Commerce City Sentinel Express 072723

How to stay safe on Colorado’s trails and waters in a wet year

How Coloradans can save water at home

BY SHANNON MULLANE THE COLORADO SUN

OK, Coloradans, let’s clear the shampoo out of our eyes: Your shower water is likely connected to the Colorado River water supply crisis. But can you really help by conserving water at home?

In recent years, two decades of drought and prolonged overuse have brought the Colorado River Basin’s largest storage reservoirs to the brink of collapse. e crisis is reaching Coloradans’ lives in the form of summer lawn watering restrictions, higher utility bills and even a shortage of Sriracha. Some cities have bought agricultural water rights for more municipal water, and people with junior water rights often have their water supply cut in dry years.

Parks agency urges checking trail conditions, wearing life jackets on water

BY ELLIS ARNOLD

After a strong winter and wet spring, the statewide snow runo owing into Colorado rivers, streams and lakes is higher than usual this year — and with large dumps of rainfall along the Front Range, that means outdoor recreators might encounter conditions they aren’t used to seeing.

With high water on rivers this year,

as of late June, there have already been 12 swift-water-related fatalities in Colorado, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

“ is year’s river ows are more dangerous compared to last year,” Michael Haskins, a swift-water investigator, said in a news release.

“We strongly encourage people to check river conditions before you head out, and if you arrive and see high and fast water conditions you don’t know how to navigate or feel unsure about, please don’t risk getting hurt and the need for a river rescue,” Haskins added.

Last year, the majority of fatalities occurred because people did not wear a life jacket — and the state

parks agency urges using that and other precautions to stay safe.

Meanwhile, trails have also seen impacts from the wet weather. Heavy rainfall destroyed all bridge crossings over the Cherry Creek in Castlewood Canyon State Park in Douglas County, a June news release from the parks agency said.

Here’s a look at how to stay safe when you’re recreating outdoors — whether on land or water.

Staying safe on trails

Standing water on trails is one potential hazard for bikers to watch out for.

Water experts say Colorado residents can help with the crisis, and they have plenty of tips to help the conservation-minded Coloradan start saving water at home. One drawback: In many cases, there’s no guarantee that in-home savings help re ll the system’s struggling reservoirs.

“It’s like, OK great, our city is now saving 10% of what it was using,” said Gregor MacGregor, a water law expert at the University of Colorado. “ e question is, what is your city going to do with that 10%? Are they going to leave it in the Colorado River Basin? Are they going to leave it in a reservoir for drought conditions? Or are they simply going to divide that savings out to build more and then use that savings on new development?”

People, along with a dog, recreate in the water.

COURTESY PHOTO

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BRIEFS

Deputy Investigated for Assault

On July 18, 2023, we were informed that an o -duty Adams County Deputy was involved in a disturbance at Walmart (7101 E. 128th Ave.). e ornton Police Department is currently investigating the incident.

Any criminal action or prosecution will be determined by the ornton Police Department and the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s O ce.

e Adams County Sheri ’s O ce takes all incidents involving our employees seriously and will fully cooperate with the ornton Police Department as they conduct their investigation. e Adams County Sheri ’s O ce will conduct our internal investigation after the ongoing criminal investigation to determine if internal policy violations occurred during the incident.

e deputy involved has been placed on restricted duty.

Farm to Market tickets on sale

Tickets for Farm to Table, a fundraising event for the Platte Valley Medical Foundation scheduled for Aug. 17 or on sale now.

e Foundation’s biennial fundraising campaign will bene t women’s health services to help women connect with the care they need throughout their adult years and to support area women who do not always prioritize their own health needs. e foundation hopes to raise $500,000 in the campaign cycle. ey conduct multiple fundraising e orts annually with Farm to Table as the largest event.

Farm to Table will be at 6 p.m. Aug. 17 on the hospital campus. Platte Valley Medical Center’s Chef Mike Anderson uses produce donated by area farmers to create a gourmet meal for about 450 guests.

e event garners so much support that it often sells out long before the date. is year, Muñoz reserved a block of tickets that are available to the public for $75 each. ey are available at https://ftt2023.cbo.io.

Commerce City Music in the Park Commerce City’s free summer concert series moves to Pioneer Park, 5950 Holly St., from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. July 27 featuring Chicano Heat. Enjoy this family-friendly event with performances from local bands and fun activities and face painting for kids. Don’t forget to grab a bite to eat from a variety of food trucks and take home a swag bag lled with information from the city, local nonpro ts and service providers. Learn more at c3gov.com/MusicIn ePark

Platte Valley Medical Center earns recognition for breastfeeding program

Platte Valley Medical Center is one of 45 hospitals recognized by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment for e orts to promote breastfeeding and o er healthier food and beverage options through the Colorado Healthy Hospital Compact and Colorado BabyFriendly Hospital Collaborative. e initiatives are part of the state’s work to promote healthy eating and active living to reduce rates of death and disease from chronic illness among Coloradans.

Platte Valley was recognized at the Gold Level for the Healthy Hospital

Compact. Learn more about the Colorado Healthy Hospital Compact and the Colorado Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative at cdphe.colorado.gov/ colorado-healthy-hospital-compact and at BreastfeedColorado.com.

A Stroll in the Garden for CASA

e Court Appointed Special Advocate program, or CASA, for the 11th Judicial District is promoting one of its major fundraisers now scheduled for September.

CASA is inviting supporters to come enjoy a Stroll in the Garden at this year’s Indulge for CASA Gala from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Sept. 13 at Denver’s Balistreri Vineyards, 1946 E 66th Ave.

is Garden Party will be full of delicious food and drinks, fantastic auction prizes, exciting entertainment, and more! Indulge for CASA is presented by the Kenneth & Myra Monfort Charitable Foundation.

CASA’s mission is to provide courtappointed volunteer advocacy for children and youth from the child welfare system so every child can be safe, have a permanent home, and have the opportunity to thrive.

Work Options FREE Culinary Training Program

e Adams County Human Services Department is partnering with local nonpro t Work Options to provide a free culinary training program for residents.

Program participants train with professional chefs over a six-week course and earn certi cations and up to $400 per month. Work Options also o ers food truck internships.

In addition to the training program, Work Options provides the Human Services Center 11860 Pecos St., Westminster, with a full menu of breakfast and lunch options including breakfast burritos, pastries, burgers, pizza, daily specials, and more in the Mountain View Café. e café is located on the third oor of HSC. Learn more about the program at workoptions.org.

GOCO $350K grant goes to the High Line Canal preservation work

E orts to protect the High Line Canal as a regional open space picked up a $350,000 grant from Great Outdoors Colorado.

e grant is part of GOCO’s Land Acquisition program, which supports urban and rural landscape, waterway, and habitat protection priorities and improves access to the outdoors.

