It is the end of August, how did we get here so quickly? Summer should always get a speeding ticket for going by too quickly. I love summer and the senses, feelings, and memories that come with it. I think F. Scott Fitzgerald said it best in The Great Gatsby when it comes to summer,

"And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” 

At Union Colony Insurance, we look back at this summer and see the wonderful moments we got to share with one other. We learned 9 things in the end and wish to share our photo album with you.


1) Kerry Loves a Good Fish

Kerry Wyatt and his daughter, Vanessa, took a trip to Alaska this summer. A major theme of the trip was fish! Fish watching, fish hunting, fish eating, etc. Check out their adventures.





2) Coors Field is the Third Oldest Stadium in the National League!

We couldn't believe it either when we went to a Rockies Game. Built in 1995, you would think it would be relatively new. But the only two older stadiums are Dodger Stadium in LA built in 1962 and Wrigley Field in Chicago built in 1914. Coors Field is also the SECOND largest baseball stadium in the National League, holding over 50,000 people, behind Dodger Stadium that can hold 56,000!





3) We fell in Love with Helping Heroes Fly!

Helping Heroes Fly is our current Charity of the Quarter. They are a new non-profit in our community helping military personnel fly home for family emergencies, special occasions, or to simply see their family who they haven't seen in a long time. These men and women do not have a means to fly home on their own dime. Month after month, we receive updates from Helping Heroes Fly about how they have been able to help our servicemen and our hearts just melt every time we get an update. We have been proud to help sponsor them this summer. Our donated gift basket helped them raise $5,000 during the silent auction of their annual fundraiser!

 


4) Our Hearts Also Break for Dogs!

In July, Lori, Mark, & Marlene stumbled upon a stray dog on their property and instantly fell in love with her. They named her Velcro and took her in as their own for a month. Velcro even visited our office one day! They took Velcro to the Belair Animal Hospital in Greeley and Dr. Bo was so kind and found a chip implanted in her. We found out she was a neighbor's dog that got loose during the 4th of July because of the scary fireworks. (Remember, dogs and fireworks don't mix!) Velcro's real name is Maddie and the family was so grateful to have her home! Happy ending indeed!




5) Youth is for the Young...

We shared a lot of youthful pictures of ourselves this summer, because the new marketing intern tricked them into sharing so he could write a blog! We swapped stories of our favorite sporting moments, shared when we first started school, and swapped other stories. Can you guess who is who in the photos below?






6) Marlene is a Wild Thang!

She may have been stubborn and not allowed the Marketing Intern to see her youthful photos but we got the second best thing. Marlene was adventurous on and off the road this summer. Taking short trips to Montana and Las Vegas, her sense of adventure has not failed her. But after coming back from Las Vegas, for Golf, not other things, she couldn't believe she lived there for 25 years. In her words, and my favorite quote of the summer, she simply said, "I Melted!" 





7) We Became Impassioned About Frankenstein Phones!

This summer, we were baffled by a situation Lori and her son Rielly found themselves in after Reilly had to get a replacement phone. Reilly found himself with a "Frankenstein" phone! What is it? Read about it here. Meanwhile, check out his phone below.




8) Vegetables can Taste Good!

We went to Greeley's AgriCulture Fest & Feast this year. The Feast was a fundraiser to highlight local food, produce, farms, and chefs in our community. Funds were raised for Greeley's Creative District to continue to showcase the culture and arts that Greeley produces. Greeley produces a lot of vegetables but our local chefs made them extremely yummy to eat!





9) Hail was the Bane of the Summer!

We cannot believe the amount of hail that fell around us this year. But not only the amount but the size during some of the storms. Our thoughts go out to everyone who has been affected by hail this summer. But even our own family couldn't get away from it. Kerry had a hail storm that produced hockey puck like hail! How can this even happen? 



We End Summer Welcoming Everybody Back to School!

The Marketing Intern originally was going to write this blog about going back to school, but decided to go in a different direction instead. (He's fickle like that!) But for those who thought that this was going to be a back to school blog post, here is our tribute to everyone who started school this month!






Thanks for allowing us to share our summer with you. We hope you had a great summer too. Share what you have been up to with us. We would love to hear your adventurous stories.