Weld County celebrates veterans with yearly ceremony ...Saudi Arabia

Brian Ivers may have been born in Australia. But he is as American as they come.

“I’m Australian by birth, American by choice and a Marine by the grace of God,” the retired Master Gunnery Sergeant said.

Since coming to the United States in 1982, Ivers has dedicated himself to his country — and its history — more than all but a handful of people born in the U.S.

He dove into that history, and what it means to him to be an American, at the Veterans Day ceremony Tuesday morning at Bittersweet Park in Greeley.

He started at the beginning, before the country even existed, with the “shot heard ’round the the world” — the shot that officially kicked off the Revolutionary War.

“They don’t know who fired the shot,” Ivers said. “Well, I spent a bit of time in Massachusetts. I’m here to tell you, I’m pretty sure it was us.”

He went on to speak about how that first generation of veterans secured freedom for all Americans. And how it’s been the job of all the generations since to protect that freedom.

To protect that freedom, it takes all kinds, Ivers said. And it takes all those kinds of people coming together for that greater goal.

“We all met as veterans in boot camp, all of us,” Ivers said. “Where were we from? Fifty different states, innumerable territories. We were black, we were yellow, we were brown, we were white, we were red. We were independents, Democrats, Republicans, Catholics, Hindus, Islamic, Buddhists. People didn’t care. We stuck together because we had to. That’s when all these labels disappear.”

That way of coming together is what it means to be an American, he said. And nobody embodies that spirit like those who have served, both past and present.

“There is nothing that can defeat this nation, unless we lay down and let it be defeated,” Ivers said. “And the veterans that are here today, the veterans who have served in peace time and in war, are the ones that are on that rampart of freedom, holding back that darkness that threatens to extinguish that 250 years of a bright shining star upon that hill of freedom.

“But they won’t let it happen, as long as there is one veteran left. As long as there’s one American, because America began in the hearts and minds of men and women long before it was ever our country.”

Few, if any, of the hundreds in attendance Tuesday left Ivers’ speech without an overwhelming sense of patriotism. As his time on stage came to a close, Ivers aimed to channel that patriotism.

For the young generations, that could mean enlisting, or “getting your hand out for that rifle,” as he put it. And for others, it simply meant embodying the spirit of America.

“There’s no American I know that would not hand somebody a piece of bread if they were starving,” Ivers said. “No American that wouldn’t help each other out when it’s needed.”

Unlike Memorial Day, which is a solemn occasion remembering those who died in military service, Veterans Day is a celebration for all military veterans. Originally called Armistice Day to commemorate the end of World War I, it was renamed to Veterans Day in 1954.

Master of Ceremonies Shawn Harmer kicked the ceremony off before the Northridge High School Marine Corps Junior ROTC performed a presentation of colors, and the Isamar Chavira sang the national anthem.

The Greeley Central High School band performed twice, before the ceremony was closed out by the Union Colony Marine Corps League 1093 performing taps and David Earp giving seven solemn tolls to the honor bell, in appreciation of those who have died in service.

Those interested in joining the Weld County Veterans Memorial Association can send their name, address and contact information — as well as a $25 membership fee — to: The Weld County Veterans Memorial Association, PO Box 1016, Greeley, CO, 80632.

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