High Line Canal is a 71-mile, 860-acre corridor provides valuable recreation access for the Denvermetro region. It winds through some of its most diverse communities, connecting neighbors to schools, community centers, and more than 8,000 acres of parks and open spaces. e canal spans communities in Denver, Douglas, Adams, and Arapahoe Counties, passing through a diversity of Front Range ecosystems along the way.

e High Line Canal is in a time of transition as its owner, Denver Water, reduces its reliance on the Canal for irrigation delivery. e High Line Canal Conservancy is planning for its future as a recreational, ecological, historical, and stormwater resource.

Clouds part for Brighton BBQ

Brighton residents gathered in Carmichael Park July 20 to celebrate the city’s birthday with an annual barbecue, despite an early rainstorm that wrapped just as the celebration began and dark clouds that threatened more.

Brighton hosts the barbecue each year to celebrate the city’s founding and distribute information about city services and a free dinner. Students in the city’s Young Entreprenuer program also worked booths to sell their wares.

Rebecca Orenelas distributes bags of food to her family July 20 at Brighton’s annual barbecue July 20 at Carmichael Park. The city provided free dinners, with a choice of chicken or pork sandwiches.

PHOTOS BY SCOTT TAYLOR

Brighton City Councilor Peter Padilla enjoys a laugh with former Councilor Tim Watts and City Manager Michael Martinez during the city’s annual BBQ July 20 at Carmichael Park.

Crowds meander along a line of city information booths July 20 at Carmichael Park during Brighton’s annual BBQ celebration.

Erin Nap and daughters Reagan and Beatrix enjoy their meals July 20 July 20 at Brighton’s annual barbecue at Carmichael Park before the live music got started.

Tom Espinosa readies to catch a pass thrown by his son Isaac July 20 at Carmichael Park during Brighton’s annual BBQ.

Forbidding clouds and a quick rainstorm greeted the opening of Brighton’s annual BBQ July 20 at Carmichael Park but the skies stayed clear for most of the celebration.

Front Range inches closer to banning gas-powered mowers

BY MICHAEL BOOTH THE COLORADO SUN

State air pollution o cials are likely to vote by the end of the year on a 2025 ban on the sale of push or hand-held, gasoline-powered lawn equipment in nine Front Range counties with ozone problems, after a key regional advisory council recommended the bar as an e ective strategy.

e Regional Air Quality Council’s policy recommendation also wants to ban institutions like schools or parks from using existing handheld gas equipment in the summer months starting in 2025, and a summer ban for all commercial landscapers beginning in 2026.

e bans would not be statewide, but would cover all the counties where the EPA says air pollution exceeds ozone attainment standards and threatens the lung and heart health of millions of residents. e ban would a ect sales and use in Denver, Douglas, Arapahoe, Je erson, Adams, Broom eld, Boulder, Weld and the non-mountainous portions of Larimer counties, if approved by the state Air Quality Control Commission after deliberations this fall.

Landscape companies objected to the costs of equipment changeovers, the need to train workers, and schedule changes required by battery charging times or resup-

ply, saying the bans could hurt an industry where Latino and other minority ownership is strong.  Environmental groups that have been pushing the state to pass sharper restrictions on ozone-causing emissions lauded the RAQC’s recommendation as a great place to start. Small lawn equipment engines burn much dirtier than modern cars, for example, and contribute an inordinate share of Front Range ozone, said Kirsten Schatz,

an air pollution specialist with the nonpro t consumer group CoPIRG.

“It’s going to accelerate the shift away from the dirtiest gas-powered equipment out there,” Schatz said. “And that’s really important because we know that these tools produce a shocking amount of pollution, and it contributes to asthma and other serious health issues. So freezing them out is one critical way that we as a community can tackle our dirty CoPIRG and other groups say that in the smaller push mower and hand-held blower or trimmer categories, highly rated battery models are now widely available that are comparable in price to many gas models, especially when available local government subsidies are factored in. Battery-powered models are not yet widely available in the lawn tractor and other large categories, thus the RAQC’s focus on bans of sales and use of equipment with less than 25 horsepower ratings.

e RAQC’s recommendation, which may rst be heard by the AQCC in August, would ban the sale of new gas-powered smaller equipment in the nine-county nonattainment area on Jan. 1, 2025. It would also ban the summertime use of existing gas-powered smaller equipment by institutions or “public entities,” and the private contractors they use, starting June 1, 2025, in the same nonattainment area.

And, ban commercial entities from using existing smaller gas-powered equipment during summer months starting June 1, 2026.

All of the restrictions apply to internal combustion engines smaller than 25 horsepower. ere are exemptions built into the proposal that the RAQC expects the state will honor, including allowing institutional use to prepare for or clean up from emergencies, or for re mitigation.

e EPA in 2008 set national ozone health limits of 75 parts per billion, then revised it further downward in 2015 to 70 ppb. Colorado’s most populous counties have been violating those standards for years, and after some gains have recently moved again in the wrong direction.

Colorado air pollution monitoring o cials have said gas lawn and garden equipment contributes 2.5 ppb to that total on an average day. (Front Range monitors in recent summers have frequently registered daily highs 80 ppb and above.)

Large portions are also blown in from out of state, or created by emissions from oil and gas production — facing multiple rounds of new controls — and vehicles, where rules have been passed to encourage transition to clean electric power.

KOONTZ

Downtown Denver under hazy air seen on Thursday, April 21, 2022.

PHOTO BY HUGH CAREY / THE COLORADO SUN

Howard “Howie” Koontz of Brighton passed away June 6, 2023. For full obituary and funeral service details, please see https://obituaries.neptunesociety.com

Howard M Koontz April 10, 1935 - June 8, 2023

“Check trail conditions before you go to be sure conditions are safe,” said Travis Duncan, a spokesperson with Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

You can visit trails.colorado.gov to access the state’s COTREX map system, or download the app, to locate trail closures.

(It may also be helpful to check local government websites for trail closures. For instance, Castle Rock and Je erson County list closures at tinyurl.com/CastleRockTrails and tinyurl.com/Je coParksTrails.)

Trail users should also be mindful of erosion, the natural process by which rock and soil are worn away by wind, water and tra c.

“Left unchecked, erosion can destroy trails and damage the environment,” Duncan said. “Trail erosion is accelerated by a combination of trail users, gravity and water.”

When walkers and runners encounter standing water on a trail, recommendations can vary.

“Every situation is di erent,” Dun-

MOWERS

Compared to the other portions of the 70 ppb standard that Colorado has the power to control, lawn and garden equipment now stands out as an attractive target.

Air quality o cials say the staggered timing of the proposal will allow manufacturers time to develop larger electric-powered lawn equipment to satisfy commercial and institutional demands, and for

can said. “In many instances, we’d prefer folks not hike when conditions are bad on a given trail. In most cases, going through the water is the best option and will prevent further erosion to the trail.”

Staying safe in water

Even the most experienced outdoor enthusiasts can become victims to deceptively strong currents, cold water temperatures and unexpected changes in depth, according to the state parks agency.

In 2022, Colorado experienced a low- ow snow runo year, but it was still what the parks agency called the deadliest year in Colorado waters, with the majority of water-related deaths occurring in lakes and reservoirs.

