Chapter 1 - HOME COMING
Tomas drove them up to the front door, Pedro and Bonita were standing on the wide porch, along with Tomas' three older brothers, Pablo, Chaco and Benito. They were all big men and truth be told, handsome. Pedro was a little bent over and he and Bonita were gray-haired, but after all, they were the same age as Chester. Bonita bustled over to the car as Chester climbed out, she hugged him and welcomed him home as tears were running down her face. Pedro stood on the porch trying to pretend that he was not crying at the first sight of his best friend in 50 years. They had been boys together and had done everything as if they were brothers. Tomas and his brothers picked up their luggage and Bonita shooed them all into the house and out of the blistering desert heat. She had cold lemonade waiting for them and Mr. Chester's room was ready should he be tired and want to lie down.
Pablo's wife, Alicia was going to be Chester's Cook and Housekeeper. Pablo was Pedro's oldest son and he had always looked after Mr. Chester's house, keeping it in good repair. It had been Pablo as a boy, who has comforted Chester as the Deputy told him of Maria and Jimmie's death. Chester had collapsed and Pablo picked him up and put him to bed, watching over him for several days before Chester could function again. Pablo's only son, Hector, had recently passed his Bar Examinations and was a lawyer. Chester had already retained him to handle all his legal affairs.
Chester was not really tired, he was a bundle of nervous energy. This house held so many memories for him, it had been built by his own Father, it was where he and Pedro had grown up and it was where he had brought Maria as a new bride. Their son, Jimmie, came along almost exactly one year later. Jimmie and Tomas had been little boys together and when Jimmie died, Tomas had run away. Again, it was Pablo who spent days searching the desert for his little brother, finally finding him hiding near the spring. By then, Chester had left the ranch and had started burying himself in his business.
Bonita recognized the anguished look on Chester's face and grabbed him by the arm, leading him into the house before the memories could undo him. She and her daughter-in-law, Alicia, had prepared a simple lunch for them all and, like a typical farm wife, she choreographed the seating arrangements and helped Alicia bring the food to the table. Bonita made sure the conversation was kept light and pleasant.
Chester had prided himself as a horseman as a young man and had kept several horses at his home in Mexico. They, of course, had been sold when he disposed of his properties. Pedro had a surprise for him. After lunch, they walked around the home and buildings. The place was shaded by ancient desert sycamore trees and the spring formed a small pond that had been landscaped.
Pedro proudly opened the door to the horse barn and introduced his friend to Thunder. Thunder was a purebred Arabian, as black as coal. He was delighted when he saw Chester's eyes light up and he and Tomas hurried to saddle up several horses.
Chester mounted Thunder and the horse moved smoothly under him, his proud head held high. They rode for several hours, Chester wanted to see the stock and property he had not seen since his hurried departure so many years earlier. The horse moved like royalty, and with his bloodlines, he was.
The ranch was running six thousand beef cattle on the 10,000 acres and 25,000 acres of leased state rangelands. Chester promised himself that he was going to ride every morning, he had not realized just how much he had missed the ranch. Thunder was a perfect gentleman, his gait was pleasant and whenever Chester dismounted, he waited patiently where his rider had dropped the reins.
Tomas leaned over to whisper in Pedro's ear, "Don't break your arm patting yourself on the back, Poppa!"
After a couple of days, Chester became accustomed to the routine of the ranch and he began taking part in its work. The Ranch Hands wouldn't let him do anything too strenuous, but he rode with them and explored all the places he had loved as a boy.
He had taken a ride over to Willow Spring, a small spring on the far end of the property. It was in a small box canyon with ragged stone peaks on three sides. He had packed a light lunch and was sitting next to the spring, watching the dragonflies dart around the water. The peace and quiet was broken by the sound of a child crying. Chester got to his feet and went to investigate. He found a young teen boy curled up against a cottonwood log crying, his shirt was covered in dried blood and his arms appeared to be heavily bruised. He knelt down and touched the boy.
The child pulled away and screamed, "Don't hurt me, please don't hurt me!"
Chester gathered the boy in his arms and said, "Son, I won't hurt you, but what in the world are you doing way out here?"
