Topeka ? A group of veterans is organizing an event this weekend to pay tribute to the men and women of the military who have died in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The organizers don’t want today’s soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines to end up like veterans of the Vietnam War, forgotten for their sacrifices.

“When we came back from the war, a lot of people ignored us because we were fighting an unpopular war,” said Terry Houck, a veteran from Mulvane. “We don’t want that to happen to them.”

The veterans and other volunteers will have “The Reading” on Saturday in Topeka to pay tribute to the war dead. It’s a marathon reading of the name and home state of each person who died in combat, followed by the ringing of a bell and brief silence.

The event is at the Topeka Expocentre, and the reading of the more than 4,500 names will start at 11 a.m. It’s expected to take 10 hours.

Organizers said the purpose of the event isn’t to make a statement about the war – for or against – but to honor all of the men and women and their families for their sacrifices in one setting.

The date was chosen because it is the birthday of the Army, Flag Day and the day before Father’s Day. The 11 a.m. start coincides with the start of the armistice that ended World War I on Nov. 11, 1918.

“We’d like to pray to God that we don’t have to add any names to the list before June 14, but we know that’s not a reality,” said Rodger McNees, a Vietnam veteran from West Olive, Mich.

McNees participated in a similar event in 2007 where motorcycle riders raised money for soldiers at war, concluding the ride with a reading of the names of Michigan soldiers killed in combat. That led to efforts for a national event, with organizers settling on Topeka because it is in the central United States.

Reuben Sullivan, a Topeka veteran, said response from organizations, families, veterans and businesses to the event has been “awesome.”

“To me, the main thing that this program is about are the families of these soldiers,” Sullivan said. “It’s time.”

Each name will be read on stage in the Expocentre by local celebrities, veterans and officials. The names will appear on a placard held by volunteers on the stage in three rows of 50. Afterward, the names will be placed on a hillside outside the event center on a stake, flanked by U.S. flags and members of the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps.

The event is being funded by donations. After paying expenses, remaining funds will be used to install a tribute statue at Topeka’s former railroad depot, now a museum.

The statue will replicate a photo on the cover of the event program, taken from a field tribute in Iraq. That photo is of a helmet, rifle and a single combat boot. The victim was killed in an improvised explosive device blast and only one boot was found after the attack, Sullivan said.

Remaining funds will be sent to Walter Reed Army Medical Center to cover the cost of families who stay at the hospital while their sons and daughters recover from war wounds.

Organizers believe it is one of the first such large events specifically aimed at reading the names of all the war dead and are anticipating participants from all over the United States.

“We feel that this is going to be historic. Topeka is going to be known for a positive thing for a change,” Sullivan said.