In their ceaseless mission to ensure men and women who served in the line of duty are never forgotten, the Blue Star Moms of Durango and the Colorado Gold Star Project are hosting a Hall of Heroes and Silent Auction honoring fallen Colorado members of the Armed Forces this weekend.
Jill Williams, coordinator and Gold Star mother, said the Hall of Heroes and silent auction will open at noon Friday and continue daily until noon Sunday at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4031 in Durango.
The Hall of Heroes will feature the portraits of 402 Colorado service members – whether they were from Colorado or went to academy or were stationed in the state – who have died since Sept. 11, 2001, she said.
Proceeds from donations and the silent auction will support the 2026 Healing Conference for Gold Star Families.
Williams said the conference was started by Durango resident Jana Schaefer. The conference is now a part of the nonprofit Colorado Gold Star Project.
“We’re all volunteers,” she said of the Colorado Gold Star Project, adding that volunteers have lost their children who served in the Armed Forces. “They signed up and they gave their life, and so we just don’t ever want to forget them, and we don’t want them to be forgotten.”
She said she is the proud mother of William Joseph McCotter, who died on Dec. 26, 2010. She said her son graduated from Durango High School in 2003 and wore his uniform while he walked with his classmates. He enlisted in the Army after the Sept. 11 attacks.
The Hall of Heroes has been held in various places in Colorado over the years, Williams said. It’s been hosted in Estes Park, Glenwood Springs, Steamboat Springs and Colorado Springs, in addition to Durango.
It returns to Durango on Friday and is planned to be held in Durango again next year.
Gold Star families – immediate family members of those who have died while serving in the Armed Forces – are expected to arrive for a meet-and-greet at the Homewood Suites by Hilton in Durango around 4 p.m. Friday.
Gold Star parents and families will meet at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at the VFW, for a Color Guard routine. Two Gold Star parents will tell their stories about their children, and a video roll call will follow featuring each Gold Star family and their children.
Breakout counseling sessions are planned for 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Families will reconvene at 5:30 p.m. for dinner at the VFW.
Four-star general and former U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Ron Fogleman, a resident of Silverton, will deliver remarks at the dinner acknowledging the service of men and women who gave their lives, and the importance of mutual support for families of service members who have experienced loss.
The VFW’s Veteran’s Benefit Breakfast, which is held every first and third Sunday of the month, is scheduled for 9 to 11 a.m., and Gold Star families and the public are welcome.
cburney@durangoherald.com