The boy replied, "I runned sir, he hurted me bad and I couldn't take it no more."
Chester's senses were screaming, but he kept his voice calm and said, "How about you come to my house and we get you cleaned up? I'll bet you are hungry, too."
The boy just nodded his head, so Chester picked him up, the boy was very thin and obviously undernourished. He set the boy up in the saddle and then mounted behind. Pedro had given him a handheld radio to carry with him whenever he went riding alone and he used it to call back to the ranch. Tomas answered and said he was coming to meet them. Thunder's easy gait soon put the boy to sleep in Chester's arms. Both Tomas and Pedro came pounding up the trail, hell-bent for election!
Chapter 2 - A BOY IN THE HOUSE AGAIN
They got back to the house and Tomas lifted the boy from Chester's saddle and carried him into the washroom behind the kitchen. They undressed the child and carefully washed him from head to toe. The more dirt and crusted blood they washed off the injured child, the angrier Chester became. The boy's body was covered in cuts and welts. Someone had brutally and methodically beaten him. In all likelihood, Chester felt the boy had been beaten with a whip. From his development, they guessed the boy was 13 or 14 years old.
As they were carrying him out of the washroom, Bonita came into the kitchen and spotted the child in Tomas' arms. She clutched the boy to her, soothing his frightened soul. They were finally able to get the boy to tell them who he was and what had happened to him.
He had been living with his stepfather, his mother had died earlier in the year. The stepfather was an alcoholic and every time he ran out of beer, he blamed the boy and beat him. He told them his name was Albert Johnson and his stepfather was Hernando Gomez and they had been living in a trailer in Florence.
Pablo was on the phone to his son, Hector, telling him what had occurred and to get his "butt" out to the ranch yesterday! Hector was an attorney and had recently agreed to represent Chester and his affairs. Bonita and Alicia fixed a meal of soft foods for Albert and the boy was wolfing it down.
Benito's oldest child, Toca heard the commotion and came in. He immediately sat beside Albert, they were both about the same age and it was plain that having a boy his own age around made Albert feel more secure. After a few moments, Toca got up and whispered to Chester, "Mr. Chester, may I speak with you in the office?" Chester walked into the ranch office with Toca and the boy said, "Mr. Chester, sir, there be lots of guys running away that come through here. I bet there are at least 4 or 6 boys hiding over in Travis Canyon right now."
Chester was beginning to feel a little lightheaded and he sat down to catch his breath. He asked, "Can you show me, right NOW?"
Toca grinned and replied, "Yes sir, I can do that, let me go saddle my horse. I will meet you out front."
Pedro and Pablo overheard the conversation and as soon as Toca had left to get his horse, they both said, "Not without us!"
In less than 10 minutes, four horsemen were galloping out of the ranch yard, headed towards Travis Canyon. Chester had to hold Thunder back a bit, the big horse had sensed his master's distress and his long legs were gobbling up miles as they raced down the trail.
When they got to the mouth of the small canyon, Toca said, "Let me go first, so we don't scare them." He jumped off his horse and began running between the huge boulders strewn around the floor of the canyon. He found 7 boys hiding behind the boulders, he talked fast and furious, like his Lawyer Uncle, to convince the boys that Mr. Chester would help them. When they all agreed, Toca led the boys out to where the men were waiting.
Within a few short minutes, the boys had thoroughly soaked the men's shirts with their tears. They were hungry, scared, tired and sore and had pretty much decided they had to go back and face the music, otherwise they were going to die. Each boy told them a bit of their story, Chester was barely maintaining control over his temper. He had never before seriously considered shooting another person, but he was now!
The oldest of the boys, Paul Messer saw Thunder and recognized what he was, "Mister, that is some kinda horse. Ya know, them kind are Royal Horses and theys come from Arabia."
Chester smiled, "Would you like to ride him with me?"
The boy got a longing look on his face and replied, "Ccccould I? Ya mean ya kin let me?"
Chester mounted Thunder and patted the space behind him. Paul didn't need to be asked twice, he leaped up behind Chester and was hanging on for dear life. Chester flicked the reins and gave Thunder his head. The horse seemed to know just how fast he could run safely with the boy hanging on behind his master. Young Paul forgot all about his troubles and how hungry he was, he was screaming and hollering and had a death grip around Chester's waist.