( e parks agency clari ed to Colorado Community Media that it is keeping an uno cial tally. Said Duncan: “ ere is no statewide authority on water-related deaths in Colorado, though CPW has been tracking them in recent years ... CPW handles investigations on properties we manage and often gets asked to assist in searching for victims or evidence in other jurisdictions. But CPW is not the overarching authority on water-

homeowners and small businesses to use subsidies to change over their equipment.

Still, the Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado asked the RAQC to consider its moves carefully, warning of potential harm to what it calls a $3 billion industry across the state.

“Unlike a homeowner that uses an electric powered leaf blower or mower for less than an hour, in a given week, the landscape industry is operating commercially using this equipment daily, under rigorous conditions and for long

related deaths for the entire state.”)

In 2022, there were 42 water-related fatalities in Colorado, which was up from 22 in 2021, and 34 in 2020, according to the agency.

“In 2022, the majority of fatalities occurred from people swimming, paddle boarding, kayaking or using an in atable of some kind, and the vast majority were not wearing a life jacket,” the agency said in a news release. “CPW wants to remind the public that paddle boards and kayaks are considered vessels, and life jacket requirements apply.”

e parks agency also recommends all boaters and passengers wear a life jacket while on the water.

“Regardless of your age or experience level, the data shows that life jackets save lives,” Grant Brown, boating safety program manager for the parks agency, said in the release.

State parks sta also emphasized that river water exerts “a very powerful and constant force against any xed object.”

“Just six inches of water can knock a person o their feet. Water owing at seven miles per hour has the equivalent force per unit area as air blowing above 200 miles per hour,”

durations,” said a statement from the contractors submitted to the RAQC’s public hearing.

But RAQC and other o cials say that’s the same reason the controls must be extended to commercial operators: eir gas machines are running all day, every day, and contribute more to the ozone problem.

Since the homeowner equipment ban is a sales restriction, not a ban on using existing gas equipment, a metro Denver buyer could in theory drive to Colorado Springs outside the nonattainment area and buy a traditional gas mower.

the news release said.

Sta also pointed to the fact that although the air temperature may be hot, “the water is very cold.”

“Cold water can quickly create a drowning emergency,” the agency said in a release.

e agency also urged the public to boat sober, as “alcohol use is the leading contributing factor in recreational boating deaths.”

Duncan also explained the term “swift-water rescue,” which involves fast-moving water conditions.

“Although sometimes called ‘white water rescue,’ it applies to any rescue situation in an environment — rural or urban — with moving water, including one not normally submerged, such as a ooded drainage area,” Duncan said.

While “swift water” has no formal de nition in the rescue industry, according to Duncan, many industry professionals accept the following quali cations as standard:

• Water depth of over two feet

• Flow rate of, at minimum, one knot (1.15 miles per hour)

• Occurrence in a natural watercourse, ood control channel, or ood-a ected environment.

But, RAQC spokesperson David Sabados said, “we’re seeing retailers already transitioning to electric, so I don’t think there will be that many gas models that will be available in the greater region anyway.”

is story is from e Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. For more, and to support e Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun. com. e Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.

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Stimulants and survival Unhoused Coloradans turn to methamphetamine as a form of protection

BY ALISON BERG AND ZACH BEN-AMOTS ROCKY MOUNTAIN PBS

Stephen Copeland hardly knows life outside of prison.

He has spent 24 of his 65 years of life rotating through correctional facilities in the state. He can count them all and recite how long he stayed in each, and for what o ense.

Most recently, Copeland did 24 years in the Limon Correctional Facility for arson.

Now living on the street in Colorado Springs, Copeland does his best to stay out of trouble by cleaning up after himself, not using drugs in front of too many people and avoiding ghts. But life inside could have been worse, Copeland said. He spent his days lifting weights, socializing and trying to forget the grim realities of living inside a locked box with little to look forward to on the outside.

Other prisoners could be brutal, he said. Fights were frequent and Copeland said inmates often had to make rash decisions to protect themselves or others.

He survived as a member of the Aryan Brotherhood, a white supremacist gang. He was a member of Aryan Brotherhood long before prison, though Copeland said people have two choices when they’re incarcerated: join a gang or fall victim to a gang.

“I got more respect in prison than I did out here, by far,” Copeland said. “I knew all the fellows in the joint and they all knew me.”

Copeland was introduced to white supremacy as a teenager in Colorado Springs, where he grew up. He said the Aryan Brotherhood and its beliefs aren’t uncommon in Colorado’s second-largest city. On its surface, Colorado Springs is known for its proximity to Pikes Peak, military presence and its evangelical base. But the city has a dark underbelly, Copeland said. One of white supremacy, violence and heavy drug

usage.

Around the same time he was introduced to violent racism, Copeland also found methamphetamine. He snorted and ingested the drug for decades, then began smoking it after his most recent exit from prison, six years ago.

Copeland is part of a growing number of people experiencing homelessness who use methamphetimine to stay awake longer and protect their belongings. While opioids used to be responsible for the majority of overdose deaths, El Paso County data show meth is now to blame for the majority share of overdoses in the Colorado Springs area.

In the early years of his usage, sobriety was a nice idea, Copeland said. ough it may never have been a real possibility, it was always a goal in the distant background.

At 65, all of Copeland’s family members are dead, he has no close friends, and his days revolve around evading police and staying awake long enough to guard his belongings from other unhoused people who are seeking replacements after police take their belongings. Copeland also has Crohn’s disease, a digestive disease that makes eating di cult and often painful. He described the disease are-ups as “you’re starving but you can’t eat because you’ll get sick.”

Denim shorts that stop just above his kneecaps reveal sores up and down Copeland’s legs. ey are symptoms of the disease. He doesn’t wear a shirt, exposing more sores and bones on the upper half of his body covered by thin layers of skin.

On an April morning, he smokes a cigarette next to a group of other unhoused folks on a torn-up couch at the corner of Uintah and 19th Streets, just outside a shopping plaza with a grocery store, car wash and thrift store. e group discusses a path forward after police took an

acquaintance’s sleeping bag, tent and clothing. Copeland’s belongings survived the raid. He’s not sure how, but he’s grateful.

e day is standard for Copeland: try and force himself to eat some of what he bought with his monthly $60 in food stamps, cross his ngers that the police don’t target his belongings and smoke enough meth to make life a little more bearable.

For Copeland, life without meth sounds far worse than one with it.

“Right now, reality sucks and meth is an escape from reality,” Copeland said. “I used to have pretty good control over my use, but now I don’t care anymore.”

Steven Copeland holds up his pipe to show his primary method of using meth. Copeland says he uses more meth now than ever before, calling it an e ective painkiller for chronic health issues and also an escape from the challenges of homelessness.

“Meth: you can’t get away from it” ough Copeland has few people he considers “friends,” he says he knows most unhoused people in Colorado Springs, at least those within two miles of him.

“Pretty much all of them do meth,” Copeland said of others living outside. “ is is probably the meth capital of the United States. It’s everywhere. You can’t get away from it.”

