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    Home » Celebrating the Life of Buffalo Don Thompson
    Sedona

    Celebrating the Life of Buffalo Don Thompson

    April 5, 2013Updated:May 20, 2013No Comments8 Mins Read
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    By Tommy Acosta

    Sedona AZ (April 6, 2013) – A true American hero has passed away and taken his place with the stars above where his memory will shine forever.

    On the morning of March 29, 2013, America lost one of its most colorful luminaries and icons.

    Buffalo Don Thompson, a world-famous war hero, businessman and owner of Buffalo Don’s Corral in Sedona, passed peacefully in his sleep.

    20130405_Buffalo-Don

    He was 90-years-young, a living legend to those fortunate enough to have met him and heard him speak of his service to his country and the concepts of freedom and liberty he exemplified.

    Always impeccably dressed in his signature red hat, red jacket and buffalo belt buckle Buffalo Don was always ready to engage anyone, visitor or local in conversation.

    Buffalo Don’s Corral in Uptown was a destination point in Sedona for those who appreciate the heroes gone before us and fought to preserve America.

    “He was like a god to me,” said his wife Lynn regarding the love of her life. “He was the closest person I’ve ever met to being Christ- like. He was a wonderful man. He never made an enemy of anyone. He never liked to argue. He helped so many people in his life. He even helped others straighten themselves out and beat their own addictions.”

    Lynn said she met him while working for him in Wisconsin on his buffalo ranch, eventually fell in love and never left his side.

    “He was a magnet for people,” she said. “People would come to our store in Uptown Sedona and be captivated by him. They would ask questions about his red jacked and cowboy hat, his big buffalo-belt buckle and he would captivate them with stories about his life and his exploits during World War II. He was spiritual, kind and good.”

    Returning to the states after the war he created a number of successful businesses in Wisconsin, including a bottled water business called “Buffalo Don’s Artesian Wells, Ltd.

    He later moved to Sedona in 1992, where he opened the ever-popular Buffalo Don’s Corral with his beloved wife and business partner, Lynn Thompson.

    Almost until the day he died Buffalo Don was out there in front of his store, standing in front of a huge American flag, dressed as only he can dress, greeting people and amazing them with his stories.

    In the war, Buffalo Don distinguished himself as a fearless warrior, earning three Purple Hearts, two Bronze Stars and two Presidential Citations.

    Whether it be bare handed, with a spear, sword, knife or gun, ultimately victory is won by warriors who pit flesh and bone, their lives, against each other.

    Buffalo Don was such a warrior.

    He was a member of the Army’s legendary 551st Parachute Battalion, which was decimated in WWII with more than 97-percent casualties after the infamous Battle of the Bulge in Belgium, a key battle that set the stage for victory by the Allies in central France.

    On Aug. 15, 1944, he and members of his battalion were dropped 32-miles behind a forty thousand soldier-strong enemy line in Belgium to engage the Nazis and gather intelligence.

    The drop itself proved disastrous for the American paratroopers as the gliders carrying their food and equipment collided in the sky.

    It was in the town of Draguignan that Buffalo Don, then a staff sergeant and platoon leader, and three other soldiers, including Sedona’s Joe Chicchinelli, captured German General Ludwig Bieringer, the first German general to be captured in the war.

    In an interview four years ago, he recounted the incredible story of how he and three other soldiers captured him.

    “We saw the castle in the mountains and moved on up,” Buffalo Don said. “It had a huge Nazi flag on it. We cut the communication wires coming from the building and approached.”

    At the castle’s entrance, the soldiers had to make a decision.

    “We didn’t know how many Germans were in the building,” he said. “I made the decision and said to my men ‘Let’s take the bastards!’ We went in through the front door, which was unlocked, into a huge lobby. We were amazed there were no guards when we went in.”

    There were three doors in front of them. Again, they had to make a crucial decision. Which door should they go through first?

    “Before us was a door to our left, a door in the center and a door to our right,” he said. “I saw the rug in front of the door on the right had dirt marks on it. I told my men to fix their bayonets. I was carrying a Tommy Gun (Thompson sub-machine gun), my weapon of choice.”

