‘Very rewarding experience’: Veterans spend holiday helping fellow vet clean up Longview property

Veterans Day is usually a time for people and organizations to recognize service members for their service to the country. But for a handful of veterans, this year’s holiday was a time to serve one another. A group of veterans and their family members led by Marine veteran Timothy Cervantes, owner of SemperFi Land Clearing, spent Wednesday cutting down trees, clearing brush and removing trash from the Longview property of disabled Navy veteran Ernest Thorpe. Thorpe’s property had been cited by city officials for code violations, but thanks to the nonprofit Connect Longview, he was able to get the help he needed to fix those violations instead of a municipal court ticket. That help means a lot to him, he said. Thorpe served in the National Guard in high school and joined the Navy, serving in the ‘80s until he was medically discharged. He’s been living at his property on Lane Wells Drive since 2013, but maintaining it has been a challenge.

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