SOVEREIGN ROOTS
VETERANS RETREAT
Sovereign Roots:
From Vision to Ground
Sovereign Roots has been built piece by piece; through vision, grit, community, and a deep commitment to serving veterans.
This page captures the journey: the milestones, the progress, and the ongoing work to create a place where connection, healing, and purpose can take root.
The Vision
What started as an idea has begun to grow into a living, breathing space for veterans and community members to reconnect... with themselves, each other, and the land.
The goal is simple: build something intentional, grounded, and connects veterans with each other and themselves. Sovereignty through our Roots.
The Master Plan
The map below reflects both what exists today and what is still to come: cabins, gathering spaces, trails, reflection areas, and future expansion... with room for more ideas!
Sovereign Roots is designed to grow intentionally, with each addition serving the mission.
Timeline & Milestones
SEPTEMBER 2021: Early Vision
The Roberts developed the initial idea for a Veterans Retreat after years of transition struggle and the journey of their own PTSD recovery. Initial planning focused on creating a space for veterans centered on connection, purpose, and nature. The search for a property began.
FEBRUARY 2021: A Perfect Place
The Roberts' found the ground that would become Sovereign Roots' retreat space and homestead. The land was raw, the house unfinished, and the overgrowth ripe for work.
APRIL 2021: A New Adventure
The property became a new home for the Roberts, marking the first physical step toward bringing the vision of a Veterans Retreat to life.
LATE 2021: Land Clearing Begins
After selling their home on the Front Range, the Roberts gained the liquidity needed to accelerate work on the property. Progress came fast—tools, materials, and long days began shaping the land into something tangible.
At the same time, uncertainty loomed. A major personal loss during a custody battle, combined with the weight of relocation and rebuilding, left the future of Sovereign Roots unclear.
Still, the work continued.
Not because the path was certain—but because the mission mattered.
MARCH 2024: The First Spark
What began as a simple social media post became the Western Slope Veterans Recreation Group; an open invitation for veterans to gather, explore, and reconnect.
There was no long-term plan. Just a desire to bring people together in the wild spaces of the Western Slope.
Hikes came and went. Participation ebbed and flowed.
But something unexpected took hold.
SUMMER–FALL 2024: Fire Nights
The group found its rhythm around the fire.
What started as casual meetups became monthly gatherings, simple nights filled with stories, laughter, and shared understanding. As the hikes faded, the fires remained.
Veterans came to experience the land as it was: raw, unfinished, and a vision.
By October, on a cold night filled with smoke and s’mores, something deeper had formed:
connection.
NOVEMBER 2024: Sovereign Roots
After the season slowed and the ranch quieted, the Roberts sat on the back patio watching the sun fall behind the West Elk Mountains.
The sky burned in shades of pink and orange over the Dry Creek Valley. In the last light stood a dead elm. Stripped bare, weathered, and towering.
Its pale trunk caught the sunset and glowed like it was on fire.
In that moment, the words came:
Sovereign Roots.
The mission became clear. From that vision, the Tree of Life model was born.
Roots, Trunk, Branches, Harvest.
A reflection of growth, seasonality, and the enduring strength of something that lived fully.
WINTER 2024–2025: Structure Takes Shape
With clarity came direction. Drawing from the fire nights, the foundation of Sovereign Roots began to take form.
The gatherings evolved, no longer just connection, but connection with intention. The firepit was reshaped.
The structure of programming began. Plans for a nonprofit were set in motion, along with early ideas for a board, guided discussions, and a future retreat experience.
What started as something informal was becoming something that was necessary and intentional.
JANUARY 2025: A Tangible Step
Opportunity appeared unexpectedly... cabins listed at a fire-sale price in Clifton. The decision was immediate.
These would become the first structures of Sovereign Roots, places for rest, reflection, and presence on the land.
The vision was no longer abstract. It was beginning to take physical form.
MARCH 2025: The Backbone Forms
After months of searching, the right people stepped forward. Five individuals committed to forming the Board. Leadership roles were filled.
The first Open House was scheduled and executed. It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t polished.
But it worked.
Soon after, nonprofit status was secured.
Sovereign Roots had officially begun.
APRIL–OCTOBER 2025: Rally Point
The fires returned, this time with purpose. Rally Point became a gathering place for veterans and their families. 10 to 15 people at a time, circling the fire.
Stories were shared. Humor returned. Friendships formed. The food got better.
The flow improved. The rhythm locked in.
What once felt like an idea proved itself as something more: a place where veterans could find connection again.
WINTER 2025–2026: Expansion
Lessons from the first year shaped the next. The mission grew stronger.
New programs were developed; expanding into workshops, skill-building, and a return to outdoor experiences. The foundation was set.
Now it was time to build.
MARCH 28, 2026: Season Two Begins
Three programs. Built on real experience. Grounded in what works. And for the first time, something new stood on the land.
On Rally Point Ridge, with the help of volunteers, supporters, and veterans who had been part of the journey from the beginning, the first three cabins were placed.
What started as conversations around a fire had become something you could walk through, build with your hands, and share with others. The ridge came alive with effort; frames raised, ground leveled, people working side by side with purpose.
This is not a clinical space. You don’t need to be broken to belong here.
This is a place for veterans to reconnect to each other, to the land, and to who they are now.
We laugh. We support each other. We share the weight when it’s there.
This land is being built by veterans,and it exists for veterans.
