by Sherry Goodyear
SPRINGER — The Springer New Mexico’s Veterans Day Celebration was a tearful event for Mayor Fernando Garcia as he marveled at the sacrifices so many have made to assure we remain free. Garcia said, “People fight for us so we can go on with our day to day lives.”
The ceremony was held in the newly remodeled Luna Community College auditorium, where roughly 200 people were in attendance, including many Springer elementary and high school students. Springer’s new Girl Scout troop posted the flags and led everyone in both the Pledge of Allegiance and the pledge to the New Mexico flag. Jordan Romero, a Brownie Scout, posted the US flag while Esperanza Tafoya, a Daisy, posted the Zia flag and Brenna Duran, another Brownie, read through the posting commands.
Following the posting of the flags, Garcia recognized the veterans in attendance, allowing them the opportunity to introduce themselves and announce the branch of service they were in. Next, guest speaker Major Tony Cordova of the New Mexico Army National Guard commemorated those who have devoted time, blood, sweat, tears, and for some, their lives, to keeping America free. He reminded everyone that, “For everyone that dies, ten more are severely wounded or injured.”
The most notable part of the ceremony was the unveiling of two new gates that will soon adorn the first and only POW/MIA Park in the state of New Mexico, which is located in Springer on the west side of town. Michael Turner volunteered time and talent to build the gates in the way Garcia envisioned. Garcia presented Turner with a plaque thanking him for his efforts, which will go a long way in revamping the park – one of Garcia’s goals for his term as mayor.
After the Girl Scouts recovered the flags, veteran Floyd Aguilar played a haunting rendition of Taps on his trumpet. Once the ceremony was over, attendees were treated to a pork roast dinner.