When they arrived in the Ranch Yard and Paul had jumped off, Thunder put his nose next to the boy's neck and rubbed him. Paul was laughing and crying at the same time. This was the beginning of a lifetime love affair between a boy and a horse.
Hector spent the rest of the night documenting each boy's story. The first thing the next morning, he telephoned Superior Court Judge, John Murphy, and asked for a temporary order of protection for the boys and that they be placed in the temporary custody of Mr. Chester Michael Bragg, owner of Sycamore Spring Ranch.
Judge Murphy laughed, "So Chester has finally decided to come home! You tell the old goat that I will be out to see him in the next day or so."
Benita and Alicia opened up bedrooms that had been closed for half of a century to make places for the boys to sleep. The amount of food the boys wolfed down was alarming, Benita sent Pedro and Pablo into town with a grocery list that filled up the bed of Pedro's Ford F-350 pickup truck.
Chester had been doing some thinking, he asked Toca to come with his Father and Grandfather for a meeting with him right after lunch. When the four of them were in Chester's office, with the door closed, Chester asked Toca, "How many boys and or girls do you think come through here like the boys last night?"
Toca replied, "Mr. Chester, I don't know but I can tell you certain, there are more of them arriving right now in Travis Canyon or Willow Springs. Maybe even both."
Chester found that hard to believe, so they saddled up the horses and took a ride. They found four boys at Travis Canyon and a brother and sister at Willow Springs! That made Chester's mind up, Sycamore Spring Ranch was going to be a refuge that children could come to without fear and the need to hide in rocky canyons. He called Hector and told him to start the ball rolling, yesterday!
Chapter 3 - SYCAMORE SPRING SAFE HOUSE
Hector started grinding out paperwork and pounding on doors. He had an idea that he wanted to pass before Mr. Chester. They sat comfortably in Chester's office and his Aunt Alicia brought them both some coffee. Hector said, "My wife's cousin is attending the University and he is in the Marine Corps ROTC. They always have a year project and the Cadets earn points towards their service awards. How about the ROTC Cadets help us locate and protect these kids? It's gonna be mostly boys, but they have women cadets also."
Chester thought it was a great idea and told him to go ahead and try to work it out. Chester contacted Graves Construction and told them he wanted three bunk houses built, all with private rooms and showers. They were happy to get the work, construction was slow in the Tucson area. In less than a week, they had preliminary drawings to show Chester.
Hector was working on getting the idea past the DSS. He had to enlist the help of some of the legislators to get the project past the "protect our turf bunch".
In the meantime, the herd of boys and a couple of girls was growing at the Ranch. Every couple of days, Chester and Toca rode out to Travis Canyon and Willow Springs, they almost always came back with a couple of extra riders. Toca was a big help, he could charm a snake out of its skin and many of the kids had been so mistreated, they found it hard to trust anyone, but a boy can get through to another boy far faster than can an old man.
Thunder was a mighty attraction also, teen boys were fascinated with the magnificent horse and he seemed to know which boys needed a little nuzzle or nose rubbing. They started taking a couple of extra horses with them, boys could not believe that they were being trusted to ride a horse by themselves. They took mostly gentle mares, but there was no horse more gentle than Thunder when it came to frightened children.
By the beginning of summer, they had preliminary approval to care for homeless children. The first three bunkhouses were ready for occupancy and Chester hired three house parents, two young men and a woman. They were all students at the University and they related well with the kids already in residence.
Two favorites were Paul and Albert. Paul was still fascinated by the horses, particularly Thunder and he took every opportunity to exercise the magnificent horse. One day, Chester was standing there watching Paul put Thunder through his paces in the paddock, the boy was controlling the horse by his knees only.
Chester said, "Paul, Thunder is a purebred Arabian, how would you like to ride him in the Arabian Horse Show next month?"
Paul's eyes went squirrely, "Meeeee, ride Thunder in competition?"
