No Colorado city was more aware of the war in Iraq than Colorado Springs. It's home to Fort Carson, the sprawling Army installation where 28,000 soldiers are based.
For them, the war brought a steady rhythm of deployments to the combat zone and returns home, where many soldiers struggled and still struggle to readjust to civilian life. Col. Robert McLaughlin, Fort Carson's garrison commander, says Iraq taught the Army a lot about helping soldiers deal with trauma. Longtime Colorado Springs businessman Richard Skorman says some of those hard lessons were learned at his city's expense.
