Stand down moves to Trout Creek
TROUT CREEK – After Plains hosted the largest Stand down in the country last year, the event is now being forced to move to Trout Creek to a smaller venue.
The Stand down will now be moved to the same location that hosts the Huckleberry Festival. With no permanent structures, Organizer Billy Hill said they would have to construct temporary shelters to house the equipment.
Due to the change in location, Hill had to cut his order down by 60 percent. In previous years, he had ordered $2 ½ million worth of surplus military gear to hand out to veterans at no cost. However, with the lack of security he is only ordering $800,000 worth of stuff.
Although that sounds like a lot of money, the decrease means less people will benefit from the event.
“It’s a dangerous situation. If I’m going to lose a lot of stuff to rain, snowstorm or something, I’m only going to lose 40 percent of what I had last year but what that says is that I can only accommodate 40 percent of the people I did last year,” Hill said.
Hill explained that in order to secure continued participation in the event, he has to hold a Stand down even if it will be less effective.
“No matter how well intentioned myself and the people in Trout Creek are, I don’t see it as coming up to standard where we had all the buildings,” Hill said.
Hill approached the Sanders County Fairboard in September to see if they would be willing to donate the facilities for the Stand down. However, they did not make a decision quick enough to secure the Sanders County Fairgrounds as the location of the event.
“I feel like I’m being forced to move this event. I’m not leaving voluntarily,” Hill said. “We got to do it or we lose it completely for the county.”
Last year the Stand down was named the biggest in the nation, serving 2,300 veterans in all. Not only did it provide them with surplus equipment but it also provided free food and medical services to those who needed it.
Trout Creek was happy to bring the Stand down to their neck of the woods, providing help to both the veterans and the surrounding community.
Hill explained the people in attendance bring money into the area by stopping for food, gas and beverages.
“The people in Trout Creek are totally welcoming for this event to happen. They are doing everything they can and I applaud their effort to get something made out of it,” Hill said.
Despite all the hard work being put forth, Hill knows that without the proper infrastructure, the event will not reach its full potential.
The hope is to eventually get the Stand down back at the fairgrounds because the facility is the only thing that can support an event of its caliber. However, Hill said there would be a lot of work before that happens and he is adamant about keeping the event free for the veterans.
“I want to maintain it as an effort to do a humanitarian deed and we got 150 volunteers that feel the same way,” Hill said.
Earlier in the year there was talk about charging admission for the event if it was held at the fairgrounds.
“If they are going to defend our freedom, day and night, risking their lives I can’t see charging them,” Hill said.
The most important thing to Hill is to keep this event within Sanders County so local communities can benefit.
“After all this delay, I’m losing control and the destination of the event will be dictated by the VA,” Hill explained. He added that if that was the case, it would most likely leave Sanders County and be pulled into a larger area like Coeur d’Alene.