Editorial/Commentary
Region Offers Slew of Tribute Events Honoring Those Who Fought for Freedom
Trevor Phipps
During a recent event I attended, a local veteran was speaking to a group of high school students and told them a quote that resonated with me. The veteran quoted Brig. General James Sehorn when he said, “To be born free is an accident. To live free is a privilege. To die free is a responsibility.”
The veteran went on to further explain the quote, noting that not everyone is born in a free country and that being able to live free is a privilege. Moreover, people in a free country have to fight for this right. The last part of the quote suggests that it is essential to continue the fight, so that people die free and give freedom to their descendants.
It is often forgotten that military veterans and active service members are the ones who have put their lives on the line to provide the privilege of freedom for the vast majority who live in our country. And unfortunately, many veterans have paid the ultimate sacrifice.
From the Civil War until modern times, brave citizens have fought to keep the U.S.A. free to the point where most people living now are related to someone who has fought for their country. Luckily, Teller County takes just about every opportunity they can to tip their hats to those who have served and for good reason.
The entire Ute Pass region is extremely proud of its veterans and active-duty military partly due to the fact that the statistics show that one out of four men in Teller County are veterans as well as one out of 10 women. I personally don’t have any immediate family members who served, nor did I serve myself.
But both my grandfathers served (one in the Korean War and one in World War II) as well as two great uncles, two uncles and a cousin who fought for their country in wars from World War II to the present-day War on terrorism. After hearing some of their stories, I have a deep respect of what they went through to fight for the U.S.
My cousin, who is the same age as me, signed up for the Marines when he was a senior in high school right after the terrorist attacks on 9/11/01 occurred. He chose to sign up because he knew that the individual rights of Americans were being threatened by those abroad.
Therefore, another reason I am proud of living in Teller County is that they take honoring the country’s veterans seriously. I enjoy all of the events that honor the veterans, and I like to take the time to bow my head for those that we have lost.
Veteran Events Coming Up This Summer
After the Memorial Day weekend events that recently honored veterans at local cemeteries and the usual July 4th tributes, there are still more occasions to take the time to appreciate those who served. One event that has recently been brought back is a monthly veterans’ breakfast that takes place on the first Saturday of the month at the Soi 24 Pool Hall next door to Thai Good Eats in downtown Woodland Park.
The pool hall offers a free breakfast to local veterans starting at 8 a.m. During one of the last breakfasts, a Purple Heart Trail sign was given to the manager of Woodland Park’s Walmart so that they can hang it at the entrance to their parking lot to add to the slew of signs spread across the county.
The sign also came with an interesting story. Local Purple Heart recipient John Bartlett who has led the charge in getting the cities and others in the county to join the Purple Heart Trail designation said that when he first reached out to Walmart, they said that corporate policy barred them from hanging such signs.
However, Bartlett then wrote a letter to the Walmart manager talking about how when he was serving in the Army, he had heard tales of Walmart founder Sam Walton’s son who had served in the military. The manager was then able to use the story to get the corporation to give the Woodland Park store a special stipulation to the rule and allowed them to hang the sign.
Next month, veterans will be honored in Teller County for a whole weekend during the annual Salute to American Veterans Rally and festival. The event this year takes place in Woodland Park on Aug. 16 and 17.
Even though the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Traveling Wall won’t be returning this year, there will still be festivities at Woodland Park’s Memorial on the Friday and Saturday of the event. On the morning of Aug. 17, Colorado’s largest procession of motorcycles for the POW-MIA Recognition Ride leaves the Woodland Park High School Parking Lot at 10 a.m. and arrives in Cripple Creek at 11 a.m.
*For future veteran events, make sure to check out the Mountain Almanac page of TMJ and take the time to honor our veterans. They can use your support as many have suffered when they come home (see related story).