Today is a federal holiday in the U.S., where we annually honor all veterans who have served in the United States Armed Forces. Prior to 1954, Veterans Day was known as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day and coincides with celebrations in Europe, marking the anniversary of the end of World War I when major hostilities formally ceased at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, when the Armistice with Germany went into effect. Today we honor all who have served whether they have two or four legs.
While we honor all who have served, the Ranch wants to pay special tribute to one in particular who happened to have a Denver connection. Sergeant Geronimo was a parachuting dog and a member of the famous 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment. Thought to be part coyote and German Shepherd he was picked up as a stray by Sergeant Kenneth Williams, a member of the 507th and served in World War II with Williams’ unit.
Named after the famous “jump shout” of the unit, Geronimo was so enthusiastic about jumping, he often needed to be restrained from jumping too soon.
Geronimo was trained by the men in the unit, had his own parachute and was the company’s mascot. Trained in 1943 in Nebraska at Alliance Base, he and his handler, Williams were used in demolition work. He made numerous jumps and word of the parachuting pup spread making him famous. Geronimo was widely featured in magazines and newspapers including Life magazine. The Army used his popularity to raise millions of dollars in war bonds.
Geronimo was considered a hero by his unit, especially after he alerted them that Sergeant Williams’ was badly injured on maneuvers to destroy a bridge. After being rescued by his fellow soldiers, Williams recovered from his injuries following a lengthy recovery period. Both Williams and Geronimo were honorably discharged and retired in the Denver area together. Sadly Geronimo was tragically killed by a hit and run driver when he escaped from his yard in 1947. His body is interred at the Denver Pet Cemetery located in Commerce City, Colorado. Over the years, two markers have been placed for Geronimo by members of the 507th Paratrooper Infantry Regiment.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Two heroes if you asked me. What a heartwarming story, but sad at the same time. May we neffurr forget🙏 We also want to thank you for your Birthday wishes for our Granny and Angel Binky. Double Pawkisses for a Happy Weekend to all of you🐾😽💞
Yes, they were both heros. Sadly sometimes happy endings aren’t in the cards for all heros. We hope your Granny had a wonderful birthday. I’ve had a bad bout with the stomach flu and just getting back to catching up.
A beautiful tribute to a special hero, Monika.
Here’s to Geronimo and to all who served.
Many thanks. We loved finding a localized hero for this year’s Veterans Day.
Nicely done
Many thanks! ❤️🤍💙
Lulu: “We send big tail wags to everyone who served our country!”
Chaplin: “And we cats send lots of purrs!”
Thanks Lulu and Chaplin, we’re very pro-service by our 4 legged friends.
Your patriotic fur-iends,
Elsa & Wilson 🐾
Thanks for sharing Geronimo’s story, though we’d not heard of him ~ we do know he is one of so many amazing military dogs (and other animals) who have served alongside our Veterans for years and years, past and present and deserve great honor. So, today we thank them and all the women and men who have been there for us, keeping us safe in times of war or peace.
Thanks, Ann. I had heard about him a few times but once I discovered he was from the metro area, I had to find out more. Now I’m hoping to visit the graveside in person once the snow is fully melted. 😉
Yes, and there were many dogs in war roles. Not to mention all the carrier pigeons.
It’s good to have a special day for veterans, but we should thank them whenever we happen to encounter one. They are SO special.
Yes, I totally agree. Veterans sacrifice so much for our freedom. ❤️🤍💙
What a fabulous post for Veterans Day with a reminder that we have had and continue to have “hero” animals who participate in conflicts and should be honored as much as our human heroes. Geronimo was certainly one!
Hugs, Pam an Teddy
Thank you. It was very cool discovering Geronimo was a Colorado dog.
Excellent post. I am thankful to all who serve. XO
Thanks, Ellen. Yes, me too. And so grateful for the pets that go above and beyond serving mankind in so many ways.
P.S. I still can’t seem to comment on your page-know I’ve been reading but GoDaddy doesn’t like me to share how much I enjoy your posts.
That is such an amazing story of a wonderful hero. We will always honor, respect and remember all our Veterans.
Many thanks, guys. This was quite the story considering Geronimo was a local dog who valiantly served his master and country with such distinction.
Thanks, Terry. We were impressed by his valor and heroics.
