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COLORADO BUSINESS GROUP BEGINS WOOING SOLDIERS --

Urging GIs to take a look at rural life.

 

Royal Gorge Bridge

 

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Group begins wooing soldiers

Debbie Bell
The Daily Record

 

Soldiers originally from small towns across the country are taking a close look at rural life in Fremont County, thanks to a contingent of locals who returned Thursday from a trip to Fort Hood, Texas.

Army base closures and soldier reassignments across the country indicate Fort Carson, just north of the county, will grow from about 15,000 troops to almost 27,000 by the end of the decade. One base targeted for closure, Fort Hood, will begin relocating soldiers and their families to Fort Carson in just a few short weeks.

The influx means thousands of soldiers and their families will be seeking communities where they can live and thrive — and Fremont County officially rolled out the welcoming mat this week.

“I thought it was a very good, successful trip,” said Flo Orona, local Realtor and chair of the Military Affairs Committee, a loose-knit group organized to entice soldiers to this corner of the world. Orona and seven others represented businesses, schools and city governments Tuesday and Wednesday during a relo-cation fair at Fort Hood.

The local contingent joined groups from Colorado Springs and Pueblo as they met with about 1,400 soldiers and their families about life in Colorado.

“They seemed to be very excited,” said Florence City Councilman Ron Hinkle, who also attended the event. “Most of the time, it’s you and your family transferring, not a whole unit. This time, since it is an entire unit, we felt it necessary to go down and talk to them as a group about their next assignment.”

Hinkle said the event was a great opportunity to reach a large number of people at one time, rather than trying to meet with them individually.

“They really appreciated our input,” Hinkle said. “The soldiers and their wives were kind of blown away by the whole thing. This is the first time they have experienced anything like it.”

Red shirts and tablecloths, banners, balloons and giveaways enticed the troops to the Fremont County booth where they were courted by Orona, Hinkle and others.

“We did our research before we went down,” Hinkle said. “A high percentage of today’s Army recruits are coming from rural areas, small towns, agricultural areas. They will fit in perfectly with Fremont County.”

Hinkle said the contingent promoted the “small town USA” atmosphere and everything that it offers.

“Lower crime rates, lower cost of living, higher quality of life, all the outdoor things we have to do here,” said Hinkle, who is a recently-retired military man himself. “Plus, some of the soldiers who have been in for awhile are starting to think about retiring, and looking for a good place.”

Orona said she already has heard from at least one soldier who was impressed with the Fremont County presentation.

“I really believe we’ll probably see some of them here,” Orona said. “I think we did a good job of coordinating and pulling it all together.”

Although contingents from Pueblo and Colorado Springs have been working toward enticing Fort Hood soldiers to their locales for the past two years, Fremont County just organized its Military Affairs Commit-tee in December.

“We felt like we did an excellent job. I felt like it was a very productive trip,” Orona said. “They showed great interest in our area.”

The Military Affairs Committee will meet for a debriefing on the trip at 8:30 a.m. March 7 at the Upper Arkansas Area Council of Governments office. Everyone is welcome to attend the meeting for information on the relocation of soldiers.

A Web site established by the group, www.pcsfremontcounty.com, offers a great deal of information for the soldiers or anyone else interested in relocating to Fremont County.

The group has no reliable way to track the number of soldiers who eventually move to the area, but Hinkle said the local team made a good pitch to entice them to Fremont County.

“If you’re going to live in a small town and walk down the street, everybody waves to you,” Hinkle said. “They could relate to that.”

Debbie Bell may be reached at dbell@ccdailyrecord.com.

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Larry Scott  --