SAN ANTONIO – The Vietnam war has influenced many things in American culture for more than 50 years.
In Military City U.S.A., Vietnam veteran hats, bumper stickers and license plates are common sights.
Art is also central to the Vietnam experience. You can see it in the paintings by artist and veteran Jesse Trevino in the San Antonio Central Library.
Since 2006, just down the street from Sidney Lanier High School, you can see the Vietnam experience in a different way.
Painted on the side of a building at the corner of Commerce and Colorado, many war images come to life.
The images depict planes spraying “Agent Orange,” propaganda leaflets being dropped from the sky, and an explosion in the mountain range overlooking An Hoa Combat Base, which was used by the United States Marines Corps from 1966 to 1970.
Today, the base, including its runway, has been overtaken by the surrounding jungle.
However, today’s mural looks just as vibrant and clean as the day it went up nearly 20 years ago, except for some combat boots randomly placed along the bottom of the wall that have begun to fade away one by one.
It’s an interesting sight worth visiting to see for yourself.
The mural on the West Side was painted by artist Mike Roman, who created the mural to honor his father, Tony Roman, and all Vietnam veterans.
Tony Roman served with the Marines in Vietnam from 1969 to 1970 and was awarded two Purple Hearts.
In addition to this feature, KSAT will take a special look at the new mural at the VFW Post 76 downtown in November.
This story is part of an hour-one special airing at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 16, live on KSAT 12, and will stream again at 8:00 p.m. on April 30.
