OBITUARIES

from Commerce City Sentinel Express 121522

CLASSIFIEDS

with how funds from the SolTribe tragedy and others have been handled, high administrative fees, and the inability to have much say in where the funds go. We are not bad-mouthing the CHF – any donation is a good donation!” she wrote in the GoFundMe description.

On Dec. 6, the Colorado Healing Fund, or CHF, announced that it secured underwriting support to cover the majority of expenses for administration of the fund for Club Q victims. In the announcement, CHF said this means the $1.9 million raised to date and all future funds raised for Club Q will be dedicated entirely to victim assistance.

For Faith, it’s all about keeping the victims in mind even during an emotional and trying time she’s experienced through this fundraiser.

“It’s heavy. It’s a lot of responsibility to a lot of people, and it has to be done the proper way. And so it’s been ... it’s been stressful, but I’m not dead and I’m not shot. So it’s really nothing in comparison to what, what those people are going through,” Faith explained.

The Good Judy Garage fundraiser is still open in hopes it continues to grow after receiving advice from survivors of other mass shootings to keep it open as long as possible to raise more money. People can donate through the GoFundMe or by going through the National Compassion Fund site. All of the money goes to the same place with the same intention —to help the victims.

Faith’s message to those who want to support: “Just keep sharing it and hopefully we can continue to grow it so that there’s more for the victims at the end of it.”

This story is from Rocky Mountain PBS, a nonprofit public broadcaster providing community stories across Colorado over the air and online. Used by permission. For more, and to support Rocky Mountain PBS, visit rmpbs.org.

BEST

siblings in the headwaters — think Flaming Gorge and Blue Mesa—keep dropping in water levels.

“Some hydrologists are saying that Hoover and Glen Canyon could get below (minimum power pool) by 2026 or 2027, and that takes 8 to 9 gigawatt-hours out of the wholesale market,” said John Gavan, a PUC commissioner.

Utilities such as Xcel Energy mostly have their own generating assets and also contracts for firm deliveries through powerpurchase agreements. But a growing number of utilities are buying growing quantities of power from the wholesale power market. This assumes available power that is usually there but not guaranteed.

This concerns Gavan. With Colorado’s two investor-owned utilities and with Tri-State, Colorado can look over their shoulders about reliability. It lacks that oversight of municipal utilities and Colorado’s four independent. Another cooperative, United Power, the second’s largest, also has vowed to become independent.

Guzman Energy and Crossover Capital have emerged as private — and unregulated — suppliers.

Gavan suggested that legislation being readied may attempt to impose oversight of this growing component of the electrical market.

Another element of this story is the coming demand for electricity for transportation and to replace fossil fuel combustion in buildings. Eric Blank, the PUC chair, estimated that beneficial electrification could grow demand for electricity by 30%.

The takeaway here is that you can expect more wariness as we move forward about avoiding missteps. Nobody I know argues that shutting down coal plants is a mistake. They’re horribly polluting and the power has become expensive. But neither is the precise path forward altogether clear.

Allen Best tracks the energy and water transitions in Colorado and beyond at BigPivots.com.