Bret M. Collyer

 

Roy Williams Foundation

Secretary/Treasurer

 

*Bret M. Collyer was born in Pueblo, Colorado in 1975.                                                                                                                          

*Worked mostly in all aspects of construction throughout his early life and as a contractor.                                 

*Also works in property/ranchland/livestock management for the last 25 years.                

*Works in management for both Corporate America and (municipal) government as a drinking and wastewater treatment consultant/operator as a Certified Water Professional (CWP).      

*He has been an elected official and volunteered to work on many Civic Boards and commissions.                                *Bret is currently the only serving member of the organizational structure that has not served in the Military.       

*Bret, along with his wife and son, currently run a cow/calf/horse operation in Central Colorado. He is able to work mostly from home and is able to allocate time to help with the Roy Williams Foundation.

 

*Bret first met Roy Williams in late September 2018 but did not get to know him until April 2019. When Roy and his girlfriend moved onto the ranch where Bret rented a home to Roy. Bret and his family really liked Roy and enjoyed spending time with him. Roy worked for the Sherriff’s Department and was very well-liked by his colleagues and admired for his courage, skill, tenacity and can-do attitude. Roy would freely share, during candid moments, that he was struggling with PTSD from his time in the service. He would talk about how the Veterans Administration (VA) was not doing enough to help him with his problems. They kept prescribing him non-effective or (worse) counterproductive psycho-active drugs and pass him from doctor to doctor, each with a waiting period. The Collyer’s thought they would have many years to get to know him better and watch him grow and prosper in this beautiful mountain area.

 

That all changed at 9:53 pm. On November 5th, 2019 as Bret and his wife were lying in bed and a gunshot was heard. By the time they got dressed and ran toward Roy’s house the emergency vehicles were already arriving. There was nothing they could do to help Roy.                                       

 

The next two weeks were painful for everybody and a Maple Tree was planted where Roy fell in his memory. As the men who served with Roy gathered for his Memorial Service, Bret and his family got to know, like, and respect them as they were happy to help the family work the cattle as Bret was on crutches due to a horse-kick injury. This was very much appreciated and after hearing their stories, thought that something should be done to help the Veterans who might find themselves in Roy’s position. The Veteran Community deserves the American peoples' help and support. Bret is very happy to help this ambitious organization in any way possible and work with the amazing group of dedicated veterans to say “ENOUGH” to Veteran Suicides, they are tired of attending funerals for their brothers and sisters!                                                                  

We remain optimistic that we can make a difference!