Copeland said he has a few friends with indoor housing, and he occasionally exchanges drugs for a few-night’s stay. A gram of meth and an eighth of weed can buy him three nights, a few home-cooked meals and a shower. While living on the streets and forcing himself to eat dry noodles, a meal and shower are luxurious for Copeland.

e 2022 Point-in-Time Count, a survey administered annually in El Paso County measuring the county’s houseless population and factors contributing to homelessness, found 14% of unhoused people in Colorado Springs cite Substance use disorder as a reason for their homelessness.

PJ Higgins, the opioid prevention project manager for the Community Health Partnership, a Colorado Springs nonpro t that works on health equity issues, said that number doesn’t represent everyone who has substance use disorder. Most who have the disorder are not homeless, and many who are experiencing homelessness use substances but don’t cite their usage as a reason for their circumstances.

“Certainly, there’s a strong interaction between people who are homeless and substance use disorder,” Higgins said. “Substance Use Disorder does become a signi cant barrier to exiting homelessness.”

Homeless shelters do not allow drugs inside their facilities, and many pathways to long-term housing require sobriety as a prerequisite. ose who are ready to get sober immediately can choose

Steven Copeland has used meth for most of his life. He is part of a growing number of people experiencing homelessness in Colorado Springs who use methamphetimine to stay awake longer and protect their belongings.

COURTESY ROCKY MOUNTAIN PBS

UNHOUSED

rehabilitation facilities, but those are often expensive. And for many, sobriety is an ultimate goal, but the harsh realities of living outside make it feel impossible.

“When people don’t have access to care, often what happens is they turn to a substance in order to help navigate or self-medicate the condition they’re dealing with,” Higgins added. “ inking about Substance Use Disorder not as a series of bad choices but as the result of a need to manage trauma and its impacts on mental health and state of mind and ability to navigate the ups and downs in life in a way that’s healthy is a key component of understanding.”

Melissa Chizmar is the prevention services manager at Southern Colorado Health Network, where she oversees the safe needle and supplies exchange program.

Melissa Chizmar, prevention services manager at the Southern Colorado Health Network, said of the unhoused folks she works with, more than half use methamphetamine.

“Meth, because it’s a stimulant, is going to keep people awake,” Chizmar said. “I think that’s important when you think about how cold winter nights can be and the thefts you see during that time because of exposure, which can certainly be a reason why some people might use meth, to ensure they survive the night.”

Meth and heroin are the most used substances reported among the unhoused community, Chizmar said. Meth is the most common.

Many unhoused people, Chizmar explained, turn to meth and other substances to cope with trauma –either pre-existing trauma or trauma made worse by surviving harsh winters, encampment sweeps, and general hostility, realities that come alongside homelessness.

“We de nitely see here in Colorado Springs that addiction and homelessness often overlap,” Chizmar said. “Addiction doesn’t occur in a vacuum. It’s often a result of the environment.”

Death in small doses

Until about ve years ago, opioids accounted for the majority of drug overdoses, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

But according to data from the El Paso County Coroner’s O ce, methamphetamine accounted for 48 of the county’s 216 drug overdoses in 2022. A combination of meth and fentanyl came just behind with 42 deaths. Fentanyl alone accounted for 36 deaths.

Data provided by the El Paso County Coroner’s O ce

Drug-related accidental deaths also jumped by 55% between 2021 and 2022, according to the coroner’s data.

Fentanyl is a powerful opioid used in hospitals as a pain reliever. But the drug – which is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine – is found in much of the drug supply on the streets, often unbeknownst to the people buying and using illicit drugs. Because fentanyl is so potent, two mil-

ligrams is considered a lethal dose, according to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration.

Chizmar said many who died via fentanyl overdose often had no idea they were using the potent opioid to begin with. Many thought they were using meth alone without knowing their stimulant was laced with fentanyl. Chizmar described this scenario as extremely common.

“We know that so much supply is contaminated with fentanyl that it’s essentially turning people into polysubstance users, even if that isn’t something they wanted,” Chizmar said.

ough Chizmar and Higgins said fentanyl is di cult to avoid if a person is using illicit drugs, some unhoused folks said the powerful, often lethal opioid is banned from their communities.

“If anybody caught you with it over here, you could get beat up on sight,” said Skittles, a houseless man living on the west side of Colorado Springs. “ ere’s a certain look with heroin and a certain look with fentanyl. I can tell the di erence and fentanyl isn’t allowed.”

Skittles has lived on the streets, o and on, since he was about 12 years old. ere aren’t many drugs he hasn’t tried. ough fentanyl and heroin can look similar, Skittles said he can di erentiate easily from his decades of personal drug usage. He’s lost friends to fentanyl overdoses and recently revived a friend experiencing an overdose using naloxone, an overdose-reversing nasal spray.

“It was very scary because he didn’t even turn blue for a while. No warning, and by the time he turned blue, I’m sure he would have been dead and there would be no bringing him back if I didn’t know what to do,” Skittles said. “It doesn’t take much of that fentanyl sh— to kill somebody.”

e worst part, Skittles said, was the friend had no idea he was using fentanyl.

“It’s like playing Russian Roulette with ve bullets,” Skittles said. “It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen.”

After the friend was revived, Skittles told his friend that he needs to get fentanyl testing strips — available at most pharmacies and com-

munity health centers — as well as start carrying naloxone.

Along with clean supplies for drug use, Southern Colorado Health network provides a variety of health and hygiene products, as well as emergency supplies like naloxone in

“I was like, look, dude, you’re gonna die if this happens again,” Skittles recalled, clenching a feast and staring straight ahead. “ is s–

Skittles was an alcoholic for 20 years. He spends most days chasing benzodiazepines with a bottle of Kentucky Deluxe Whiskey. e combination helped him sleep through frosty winter nights and took his mind away from ashbacks of an abusive childhood.

He had enough one day.

“I just got tired of it, honestly,” Skittles said. “Just kind of happened.”

Losing friends to fentanyl and COVID-19 is common for those outside, added Jimbo, another unhoused person and one of Skittles’ friends.

“Being out here is backward,” Jimbo said. “Right is wrong and wrong is right. All your friends are dying o and you just have to keep going.”

Now, Skittles drinks alcohol on occasion and smokes cannabis to make it through his days.

He keeps a sandwich bag of weed in a jar of peanut butter. A halfripped-o label reveals the crystalized green nuggets. He points to cannabis as a lifesaver for him and those around him.

“I’ve seen a lot of hard s— and I know what it can do, and it isn’t good,” Skittles said.

“But these days, all I want to do is hurt a cheeseburger,” he adds, cracking a half-smile and nodding his head. “Loving and hurting a

cheeseburger. at’s it for me.”

Approaching solutions

Higgins and Chizmar said the waron-drugs methods of criminalizing addiction are ine ective and often cause more harm than good, as they drive people to use illicit substances without knowing what is actually in their supply.

“We know that recovery, over the long-term, is something that’s oriented around building community and connection and nding some way to feel ful lled and have direction,” Higgins said. “It’s di cult to do that in prison.”

