Three bronze statues depict soldiers from different wars standing by side, embracing each other as a symbol of unity among fallen brothers and sisters.
SAN ANTONIO — Vietnam veteran Tony Roman of San Antonio recently established a bronze sculpture of fallen warriors on the city’s south side where he grew up, after four years of trying to make the project a permanent reality.
Roman, a proud graduate of South San High School, joined the Marines at 19-years-old after his friends who returned from Vietnam, refused to talk about their experience. He decided enlisting would be the only way to find out what war was truly like.
Roman recalls losing many dear friends in the battlefields of Vietnam.
“It’s sad because I know we were all about 19, 20-years-old,” Roman said. “All these guys never had the chance to become fathers.”
Wounded twice in combat, the Purple Heart recipient has since spent decades advocating for the health and recognition of all veterans. He currently serves as commander for the local chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart.
“I think that I was spared so I could honor our veterans,” Roman said.
Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9186, nestled next to Mission County Park, is where Roman’s statue stands—showcasing soldiers from multiple conflicts.
The project is called “The Price of Freedom,” which represents military personnel who fought in Vietnam, Korea, Iraq and Afghanistan. The two world wars are also represented through bronze military helmets placed on top of rifles.
Roman explained how there’s a compartment on the statue’s base where a time capsule will eventually be present filled with mementos of militarism.
“They’re (statues) all holding onto each other, symbolizing the fact that we’re all brothers and sisters no matter what war we serve,” Roman said.
Helping make the project possible was fellow Vietnam veteran Michael Lynd. Roman recalls the moment Lynd offered to fully fund the effort.
“I said excuse me, he said ‘I’ll pay for it.’”
The only exception was that Lynd desired two statues to be built, one for VFW Post 9186 and another for his Vietnam Army Grunt Museum in Shavano Park.
This Memorial Day, Roman’s message to Americans is simple but profound: freedom is not without cost.
The statue stands not only as a monument to the fallen but as a living reminder of the sacrifices made and the duty to remember.
“Freedom isn’t free,” Roman said. “It means you can go from Bexar County to Atascosa County without stopping at a checkpoint. It means you can criticize your elected official without fearing secret police. This is the price of freedom.”