11 Sep
Last day at the Wind River RV Park in Riverton WY. We spent the morning reflecting on the events of 9/11/2001. Via Facebook video feed https://fb.watch/fugMNmmWZD/ we watched our son, Division Chief Dan Schellhase, representing the Ankeny IA Fire Department and speaking at a remembrance ceremony they hold annually. The remembrance ceremony followed a “Moment of Silence with Bells Ceremony.” The ceremony honored those who lost their lives from the fire service, law enforcement and civilians at New York, Washington, DC and Shanksville, PA. The Ankeny Police Department Honor Guard presented the colors. Nicely done, Ankeny!
Following the ceremony they held a "Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk", which honored and celebrated area first responders - firefighters, police, EMTs, and paramedics, as well as the military service members who serve, sacrifice, and protect us every day. The race is produced by the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, established in memory of fallen 9/11 FDNY Firefighter Stephen Siller. Had we been home I would have participated.
It may seem like I am kind of going on and on about this, but it is close to our heart. Our son Dan, our daughter Jennifer and I all served in the Air National Guard, in fact our son was at Air Force basic training in San Antonio TX when 9/11 occurred! Daughter Jennifer was attending Iowa State University and immediately reported for military duty at the Des Moines Air Base, and I was already at the Des Moines Air Guard base where I worked full time. None of us knew what was to come, but we were all ready. In addition to that, I served 25 years on the Norwalk Fire Department as a firefighter/EMT. Our son Dan started his career in the fire service even before he graduated from high school, initially serving on the Norwalk Fire Department responding from his high school classes with a vibrating pager, joining the Air National Guard as a firefighter and then served 12 years with the Des Moines Fire Department before transferring to Ankeny Fire Department.
My point to all of this is, it could happen again. Pearl Harbor - who would have thought? 9/11 - who would have thought? Get complacent and it will happen again. Lower our guard and it will happen again. That complacency will happen if we fail to teach our children and our grandchildren, and from what I understand it is not being taught in our schools today. One of my leadership mentors, British statesman Sir Winston Churchill, wrote, “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” #NeverForget
Ok, back to the campground. Doreen did several loads of laundry today. I took care of the outside duties plus I spent quite a bit of time cleaning out the truck, vacuuming, treating the leather, etc. This afternoon we fueled the truck in preparation for tomorrow's short travel. Liberty, pictured above, stood vigilant in case the horses decided to pay another visit!
Tomorrow we head to the Casper WY area, a short 122 mile trip. Normally I like to get up and get after it (imagine that!!) but we will chill tomorrow morning as check-in is not until 1400 hrs and we are only a couple hours from there. There is a rest area about half way and eight miles beyond that is a pull-off called "Hell's Half Acre" which is a viewing spot for 320 acres of deep ravines, caves, rock formations and hard-packed eroded earth. Native American tribes used the ravines to drive bison to their death during their hunts.
Our campground there is actually in Bar Nunn, WY, just north of Casper. Did not know there was such a place. I thought Bar Nunn was a trucking company! Anyway, next report from there!
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