Community dedicates memorial garden, honors veterans

link U.S. Air Force photo: Senior Airman Ericka Engblom

Members of the local community listen to Col. Tony Bauernfeind, 27th Special Operations Wing commander, at the dedication of the Veteran’s Rose Garden Memorial on May 29 at the Hillcrest Park Zoo in Clovis. The memorial was constructed by 17-year-old Trystan Harpold, Troop 226 member, as a thank you to all those who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces.

27th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs

Base and local leadership assembled at Hillcrest Park Zoo in Clovis to celebrate the dedication of a memorial garden May 29.

The newly debuted Veteran’s Rose Garden Memorial, which stemmed from the collaboration of Clovis’ Boy Scout Troop 226 and several local agencies, features red roses and a plaque expressing appreciation for the sacrifices men and women in uniform have made for the sake of freedom and democracy.

Seventeen-year-old Trystan Harpold, Troop 226 member and memorial garden project lead, gained new perspective and increased respect for members of the Armed Forces during the eight months he worked to complete the project.

“I started this memorial garden to fulfill a requirement for my Eagle Scout rank, but I think it is so much more than just a requirement in a book,” Harpold said. “I once read a quote that goes, ‘When you go home tell them of us and say, for their tomorrows, we gave our todays’. This garden is me and all of our volunteers using our tomorrows to remember the days they gave.”

“This veteran’s memorial garden is a reminder of all the men and women who died for our freedom; a reminder of all the people who are protecting our freedom, and all the men and women who will protect our freedom in years to come,” Harpold continued. “Thank you for all the sacrifices you have made so that I, my family, and the citizens of our great nation can live in freedom.”

In acknowledgement of the planning and man-hours Harpold and his team of volunteers dedicated to the completion of the Veteran’s Rose Garden Memorial, Col. Tony Bauernfeind, 27th Special Operations Wing commander, offered his thanks on behalf of Air Commandos at the 27 SOW.

“I want to say thank you for leading your team and for making this project a complete success,” Bauernfeind said. “Thank you for remembering all those who have gone before: WWII, Korea, Vietnam, the current wars, all the way up to 9/11. Thank you for remembering the 84 New Mexicans who have paid the ultimate price since 2001. Thank you for remembering the 48 Air Commandos who have paid the ultimate price since 2001. And on behalf of the thousands of Airmen at Cannon Air Force Base [New Mexico] who are out there taking the fight to the enemy each and every day, we are very much appreciative and we’d like to thank you for having our back. It’s great to have teammates like you.”