El Paso County announces second annual ‘Veteran of the Year’ award

El Paso County announced its 2018 Veteran of the Year Award Monday. The county’s Veterans Service Office will honor Victor M. Fernandez Thursday, September 27th.

Fernandez will be the recipient of the 2nd Annual Veteran of the Year award. He’s been involved in several different endeavors around the community, including being the driving force behind the creation of the Pikes Peak National Veterans Cemetery.

According to a press release, Fernandez has served as the Chair of the local cemetery committee and has been working on bringing the cemetery to the region for the past several decades. He has also worked with national, state, and local leaders to ensure that the cemetery was created.

This includes getting things like legislative approval and the needed funding, reviewing multiple sites, making the final selection site, and initiating the design for the Pikes Peak National Veterans Cemetery.

Fernandez was born and raised in Trinidad, Colorado. He graduated from West Point in 1959 and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the artillery. During his thirty-year military career, Fernandez served two tours in Panama, two in Vietnam, two in Germany, and a variety of statewide posts.

He is also a graduate of the Command and General Staff College and Army War College. He’s been awarded multiple achievements, including the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Bronze Star Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, and the Defense and the Meritorious Service Medal.

Aside from himself, several of Fernandez’s family members also served for the country. His great-grandfather fought in the Civil War, his father was a World War II veteran, and his father-in-law served in the Pacific during World War II.

The Veteran of the Year ceremony is Thursday, September 27th, at the El Paso County Veterans Monument in Bear Creek Regional Park from noon to 1 p.m.