Oh my goodness–what a wonderful story. He was still such a puppy, though. Brave little dog.
Indeed. It was sad learning he was fairly young when he was killed. I suspect that was not unusual at the time. He was a fierce pup who had loads of valor.
Thanks for sharing this beautiful tribute post. ❤️
Thanks. I’d heard about Geronimo in the past but didn’t realize he was a local dog and thought that was pretty cool.
It certainly is. 😊
This is a lovely post. Thanks for introducing me to Geronimo. I’d never heard of him. That’s a wonderful story.
Thanks, Dan. I knew of his WWII heroism but was unfamiliar with the fact he was a local dog and thought it was perfect for today.
A very fitting tribute for you to do on this day. I haven’t heard of this … so thank you! Cheers and thanks to all vets!
Our pleasure to be able to share this story about a local dog.
What a heartwarming story! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you. I only knew a bit about Geronimo and was pleased to learn he was a Denver area dog.
What an amazing story! RIP, Sergeant G. Such a brave, loyal boy.
Love and licks,
Cupcake
Thanks, Cupcake. Talk about a #goodboy.
A fabulous tribute to Geronimo, Monika. So many service dogs should be thanked. You as well for sharing this story.
Thanks, John. The armed forces are so very lucky to have canine soldiers like Geronimo.
I agree.
Thank you for sharing such a nice story about our canine veterans!! ❤️
Thanks so much! While Geronimo’s story ended on a sad note, he was an amazing dog and soldier. And to think he lived not all that far from the Ranch Hands!
What a wonderful story about Geronimo with a sadly tragic ending.
Thank you. It really was a tragic ending; we wish hero Geronimo could have lived a much longer life in the Denver area.
What a wonderful story for Veteran’s Day! Thank you for that.
Thanks Debra. It seemed tailor-made for sharing today.
I loved every word. What an uplifting post for Veteran’s Day. Dogs in the Army and Air Force..Cats in the Navy..you never know when they may be there for their humans. I am very glad you posted this. I will share with my family.
Thanks so much, Carole. I always like sharing positive stories like this for Veterans Day but was especially pleased it had a local connection.
Nice remembrance of all our veterans!
Thanks so much, Martha. We are very indebted to many a good dog who have served in the armed services.
What a great way to honor our vets with this story about Geronimo. Sad irony that this special four-legged could jump from planes, land safely and serve. But later was taken down by an every day and common accident. Have a good week at the ranch. I hope you are digging out!
Thanks, Mike. It was a cruel and heartbreaking twist to the story about a heroic pupster.
P.S. As it turns out, temps have been hovering very close to 60ºF and a lot of southern exposures have melted much of the foot of snow we received. Wow, hard to believe! Course the north exposures are steadfastly still buried. 😉 Hope you and your crew are well and have a ‘wagnificernt’ week.
Great story for today!
Thanks, Kate. I’d heard about Geronimo before but didn’t realize he was a Colorado dog!
What a great story and thanks for sharing it.
Thanks much, Helen. Happy Monday.
Wonderful story, Monika! I don’t know how I’d never heard of Sgt. Geronimo before. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks, Amy. I had heard about Geronimo but did not realize he had a local connection.
Beautiful post. Thank you. <3
Thanks, Paulette. We were quite moved by this local dog and plan to go visit his graveside soon.
<3
❤️ 🤍 💙
thank you sergeant geronimo and thank you to all your comrads
Thank you. Geronimo was quite the pup. We hope your sweet boy is doing better today. Hugs and tails wags.
What a beautiful post. I didn’t know this. Beautiful.
Have a fabulous day and week, my friend. Big hug to you and lots of scritches to the pups. ♥
Thanks Sandee. I heard a blurb of the gist of the story and wanted to find out more info. Had no idea Geronimo was a local dog!
Oh my! We just love this post, the best one for Veterans Day. So many animals are in the military and risk their lives but it is not their choice, they do it for their humans. We never heard of this dog but what an amazing pup he was. So sad how he was killed but still he seemed to love his job and it is wonderful to honor him. We always love some Snoopy too 🙂
Thanks so much for your kind comment! I think we tend to forget our furry friends on Veterans Day. Not only do they love us, they serve us in so many other positive ways.