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Stories from the Belltower

Visit each of the stories presented in the gallery to learn more about the impact of war on visitors of the Belltower as well as how we might beat ‘swords into plowshares.’ Please check back soon as we will be updating with new stories and photos!

Voices of the Belltower: Coming Soon!

Check back soon for a gallery featuring both audio and video stories from the Belltower!

About Us

Swords to Plowshares Memorial Belltower – Intro Video: 3:30 minutes.  

Upcoming Events

There are multiple upcoming events related to the Belltower! Please join us to browse the stories and share your own. Memorial Day Weekend Exhibit at National Mall When: Friday, May 24th-Tuesday, May 28th Where: National Mall This Memorial Day weekend on the National Mall, the public is invited to add inscriptions to the 24-ft-tall touring…

NEWS ADVISORY: Belltower Memorial on National Mall Memorial Day Weekend

NEWS ADVISORY: Belltower Memorial on National Mall Memorial Day Weekend – Visitors May Add Inscriptions and Ring Bell Contact: Roger Ehrlich (919) 696-5995 This Memorial Day weekend on the National Mall, the public is invited to add inscriptions to a 24-ft-tall touring Memorial, the Swords to Plowshares Memorial Belltower.  For the past 5 years the…

Wayne Hill, Australian Veteran of War in Vietnam

Some of my mates, about seven of my mates, never made it home with me. Since I arrived home, numerous members have committed suicide out of my unit. Close friends. And one of our five children passed away early, I’m told from Agent Orange. I was exposed to [Agent Orange] and it has affected four…

Albert (Al) Hayes, Jr., Vietnam Veteran

My name is Albert Hayes. I was a staff sergeant in the Army. In 1969, I was in Vietnam with the 1st Air Calvary. We went out on helicopters and I’ll never forget the day in June of 1969. We got ambushed and most of my squad got wiped out. I got shot with a…

Scenes From the Belltower

 

Robert Harris, Vietnam Veteran

While I serving my country, I was wounded a couple times, shrapnel which I’m still recovering from, Agent Orange, jungle rot that plagues my body now and causes a whole lot of problems for me to function as a normal person. But I’m thankful that I made it back and I pray for all the…

Reverend Shawna Foster, National Guard Veteran, Nuclear Biological Chemical Specialist

For Jacob David George: Death by Suicide Jacob talked about how he was a poor farmer sent over to kill other poor farmers overseas. He was deployed three times and, when he came back, he decided that he was going to ride his bicycle and talk about the wars and the misconceptions of them until…

Jacquelyn Harris, Nurse

For the Military Men in Her Life Plaque Quote: I saw the men, my father and his friends, come home from war different. These military men had pain that they hid, sometimes in abuse, alcoholism, and other ways. They all died early, leaving their children and their wives with scars that still aren’t healed, leaving…

For Great-Uncle Percy Fletcher (Gassed During WWI)

This is my great-uncle, Percy Fletcher, and he was gassed during the First World War. He returned from the war and, unfortunately, because he was gassed, his two daughters died very young. They were only two and three years old when they both died. I know that he wasn’t the same man when he came…

Tom Baker, NCSU Student Veteran Plaque: “Iraq War Mistake.”

I served there in 2009 and 2010. Really, the only way to sum it up is, it was a mistake. We shouldn’t be there right now. I think that people in this country need to pay more attention to what our government’s doing. The main problem is that the AUMF (Authorization for the Use of…

Paul Appell, Vietnam Veteran exposed to Agent Orange

(For PFC Aaron Barnes- exposed to depleted uranium munitions in Iraq) I never met him when he was alive. The Army kicked him out because they said his weight was fluctuating, but they said there was nothing wrong with him. His mother held a fundraiser, so he could go to a private doctor. And it…

DC Memorial Weekend Installation – Visit and Volunteer!

We need YOU to come to DC this weekend to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial and our own touring memorial, The Swords to Plowshares Belltower, which will be set up nearby, with VFP volunteers keeping watch 24/7 from Saturday morning through Monday night! map On Memorial Day morning, for the third year running, Veterans For Peace from around…

https://player.vimeo.com/video/271548989 Thanks for joining us! As we build this website, we hope we can include your stories and your ideas! We hope you will watch our short intro video and then contact us and share some information about yourself. Then we hope we can work together to raise awareness about the costs of war on…