VGC receives a visit from Senator Udall
Posted by SCC on Monday, May 3rd, 2010.Veterans’ Green Corps – Spring 2010
Once upon a time, George William Curtis, an American writer and public speaker, said, “A man’s country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers, and woods, but it is a principle and patriotism is loyalty to that principle.” I find this quote to be quite apropos in application to the mission and vision of the Veterans’ Green Corps (VGC) and SCC. The seven men that comprise this spring’s VGC crew traded in their cammies for Carhartts, their M16s for chainsaws, and their combat boots for logging boots in the name of patriotism and national service. National service is obviously not a new concept to any of the guys as all proudly served overseas as a member of the Armed Forces; as a group we represent the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard and collectively served ten combat tours. Now though, we work with public land managers to combat overgrowth in the National Forests of southwest Colorado by means of fuels reduction and fire mitigation projects. It’s tough but rewarding work and the camaraderie left behind when we separated from the military has been reestablished.
Up front, the VGC crew received S-212 chainsaw training and S-130/190, wildland fire training, and for six weeks has worked in the Pagosa and Columbine districts of the San Juan National Forest assisting the fuels foresters with forest thinning projects. In that time we have treated over 10 acres of very dense forest and built well over 500 slash piles to be burned next year.
This entire season, we’ve had outstanding program and project partner support which was indicative last Saturday, April 24, when the crew met at the East Animas Bunkhouse, just north of Durango, to work with members of the Forest Service fire crews. We got some good work done, but also had the opportunity to pick the brains of the experienced and get a glance into some of the potential opportunities that are available down the road. And, despite the bureaucratic bully, the great folks at SCC and San Juan National Forest took on the fight and were able to Red Card certify the members of our crew to be Type II Wildland Firefighters. Many thanks to all that were involved in securing that objective.
We also had the great privilege that Saturday to be visited by US Senator, Mark Udall. It was great speaking with the Senator and knowing that our hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed. Also, it really speaks highly for the program and partnerships to be recognized at such a high level. More info on the Senator’s visit can be found at the link below.
With only two weeks left in the season, it’s a little sad to recognize that the end is near, but the friendships formed and the experienced gained will continue on with all of us, no matter where we go or what we do, and as Robert Frost said, “In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.”
Lew Sovocool, VGC Crew Leader
US Army, Combat Engineer – 2004-2009
LINK TO ARTICLE : http://www.durangoherald.com/sections/News/2010/04/25/Senator_greets_vets_children/
Senator greets vets, children
by Chuck Slothower
Herald Staff Writer
NICK MANNING/Herald
Udall shakes hands with Southwest Conservation Corps worker and former Army veteran Josh Sherrock on Saturday near the Haflin Creek trailhead.
It wasn’t long after U.S. Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., pulled up in a Chevrolet Tahoe driven by a staffer that a herd of elk traipsed across the ridge above and a red-tailed hawk flew by.If the visiting senator had hoped for a picturesque setting, his timing couldn’t have been better.
Udall was in Durango on Saturday to tour the Animas-La Plata project, see a federal forest-thinning project and meet with constituents. He also was scheduled to appear at a Democratic Party dinner.
The elk and hawk were on hand while Udall toured a forest-thinning project on East Animas Road (County Road 250). A U.S. Forest Service crew was joined by a group from the Veterans Green Corps to reduce fire danger next to a Forest Service bunkhouse.
“This is the work you would do when you’re trying to protect a home when a fire gets ripping,” said Mark Stiles, San Juan National Forest supervisor.
The Veterans Green Corps is made up of military veterans transitioning back to civilian life. A six-person crew sawed and hacked away at the brush Saturday. Many of the crew members had served in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The Denver-based program is funded in part by federal stimulus funds.
“It allows veterans to work together with veterans,” said Josh Sherrock, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran from St. Louis. “You still have the camaraderie.”
Sherrock said he served in Iraq and Bosnia, and began working for the Greens Corps program last fall. The crew also has worked at Chimney Rock and Saul’s Creek.
“Let me thank you for your service to the country first, and now you’re serving in another way,” Udall told the veterans.
Earlier in the day, Udall toured the Animas-La Plata project. He said he was impressed by efforts to minimize its environmental impact, and he described the reservoir as an example of a long-ago promise that now has been kept.
“We’ve finally made good on the word we made to the Utes about their water needs,” Udall said.
He also met with a Durango couple who wanted to thank him for helping bring their adopted Haitian children into the country.
Michael Blumhardt, a critical-care doctor, and his wife, Susan Smith, an oncologist, were in the process of adopting two Haitian children when a devastating earthquake struck Jan. 12.
Blumhardt flew to Haiti to get the children, while Udall’s staff and that of Rep. John Salazar, D-Manassa, worked the phones to ensure their return.
“The congressman and the senator had our backs in a big way,” Blumhardt said.
Udall met the adopted children, Louvencia, 1, and Witson, 2. Blumhardt said both now are healthy. Louvencia battled pneumonia and a life-threatening bacterial infection upon her arrival in the U.S.
“They seem to be doing great,” Blumhardt said.
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Sunday, April 25, 2010
at 8:14:08 PMJoeW says…
Wow, Udall is just swell, eh?
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I hope someone corrected the paper and let them know that Josh Sherrock was a Marine!