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Way to go, Ohio Valley.
The committee that put together this week's visit of The Wall That Heals -- a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial --was hoping that its journey from The Highlands in Ohio County to the Belmont County Fairgrounds would be met with celebration and support from the community.
And you didn't disappoint.
From the start of the trek to the finish, people from all over the Ohio Valley made sure that this important historical display received a warm welcome.
Let's start at beginning, as dozens of people riding motorcycles and driving classic cars and military vehicles met at Bass Pro Shops at The Highlands to join law enforcement in an escort caravan along National Road through Ohio and Belmont counties. As they all rolled out, there was no doubt that the tractor trailer carrying The Wall That Heals was on its way.
And as the caravan made its way along the route, it rolled past several local schools to give their students a glimpse. Those students and school staffs were loud and proud as they drove by. Kids were cheering and waving flags.
St. Michaels Parish School Principal Adrienne Manning said the greater Ohio Valley community showed their appreciation to those students, too.
"I love that the community was honking to the kids," Manning said. "I felt that they were connected to something larger than them for just a brief moment.
"I made eye contact with one of the veterans on a motorcycle and he touched his heart and said thanks," she added. "It just added a layer of meaning to it I wasn't expecting. We were very proud to be a part of it."
It was a greeting that many Vietnam War veterans didn't receive when they originally came home from overseas.
Tim Tetz, the site manager for The Wall That Heals, mentioned that when he addressed the members of the caravan at The Highlands.
"We all recognize that those Vietnam and Vietnam-era veterans were treated horribly when they came home," he said. "They didn't have homecoming parades. They didn't have a grateful nation who stood beside the road and welcomed them home. And for those 58,281 men and women who are on those panels inside that trailer, they didn't get that homecoming parade that we often have for those we lose from foreign wars.
"This," he added, "is that homecoming parade."
And the people of the Ohio Valley made sure that parade was one that everyone who took part in that escort would remember. This is a community that appreciates and embraces those who serve and have served in the military, and that was on full display Tuesday.
The Wall That Heals opens officially for display Thursday with a "Welcome Home" ceremony. It will be open for view 24 hours a day until 1:45 p.m. Sunday, when a closing ceremony will conclude the visit.
If you have time, please make your way to the display. It's a reminder for some, a new lesson learned for others. It undoubtedly will draw crowds from throughout the region.
It already drew crowds on its way to the fairgrounds, another example of the spirit of the Ohio Valley.