When Paul finally understood that Chester was serious, every spare moment he had was spent practicing with the horse. It was a pleasure to watch both the horse and the boy bloom, there was never a royal prince who rode as proudly, nor a horse prance so beautifully as those two.
The day of the competition, all the competitors paraded through downtown Tucson to the arena. Chester had fitted Paul out like a vaquero of old, silver trappings on him and Thunder gleamed of many polishings. Thunder stalked into the arena, his movements precise and measured. Each step, he raised his hooves to show his polished silver hoof caps. His head was held high, looking neither to the right nor the left. Paul was equally precise in his movements, his eyes straight ahead and his hands holding the reins at precisely 45 degrees from his chest. Paul wore white leather gloves chased in polished silver and the silver buttons on his shirt and hat sparkled every time he moved.
The boy and the horse moved as if they were one being. Thunder went through his moves in the arena with such precision, there was not a sound from those sitting in the stands watching. When they had completed their routine, both the horse and the boy bowed to the judges and then to those in the stands watching. The crowd went wild with applause. Chester had purchased a whole section in the stands for those from Sycamore Spring Children's Refuge and the boys were waving flags and a banner they had made.
When the awards were made, Paul and Thunder were the Grand Champions and there was no holding back the boys in the stands, they ran out into the arena to congratulate two of their own, boy and horse!
Paul and Albert were the oldest boys living at the Refuge and they were fast approaching High School graduation. Both wanted to go on to the University, but they feared such was beyond them financially. They had no idea of the finances of Poppa Chester, nor did they know that he had already secured them a place in the next Freshman Class. Both boys were at the top of their class and when they took their examinations for the University, they were both in the top 5%.
When their acceptance letters came, they were sure there was no possibility they could attend. With tears in their eyes, they came to speak with Poppa Chester. They showed him their acceptance letters and told him there must be some mistake, there was no way they could go. He smiled and showed them the scholarship awards certificate from the Sycamore Foundation for four years at the University and any postgraduate studies for which they were qualified.
As the two boys walked from Chester's Office, they made a pact, they both would graduate and would return to help Poppa Chester raise his boys. Albert was to become a Medical Doctor and Paul a Child Psychologist. Both would become important to the life of Sycamore Spring Children's Refuge. Toca was not left out, he received a scholarship also and would follow his Uncle in the legal profession and also in politics. He would spend many years in the state legislature as a Senator from their district. When the time came, he would replace their beloved Poppa Chester as the Director of Sycamore Spring Children's Refuge.
Chapter 4 - GROWING PAINS
As times became harder, more and more children began arriving at their doors, or more precisely, their canyons. They were up to 16 bunkhouses and the single-story structures could not be enlarged. An Architect was employed to design a more efficient home for the children. While fewer girls came to them, still they had 80 girls and 350 boys to care for.
Two large hotel-like structures were designed. There would be a dining hall between the two structures and an elementary school built on the grounds. The dining hall would have a sit-down restaurant and several favorite fast food areas. An indoor swimming pool and recreation hall were included as well as ball fields, riding paddocks and a small farm for those who wished to pursue an agricultural career.
The mortar was hardly dry before boys and girls began moving their belongings into the new buildings. They had negotiations with the ROTC Department at the University. The Marine ROTC and the Navy ROTC were the most interested in helping with the children.
The first time they showed up to help, Cadet Lt. Colonel Benjamin Hillar brought 16 ROTC Cadets to take the boys who had signed up, on an overnight camping trek out on the desert floor. A group of 48 boys had signed up and Cadet Hillar was a little worried about handling that many boys. He need not have worried, while the boys were anxious to go, they listened carefully to the instructions and they all had a wonderful time.
The next time the Cadets held a campout, 250 boys and 30 girls signed up! There was a reason that Cadet Hillar had been selected as Cadet Commanding Officer, he had checked with Chester on how many were signing up and brought sufficient Cadets, men and women, to work with the children.