Higgins said Colorado Springs needs more non-criminalization resources across the spectrum of usage, from sober living facilities, detoxi cation centers and simple harm reduction methods like naloxone and fentanyl test trip accessibility.

“I think there’s a lot more to treatment in terms of how we meet people where they are at,” Higgins said. “Mandated treatment tends to not be as successful as treatment that participated in on a voluntary basis.”

ough such programs have been criticized as “enabling” illicit drug usage, research does not support this. Chizmar also said clean needle access and places to safely dispose of needles is vital. Such access helps prevent the spread of diseases which can often be terminal.

“ is has been an incredibly important intervention because it’s extremely e ective and there’s over 30 years of research that demonstrates that,” Chizmar said. “It’s primarily a disease prevention model.”

is Rocky Mountain PBS story via e Associated Press’ Storyshare, of which Colorado Community Media is a member.

Steven Copeland holds up his pipe to show his primary method of using meth. Copeland says he uses more meth now than ever before, calling it an e ective painkiller for chronic health issues and also an escape from the challenges of homelessness. COURTESY ROCKY MOUNTAIN PBS

Early childhood teachers o ered state help

BY ANN SCHIMKE CHALKBEAT COLORADO

Colorado residents interested in early childhood and ve other high-demand careers can get training for free starting this fall at more than a dozen community colleges around the state.

It’s part of a new $40 million state program called Career Advance Colorado that’s intended to mint thousands of workers in shortage areas. Besides early childhood education, the program will cover tuition, course materials, and fees for up to two years of training for students studying education, construction, law enforcement, nursing, and re and forestry.

“All these elds are in need of great folks to ll jobs that are open today and

that are critical for our state’s success,” said Gov. Jared Polis in a recorded announcement about Career Advance.

e program is open to new students and those currently enrolled in one of the six target areas. For those already enrolled, the state will pay for their remaining coursework.

e o er of free training for prospective early childhood employees comes amid an ongoing shortage of child care and preschool teachers that’s led to shuttered classrooms at some centers. e need for quali ed sta has become even more pressing as Colorado prepares to launch a major expansion of tuition-free preschool in August. More than 31,000 4-year-olds are expected to participate.

Career Advance is the latest e ort

by state policymakers to beef up the anemic pipeline of early childhood teachers. In recent years, the state used COVID stimulus money to pay for two introductory early childhood classes for hundreds of college students. It also o ered scholarship and apprenticeship programs for students seeking early childhood credentials.

In Colorado, where the median preschool teacher wage is around $15.25 an hour, it’s hard to make a living in the early childhood eld. e cost of college classes or student loan debt makes the barrier to entry even higher.

State o cials and advocates recently have taken tentative steps towards addressing the eld’s abysmal pay. As part of an e ort to pay preschool teachers a living wage, the state pays

a higher per-student rate in the new universal preschool program than it pays public schools for each K-12 student. In addition, the state recently unveiled a report recommending a series of statewide early childhood salary scales that would signi cantly boost pay. For example, the suggested rate would be at least $22 an hour for early childhood teachers in metro Denver and some mountain communities. e salary scales are not binding for preschool and child care providers, but show what workers in di erent regions would need to earn to make a living wage.

Chalkbeat is a nonpro t news site covering educational change in public schools.

Recent school year saw little academic recovery, new study finds

BY MATT BARNUM CHALKBEAT

ere’s been little, if any, progress making up large learning gaps that have emerged since the onset of the pandemic, according to a new analysis of data from the testing group NWEA.

In the 2022-23 school year, students learned at a similar or slower rate compared to a typical pre-pandemic school year, the analysis found. is left intact the substantial learning losses, which have barely budged since the spring of 2021.

NWEA o ers only one data point based on a subset of American students, and more data from other exams will be needed to produce a clearer picture of academic progress during this last school year. Still, NWEA’s analysis is a concerning indication that the steep learning losses seen since the pandemic have proven di cult to ameliorate and could have lasting consequences for students and the country.

e results are “somber and sobering,” said NWEA researcher Karyn Lewis. “Whatever we’re doing, it’s not enough,” she said. “ e magnitude of the crisis is out of alignment with the scope and scale of the response and we need to do more.”

Since the onset of the COVID pandemic, NWEA, which develops and sells tests to schools, has been measur-

ing students’ progress on math and reading exams in grades three through eight. By the spring of 2021 — according to NWEA and a string of other tests — the typical student was far behind where they would normally be. Test score gaps by race and family income, already yawning, had grown in many cases. is coincided with dramatic disruptions outside and inside schools, including extended virtual instruction. Students were learning during that time — but much more slowly than usual.

By the end of the 2021-22 school year, NWEA o ered some reason for optimism. Gaps were still there, but students in many grades had started to slowly make up ground. Learning during the school year was back to normal, perhaps even a bit better than normal. State tests also indicated that students were starting to catch up.

But NWEA’s results from the most recent school year are more pessimistic. For reasons that aren’t clear, progress stalled out, even reversed. In most grades and subjects, students actually learned at a slightly slower rate than usual. Growth in middle school reading was particularly sluggish.

In no grade or subject was there evidence of substantial catch-up this year. Instead, the learning gap this spring was not much di erent than in the spring of 2021, according to NWEA. Students of all types remain

behind, but NWEA shows that Black and Hispanic students have been hurt somewhat more than white and Asian American students.

“ is is not what we were hoping to see and it’s not the message we want to be sharing at this time,” said Lewis. “But the data are what they are.”

Frustratingly, though, the data does not come with a clear explanation.

Schools were beset with challenges this past year: Chronic absenteeism remained at an alarmingly high level in many places. More teachers left the classroom than usual. Educators reported di culties managing students’ behavior and supporting their mental health.

But it’s not clear why there was more progress in the 2021-22 school year, which was also an unusually taxing year in many ways, according to teachers. Lewis said this was puzzling, but speculated that an initial burst of motivation upon returning to school buildings had zzled.

Learning loss recovery e orts have also run into hurdles. Tutoring has reached only a small subset of students. Few districts have extended the school day or year to guarantee all students more learning time.

But NWEA researchers cautioned that their data cannot speak directly to the e ectiveness or particular recovery e orts or to the federal COVID relief

money more generally. “We have no access to the counterfactual of what life would be like right now absent those funds — I think it would be much more dire,” said Lewis.

It’s also possible that some combination of out-of-school factors may be driving trends in student learning. Researchers have long noted that a complex array of variables outside of schools’ control matters a great deal for student learning.

What the NWEA study does suggest is that students are not on track to catch up to where they would have been if not for the pandemic. Lewis says the takeaway is that policymakers and schools simply aren’t doing enough. “If you give someone half a Tylenol for a migraine and expect them to feel better, that’s just not reality,” she said. NWEA’s analysis is based on data from millions of students in thousands of public schools. Outcomes may not be representative of all students or schools, though, since the exam’s administration is voluntary.

