Honor the veteran, this week and beyond
This year, 2026, is a special year for all veterans, past and present, marking the 250th anniversary of the United States, commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. During a Newcastle City Council meeting earlier this year, Mayor Tyrel Owens signed a proclamation declaring this the Year of the Veteran after a community member made the request. It is a special year indeed for it is a combination of all veterans’ efforts over the past two and half centuries that have secured and preserved the freedoms and liberty we all have today in our country.
This community stepped up in a big way to celebrate this special year, beginning with local veterans organizing a large Fourth of July parade, complete with a Wyoming Air National Guard C-130 Hercules flyover and bagpipers, along with a barbecue for residents, which was very well attended.
The celebration continued in August, when after receiving a $10,000 Wyoming semiquincentennial grant written by NLJ publisher Bob Bonnar, local veterans’ groups sponsored The Moving Wall, a replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. The Moving Wall, which was installed in Newcastle, drew nearly 2,000 visitors, who paid their respects and honored the more than 58,000 men and women who paid the ultimate sacrifice during the Vietnam War. This local opportunity afforded many in this area to view The Moving Wall who may never have a chance to visit the full-size memorial.
In addition, NLJ’s Penny Bonnar gathered information about local veterans and compiled a database of local veterans who served during that time – in Vietnam, stateside and other places around the globe – in conjunction with NLJ’s special edition that celebrated The Moving Wall and Vietnam-era veterans. This database is accessible on NLJ’s website. Be sure to read Penny’s column on page A8 in this issue. She shares her own memories that her family and others experienced during the Vietnam War and her mission to compile and create the Vietnam-era Veteran database with 328 roster entries on newslj.com.
Although it was staggering and emotional to see the names of those who died in service to this country and never had a chance to fully live their lives, there were reports of healing and closure from those attending the traveling exhibit. Two men from Weston County are listed on the traveling wall. Family members and classmates still remember 20-year-old Robert Shuck of Newcastle and 24-year-old Steven Boal of Upton, and they had a chance to find their names and recount memories of the times they shared together.
This Veterans Day, Nov. 11, is filled with public events to honor veterans. In the morning, Weston County School District No. 1 will host a Veterans Day program beginning at 9 a.m. Nearby Elk Mountain School will begin their Veterans Day program at 1 p.m. (lunch at noon). In the afternoon, Weston County Manor will host a special program to honor four veterans who reside at the Manor at 3:30 p.m. in the solarium. In the evening, a veterans annual dinner sponsored by VFW and American Legion members will be held at the Newcastle VFW No. 2516 Hall at 5 p.m., with dinner at 6 p.m. Meat and potatoes are furnished; if possible, bring a covered dish.
This community has done a fine job celebrating and thanking our veterans during this celebratory year, so please join in as many Veterans Day events as you can, and thank a veteran for their service.
Honor and thank our veterans each and every day, as we owe all veterans and their families our thanks and gratitude for their sacrifices in serving our great country.