Retired Colorado police chief honors those who serve with hand-carved canes

Ruben Archuleta walks into a bedroom of his Pueblo home which he calls his "Medal of Honor" room. No, Archuleta is not a Medal of Honor recipient himself, though he did serve in the U.S. Navy. 

Rather, this room is full of memorabilia he has collected from Congressional Medal of Honor recipients he has met over the years.

"That was the highlight of my career was meeting all the people," says Archuleta, who retired as Pueblo's chief of police in 1999. Since his retirement, he has stayed involved in public service, but perhaps his most unusual contribution to that life of service came by accident. Or, rather, back surgery.

"This is what started the whole thing, right here," he says holding a carved wood and elk-antler cane. "When I had my back surgeries, I needed a cane. I wanted something unique, something artistic."

When Archuleta retired, he saw a piece of walnut a friend had given him. He says the log spoke to him, telling him to start carving on it, though he admits he didn't even know how to carve at the time. 

Undaunted, he went to Harbor Freight, bought chisels and knives, and before long had carved a 39-inch statue of St. Francis of Assisi. 

He tapped into that newfound talent to create a cane to use after he had his back surgery. He showed his cane to his friend Drew Dix, a Medal of Honor recipient and fellow resident of Pueblo. Dix was impressed, and asked Archuleta to carve one for him. That's when the floodgates opened.

"The other medal of honor recipients said, 'sure we would like to have one,'" he said. 

Over the next few years, Archuleta would carve dozens of canes for not only Medal of Honor recipients, but other local veterans --particularly those helping others. 

"Are they a disabled veteran, and are they helping other veterans. Those are my two requirements," he said. 

He says the canes came at no cost to the veterans. They were gifts from him for their service to others.

Archuleta's shaky hands have forced him into a second retirement, and he no longer carves canes for others. 

Still, as he sits on the couch in his living room, surrounded by sculptures he's created, photos of people he's met, and many other memories, he counts himself blessed. He's come a long way from the San Luis Valley. 

"When I look back where I came from, who would have thought?"

BY KEVIN STRONG