NWEA researchers say other data would be helpful to con rm the results. at could come soon: State test results from this year are beginning to emerge and other testing companies will be releasing their own data.

Chalkbeat is a nonpro t news site covering educational change in public schools.

ADAMS COUNTY PRESENTS

Grandstand events at the Adams County Fair

AUGUST 2

Priscilla Block with Frank Ray

Come hear one of Country Music’s rising stars as she performs from her debut album “Welcome to the Block Party,” including her hit “Just About Over You”.

She’ll be joined by Amazon Music USA “Artist to Watch,” Frank Ray, who is touring in support of his self-titled debut album.

Doors open at 7 p.m., show at 8 p.m. This is a free show.

AUGUST 3

Jordan Davis with Callista Clark and Professional Bull Riding

Kick start a night of Professional Bull Riding with a special performance by Louisianaborn Jordan Davis, fresh off the success of his number on Hot Country song “Buy Dirt”, a duet with Luke Bryan.

He’ll be joined onstage by Callista Clark, part of the Opry Nextstage’s class of 2022 who has been featured two years running in Bilboard’s annual “21 under 2” list.

Doors open at 5 p.m. Tickets $14 - $24

AUGUST 4

Demolition Derby Show at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 - $20

AUGUST 5

NSPA Truck Pull

Show at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 - $25

AUGUST 6

Charreada with La Autentica de Jerez

Adams County celebrates its Hispanic heritage with the annual Charreada Mexican rodeo followed by a performance by La Autentica de Jerez. Gates open at 4 p.m. events start at 5 p.m. Tickets are $10-75, children under two-years-old are free.

Entertainment Stage

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 2

• Kelsey Jo and the Wildcards, 4-5:30 p.m.

• The Junebugs, 6-8 p.m.

• Karaoke 8:30-11 p.m.

THURSDAY, AUG. 3

• DJ Pipkin, 6-7:30 p.m.

• The Junebugs, 7:30-8:30 p.m.

• Karaoke 9-11 p.m.

FRIDAY, AUG. 4

• The Junebugs, 6-7:30 p.m.

• Mz Vendetta, 8:30-9:30 p.m.

• Judgement Day, 10-11 p.m.

SATURDAY, AUG. 5

• Global Sound Studio, 4-6 p.m.

• The Junebugs, 8-9:30 p.m.

• Karaoke 9-midnight

SUNDAY, AUG. 6

• Mariachi Mass 10-11 a.m.

• Strolling Mariachi 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

• Bonna Pluma y Los Originales, noon-1:30 p.m.

• Tomas Cordova and Just Friends, 2:15-4 p.m.

• Chicano Heat, 5-7 p.m.

• Baby Bash, 8-9:30 p.m.

• House Music, 10:30 p.m. to midnight

THE ADAMS COUNTY FAIR FOOD GUIDE

From flip-flops to funnel cakes, visit the Exhibit Hall and Midway for your a wide variety of food vendors and food trucks, as well as a chance to get your shopping fix. Vendors who have signed up to come are listed below.

Bibi’s Eggrolls

Serving traditional Philippine style rice noodles with vegetables & chicken, egg rolls with ground beef, carrots, and bell peppers, BBQ grilled chicken or pork on a bamboo skewer, Filipino empanadas with ground beef, potatoes, peas, and raisins, and chicken adobo with soy sauce, lemon juice, ginger, and potatoes!

Capone’s Concessions

Stop by and enjoy a refreshing drink of fresh squeezed lemonade or cherry limeade or shaved ice to cool you down. Try the BBQ pulled pork sandwiches or corn on the cob. Got a sweet tooth? Try a strawberry kebab or frozen cheese cake. Don’t forget a chocolate covered jalapeno!

Cheese Love Grill

Say cheese! This food vendor is a must if you’re craving an all time classic! Come check out their menu for a classic grilled cheese and tomato bisque or a street taco inspired grilled cheese. This place is sure to leave a smile on your face.

DC Concessions

Switch it up with seafood! Find this vendor for fried catfish and shrimp and pair it with some sweet potato fries or twisted taters. They also serve a variety of appetizers from jalapeno poppers and fried pickles, to chili cheese fries and mozzarella sticks. Enjoy their hand-breaded chicken tenders and don’t forget to ask about the freshly squeezed lemonade.

Fry Factory

Fries are a fan favorite, but if you’re looking to take it up a notch make sure to stop at Fry Factory! They put a fun spin on the classics with their hatch green chili curly fires, pizza box nachos and smoked grilled kielbasa. Don’t forget to try their gourmet red velvet funnel cake or a classic crepe!

German Specialty

Want to try something out of the box? Germany Specialty serves an uber potato skillet, a variety of bratwursts, and even a Bayou Brat Alligator! They also have the classics covered with corn dogs, nachos, and fried candy bars.

Grammy’

s Goodies

Are you in the mood for homemade Italian food? Make sure to check out Grammy’s Goodies who was recently featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.(2020) for the BIGGEST slices and the best home made Italian food and baked goods. Stop by for a giant turkey leg or explore the rest of their menu,where you’ll find handmade mozzarella sticks, garlic knots, delicious pizza, cannolis, pasta dishes sandwiches and of course some sweet treats.

Kona Ice

Try FlavorWave Kona Ice Flavors Like: Tigers Blood, Lucky Lime, Blue Raspberry, Watermelon Wave, Wedding Cake, Strawberry’d Treasure, Blue Coconut, Monkey Business, Ninja Cherry, Pina Colada!

Polar Brothers

This Colorado based company has some unique Nitro made Ice Cream flavors you cannot miss! Flavors such as cookie monster, vermont maple, nutella oreo, and much more! Stop by and check them out!

Pork Hub

Stick a pork in it! Come by and enjoy a smoked pulledCome by and enjoy a smoked pulled pork sandwich, a pig in potato patch or just some delicious queso fries or Colorado green chili cheese fries!

Simply Pizza

This local coffee shop from Frederick is bringing superior quality to the Adams County Fair this year! Specializing in Coffee and Cold Brew, we also craft 15 additional hot and cold beverages (Cocoa, Teas, Lemonades, Italian Sodas, and Blended drinks). Keep it SIMPLE! This is a stop you will not want to miss! This food truck presents Neapolitan inspired wood fire pizza. Menu items include: Two Meats, Charred Garden, Queen, and of course a Plain & Simple option.

Spicy Catering

Make sure you stop by Spicy Catering and enjoy some of your favorite Mexican cuisine, including tacos, quesadillas, burritos and nachos. Do not miss Sunday for the special taco tortas menu!

Sugars Concessions

Satisfy your sweet tooth with any of the following carnival favorites: funnel cake, specialty cakes, or a fried cheese cake!

Tacos with Altitude

Come enjoy green chili cheese fries, Nachos, or street tacos. Top off your meal with a Auga Fresca or Mexican Coca Cola

Wild Wolf Kettle Corn

Pop by this vendor to release your inner wild wolf. With wildly delicious kettle corn, caramel corn and lemonade smashers, 13 flavors to choose from this is a stop that is hard to pass up

Yazmin

Get ready to heat things up! Satisfy that spicy craving with the chili mayo cheese corn, the chili and salt mango on a stick, or the mangoneadas mango sobert with chili and chamoy. Don’t worry though, if things get too hot you can cool down with their signature home-made fresh fruit water.

