WINDSOR — About five years ago, Janet Osmer saw a movie that featured a parade for Vietnam veterans and it struck her as a nice gesture for veterans who weren’t always welcomed home with open arms.

She thought it would be nice to do something similar in Windsor, where she lives. The COVID-19 pandemic put those plans on pause, but now her idea is coming to fruition this Saturday, Sept. 14.

A cousin of Osmer’s was killed while serving in Vietnam and, over the years, some of her classmates at Randolph Union High School who served in Vietnam have died.

“I just thought it would be nice for them to be recognized,” Osmer, who is greatly involved with the American Legion Auxiliary, said in a phone interview last week. She emphasized that, while the focus of the parade is on Vietnam veterans, all veterans will be honored and are welcome to participate. “To me, my way of thinking, they should be very proud they served their country.”

Around 10 a.m., participants will leave from Price Chopper, located at 2725 Route 5, and end around 11 a.m. the Green near Windsor American Legion Post 25, located 4 Court St., in downtown Windsor. There will be a barbecue and live music from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Those who are interested in participating can call the American Legion at 802-674-9967.

Among the participants will be Windsor resident Dave Burnham, who arrived in Vietnam in January 1968, right before the Tet Offensive, a series of coordinated, surprise attacks launched by North Vietnam across South Vietnam.

The United States first became involved in Vietnam in the 1950s and started sending combat troops there in 1965, according to a summary of the conflict from the U.S. Army. The last U.S. troops left in March 1973. At the time, supporters of the conflict said it was necessary for preventing the spread of communism. Others saw it as a waste of resources and were greatly concerned about the casualty totals among US troops and Vietnamese civilians.

“Vietnam was just a different deal,” said Burnham, who served in the Marines. “Going over and coming back, and then all the war protests.”

After returning in the late 1960s, Burnham joined in some of those protests because he said he did not want to see more 18, 19 and 20 year olds dying or wounded in the conflict, as some who he served with had been.

“Having been there, I was concerned about people’s health,” he said. “I don’t think we had any business in that country.”

Burnham described the Windsor parade as “very nice and very thoughtful.”

John Morton, a Thetford resident who served as an Army infantry officer in Vietnam from the summer of 1970 to the summer of 1971, agreed. While he will not be able to attend the parade, Morton said he supported efforts to honor Vietnam veterans, who sometimes encountered protesters after returning from their tours of duty.

“I was fortunate coming back that I didn’t have to deal with a lot of that negativity,” said Morton, who was based in Alaska and returned there after Vietnam.

In the last two decades, Morton has noticed a shift in how the general public treats returning veterans. He attributes that, in part, to the way the public views and treats those who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

“They may not support the war but they’re not blaming the warriors, the people who were deployed,” he said. “I think that’s a difference that has evolved from Vietnam to everybody’s benefit.”

Bill Donahue, of Hartland, served in Vietnam from October 1967 to October 1968 as an infantry officer in the Marine Corps. He said that 50 years ago, an event like the parade taking place in Windsor probably wouldn’t have happened.

“The real change was how we are accepted now as opposed to how we were accepted when we came back, we were considered to be traitors to our generation. It was a bad war and we were seen as participating in a bad war,” he said. “Now we’re regarded almost as heroes.”

Like Morton, Donahue started noticing a shift in the perception of those who served in Vietnam around 20 years ago.

“I just think (...) the public came to realize, that just because we were serving our countries doesn’t mean we were responsible for the bad decision to get into that war,” he said. While he cannot attend the Windsor parade, he too is supportive of the effort.

Osmer, who has volunteered at the White River Junction VA Medical Center for more than 20 years, said that she noticed more Vietnam veterans have started talking about their service since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

“I think they’re a little more open than they used to be,” Osmer said. “I’ve noticed a lot of Vietnam veteran hats which I did not see before. Maybe they decided it was time to let people know they were in the Vietnam war.”

Vietnam veterans also have seen more benefits from the PACT Act, which expanded benefits and health care to those who were exposed toxic substances while serving in the military. It was signed into law in 2022 and now includes expanded eligibility for those who were exposed to Agent Orange, a chemical used in Vietnam, during their service.

“We have seen a dramatic increase in the number of Vietnam and other veterans filing claims,” Robert Burke, director of Vermont’s Office of Veterans Affairs, wrote in an email. He added that the department’s service officers have been working on getting in touch with veterans across the state to help file claims through the PACT Act.

Burke’s advice for Vietnam veterans and their families is “that it is never too late to ask for help; they earned it and deserve it. It is worth having a conversation to see if and what benefits they may be eligible for,” he wrote.

For more information about benefits that are avail able to Vietnam veterans under the PACT Act visit va.gov/resources/the-pact-act-and-your-va-benefits or call 800-698-2411.

Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.