The new buildings had hardly been finished when they could see they would soon be out of rooms again, construction was begun immediately for two more towers. It seemed like homeless children were coming out of the woodwork! Security for the children was becoming a concern, there was a nightly parade of "mules", illegal entrants to the United States, being forced to carry huge loads of illegal drugs and narcotics. They felt it was only a matter of time before some of their boys would be snatched to carry drugs. Cadet Hillar suggested they hire returning servicemen and women to guard the folks living at Sycamore Spring. He said, they would all be trained and were war-hardened soldiers back from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Chester and Pedro went down to the local Armed Forces Reserve Training Center and met with the Commanding Officer. He called in his clerk, Navy Petty Officer Joel Thomas. He had a whole file of returning servicemen and women who were looking for work. Chester and Pedro read through the file and picked 20 men and women who looked like they would serve their needs. The petty officer volunteered his telephone so that they could call each person and set up interviews. All were eager to come down and they were happy to be offered employment, they hired all 20.
A thought crossed Chester's mind, "Do you have any medics available?"
Petty Officer Thomas said, "Yes sir, several, including my older brother who is right here teaching a class." He buzzed an intercom and the voice said he would be right there.
Daniel Thomas had served three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan as a Navy Medic serving with the Marines. His combat injuries had forced him to retire and he had been unable to find work. When Chester mentioned working with abandoned children, especially boys, both he and his brother, Joel, became excited.
Joel spoke up, "I will be released from active duty at the end of this month, do you need some office help?"
Chester ended up hiring both men, and Daniel followed them out to Sycamore Spring. They set him up on the ground floor of the Boy's Building and the first thing he did was to schedule physicals for every child. He also taught first aid classes and he would go with the ROTC Cadets when they held their camping trips.
The Security Force reported and Retired Gunnery Sergeant Manny Oldfield was appointed "in charge". During the day, he stationed a Security Officer in each building and at night there was one in each building and four roving the grounds. All were armed. He agreed the danger was real and it was only when they discovered the children, not if! The Security Force was dressed in green camouflage and, although not all of them were ex-Marines, the boys began calling them Sycamore Marines and the name stuck.
The census steadily climbed and by that fall, they had 120 girls and 510 boys. They could see that beds were soon going to be scarce, so Chester again called on Graves Construction to build two additional buildings, one for the Girls and the other for the Boys.
Toca, Albert and Paul entered the University, all three were homesick. They had been used to having all their "brothers" close by and under the watchful eyes of Mr. Chester and all the Sycamore Marines. Any child could go up to a Marine, even if it was just for a little companionship, and that Marine would be theirs.
More than one Marine had to wipe his eyes when a child had a nightmare and couldn't sleep. They had to grit their teeth to keep from doing terrible things to those who had caused the child to run away. Most of the Marines took to keeping extra handkerchiefs in their hip pocket just for that sort of emergency.
The boys at the University ran up their cell phone bills the first month they were away, all the calls were to Sycamore Spring! Chester purchased a 20-passenger bus and one of the Marines got his commercial driver's license (CDL). The boys were picked up Friday afternoons, after classes, and brought home for the weekend.
It was not very long before they asked to bring a friend or two and by Christmas, the bus was full. Several students from across the country and several from foreign nations spent their Winter Break as guests of the boys at Sycamore Spring. With nearly 800 children in residence, what was a couple more mouths to feed? When the visitors returned to their classes after the break, there were many students asking to come for a weekend. Not only were the three boys, Toca, Albert and Paul very popular on campus, but their guests also fell in love with the children living at Sycamore Spring Children's Refuge.
One of their guests, Oliver Tomlinson, was a Education Major doing work on his Doctorate Degree. He had seen the unused elementary school building and asked Chester why it was not being used. Chester told him it was because they had no teachers to staff the school.
Oliver returned to complete his spring semester and write his thesis for his Doctorate. He based his thesis on elementary education in a restricted environment and started talking with his fellow graduate and graduating students. When he had collected all he needed, he caught the bus going out to Sycamore Spring for the weekend. He spent his time closeted with Chester and they hammered out a plan to open the school for grades one through six. Between them, they put together a plan to present to the County School Board and the State Department of Education to get the school accredited. The teaching staff was recruited from the students at the University and Dr. Oliver Tomlinson was hired as the Principal and Director of Education.
The school opened for summer school that summer and every class was full.