2023 Adams County Fair Guide

In Association with

First Aid

Information Booth

Lost Children

Sheriff

General Parking Lot

Handicapped-Accessible Parking Lot

Restrooms

Handicapped-Accessible Restrooms

Food & Beverages

Beer Shuttle & Golf Cart Loading/Unloading

Recycling

Stay Connected

/AdamsCountyFairCO

Supporting Sponsors

Contributing Sponsors

Friends of the Fair

EMERGENCIES & IMPORTANT INFORMATION

There will be first aid provided during the fair. First aid is located in the Red Cross Building. EMTs are also on golf carts roaming the fair each day.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Office provides security services during the fair. Their office is located in the Administration Building located just south of the Al Lesser Building.

The Brighton Fire Protection District's office during the fair is located just south of the Red Cross Building in the mobile command unit.

To receive text alerts about important changes and notices, please text "Join AdamsCoFair" (without quotes) to 31002 or scan the QR code below and click send.

LOST CHILDREN

To report a lost child or locate a lost child, please go to the Rampart Search and Rescue Booth located directly below the Water Tower

Although every ensure the accuracy of the information cannot be responsible for consequences resulting from omission or errors in the made herein. Attendees should consult with Fair management at adamscountyfair@adcogov.org to ascertain whether any modifications have been made since the publication of this material. In case of inclement weather, Fair management may choose to evacuate the grandstands, midway,

and/or barns for the safety of all patrons.

AdamsCountyFair

AdamsCountyFair

AdamsCountyFair.com

Times:

•Wednesday – 5 p.m. – 11 p.m.

•Thursday – 3 p.m. – 12 a.m.

•Friday – 3 p.m. – 12 a.m.

•Saturday – 12 p.m. – 12 a.m.

•Sunday – 12 p.m. – 12 a.m

Locations:

Prairie View High School

12909 E. 120th Ave., Henderson

Shuttles run approximately every 20

2023 ADAMS COUNTY FAIR ROYALTY

2023 Adams County Fair Queen, Tymberlynn Rose Weidemann

Tymblerynn Rose Weidemann is the 19-year-old daughter of Jayleen and Willie Weidemann. A proud Colorado native, Rose grew up in Brighton where she participated in many activities including FFA, 4-H, yearbook, and Link.

She graduated from Brighton high school in 2022 and is furthering her education at Colorado State University for her undergraduate. She is majoring in Agricultural Education along with a minor in Agricultural Literacy. The fair holds many wonderful adventures and memories for her. She is delighted to promote the fair and activities it holds. She hopes you will open the doors and join her and Elsie in their adventures August 2-6.

2023 Adams County Fair Ladyin-Waiting, Elsie Oswald

Elsie Oswald is the 18-year-old daughter of Paige and Chris Oswald. Elsie is a senior currently attending Brighton High School, where she is a Link Leader and President of the Brighton FFA chapter. Elsie has been in 4H for ten years and is President of the Pure Country 4H club. After graduating from Brighton High School this year, she will continue her education at Colorado State University, majoring

in Agricultural Business in pursuit of going to a chiropractic college to work on people and horses.

This is Elsie’s tenth year attending the fair, and she is thrilled to share the joy of the Adams County Fair with you. She is excited to promote the Fair and the 4H exhibitors, livestock, rides, food, and other activities that make the Adams County Fair great. She hopes you will join her and Rose at the Adams County Fair, the largest county fair in Colorado, this year from Aug. 2-6, 2023.

Sponsors

Rose and Elsie are proudly sponsored by:

• Constance Photography

• Cox Ranch Originals

• Greeley Hatworks

• Rocky Mountain Clothing Company

• Thollot Diamonds & Fine Jewlery

• United Power

The Adams County Fair Royalty Program Clinic will be announced in the fall. For more information on attending this event, please email Courtney Cox.

If you plan to compete for the 2023 title of Adams County Fair Ladyin-Waiting, this royalty clinic is mandatory. The 2023 competition will be held at the Regional Park Complex in the fall of 2022.

Past Fair Royalty 1950s

1950 Chloe Plass Weidenbach

1951 Gretchen Gilbert Wilson

1952 Betty Williams

1953 Yulene Banek

1954 Carma Jesiop Hale

1955 Ella Masters

1956 Sandy Crosby Davidson

1957 Bonnie Aschenbrenner Kanouse

1958 Revae Milligan - Miss Rodeo Colorado 1958

1959 Diane Newell

1960s

1960 Phillis Guthrie Webb

1961 Rosemary “Cookie” LarsonMiss Rodeo Colorado 1961

1962 Sandy Schwab Purdy

1963 Pat Strole

1964 Annette Carrvin Bowers

1965 Teri Reither Watson

1966 Janice Schwabb Miles

1967 Paula Klaumann Jones

1968 Georgia Dowd Haller

1969 Marilynne “Lynne” Hokr Redman

1970s

1970 Jodi Russell Pfersh

1971 Janet Snidow Jackson

1972 Linda Carter Larson

1973 Marla Myers Zuch

1974 Nancy Coufal Elrod

1975 Barbara Seitz Williams - Miss Rodeo Colorado 1978

1976 Pam Armstrong Whitlock

1977 Teri Bohlander Griffith Parkos

1978 Debbie Pech Ritch - Miss Rodeo Colorado 1979

1979 Jeri Cooper Hass

1980s

1980 Nancy Nott Bunjes – (also the mother of the 2006 Queen)

1981 Susan Berger Farner

1982 Margaret Keehn

1983 Penny Constable Anderson

1984 Sandie Chaney

1985 Duetta Allart

1988 Kelly Field

1989 Kim Kling Daley

1990s

1990 Heidi Carmack

1991 Colette Wilbanks Stoudt

1992 Tara Rumsey Weber

1993 Kelli Mohan Metz

1994 Sara Ocker

1995 Jodi Miller Stonner

2000s

2002 Amanda Milton

2003 Stacie Toft

2004 Bronwyn Schindler

2005 Alyse Scebbi Fieldgrove

2006 Alyssa Bunjes Baker – (the daughter of the 1980 queen)

2007 Chelyn Heideman Hart

2008 Sadie Sayler Nelson

2009 Randi Rae Fishler

2010s

2010 Sydnie Rask

2011 Courtney Cox

2012 Danielle McCormick

2013 Alexandra Nelms Holyoak

2014 Savanna Hamilton

2015 Lindsey Irby Bakes

2016 Aviendha Anemaet

2017 Jennifer Ann D’Epagnier

2018 Lindsey Burleson

2019 Racheal Lampo

2020s

2020/21 Mandy McCormick

2022: Kira Szulinski

2023 Adams County Fair Guide

SPREADING THE WORD ABOUT AGRICULTURE

BY BELEN WARD BWARD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Tymberlynn Rose Wiedemann said she grew up in the shadow of the Adams County fair and always had her eye on the fair royalty –although she wasn’t sure what they did.

