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Fun, education combine at Evergreen’s Family Fun Day at the Ranch

BY DEB HURLEY BROBST DBROBST@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Family Fun Day at the Ranch was a lot of fun mixed with a little bit of education about living with wildlife. e event at the Lucky Penny Ranch in Evergreen on July 14 brought 150 people of all ages to pet goats and horses, swing into a pile of hay, see birds of prey brought by HawkQuest. Plus they learned about a barbed-wire removal program, a new bear club and how to live with wildlife, all part of the mission of Wild Aware, which organized the event.

Wild Aware is a nonpro t formed in 2019 to try to curb the number of wildlife-vehicle accidents on Evergreen Parkway. e organization has branched out, creating an outreach program where volunteers explain the behavior of elk and other animals at Evergreen Lake in the spring and summer, working to curtail the number of bear encounters with humans, and more.

Christie Greene, president and founder of Wild Aware, was pleased with the large turnout on a beautiful summer day. She hoped families would get involved in Wild Aware’s programs as a result of the fun event.

About Wild Aware

Another Wild Aware initiative is to make fences wildlife-friendly, including removing old barbed wire, modifying existing decorative fencing and more.

Greene is happy that the organization received its rst grant — $5,000 from the Lauren Townsend Memorial Wildlife Fund — that will be used to develop a plan to remove barbed wire from private property. e grant will expand on the barbed-