Chester was approaching his 80th birthday. Pedro Garcia's entire family, were getting a little worried about him. Pedro had already had a heart attack and Bonita had slowed down considerably. All Chester showed of his age was he was a bit more grizzled and his hair had turned completely gray, where he still had hair.
Pablo had taken over much of the management of the Children's Refuge and Santiago was running the ranch. Hector did most of the work in managing Chester's financial affairs, even with the expenditures needed to create and operate the Refuge, Chester's fortune had increased to $5 billion.
They had some cattle killed by the illegals crossing their property and Gunny Oldfield recommended that they increase the number of Sycamore Marines and hire a second Medic to assist Danny Thomas. Joel Thomas still had connections at the Reserve Center and he contacted the Petty Officer who had replaced him. He faxed Joel a list of 25 prospective candidates for Sycamore Marines and Joel scheduled them for interviews.
The night before the candidates were scheduled for their interviews, someone had tried to break into the Boy's Hotel. Chester told them if the candidates were any good at all, hire every one of them, YESTERDAY! They were and they did. Of the 25, 10 were women and they were, as Gunny described them, "tough as nails"!
Every ground floor door that opened to the outside had a Sycamore Marine on duty throughout the night, armed with a nightclub and a .38 police special pistol. Despite all their precautions, a window was broken in the middle of the night and before the Marines could respond, a young boy, Nelson Goodall, was gone.
The off-duty Marines, older boys and the Family scoured the ranch on horseback searching for any trace of Nelson. Chester had his pilot, Danny Shanks get the airplane ready and fly it to the Ranch, NOW! They had cleared an emergency runway for the plane sometime earlier and had tested it. Chester and a wagon load of Garcias were waiting when Danny landed, the engines had not spun down when the plane was loaded and Danny was revving up the turbines. The plane was a short take-off turbo-prop and they were in the air immediately, Danny had radioed for search clearance and the County Sheriff had heard the radio traffic, he put three helicopters into the air to help in the search.
They found no trace and hearts were heavy at Sycamore Spring. Nelson Goodall had not been with them long but he was well-liked by his classmates. After searching for three days without finding any trace of the boy, they thanked Sheriff Payson for his help and landed the plane on the emergency strip at the ranch. Just on a hunch, Danny ordered a tanker to refuel the plane immediately.
Alicia had fixed them all a hot breakfast, but nobody was much interested in eating. They heard the telephone ring in the office, and Joel went to answer it. The next sound they heard was Joel screaming at the top of his lungs, he had a very frightened and hurt Nelson Goodall on the phone, he was calling from a gas station just outside Flagstaff! Chester paused momentarily to have Joel call Sheriff Payson and have him contact the Flagstaff authorities to go and protect the boy, they were headed to Flagstaff Airport.
Danny had the engines started on the plane and, as soon as Chester was in the cabin door, he started rolling down the runway. Toca was still away at school, so Danny had hired a young man, Roger Castro to be his standby co-pilot and fortunately, he had stayed for breakfast before going to his home in Catalina.
As soon as they were in the air, he radioed traffic control and reported he was on a mercy flight. They cleared air traffic for him and he crammed the throttles all the way to the stops. Chester tried tearing the armrests off his seat, willing the plane to fly faster. It seemed to him to take forever, but, later Danny Shanks told him it was a near-record flight for their model aircraft.
They saw a group of police vehicles parked near the non-commercial terminal with all their lights flashing. Chester, Gunny Oldfield and Danny Thomas jumped from the still-moving plane and raced to the police cars. The Detective Sergeant in charge said, "Yes we have your boy, he is at Flagstaff General. Yes, he is hurt. Yes, he is going to be ok. Yes, get in, let's go!"
The caravan of flashing red lights raced across town to the Regional Hospital and the Detective led them in through the ambulance doors to the Pediatric Emergency Ward. There laying in bed and surrounded by strangers, was a very frightened little boy, Nelson Goodall. His face and arms were covered in bandages and there was an IV plugged into his arm. For all his pain, the moment he saw Poppa Chester, his eyes lit up and he tried to climb out of the bed.
