KFOR 10 Leaves Lasting Legacy

CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind., - Brig. Gen. Larry Kay, Kosovo Force 10, Multi-National Task Force (East) commander and Col. Barry Richmond, the Camp Atterbury commander, planted three Norway Spruces on May 13, during a small, informal ceremony at the Indiana Army National Guard installation.

What began as a small gift has come to mean a lot to Camp Atterbury.

"There were two dead trees in front of the Joint Simulation Training and Exercise Center, and we asked about potentially replacing the trees," Kay said, "We want to leave Camp Atterbury better than what we found it."

Kay said that conversations with Richmond cultivated something more. "We got a little introspective, and we started to think about what this could mean."

"When General Kay asked me if they could do anything for the installation, I said that one of the things we're short on here is trees," Richmond said. "It's so much better than exchanging plaques because it's a living legacy."

The legacy won't only commemorate Missouri Army National Guard Soldiers, but all service members, past, present and future.

Col. Barry Richmond (left), Camp Atterbury commander, Command Sgt. Maj. Mike Lederle, Kosovo Force 10, Multi-National Task Force (East) command sergeant major, Brig. Gen. Larry Kay, KFOR 10 commander and Maj. Lawerence Collins, Joint Simulation Training and Exercise Center manager, plant a tree in memory of servicemembers who after deploying from Camp Atterbury, lost their lives in service to their country. In all, three Norway Spruces were donated by KFOR 10 Soldiers and planted in front of the JSTEC on Camp Atterbury

"In talking with Col. Richmond, who has talked with Soldiers who have come through here, and some who didn't come back, we decided it is our privilege," Kay said.

"This is really remarkable. No one has done this before," Richmond said. "We will

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point that out to the Soldiers who follow you."

Richmond said that a small tribute will be placed near the trees as a testament to those service members who paid the ultimate price.

"When other Soldiers are enjoying the trees, they understand that the trees stand for someone else's sacrifice," he said.

Kay said that KFOR Soldiers' generosity is also a lasting legacy.

"We had enough money to get two trees and then at the last minute, another series of donations came in to get three. That's how much the Soldiers cared about it . . . this will challenge other units coming in."

Richmond feels that the trees correlate with the mission at hand saying that democracy, like trees, takes time to flourish.

"Trees are really for posterity. It's for people who come after you. That's a great thing to say about KFOR10, because you will provide the opportunity for the growth of a stable democracy in another country," Richmond said. "We forget that it took us 11 years to get from the Declaration of Independence to the Constitution of the United States."

"Democracy is not fast. It is not easy. Growing trees is not fast or easy, but we're doing things for future generations. That's a remarkable legacy for KFOR 10."

judythpiazza@newsblaze.com

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