Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Military Service

Pastor Bob: Careful, Major—you serve at the pleasure of the President
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, National, Top Stories

Pastor Bob: Careful, Major—you serve at the pleasure of the President

By Rev. Robert Babcox | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice In a recent op-ed in the New York Times, a U.S. Army Major vehemently disagreed with President Trump’s order to remove transgender individuals from military service. He noted that as an evangelical conservative Christian, most wouldn’t expect him to disagree with the order. He’s right—evangelical conservative Christians would never support something so far left. The Major added that he loves people and wants them treated with respect.  To that point, I agree.  But if you truly love someone and they are suffering from an obvious mental illness, you get them the help they need. You don’t put them in high-stress, traumatic jobs where their condition may worsen. Before anyone asks where I get the experience...
D-Day remembered: Fort Carson’s Sgt. Simmons honors family legacy of valor on 81st anniversary
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D-Day remembered: Fort Carson’s Sgt. Simmons honors family legacy of valor on 81st anniversary

By Mary Shinn | Denver Gazette A Fort Carson soldier honored his family’s history this week in France ahead of commemorating the 81st anniversary of D-Day on Friday. On Monday, Sgt. John Simmons visited the grave of his great-great-uncle Cpl. Raymond Parry in St. Mihiel American Cemetery, marking the first time in 95 years a member of the family visited the grave of the World War I soldier who never went home to Wyoming. Later in the week, he expected to receive his promotion to staff sergeant on Utah Beach, a battle site his great-grandfather Glenn Thomas Workman passed through as part of the 6th Armored Division, after it was secured 81 years ago. Simmons comes from a long line of service members on both sides of his family, including three members who served in World War I a...
Fighting for a country that doubted them—but never broke them
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Fighting for a country that doubted them—but never broke them

By Vince Bzdek | Denver Gazette In his 99 years on the planet, Ken Akune has been sorted into many bins. The first was Nisei, the term for second-generation Japanese Americans born in the United States. Akune had lived in both the United States and Japan and his family was divided between the two. The second bin was “evacuee.” That was the term given to 18-year-old Akune, his brother Harry and 7,000 other Japanese Americans shipped out to the Granada Relocation Center in Colorado at the start of World War II because of worries about their loyalty. Franklin Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066 forcibly removed them from their home on the West Coast to a remote plain of sage and dust in southeastern Colorado, known simply as Amache. “I was mad, jealous, whatever you want to call i...
Hardin: Run for the Wall shows why patriotism still rides strong
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Hardin: Run for the Wall shows why patriotism still rides strong

By Amanda Hardin | Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Every May, the sound of motorcycles echoes across America—not for show, but for something much more meaningful. Run For The Wall is a cross-country ride that honors the fallen and brings healing to those still carrying the weight of war. It begins in California and ends in Washington, D.C.  This year I had the privilege of joining the ride for part of its journey, riding the Central Route from Gallup, New Mexico, to Colorado. We rolled out of Gallup with nearly 500 motorcycles, riding two-by-two in a tight, powerful formation. New Mexico State Police escorted us across the entire state, blocking every exit, every intersection.  There was no stop-and-go. No honking horns. Just a smooth, protected path across miles of ...