Blairsville veterans have made a stunning contribution to national efforts to remember American soldiers killed and missing in action during the Vietnam War, and, in so doing, they may have just started a ripple effect when it comes to how these service members are being honored.
Local Vietnam Veteran Sid Turner orchestrated the donation of two plaques to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, one of wood and one of metal. Both not only educate the public but maintain the memories of those who were unable to come home over 50 years ago.
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It all started when Turner decided to attend a reunion of his unit, the 716th Military Police Battalion. Initially skeptical, Turner took the plunge in 2010 and attended one in Branson, Missouri. Immediately, he noticed the raffle for a memorial-themed helmet that featured the names of all the men in that unit who perished in Vietnam.
“That was special,” Turner remarked, adding that a board bearing their names had been handcrafted via woodburning and was also on display. “I was impressed by that; I was so impressed that the next reunion I went to, I made a battlefield cross to go with it.”
Flashing forward to about 2022 or 2023, Turner’s interest fell on laser engraving after his brother-in-law purchased a machine capable of the craft. Now with the tools available to do it himself, Turner began making his own military memorials.
His first project went to his unit. He immortalized the names of his brethren lost in action on personalized plaques, and he handed out several to the survivors who attended the reunions with him. These were on a small scale, typically big enough to hang on a wall and display in a home.
Upon returning to North Georgia, he met Wayne Jones, regarded by Turner as “a really good guy.” Jones, who volunteers at the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, pursued a years-long project to put faces to the names on the wall. Once again, Turner was inspired and decided to add another facet to remembering the fallen and missing.
With assistance from Allison Caldwell of West Printing in Blairsville, Turner downloaded all the photos of the missing and deceased men from his unit and had them put on a new series of metal plaques and more than 100 paper posters.
Then came Jack Dugger, who shared with Turner at a local Veterans of Foreign Wars Fish Fry why he wears a vest in honor of Bobby Jones, his friend. Jones was a surgeon aboard a flight carrying wounded soldiers when his plane crashed into a mountain in Vietnam. His remains were never recovered.
“He said, ‘This is for Bobby Jones,’ and he had to tell me that, because, you know, you couldn’t look at the vest and tell,” Turner recalled. “I’m thinking, ‘If this is about Bobby Jones, let’s make it to where we can show it’s about Bobby Jones.’”
With a little help from Coosa Creek Marketing, Turner had some custom-made vests embroidered with Jones’ name, information and portrait. Jones’ sister received one, as did Dugger and others, ensuring Jones’ memory lives on.
Hearing about a motorcycle anonymously donated to the Vietnam Memorial featuring the names of Wisconsin’s missing soldiers, Turner set his sights on a larger project. Deciding to focus his attention on Georgia’s own missing men from the Vietnam War, Turner got to work again.
Knowing that it could be done, he commissioned help from fellow Vietnam Veteran Mark Harbison of the North Georgia Honor Guard, who contributed his woodcarving talents for a new plaque.
The wooden piece honors the “Georgia 50” by displaying their names, the branch they served in, and the years they went missing. It was placed at the Vietnam Memorial in the nation’s capital on March 29.
The second plaque, made of metal, features the names and portraits of those 50 men. Melissa Kalner is credited with creating a spreadsheet detailing them and the actions during which they went missing, helping in Turner’s construction of the memorial.
Jay and Melissa Kalner placed the plaque at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall on May 26 after it was featured at the 2025 Memorial Day Ceremony in Union County.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Turner said of his efforts, and though he admits it would be nice to see the project mirrored in other states, he conceded it would be difficult for those who faced more casualties.
In the end, Turner does what he can for the men he has come to know largely through secondhand stories that piece together their lives and deaths in Vietnam.
To this day, Turner wears bracelets bearing the names of some of these men around his wrist, and he tells the stories of brave heroes like Bobby Jones whenever he can.
Already, his tributes have had an impact on others. Jay Kalner was also a member of Turner’s unit. Today, he is the President of the Vietnam Veterans Association in Arlington, Virginia, and the Kalners are working on making a plaque for the missing Vietnam soldiers of Virginia.
Currently, Turner, with help from Harbison, is looking into installing copies of those plaques at the Georgia State Capitol.
In the meantime, Turner said he’d be interested in seeing folks across the state displaying their own copies, such as for American Legion posts or other veterans who may recognize a friend.
People wishing to purchase and display their own copy of “The Men from Georgia Missing in Action in the Vietnam War” plaque may call West Printing at 706-745-6343 and ask for Allison.
