A show of support

Jennifer Moore, (Bio) jmoore@windsortribune.com
September 11, 2006

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Tribune readers first met him on the morning of Sept. 12, 2001, as he stood waving the American flag on the overpass on Interstate 25 at the Windsor exit.

Today, Emery Esse, 56, is a missionary traveling the world.

"He wanted to be with a full-time Christian service," said Esse's wife, Margie. "He loves to see people come to the Lord."

Esse is an American-born citizen whose parents were from Lebanon. He was raised as a Shiite Muslim in Detroit. A former Marine sergeant, he also spent time as a Detroit police officer. After his partner was killed, he retired and moved to Colorado.

Five years ago, Esse and his wife were disturbed and unsettled by the terrorist attacks. Esse decided he needed to show his support for America and he waved an American flag and U.S. Marine Corps flag to passing traffic on the overpass the next day.

"We need to show them we're not defeated. That's why I was out on the overpass," he told the Tribune a day after the attacks. "Every time I wave the flag, I'm saying 'God Bless America.' "

Esse returned a few more times to the overpass because of the good feeling he got from motorists and his fellow Americans.

The Esses now live in Fort Collins and still attend the Windsor Evangelical Free Church. If he is not out of the country on missionary work, Esse is a chaplain for the Larimer County Sheriff's Office.

Since February, he has been part of Mission Mobilization International, a nondenominational, evangelical Christian organization, which exists to proclaim the Gospel and to recruit, train and equip people to be missionaries.

He was unavailable for comment because he's working in the Philippines, but Margie Esse wanted to reflect on what her husband has done since Sept. 11.

"This is what he was prepared to do for all his life," she said. "He travels through different countries and presents Gospel."

She added: "Since Sept. 11, he's been reading his Bible more because that is what he felt will bring him closer to God."

Esse will be home next week and will soon be traveling again to Nicaragua and Honduras.

For more information on Mission Mobilization International, go to www.missionmobilization.org.