84-year-old Wyoming Navy veteran donates 207-acre llama ranch as sanctuary for veterans and first responders

Al Ellis and his late wife Sondra had spent decades building the biggest vision of their lives, a 207-acre ranch near their two-story log home off US Highway 191 in Boulder, a town of roughly 100 people 12 miles south of Pinedale. Ellis, an 84-year-old Navy veteran and former commercial driver, had turned to become a llama expert later in life.According to him, he has followed what he calls "butterfly moments", seemingly small encounters or decisions that, looking back, changed the direction of his life. On Friday, another such butterfly moment unfolded on his ranch. The land he once called a "hell hole" is now officially Boulder Crest Wyoming, a sanctuary where veterans, first responders and their families will have a place to step away from the weight of service, allowing them to reconnect and learn to grow in the aftermath of trauma.From 'hell hole' to homeEllis grew up in San Francisco where his parents ran a bodega and produce stand. “By the time you’re 8, you can take your orange crate down the street,” he said to Cowboy State Daily, remembering how children scavenged for things to put in discarded wooden crates.At 17, Ellis enlisted in the Navy, serving between the Korean an...