APPLETON (WLUK) -- A memorial to Wisconsin's Vietnam War veterans was dedicated Wednesday.

President of Vets & Friends Coffee House Jack Voight said it has been years in the making.

"After a number of years, I was able to negotiate an agreement with the Veterans Museum in Madison, and they gave me the graphics and I took it from there and created the wall itself, and that's what you see now," he said.

The permanent Veterans Wall features the photographs and names of Wisconsinites who died in Vietnam.

"It's called a face with every name. It sends another message of, unbelievable what that person went through," Voight continued. "We have the wall in Washington, but again, it adds another dimension of interaction that sends a message and also has a different rapport when they see a face with a name."

Vets & Friends Coffee House sponsored the project. The 17-panel wall aims to feature photos of the 1,249 Wisconsin veterans who died in the war.

Voight told FOX 11 it's important to remember those who didn't come home and remember where they came from.

• RELATED: 50 years after Vietnam War's end, Wisconsin veterans share stories, memories of those lost

The memorial is separated by county, which Voight said is for good reason.

"Every county in this state, 72 counties had a veteran, except for one county, and that's Iron County, did not have a veteran that died in Vietnam," Voight said.

Deaths that VFW Post Commander Wayne Martin said, "I know every veteran in here cannot forget. There's no way in heck. I think about it every day of the year. Especially when you lose a veteran, your friend, right next to you."

The memorial is located at 2508 N. Richmond St.

Wednesday is the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon, marking the end of the Vietnam War.