Sgt. First Class Jody Burrows was welcomed home to Wellington by the Community Activity Commission on Oct. 8. The CAC threw her a welcome-home party at the T-Bar Inn at 3803 Cleveland Avenue.
Burrows was part of the 193rd Military Police Battalion with the National Guard at Bagram Air Base, 25 miles northeast of Kabul, capital of Afghanistan. She spent 11 months there.
At the party, Burrows received a plaque from the town thanking her for her service, presented by Wellington Board Trustee Jack Brinkhoff. She also received a quilt made to look like the American flag and a bouquet of flowers from Linda Kinzly of the CAC. Eight-year-old Abby Larsen from Rice Elementary recited a poem for her and Larimer County Commissioner Lew Gaiter was also part of the crowd.
While in Afghanistan, Burrows received a banner from the Soldiers Angels volunteer organization emblazoned with the insignia of the unit and signed by several well-wishers in Wellington and Fort Collins. Burrows said that getting that banner meant a great deal to her and now that she is back home all of it meant even more.
“It’s just great to be home and I’m lucky to belong to a community that appreciates its soldiers,” said Burrows, a Wellington resident.
Burrows spent a year in the National Guard, then left for 17 years to be with her family. She re-upped with the Guard after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
Kinzly said the CAC has been holding sendoffs and receptions for soldiers from Wellington since 2009.
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