‘This is hallowed ground’: East Tennesseans remember fallen heroes at World’s Fair Park

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – East Tennesseans, along with several veterans, went to the East Tennessee Veterans Memorial Monday to honor thousands of fallen heroes.

“This is hallowed ground. This is a very special place.” American Legion Post 2 Commander Michael Testerman said, “If you get to the point where your name is no longer spoken, then you are forgotten, but that’s not going to happen on our watch.”

Testerman said some of his friends are named on the wall.

“You go back and relive the stories, the fun times, the crazy times and all of the things you’ve done and then how you felt that day, you knew they were going to be on that wall,” Testerman said.

Veterans at the ceremony said Memorial Day is more than a three-day weekend, but a reminder of their past.

Vietnam War veteran John Foatman said, “Some of the people I was shoulder-to-shoulder with in battle in Vietnam, they didn’t make it. They’re not here, so I’m always in memory of them. I gave some, but they gave it all.”

Four more names have been added to the wall, including Gibbs grad and U.S. Army Soldier Jeremy Evans. A service member gave his wife a white rose during a special ceremony for them. Evans was killed after a transport vehicle flipped last year.

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Testerman said, “It is a very emotional moment, and it is closure for that family to see that their name is read and to know it will be immortalized on the wall.”

The East Tennessee Veterans Memorial remembers service members from World War I through current conflicts and other military operations.

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