It was a toss-up who was crying the most, but the ward nurse brought an armload of boxes of Kleenex and passed them around. After calm had been semi-restored, Nelson told his story, that someone had snatched him from his bed and he was taken to a canyon that had lots of big rocks in it. They put a heavy pack on him and every time he slowed down, they hit him with sticks. They hid in the brush during the day and carried the packs at night. They were unloading the packs into a truck when he slipped away and ran. He ran until he could run no further, he begged a quarter from the gas station attendant and he put in a collect call that Mr. Joel answered.
A couple of days later, the gas station attendant received a letter from Mr. Chester Bragg containing a check for $1,000 and a letter thanking him for assisting young Nelson Goodall.
Things did not quiet down at Sycamore Spring Children's Refuge, a perimeter fence was built, topped with three rows of barbed wire. The first-floor rooms were evacuated and made into classrooms and offices. All their windows had security wires fitted and break-in alarms installed. Every dorm room was wired with an emergency alarm button and additional Marines were hired to form an Emergency Response Team.
About that time Marine Captain Benjamin Hillar returned from his tour of active duty and applied for a job at Sycamore Spring. Chester hired him on the spot and put him in charge of the Emergency Response Team.
Things finally did calm down a bit and construction was begun on additional hotel space for both boys and girls. Oliver Tomlinson proposed a middle School be added and it was approved. Chester decided to create a Board of Directors, it was getting to be too much for him to make all the decisions. He would remain Chairman of the Board, Oliver, Pedro, Pablo, Alicia, Toca and Benjamin were made members of the Board. He placed $750 million into the Refuge accounts and Toca was elected Treasurer.
Chapter 5 - FACING THE FUTURE WITH HOPE
Toca returned from the University and took over all the financial affairs of the Sycamore Spring Children's Refuge and was elected Junior State Senator from their district. The Poppa Chester Bragg Middle School opened that next fall, taking a huge load off the local school district. The census was reaching 1,000 boys and girls and the school district was struggling with declining tax revenues. They did include the Middle School in the intramural athletic program and the public schools vied with each other to be able to come to Sycamore Spring for athletic events. Their fields were new and well-kept, and they were always invited to a meal after a game. Enrollment was open to the children of employees and, of course, those of the Family.
A few cottages were made available for employees, as the commute from the closest town was considerable. It was so popular, the board authorized the construction of sufficient cottages to accommodate any employee who wished to live on campus. They were charged a nominal fee that included rent and utilities and the day they were opened, every employee was in line outside Toca's office waiting to sign up!
Some of the older boys got together and proposed they have a group they wanted to call Junior Sycamore Spring Marine Cadets and they used the initials, JSSMC. The Board saw no reason not to allow the request and allotted them sufficient funds to get started. Nelson Goodall was the first boy to sign up and he was appointed Platoon Leader. By the end of sign-ups, the Junior Marine Company numbered 160 boys and 45 girls. They copied the adults' uniform and each member wore a maroon beret.
On the first drill day, there were so many spit-shined boots, the drill field sparkled. The company had 4 platoons of 50 cadets. They were a tough group, those kids had been through the wringer in their young lives and they weren't about to let anyone do it to them again!
The few intruders they had, learned that lesson the hard way. As a training exercise, the Cadets handled outside security on weekends. After the first few who tried to gain entrance to the grounds of Sycamore Spring Children's Refuge had been turned over to the Sheriff's Office, via County Hospital, they were mostly left alone.
Winter on the desert is not especially severe and, as spring began to turn into early summer, tragedy struck with such force, the children and adults were devastated. Mr. Chester died in his sleep at the age of 84.
By now, Nelson was Deputy Commander of the Sycamore Cadets and he rolled them out at 0600, as soon as he had received word that Mr. Chester had died. They assembled in full dress in front of the Ranch House, each cadet held his or her hat in their hands. None were dry-eyed. They stood there at parade rest throughout the day, the Cadet Officers taking turns escorting members of the Family in and out of the house.
In the early evening, the Cadets were escorted to the door of the bedroom where Mr. Chester had been laid, many had to be led away, their grief was beyond bearing. They stayed the night, holding lighted candles in honor of the man who had saved them from an unendurable life, given them hope and promise of better things.
