Centennial
Citizen
Arapahoe County, Colorado • Volume 12, Issue 9
SNOW PROBLEM AT ALL
January 18, 2013
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourcentennialnews.com
Governor proposes gun checks State of State also mentions civil unions, marijuana, economy By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews.com
Daisy, a 2-year-old golden Labrador retriever, enjoys a romp in the snow on Jan. 12. While recent cold weather has many pets longing for the great outdoors, it’s important to remember that frigid temperatures can be dangerous. Prolonged exposure to cold can cause a drop in body temperature, particularly in toy breeds and pets with short coats. The American Humane Society recommends limiting play time in extreme cold and keeping pets warm and dry when possible. Photo by Deborah Grigsby
Tuskegee airman saw hope through irony Fitzroy ‘Buck’ Newsum, 94, leaves legacy of service By Deborah Grigsby
dgrigsby@ourcoloradonews.com Fitzroy “Buck” Newsum often reflected on the irony that, as a black man, he wasn’t permitted to fly, but as a commissioned officer in the Air Force, he was in charge of shooting them down. “I thought it was rather interesting,” he told a crowd gathered at the Denver Athletic Club in 2001. Newsum died earlier this month in Centennial. Born May 22, 1918, in the upper west side of Manhattan, Newsum’s love of flying came when he saw his first plane in 1929, a Curtiss Robin, land in the savanna near his Trinidad boyhood home. As he watched the high-winged monoplane take off and land, he said his mother asked him, in exasperation, “Why do you keep staring at that thing?” Newsum said he looked over his shoulder at her, and in a quiet voice said, “I think that’s what I’d like to do.” Denied entry into the U.S. Army Air Corps, because of the color of his skin, Newsum enlisted in New York National Guard in 1939. Two years later, he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Anti-Aircraft Coast Artillery Corps, and after the attack on Pearl Harbor, was assigned to duty in Hawaii. While in the Pacific, Newsum was notified he had been accepted into an “experimental” training program for black pilots at a segregated airbase in Alabama tasked with proving “men of color had the intelligence to fly airplanes.” More than 900 black military pilots trained at Tuskegee Army Air Field during World War II. They were then assigned to segregated Army Air Forces units. Of those 900, 450 served overseas in either the 99th Pursuit Squadron or the 332nd Fighter Group.
Gov. John Hickenlooper acknowledged that “there are no easy solutions” to issues involving guns, but said a debate on how best to deal with firearm-related violence is something “our democracy demands.” The Democratic governor, addressing the General Assembly during his annual State of the State speech Jan. 10, also proffered his opinion on one area of gun control that is certain to be one of the most passionately debated topics lawmakers will take up this legislative session. “Let me prime the pump,” Hickenlooper said. “Why not have universal background checks for all Report gun sales?” That suggestion certainly caught the attention of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. “It is just completely unenforceable,” House Minority Leader Mark Waller, RColorado Springs, said of Hickenlooper’s call for all sales of guns — including those involving person-to-person transactions — be contingent on background checks. But Democrats applauded the governor’s stance. “He made some risky points,” said Rep. Tracy Kraft-Tharp, D-Arvada. “He wasn’t afraid to jump into that.” Gun control, one of many issues that legislators are expected to take up over the next five months of the session, was just one area that Hickenlooper addressed. Economic matters, civil unions and, of course, regulating the marijuana industry were also touched on during his 40-minute remarks.
Capitol
Common ground sought
Taking on the issue of gun violence is a State continues on Page 10
Air Force Academy Cadet 1st Class Harvey White III escorts retired Col. Fitzroy “Buck” Newsum, shown here, and other Tuskegee Airmen during their visit to the academy in Colorado Springs in 2009. Newsum died Jan. 5 at the age of 94 at a nursing facility in Centennial. Courtesy photo by Staff Sgt. Don Branum Newsum graduated as a multi-engine pilot in December 1943 and was assigned to the 477th Bombardment Group, the first all-black multi-engine group in the Army Air Forces. Newsum’s distinguished career in the military spanned more than 30 years, three wars and a myriad of cultural changes, but despite the adversity and challenges, he remained grateful for the opportunity to have served. He was awarded three Air Medals, two Air Force Commendation Medals and the Meritorious Service Award. After retiring from the Air Force, Newsum worked as a public relations manager at Martin Marietta in Denver. He was a founding member of the lo-
cal Hubert L. “Hooks” Jones chapter of the national Tuskegee Airmen. In 1989, he received the Noel F. Parish Award for outstanding achievement on behalf of Tuskegee Airmen Inc. In 1991, he was inducted into the Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame. Along with other surviving Tuskegee Airmen, Newsum was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President George W. Bush in Washington in 2007. Newsum died Jan. 5 at a nursing facility in Centennial. He was 94. He was buried with full military honors Jan. 14 at Fort Logan National Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be sent to the Tuskegee Airmen Scholarship Foundation, P.O. Box 83395, Los Angeles, CA 90045.
Gov. John Hickenlooper gives his State of the State address Jan. 10 to a joint session of the Colorado General Assembly. Photo by Courtney Kuhlen
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