    The soldiers burst into the room and found eleven-startled Nazis crouched over charts and maps scattered on tables. The enemy froze.

    “We went in fast and got the drop on them,” Buffalo Don said. “We ordered the Nazis to lie on the floor on their bellies with their hands behind their heads except for the general. He had a pistol in his belt and when Chick (Cicchinelli) put his bayonet against him he wet his pants. I knew right then and there we were in charge.”

    The general tried to bribe the American soldiers for his life.

    “He gave us a million mark note and we buried it right away,” he said. “If the German’s captured you and found any items taken from them they would slice your belly open.”

    Searching the castle they found the entire payroll in German money for 29,000 enemy troops, which they cast to the townspeople from a flatbed fruit truck they commandeered.

    “We threw the money to the people but we were ambushed by Germans,” he said. “Two of our men were killed. Chick and I jumped off the truck and took out their killers.”

    The German general was transported to St. Tropaz, where he was interrogated, providing valuable intelligence for the Allies. In addition, he surrendered 750 of his soldiers to the Americans.

    For Buffalo Don and Chick the war continued. They saw battle every day and had to live off the land by their wits because they were fighting behind enemy lines.

    “We were always out-gunned and didn’t have any vehicles,” he said. “If a chicken crossed the road it didn’t get a second chance. In a second it was gutted, plucked and cooked in our helmets.”

    Hardened by their experience, they had to become cold-blooded killers to survive.

    “We were in constant battle all the time,” he said. “I prayed constantly. When you see your buddies dying you become a different person. We were closer than blood. We slept outside in the rain and snow, freezing. Even a bird landing in a tree at night was the enemy.”

    Buffalo Don survived the fixed-bayonet charge of Rochelinval, where American soldiers plunged into entrenched-enemy machine gun nests, stabbing their way to victory in hand-to-hand combat.

    “It was close-quarters combat,” he said. “We took no prisoners. We hated them. We despised them. Yet, I knew our enemy had souls. I prayed for them each time I pulled the trigger and ended their lives. In the end, after all the bombings, wars are won, one-on-one.”

    Then came the Battle of the Bulge, one of the bloodiest WWII battles in Europe, where Buffalo Don sustained an injury he could not walk away from.

    “I was shot in the leg as I tried to throw a grenade into an enemy tank,” he said. ‘I was lying in the snow bleeding when Chick pulled me away. My leg was practically hanging off as he dragged me from the battle on my back. That’s when he said to me ‘Sarge, keep on shooting but don’t shoot me.’ I can never forget that.”

    In his interview, Buffalo Don said that thanks to prayer, he was never plagued by flashbacks or guilt over the horrors he saw and experienced.

    He passed no judgment on the present wars in the Mid-East, condemning war in general instead.

    “I despise war. It is sinful…unless there is a good reason,” he said.

    He spent the last few years of his life in and out of hospitals due to the severe leg wound he suffered in the Battle of the Bulge.

    She said a memorial service and celebration of his life will be held at the Sedona Heritage Museum, Memorial Day, May 27.

    Those wishing to convey condolences can do so by mailing them to Mrs. Lynn Thompson, PO Box 950, Sedona AZ, 86339.

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    Paid Political Ad Paid For by Samaire for Mayor
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    Paid Political Announcement by Samaire For Mayor

     THE MOMENT IS UPON US

    Dear Sedona,

    The moment is upon us. The time for a united effort to shift the focus back to our community is now.

    The ability to thrive in our community, our environment, our workforce, and the tourist industry, is entirely possible because we have all the resources needed for success.

    Still, we need a council that isn’t afraid to ask the hard questions, that makes decisions based on data and facts, and through discussion, rather than moving and voting in group unison as they so regularly do.

    This is my home. I have been a part of the Sedona community for 28 years. I witnessed the road debacle, the lack of planning, the city circumventing the local businesses ability to thrive, while making choices to expand the local government and be in direct competition with private industry.

