Bible: Ruth 1:16 - Vietnam Veterans Monument - Wentzville, MO
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 38° 48.696 W 090° 51.331
15S E 686195 N 4298054
First erected in 1967, this monument considered the first Vietnam Memorial
Waymark Code: WMMNEF
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 10/14/2014
Views: 1
County of quote: St. Charles County
Location of quote: Pearce Blvd, Fireman's Park, Vietnam Memorial, Wentzville
Quote erected: 1984
Erected by: The Parents of Active Vietnam Veterans & the City of Wentzville, at the time
Quote:
"Ruth 1:16 King James Version (KJV)
"16 And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:" ~ King James Version - Bible
"16 But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.”"
~ New International Version - Bible
Background:
The small town of Wentzville is about 40 miles west of St. Louis, on I-70. In December 1967 the citizens of Wentzville strung a 30-foot tree with lights in honor of the town's military men serving in Vietnam. The memorial's original intention was to raise funds to send Christmas gifts to local men and women serving in Vietnam.
The following year, two local artists created a sculpture for the site, and in 1984 a larger memorial was dedicated. The Wentzville Vietnam Veterans Memorial today is a tall column crafted of red Missouri granite, with an eagle perched at its top.