Westport woman honors three generations and 90 years of family’s service to USA with homemade ‘Boot Garden’

November 9, 2023 by EUNILITO

WESTPORT, Mass. (WJAR) – A Westport woman with a large military family is honoring them with her “boot garden.”

Christine Cabral, 85, has lived in her home off Davis Road for more than 60 years. He is proud of his landscape.

“I do a lot of gardening. I like working in the garden and putting everything up and thinking about different things to do,” he said.

Christine is a mother of seven – five boys and two girls.

Six of those seven children chose to join the military.

“I might have been a bit worried that I wouldn’t be a mother if I didn’t, but overall I was happy that they chose that life because I always thought that boot training would do everyone good,” Christine said.

Her husband, Leonard Cabral, was a paratrooper in the military and followed in his father’s footsteps by joining the service. His father was a Navy Seabee.

Dedication to the United States of America runs in his blood.

“We never told our children to go into the service,” said Christine. “We didn’t say, ‘Well, you have to go into the service, too,'” that was his whole idea.

“I knew then that I was going to go into the military somewhere in my life and it was when I was 20 years old that I decided to go,” said Colleen Cabral. “I’m all about God, country, and I feel. I’ve always been a patriot. My mother and father never forced me to do it. I’m the one who went to them and they supported me all the way.”

Colleen went into the army and then the Air National Guard. She gave 20 years of service.

15 years ago, Christine had an idea.

“One day I saw my husband’s boots and I said, ‘Oh, I have to do something with them,'” she said. “So I got his helmet.”

Once she was given the boots, she planted them in a garden at the side of her house.

From there, he started calling his children.

“When mom asks you to do something you do it,” said Kenneth Cabral. “She wanted our boots, we gave her our boots.”

Kenneth was 10 years active duty in the Army and spent 10 years in the reserves with deployments to Iraq.

He said he kept his uniforms and boots from all those years, and gave his mother a pair to add to her garden.

Since then, Christine has collected more than a dozen boots. He planted them in his garden with a rock memorial symbolizing which pair went to which family member.

“I think it’s to honor them because they were in the service,” he said. “I’m proud.”

The garden honors three generations of the 90 years of service of Cabral and counts.

It’s a big deal for his family.

“My nephew called me and said, ‘Do you still have your boot garden?’ I say, “Yes.” He says: “I finished boot training, can I send it to you?” I say, “Yes.”

Another nephew gave Christine a pair for Christmas. Many of the younger generations have plans to serve as well.

“My grandparents aren’t in the army yet, but they wanted to put their boots on there,” Christine said.

“It’s an honor for us to have our boots here,” said Colleen. “I really love this memorial, I really do. I look at the Veteran’s Day Memorial Day, I just think about all the people I met on the road, all the people who sacrificed their lives. It’s important to me. I’m proud of it. I think She did a great job and I’m really glad she supported us the way she did.

Cabral said that everyone who sees the garden is amazing.

“In a way, even though it’s our family, I think it’s a monument to everyone who served,” Kenneth said. “It’s great to know that this is out there representing soldiers from all service members.”