"Power is defined as seeing something that needs to be done, and doing something about it. By that definition, Sonny is one of the most powerful men I have ever met."
Yesterday, I traveled to St. Louis to honor a friend of mine for his retirement, and this was how I introduced Dr. Sonny Trimble. It is true. The guy is larger than life, and have incredible respect for the guy and his work. A few of the things Sonny did:
- Led the excavations of 50,000 murdered Kurdish civilians, buried in a mass grave. The effort
resulted in the conviction of Sadaam Hussein for genocide. He testified at the trial.
- Led the team that reburied the remains for the Kennewick Man,
- Led efforts to locate and return remains of POWs from the Vietnam War,
- Renovated and re-placed the gates at the Arlington Cemetery,
- Led the excavations and reburial of the African Cemetery in New York, and
- Curated and shipped the remains of one of the T-Rexes that belong to the Corps of Engineers, to be displayed at the Smithsonian.
But the thing that Sonny is probably proudest of, and justifiably so, is the work he has done with the curation of artifacts that the Corps owns.
Sounds pretty boring.
It is not.
See, when Sonny came to the Corps, the archaeology that was done focused exclusively on getting the stuff surveyed/excavated, analyzed, labeled, and then put into a collection. We really had NO idea what we had, or where it was. Sonny initiated the project that went around the country and identified the locations of our collections, and made sure that we had good records of them. Where necessary, the project was responsible for stabilizing, photographing, standardizing, and compiling all of the data related to the collections. And, eventually, the project moved into consolidating those collections into regional repositories, where everything could be together.
Sonny could have hired archaeologists for that. We work cheap, and we are always looking for steady work.
But this is where Sonny made it special.He decided to get a different group involved. Sonny developed the Veterans Curation Program.
The VCP hires veterans returning from tours overseas, and works with them to translate the skills they have into marketable opportunities. Someone who has served his country as a 14G might not know how to present those skills in a way that would parlay them into a civilian job afterwards.
But the VCP does. The whole process of artifact curation is broken down into component parts of tasks and jobs that are replicable outside of the program. Photography, database work, organization skills, office skills, project management skills, report writing skills.... basically building a resume while doing meaningful work in the Federal government.
The stories that were told about the program were heart rending. Sonny's program has made a difference in thousands of people's lives.
After the presentation and the reception, I took my leave, and got on my flight back home. As we landed in Jackson, Mississippi, the captain asked us to remain seated.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We have had the great honor on this flight to transport the remains of an American serviceman who was killed overseas. Please remain in your seats until the soldier accompanying the remains has disembarked."
I have never experienced anything quite like that moment. It was the end of a long day for a lot of people on a full flight. We were all tired and anxious to get home.
But everyone stopped and fell completely silent as a soldier in dress blues came from the very back of the plane, and exited without a word. Even after he left, we were reluctant to move.
We talk about supporting the troops. We believe in patriotism and we believe in America. And sometimes, there are people who go out of their way to make America a better place. Some of them, like Sonny, find ways of making the place soldiers return to a better place by providing opportunities for experience. Others, like the soldier accompanying the remains of the fallen brother, work to honor those who have made sacrifices.
Others give everything.
They all see things that need to be done. And they do it.
Power.
I pray for the family of the returned soldier. I pray for the soldier with the honor of doing the terrible duty of accompanying the remains, returning a box to a grieving family.
And I thank God for the work being done to help those who return, as they do the hard work of integrating into a society that sometimes struggles to find a place for returning warriors.
Thank you, Sonny. I salute you.
Yesterday, I traveled to St. Louis to honor a friend of mine for his retirement, and this was how I introduced Dr. Sonny Trimble. It is true. The guy is larger than life, and have incredible respect for the guy and his work. A few of the things Sonny did:
- Led the excavations of 50,000 murdered Kurdish civilians, buried in a mass grave. The effort
resulted in the conviction of Sadaam Hussein for genocide. He testified at the trial.
- Led the team that reburied the remains for the Kennewick Man,
- Led efforts to locate and return remains of POWs from the Vietnam War,
- Renovated and re-placed the gates at the Arlington Cemetery,
- Curated and shipped the remains of one of the T-Rexes that belong to the Corps of Engineers, to be displayed at the Smithsonian.
 |
| Sonny at Arlington. Image stolen shamelessly from Wake Forest U Magazine |
Sounds pretty boring.
It is not.
See, when Sonny came to the Corps, the archaeology that was done focused exclusively on getting the stuff surveyed/excavated, analyzed, labeled, and then put into a collection. We really had NO idea what we had, or where it was. Sonny initiated the project that went around the country and identified the locations of our collections, and made sure that we had good records of them. Where necessary, the project was responsible for stabilizing, photographing, standardizing, and compiling all of the data related to the collections. And, eventually, the project moved into consolidating those collections into regional repositories, where everything could be together.
But this is where Sonny made it special.He decided to get a different group involved. Sonny developed the Veterans Curation Program.
The VCP hires veterans returning from tours overseas, and works with them to translate the skills they have into marketable opportunities. Someone who has served his country as a 14G might not know how to present those skills in a way that would parlay them into a civilian job afterwards.
The stories that were told about the program were heart rending. Sonny's program has made a difference in thousands of people's lives.
After the presentation and the reception, I took my leave, and got on my flight back home. As we landed in Jackson, Mississippi, the captain asked us to remain seated.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We have had the great honor on this flight to transport the remains of an American serviceman who was killed overseas. Please remain in your seats until the soldier accompanying the remains has disembarked."
I have never experienced anything quite like that moment. It was the end of a long day for a lot of people on a full flight. We were all tired and anxious to get home.
But everyone stopped and fell completely silent as a soldier in dress blues came from the very back of the plane, and exited without a word. Even after he left, we were reluctant to move.
We talk about supporting the troops. We believe in patriotism and we believe in America. And sometimes, there are people who go out of their way to make America a better place. Some of them, like Sonny, find ways of making the place soldiers return to a better place by providing opportunities for experience. Others, like the soldier accompanying the remains of the fallen brother, work to honor those who have made sacrifices.
Others give everything.
They all see things that need to be done. And they do it.
Power.
I pray for the family of the returned soldier. I pray for the soldier with the honor of doing the terrible duty of accompanying the remains, returning a box to a grieving family.
And I thank God for the work being done to help those who return, as they do the hard work of integrating into a society that sometimes struggles to find a place for returning warriors.
Thank you, Sonny. I salute you.
