July 30th, 2010

Travis Alan Heffelman 's Story

Birth Year: 1989




Table of Contents





    Chapter 1: Early Memories

    My earliest memories: I have a scar on my forehead put there by my mom. I was walking behind her at the driving range one day. My grandpa and everyone including Grandma and my step-dad were there. There was Uncle Pat and almost the whole side of my mom’s family had gone with us to the range that day. I was about 2 but I can remember it like it was yesterday. She hauled off with her back swing and caught me at a most unfortunate moment in the head with the club. It split me open immediately and the blood started to flow. My mom was hysterical and my grandpa was the one that took control. He grabbed me and rushed me to the car and someone drove us to the hospital. It took ten stitches to patch me up and yes I still have the aforementioned scar.

    Another was one night when I was about 8 years old my older brother who was 4 and a half years older than me were watching a late night scary movie. I was young and it scared the wits out of me. I remember the highlight was this man walking around with a whip whipping people. After it ended my brother who knew I was scared played a practical joke on me that wound up backfiring on him. He decided to scare me. We both had our own rooms upstairs in our house across from each other.

    He decided to cut two holes in a sheet and put in over his head. He gets a whip and sneaks in to my room. I was at that moment in my bunk bed. He moseys up to the bed jumps up and scares the living crap out of me. But instead of screaming my first intuitive instinct was to punch him right in the nose. I guess that taught him a lesson he would not forget. Not to mention ruining a perfectly good sheet for my benefit.

    My Moms name is Dori Van Lone and my Step dad is Tom Van Lone. I have a few brothers and sisters There is Jenna Van Lone, Dustan Heffelman, Jordan Heffelman, and Saddy Heffelman.

    I was 8 one Christmas and at my Mom's house the whole family got together. It was Grandpa The last year before he died and the cousins and all the grownups. I remember that Christmas as one of my most special. Now my most valuable gift was a different occasion. I got a dirt bike when I was 12 and that to me was the most special gift.

    You know i was just thinking of a memory I have. I was young about 8-9 and I was with my cousin at one of those rodeo's. They have what you call a mutton busting contest and they were one kid short. I was volunteered to ride the sheep out of the Shute. When it came my turn I hung on for dear life. I felt like I couldn't cling any harder and that sheep came to an abrupt stop. I went head of heels still attached to that sheep. It followed me right over. Surprised as I was that sheep got up in a rush and I was still riding it. I won for the longest time aboard.

    You know I was younger and I was out bowling with my mom and step dad. A really unusual event happened. I was there watching this man in glasses watching us. He called my mom "little miss" That was a pet name my grandpa called my mom. This event happened after my grandpa had died. But the weirdest thing was not only did he call my mom by that name. He was smiling at us all and what happened next weirded us all out. He was just gone!

    When I was in Jr High I was what you can say on a bad path. I was not consentrating on my education as I should have and i ditched school a lot. I spent a lot of time hanging out with the girls. I also was smoking pot back in those days.

    My first Crush was on Brittany Madrid. I guess it was 7th grade and we shared a special time in our lives. It was my first kiss, well it was almost my first everything with a young girl. But my first girl friend I had in 5th grade. Her name was Ashley Jordan. She is my first go steady girl. It happened like this. One day we had been hanging out and she walked up to me and asked me to be her boyfriend. I simply said yes. It had begun.

    Chapter 2: In high school

    I think one of the hardest things for me to do and I actually did it was getting down to weight for wrestling matches. I was on the team then and it took dedication to loose that weight. I would be 140 to 145 pounds back then. I would drop down to 119 for my matches. I lost lots of water weight. And to do it I would start shortly before the season and it would take me about 3 weeks to get there. I actually made it to the Pepsi Center for the championship matches back tin 2005. I was wrestling in the state finals. In my weight class I took 2nd place. I lost to a young man named Rorry Keys.

    The thing is I am now thinking of working to get my GED. I can do it while I am in the Boulder Valley Corrections Facility in North East Boulder. I have the time right now and they will help me. I never did graduate and there were  reasons for that. I got mixed up in Drugs and though I am no longer on that train. I have realized the cost and loss for me. When I look back now I think how foolish it was to me to throw away my High School wrestling championships for the sake of a high. I lost girls and memories along that path. So now when I look back I can see I threw a lot more away than I can say.

    Then it happened I was walking by a mirror one day and I stopped and took a good look at myself. I had a hollow face. I was not the figure of a boy I used to be and it hit me hard as I pondered what I was doing to myself. I was not please when I made the connection and I just decided it was time for a change and I did. I know people say you can't but really when you set your mind to anything you can accomplish a lot. i have since put the weight back on and I don't mess with the drugs I used to use such a meth amphetamine and weed.  That meth will wipe you out if you arn't aware of what it is doing to you. I just stopped and if I did it believe me anyone can. You have to make that desission for yourself that you are going to stop and just stop. I have heard that and I have found it to be true.

    Chapter 3: In the working world

    I do tile work today. It is a labor of art. I have done some wonderful work you might see out there such as the Life Care Center of Aroura, Colorado. I was working with the crew that laid all the tile floors and up the walls. We did some wonderful paterns that people today enjoy. This was also probably one of my biggest job sites. I guess it was over a 100,000 Square feet of work.

    The company that i worked for Mountain States Interiors was contrated to provide the tile and workers. i am one of them when the jobs come in.