    I am a unique candidate because unlike the incumbents, I don’t believe the government should expand in size, nor in operations, nor would I attempt to micromanage every aspect of our community.

    City government should stay in its lane and allow the competitive market of local private industry to prosper. And it should defend our community from corporate takeover and infiltration of our town.

    I do not agree that we should sign onto International Building Codes and regulations by signing Sedona up to the ICC. It is imperative that we remain a sweet, rural community.

    Where are the arts? Where is this organic thriving element that we allege to be animated by. Where is our culture? Where is our community?

    The discord between the decision making process and the desires of the community have never been more clear. It has been nearly a decade in the making.

    It is time for a new era of energy to take charge. An energy that is reflective in the ability to succeed rather than be trapped in out of date consciousness.

    It has been a great honor meeting with each of you. I hear your concerns over the insane and out of control spending and I echo them. A budget of $105,000,000 in a town of 9700 residents is completely unacceptable. A parking structure (that looks like a shoe box) originally slated to cost 11 million, now projected to cost 18 million, is incomprehensible. Especially, considering there is no intention of charging for parking.

    For those who are concerned that I lack the political experience within our established system- that is precisely what Sedona needs… Not another politician, but instead a person who understands people, who listens to the voices within the community, and who will act in service on their behalf with accountability, for the highest good of Sedona. What I am not, will prove to be an asset as I navigate the entrenched bureaucracy with a fresh perspective. Business as usual, is over.

    Creative solutions require new energy.

    Every decision that is made by our local government, must contemplate Sedona first.

    • Does this decision benefit the residents?
    • Does this decision benefit the local businesses?
    • Does this decision actually help the environment?
    • Will this decision sustain benefit in the future, or will it bring more problems?

    What we have now is a city government that expands to 165 employees for 9700 residents. Palm Desert has 53,000 residents and 119 city employees. Majority of our city department heads are not even in town. I find this problematic.

    Efforts towards championing in and courting new solutions for our medical needs are imperative. We are losing our doctors. We must encourage competition with other facilities rather than be held hostage by NAH, who clearly have their own set of dysfunctions.

    We must remember that so many move to Sedona for its beauty, hiking, and small town charm. Bigger, faster, and more concrete does not, in broad strokes, fit the ethos of Sedona.

    The old world must remain strong here in balance, as that is what visitors want to experience. Too many have noted that Sedona has lost its edge and charm.

    As Mayor I will preserve the rural charm of our community, and push back against the urbanization that is planned for Sedona.

    As mayor I will make it a priority to create opportunities to support our youth.  After school healthy, enriching programs should be created for our kids, and available to the Sedona workforce regardless of residency and regardless of school they belong to.

    As Mayor, I will create an agenda to deliberately embody the consciousness of our collective needs here, allowing private industry to meet the needs of our community rather than bigger government.

    I hope to have your vote on Aug 2nd. I am excited and have the energy to take on this leadership role with new eyes, community perspective, and the thoughtful consciousness that reflects all ages of the human spectrum.

    Thank you deeply for your consideration.

    Sincerely,

    Samaire Armstrong

    Sedona elections
    Armstrong vs. Jablow: The Main Event
    Ready to Rumble

    By Tommy Acosta
    In the Blue Corner stands Scott Jablow and in the Red Corner of the ring stands Samaire Armstrong, ready to rumble to the bitter end in their fight to become the next Sedona mayor. Jablow weighs in with 1,137 primary election votes (36.13%) under his belt, having wielded his advantage as sitting Sedona City Council vice-mayor to his favor. He brings his years of serving in that capacity into the fray and waged a solid fight in his campaign to make it to the run-off. Armstrong, however withstood a blistering smear campaign from the other opposing candidates and their supporters to make it to the final bout with 967 votes under her belt (30.73%), an amazing feat for a political newcomer. Unfortunately, for the other two candidates, Kurt Gehlbach and sitting mayor Sandy Moriarty, neither put up enough of a fight to make it to the championship bout. Read more→
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