Volume 13 • Edition 14
July 15, 2020
Serving rural Adams, Morgan, and Weld Counties
“Truth will ultimately prevail where there is pains taken to bring it to light” George Washington “If we are to guard against ignorance and remain free, it is the responsibility of every American to be informed” Thomas Jefferson
I Promise to Remember. June 6, 1944
Memorial day is a day to remember and honor the men and women of the United States Armed Forces who, since April 19th, 1775, have given their lives in the service of our country. In 2013, my father and I started working on three biographies of paratroopers killed in action on D-Day, June 6th, 1944. In June 2014 I would recite those biographies to visitors at the American Cemetery in Colleville. One of the young men we were writing about was named George Radeka (click here to see the post I made about him). When we first contacted George’s family, we spoke with his niece Judy. She had an excellent memory of her family history, but knew little of “Uncle” George. We asked Judy to speak with other family members to see if anyone had any stories to tell about Uncle George. Sadly, no one else had anything to add. Thanks to Judy’s help, we were able to enrich George’s biography with details about his family life in general. But what we found most upsetting was that when George was killed in June 1944, his family stopped talking about him. In a way, his death made it like he had never existed at all. As Judy put it, “After Uncle George was killed, my grandmother never left the house again. It broke her and it broke my grandfather. So in my family, talking about Uncle George was taboo. It was too heartbreaking, so he was never mentioned again.” Several years later, I was on the phone This picture, taken in the Normandy Ameri- with Judy at Christmas time and she can Cemetery and Memorial at Collevillebrought up George. She told me that after Sur-Mer, France, on June 5th, 2015, best we had sent her the biography we’d writcaptures the essence, not only of Project ten, she shared it with the family and this Vigil or Memorial Day, but of military had, in a way, resurrected him. It was like service. We’ve named this photo “Shattered for the first time in 70 years he was back in Families.” For anyone who has ever visited any of the 26 American military cemeteries, the family again. George had ceased to be they will tell you that there are few things a taboo subject, and was even honored in a as heartbreaking as the sight of the endless church service. The grieving process, even sea of markers, each representing a fallen generations later... 70 years later... was soldier. Each one of those markers also still going on, but fortunately it had finally represents a life cut short, a heartbroken mother, who never was able to live her life reached the point where George could be the same way again, knowing that her baby talked about openly and remembered fondwould never return to her. It represents a ly. The lesson I learned from this was clear: father, who lost his son or daughter, and will by remembering George, by the simple act never be able to hold that person in his arms, the way he had the day that child was born. of remembering him, maybe we didn’t bring It represents a spouse, who not only endured him back to life, but we brought life back to the demanding life of a military wife or him. While he was in our thoughts; he was husband, but now has to raise a child, or with us... and we were with him. two, or three, without the help of his or her It’s about them significant other. It represents a child, who Memorial day is about George Radeka, might never know who their parent really Stanley Stockins, Phil Germer, Lawrence was, and by that, will never truly know who they are themselves. Each marker represents Roberts, Robert Wolverton... It isn’t about a family, shattered for generations to come. Memorial Day being a federal holiday or Photo by Richard M. McErlean Jr. “the start of summer.” It most certainly isn’t about the Memorial Day Sale at Home Depot, or the best recipes for a Memorial Day barbecue. No. It’s about them. It’s about the sacrifice they made. It’s about what they stood for, and still stand for today: selflessness, humility, doing something for the right reasons, for an ideal, for the freedom of others, for a cause greater than oneself. Those who have died in the service of our nation have set the example for us to follow, and as long as someone remembers them and what they did, their sacrifice was not made in vain. This is why I do Project Vigil. For to carry their flame is to shine a light on their lives. So please, on this Memorial Day 2020, take time to remember someone who has paid the ultimate sacrifice for something they believed in. Those heroes and their families gave everything they had and they gave it for us. The least we can do, for one day a year, is take some time and give back to them, by remembering them, their families, and the stories they left behind. Project Vigil I promise to remember.
Morgan County Fair
Dear SEWC Fair Participants and Families,
The SEWC Fair board would like to update you on the progress of the 2020 fair. While it is possible that restrictions could change by August, we have made a few more decisions that will affect fair this year. 1. As outlined in our previous update, ALL projects, Home Ec, General and Natural and livestock must register online between July 1st and July 15th. 2. You MUST complete a waiver found on our website to be eligible for fair this year. 3. You must bring your registration receipt to check in. 4. There will be a MANDATORY short meeting 30 minutes before each species show, in the show ring. 5. Since all livestock will leave each night (with the exception of sale hogs on Friday night), our Sale card / check out procedure will be as follows; a. Sale cards must be turned in to the table in the show barn within 1 hour after the show ends. If you wish to exchange sale cards for a species shown earlier in the week, this still must be done within 1 hour after the show ends. PLEASE ONLY ONE SALE CARD PER EXHIBITOR. b. All animals nominated for the sale will have a picture taken before leaving. c. ALL animals will be checked out by the species superintendent. NO ANIMAL MAY LEAVE UNTIL CHECKED OUT BY SPECIES SUPERINTENDENT. 6. A sale list will be posted on the SEWC Fair website by 7 PM on Friday 8/14/2020. 7. All sale animals will need to return to the fairgrounds Saturday 8/15 between 6:30 and 8:30 AM to be checked in for the sale. NO ANIMAL IS TO LEAVE THE TRAILER UNTIL CHECKED IN BY THE SPECIES SUPERINTENDENT. THANKS again for your patience as we try and make this year’s fair run as smoothly Sincerely, Mike Crossen, SEWCF Board President
WHAT’S IN THIS ISSUE:
Page 2: Way of the World Page 2: Libraries are Open Page 3: Baseline Page 4: Helping Children Cope Page 5: Kids Should Go Back to School Page 6: Trump in Push to Reopen Schools Page 8: Weld County Fair Info Page 10: Wrong to Limit Worship Services Page 11: COVID-19 Cases Rising but Deaths Down Page 16: Capitol Cleanup a Slow Process