my life in doing that. So that is an absolute commitment that these folks have made to their country. And it's worthy of our thanks. So I really appreciate you spreading that word. And thanks for all your coverage of this, Maddie. Yeah, absolutely, and I cannot say it enough. Thank you for your service to this country, and thank you to all veterans and those who are active duty service members. I really appreciate you taking the time. I know it was a busy day, but us here at Fox 6, we appreciate all that you do and all the work that you've done at the World Memorial Center. Great, thank you.