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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Service members in dress uniform marched through cities and towns, attended meals and participated in ceremonies across the Front Range region in celebration of Veterans Day Nov. 8 through 11.
Fort Carson and 4th Infantry Division Soldiers participated in the Colorado Springs parade, the Pueblo parade, a luncheon in Trinidad, school visits and other events to show their support for past and present Veterans. One school also came and performed for Soldiers and their Families at the Fort Carson Post Exchange.
Soldiers who went to Pinon Valley Elementary School spent Veteran’s Day morning escorting students around their tactical vehicles, teaching then how their Stryker vehicles work and what it means to be a Soldier.
“I like being out here and seeing the kids reactions”, said Spc. James Trusty, scout, 2nd Sqdn., 1st Cav. Reg., 1st SBCT, 4th Inf. Div. “ I can’t think of a better way to spend my Veterans Day.”
Organizers for the different events said they were glad to be celebrating the strong military community in the area.
“This is my fifth year helping coordinate the Veterans Day Parade,” said Eileen Howe, Colorado Springs Parade key advisor and executive assistant. “My main motivation for helping coordinate the parade is because I love our United States military. I worked at a United Services Organization site and saw many service members come through. It made me more aware of the sacrifices they make for our country.”
Fort Carson Soldiers said they felt very humbled and proud to participate in a local community event that supports its Veterans.
“We spent more than a month preparing with other service members at Peterson Air Force Base,” said Sgt. Frederick Hall, food service non-commissioned officer and flag bearer in the ‘Flight of Flags,’ 2nd General Support Aviation Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, 4th CAB. “We got to meet a lot of good people and we had fun. I have had multiple combat deployments. It was great to see so many people honoring Veterans that we’ve lost and people serving currently. We had many people volunteer for this opportunity but we only had 10 slots, which show the patriotism of military members in the Front Range area.”
During a luncheon in Trinidad, Colorado, Fort Carson’s Garrison Commander Col. Joel D. Hamilton personally enjoyed bumping elbows with the experienced veterans such as Navy veteran Irvin Hornkohl who survived the attack on Pearl Harbor and served two tours in Vietnam.
“The ceremony was very well attended with upwards of 500 in attendance – that’s a combination of veterans and Family members – and certainly the highlight of that visit was getting the opportunity to meet (Irvin Hornkohl),” Hamilton said. “All in all, it just validates why we continue to serve today and wear the uniform.”
Besides enjoying the immense amount of patriotism shown by those in attendance at the various events, some Soldiers said they enjoyed watching their family members who showed their pride and support of veterans.
“My daughter, Aqua, is in the Fountain Fort Carson High School Reserve Officers’ Training Corps,” said Staff Sgt. Christopher Mims, platoon sergeant and transmission systems operations NCO, 4th Combat Aviation Brigade, 4th Inf. Div. “I am a Veteran who has deployed twice. I was very proud to see her march in (the Colorado Springs) parade as well as others honoring the many men and women who have served in the military.”
Howe said parade planners work hard every year for different reasons but one reason is uppermost in their mind which is their love for the U.S. military.
“Many do it because it is exciting and always changing,” said Howe. “You think it is the same but it’s always changing especially as the parade gets closer to happening. But most importantly, it’s for our military men and women who fight for our freedoms daily. I try not to cry when I say that but you can’t help but feel excited and grateful for having such great military members in our community.”
The importance of interaction between the Fort Carson community and the communities outside the gates was not lost on the Soldiers who participated in the events.
“It’s imperative (to have the Soldiers at Veterans Day events) and I think it is two-fold,” Hamilton said. “First, it shows that we are a member of the community and of the greater community, whether it be all the way south to Trinidad and within Las Animas County, right outside our installation in Colorado Springs or all the way up in Denver. I think it’s absolutely crucial, because we in the Army are a representation of society and we come from society.
“At Fort Carson, we’re not building a wall around the installation; we’re America’s Army,” Hamilton said. “It’s important you know that 70 percent of our Soldiers live outside the boundaries of the installation. So our Soldiers live and interact with the community on a daily basis and it’s important that we integrate in to that community and support it.
“The second part is that by participating in events like today, it shows our Soldiers that they truly belong to a profession that it is a cause bigger than oneself,” Hamilton said. “It’s what makes us great.”
| Date Taken: | 11.11.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 11.13.2014 13:12 |
| Story ID: | 147730 |
| Location: | COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, US |
| Web Views: | 27 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Soldiers support Veterans Day events, by Jacob McDonald, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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