Dozens marked Memorial Day in Durango on Monday, remembering friends, family and all those who died while serving in the U.S. armed forces.
At Iris Park, about 100 people gathered for a service hosted annually by the Vietnam Era Veterans group in Durango, which now honors service members from all U.S. wars.
The half-hour ceremony included a color guard, singing of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” a rifle salute, the placement of flowers on a memorial, the calling of names of service members who died in combat and the playing of “Taps” on a trumpet.
Following the Iris Park ceremony, another ceremony was held at Greenmount Cemetery, followed by a Lost At Sea Ceremony at the bridge behind Rotary Park, where a wreath was dropped into the Animas River.
At about 11 a.m., four F-16 jets from the Colorado Air National Guard flew over Durango – one of about 10 towns across the state to receive a Memorial Day flyover.
Ginger Jenks has played “Taps” at nearly every Memorial Day ceremony in Durango for the past 28 years. She said it is emotional to hear people call out the names of loved ones who died in past wars.
“It’s hard to play the trumpet when you’re crying,” she said. “It always makes me tear up when they say the names, and you can’t breathe.
“It makes me think about when any of us die – what will people say about us? What will they recall as our legacy?”
Attendance has steadily grown at the annual Memorial Day ceremony over the years, she said, although Monday’s turnout appeared slightly smaller than in recent years.
“I think it’s hard for people to take a pause from all the stuff that we do and to just be here and say, ‘Wow, a lot of people died in service of our country,’” she said.
Several veterans acknowledged having political views, but they agree politics have no place at Memorial Day events.
“There are people in this group who run the entire range of political views, but we leave those at the door when we get together for this stuff,” said Byron Dare, a Vietnam veteran and a retired political science professor at Fort Lewis College.
Larry Zauberis, a Vietnam veteran who served in the Army, said he is “politically aware,” but Memorial Day is about remembering those who made America great and “gave everything so that we could be here today.”
John Devine, a Vietnam veteran who served in the Navy, said he wants people to be kinder to each other. He questions whether America needs to be the “world’s policeman,” but said that’s a topic for another day.
“Don’t thank me. Thank those who didn’t come home,” Devine said. “I really personally don’t want people to wish me a happy Memorial Day. There is nothing happy about it. It’s a day of reflection, a day of remembrance. Just remember our fallen. It’s more than hot dogs, hamburgers and a beer.”
shane@durangoherald.com
