ELIZABETH, Colo. — Garett Bolles traded Empower Field for a ranch in Elizabeth to help USAA and Team Rubicon with wildfire mitigation efforts at a local nonprofit.
"I think a lot of us in Colorado may understand that this is a state with a high risk of wildfires," Bolles said. "The last couple of years of being here with the Denver Broncos, you just hear time and time again on the news about wildfires and communities burning down and wildlife dying because of what's happening, and it's just a sad subject."
Eagle's Nest Ranch opened in 2014 as a nonprofit horse ranch ministry, providing equine therapy to veterans, first responders, and their families at no charge.
"We offer services free of charge to veterans, their spouses and children, as well as first responders, law enforcement and firefighters, because we know that the challenges of their job can affect them, either with PTSD or sometimes the trauma," said founder Suzy Stanfill. "We are here to offer hope and healing through God's help."
The serenity and calmness of Eagle's Nest Ranch help with its mission, but the location also puts them at high risk for wildfires. On Tuesday, a team came together to help with mitigation efforts.
"Well, first off, being an offensive lineman, it's all about protecting," Bolles said. "I was born to be a protector. I was born to be somebody that puts his body on the line for other people. And being out here at Eagle's Nest Ranch and being able to provide wildfire prevention for our veterans... this is a great opportunity to be here at this ranch because it provides therapy for veterans with PTSD, which is a very close, sensitive subject for me, with my family dealing with it."
Bolles joined in the clean-up efforts as Team Rubicon, a veteran-led humanitarian organization, helped cut down the trees on the property. The branches and logs were then picked up and put in the woodchipper, with the chips being scattered at the picnic play area.
"This is the Pinelands of Elizabeth. There's been a lot of beetle kill here over the years, which means there's a lot of standing deadwood, which provides fuel loads. So if there is a fire, that fire burns hotter, faster, more of a threat to the area," said Drew Hanna, director of branch operations for Team Rubicon's West branch. "So by taking down that standing deadwood and then limbing up the healthy trees and spreading them out a little bit more, basically what that means is if there ever was to be an ignition, it wouldn't burn as hot, it wouldn’t burn as fast."
Members of USAA also joined in Tuesday's efforts. The company specializes in insurance and banking services for military members, veterans and their family members.
"It's just so fulfilling, right, that you're part of something that’s making a difference for our veterans and for the community and for the environment, so it just feels like a win-win, and it's the right thing to do," said Debra Deck, general manager for personal lines at USAA.
While crews made the hard work look easy, it was clear their hearts were dedicated to ensuring this nonprofit in Elizabeth could continue its mission of serving those who served us.
"We don't want to worry about having to protect ourselves from wildfire, and so to do this preventative work means so much. To have them here and not to have to worry about thinking about evacuating our horses, as well as losing the property, having them here to mitigate that risk means the world to us," said Stanfill. "We're so very grateful."
- In late November, Denver7 went in-depth on the reality of year-round wildfires in our special "Burned Out." Watch the 22-minute special in the video player below