The next morning, eight of them, four boys and four girls stepped up to be bearers of Mr. Chester's Casket. They marched to the Family Graveyard and set the casket down before that awful hole in the ground.
Nelson Goodall gave the eulogy for all of them. "MY FRIENDS, MY COMPANIONS, MY FAMILY, WE ARE GATHERED HERE TO PUT OUR POPPA CHESTER TO REST. HE RAISED US UP FROM THE DIRT, SAVED US FROM THE EVILS OF THIS LAND AND RESCUED US FROM OURSELVES. WE HAVE CLEAN BEDS, GOOD FOOD, AN EDUCATION AND WE ARE SAFE IN OUR PERSONS AND OUR FRIENDS. WITHOUT POPPA CHESTER, MANY OF US WOULD NO LONGER BE ALIVE, NOR WOULD WE BE FORGOTTEN BECAUSE WE HAD NEVER BEEN KNOWN. WE CANNOT, WE MUST NOT, WE WILL NOT LET HIS DREAM BE LOST. I CHALLENGE YOU ALL, INCLUDING MYSELF, WE MUST CARRY POPPA CHESTER'S DREAM ONWARDS, SYCAMORE SPRING CHILDREN'S REFUGE WILL NOT ONLY SURVIVE, IT WILL GROW AND THRIVE, GIVING OTHER CHILDREN THE BENEFITS WE NOW ENJOY. GO FORTH FROM HERE AND CARRY HIS MESSAGE, GO FORTH AND SAVE A CHILD, BRING THAT CHILD HERE THAT HE OR SHE MAY SURVIVE AND THRIVE AS WE SHALL. I CALL UPON EACH AND EVERY ONE OF US TO CARRY ON AS POPPA CHESTER WOULD HAVE US AND PRAY TO GOD WE LIVE LONG ENOUGH TO BRING ANOTHER GENERATION OF POPPA'S CHILDREN HOME."
Nelson dropped to his knees in prayer and his sobs could be heard by all present. The Cadets went first, each dropping a handful of dirt into Chester Bragg's grave, then dropping to their knees and praying silently for a few moments before moving on. The adults were so moved by the children, they followed in the same manner.
After their grief had run its course, the Cadet Officers asked to speak to the Board of Directors. Nelson spoke for all of them, "We propose to send vans out. We should not, nay, we MUST NOT wait until a child arrives here to save him or her, let us go to them! For those areas here on the Ranch, let us send out horse patrols and collect the children as they arrive, not wait until they are starving to find them." He continued, "I say we shall not allow the criminals to prey upon us, we shall not even allow them on the Ranch, let us go out on patrol and drive them from us. If we give them no peace, they will go away."
The Board members liked the idea and they sent all the adult Sycamore Marines to the Sheriff for training and to be deputized. Chester had willed Thunder to Paul and he spent as much time as he could from school to lead both the Cadets and the Marines in patrol. He was in his residency as a Clinical Child Psychiatrist and he planned on opening his clinic at Sycamore Spring. Albert was in his Pediatric Residency at the University Hospital and he planned on joining Paul as soon as he could.
Almost every weekend the magnificent Arabian Horse and his master, Paul, would be seen leading Cadets across the desert in search of those who had no place to go.
Albert would ride in one of the patrol vans, searching the streets and alleys for children in need. More than once, he had to perform emergency surgery in the back of the van to save a child's life.
When they both had finished their residencies and had returned home, they found letters from Poppa Chester sitting on their pillows. They had been endowed with $1 billion to construct and open the Chester Michael Bragg Memorial Children's Hospital at Sycamore Spring. It was to be a 500-bed teaching hospital and would work in conjunction with University Hospital in Tucson.
What had begun as an old man's effort to save a few children had become a world-class facility that attracted doctors and patients worldwide.
Thunder died of old age and they had a bronze of the great horse made and placed on a pedestal in front of the main gate leading to the Refuge and Hospital. The inscription on the pedestal reads: "IN MEMORY OF A MAGNIFICENT HORSE WHO INSPIRED US ALL"
What Chester Michael Bragg began has been left for the rest of us to continue. Ask yourself, "Did I do enough today to save the children?"