[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 17599-17600]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        JOHN HALLMARK ROBERTSON

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN T. SALAZAR

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 15, 2010

  Mr. SALAZAR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to John 
Hallmark Robertson, of Branson, CO, who passed away on August 17th, 
2010.
  John was born in Branson, CO on February 14th, 1922 to Lon and Nettie 
(Hallmark) Robertson. He had two older sisters, Louise and Georgie, and 
grew up primarily in the area he ranched most of his life. He went to 
school at Tobe and Kim CO, graduating from Kim in 1941. Following 
graduation John enlisted in the Navy and served as sonar operator on an 
anti-submarine patrol in the South Pacific during WWII. After the war 
he came home and

[[Page 17600]]

began work at putting together the ranch and home that he would enjoy 
for the remainder of his life.
  John married June Green of Branson, CO on September 14th, 1950 in La 
Junta, CO. Together they raised their five children on the ranch that 
John and his father started. The ranch was his livelihood, his 
treasure, his church, and his responsibility and he didn't take any of 
those lightly. John was proud of his children and their accomplishments 
and the fact that they all learned to stand up for themselves and their 
families. He enjoyed being around, playing with and talking to his 14 
grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.
  He was an ardent supporter of the opposition effort against the 
expansion of the Pinon Canyon maneuver site. He spent countless hours 
writing letters and poems that were printed regularly in many of the 
newspapers in the area in an effort to help people understand the 
potential atrocity. Although John preferred and felt it necessary to 
work every day, a hobby of sorts in later years came from his love of 
cutting wood and posts with his chainsaw. No matter the time of year or 
the temperature, relaxation for him consisted of gassing and sharpening 
up his saw and spending an entire morning in ``the cedars'' cutting 
wood or posts.
  He will be missed, and my thoughts and prayers go out to his family 
during this difficult time.

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