From staff and wire reports | Posted: Tuesday, January 9, 2007 12:00 am
CHEYENNE - Don Ewing, executive director of the Wyoming Veterans' Commission since August 2002, announced Monday he intends to resign his post in March and retire.
"I have not had my boat out in three years, and that's going to change," Ewing, 63, said.
Ewing's tenure was marked by several squabbles on the commission over personality and policy issues.
The resignation comes four months after Ewing appeared at a campaign stop with unsuccessful Republican gubernatorial contender Ray Hunkins of Wheatland.
One squabble involved whether two war-trophy church bells in Cheyenne should be returned to the Philippines. Ewing was suspended briefly over accusations that he misrepresented how the commission handled the Bells of Balangiga.
The bells were taken by U.S. troops as war trophies during the occupation of that country over a century ago. They have been on display at the F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne. While many Filipinos say the bells are a symbol of national pride and want them back, many veterans here say they honor the American troops who died in the Spanish-American War and want them to stay.
Later exonerated, Ewing characterized the incident and resulting reprimand as a "shameless miscarriage of justice … perpetrated against me" by the administration of Gov. Dave Freudenthal.
In September, Ewing stood alongside Hunkins at a news conference in which Hunkins proposed moving the Veterans' Commission office to Casper. The proposed move was controversial and opposed by the governor.
At the news conference, Hunkins promised to "stand in the way of any attempt to weaken or destroy the Wyoming Veterans' Commission and the credibility of those who serve it," an apparent jab at Freudenthal.
Freudenthal said Monday he never discussed the campaign appearance with Ewing, and he was not consulted about Ewing's resignation.
"I wasn't asked, wasn't consulted," Freudenthal said. "I wish him well in whatever he chooses to do."
Ewing said the dispute over the bells and other issues did not play a role in his decision to retire.
"It's been absolutely great working with veterans," he said. "It's time for me to go fishing and enjoy life."
The Wyoming Veterans' Commission operates in conjunction with the state Military Department. The executive director is appointed by the commission but serves as a state employee under the state adjutant general.
Maj. Gen. Ed Wright, Wyoming's adjutant general, said in a statement that Ewing's service to the state's veterans is commendable.
"Mr. Ewing has always strived to put veterans first and to take the commission to new levels," Wright said. "I thank him for his service and wish him well in retirement."
The process of finding a new executive director will begin this week.