“It wasn’t up until I was in high school, I was in the Future Farmers of America FFA Organization, which is an agriculture youth organization, so being part of that organization, we were around the fair lot. I actually got to talk to the fair queens and realized they are advocates for the agriculture industry,” Wiedemann said.

Now it’s her turn on the fair’s throne.

After a year as the 2022 fair’s Lady In Waiting, Wiedemann,19, was selected as the 2023 Adams County Fair Queen. “I graduated in 2022, and I’m so fortunate. I was able to come from Brighton High School and I get to represent my county; it’s wonderful,” Wiedemann said.

Wiedemann said as a Future Farmers of America member, they teach students about the agricultural industry but need to learn how to promote it and educate people.

“I realized this is a way to serve my community, and follow a passion in the agricultural industry,” Wiedemann said. “These women royalty state titleholders are not just a pretty face that represents the county. When you talk to these women, they are very intelligent. They know horsemanship, agriculture, rodeo and the fair they’re representing.”

Wiedemann said FFA, 4-H, and the fair for kids’ is essential.

“You don’t have to be in a local 4-H or in agriculture or come from the city,” she said. “You can I can sign up and it’s something that is really fun. My FFA department at high school not everyone was an agriculture kid and some grew up in the subdivision or apartments. So sitting in Ag class they realized they too can be a part of this industry.”

Wiedemann said the FFA classes at the high school taught kids how to start a small project or grow a garden, educating them about the industry without even realizing it.

“Even the kids that are not working members in the agricultural industry when someone ask them a question, they can tell them about growing and harvesting in a field,” Wiedemann said. “The programs are incredible. It not just for kids its regular everyday people that can sit in those classes and those

organizations and be involved in the work.”

Wiedemann is attending Colorado State University, majoring in Agricultural Education and minoring in Agricultural Literacy.

She chose to stay close to home because it allows her to give back to the organization.

“I learned so much value and what our industry really means. I hope I’m able to come back and grow the next generation of agriculturalists. A lot of times, industries can slowly die, and generations will leave if you have people that aren’t willing to fight for this organization industry that is slowly dying, and you need to have people that are knowledgeable about the industry and want to learn about it and work for it to last for the future,” Wiedemann said.

If she has her way, she’ll be involved in agriculture for the rest of her life.

“I hope to stay in the agriculture industry, whether it is classroom teaching, working in a position with agriculture, or work as legislator. I want to continue to be a voice for this industry representing the agriculture and Western industry in a public matter, talking to people. If I can continue to do that into adulthood, I would love that,” Wiedemann said.

4-H SHOWS AND COMPETITIONS

e average American family uses more than 300 gallons of water per day at home, and about 70% of that use is indoors. In the arid West, states have some of the highest per capita residential water use because of landscape irrigation, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

In Colorado, water users run through 5.43 million acre-feet of water per year. One acre-foot supports two families of four to ve people for one year.

Of that, 90%, or about 4.8 million acre-feet, is used by the agriculture industry. About 380,000 acre-feet is used in cities and towns, and of that, only about 46% goes to indoor water uses like toilets, faucets, laundry machines and showers.

at means that the impact of in-home water conservation is going to be limited in the grand scheme of water use in the Colorado River Basin, where the amount of water stored in reservoirs like Lake Powell and Lake Mead has declined dramatically.

“While the bulk of that water to help prevent Lake Powell from collapsing will come from agriculture, cities need to do their part,” said John Berggren, senior regional water policy analyst for Western Resource Advocates. “Municipalities’ water use matters. It’s small … but it matters.”

Home water use falls primarily into two categories: indoor and outdoor.

In Colorado, residents tend to use more water outdoors watering their lawns and gardens. at’s led to the rise of water-wise landscaping e orts, like those currently being showcased at the Denver Botanic Gardens.

Indoors, Colorado residents use about 60 gallons per capita each day. at leaves them with plenty of opportunities for conservation — and accidental waste.

In 2016, toilets were the main culprits of water use in homes nationwide, using 24% of household water, followed by showers, 20%; faucets, 19%; and washing machines, 17%, according to the EPA.

Americans use more than 1 trillion gallons of water each year just for showering. e average shower is eight minutes, which means it uses more than 16 gallons of water at 2.1 gallons per minute.

Letting your faucet run for ve minutes while washing dishes can waste 10 gallons of water. Each year, household leaks waste nearly 900 billion gallons of water nationwide, which is enough to supply water to 11 million homes. And about 50% of the water used outside is lost because of wind, evaporation and runo from ine cient irrigation systems, according to the EPA.

“We’re now in a world where feet matter in Lake Powell. Drops of water matter because we’re on a knife’s edge. When you’re in that tight of a spot, every single water use matters. No matter how small,” Berggren said. ere are a few simple ways to cut back on water use at home, including some Colorado-speci c programs.

Yes, taking shorter showers can decrease water use and cut back on your water bill. e EPA says that, if all 300 million people in the U.S. reduced their shower time by one minute each time, the country could save 170 billion gallons each year.

Turning o the tap while brushing your teeth can save 8 gallons of water per day, and only running the dishwasher when it’s full can save the average family about 320 gallons of water per year, according to the EPA.

But Berggren says rather than changing habits — which we all know can have a hit-or-miss success rate — he’d start with making purchases, like a more e cient shower xture.

e EPA says households can boost their water e ciency by 20% when residents switch to products with WaterSense labels. And a shower that lasts for ve minutes using a low- ow showerhead uses 12 gallons of water, according to a 2014 Colorado State University water use fact sheet.

Similar savings are possible with toilets: ose made before 1993 use 3.5 to 8 gallons per ush, while high e ciency toilets made after 1993 use 1.6 gallons per ush or less. at means a family of four can save 14,000 to 25,000 gallons per year by switching to more e cient toilets. ( e date of manufacture of most toilets is on the underside of the tank lid.)

Updating your washing machine can also make a big di erence. Conventional, top-loading washing machines use 35 to 50 gallons per load. Newer front-loading machines use 18 to 20 gallons per load, according to CSU.

For those who have updated their appliances and are careful about water use around the house, there’s a way to take at-home e ciency a step further: grey water reuse.

ese systems capture grey water — the runo from showers, bathroom sinks and laundry machines — and then use it for other purposes, like watering ornamental plants outside or ushing toilets, at the same location. is water can contain dirt, oil, greases, lint and possibly human pathogens, so don’t use it to drink or water your vegetables, experts say.

Laundry-to-landscape systems installed by homeowners, which capture washing machine water for outdoor irrigation, can cost as little as $350, said Jon Novick, the environmental administrator for the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment.

Whole house systems pipe water from showers and bathroom sinks through a treatment process and then send it to toilets to provide water for ushing. e system alone can cost $6,000 to $8,000, not including installation costs, so they’re more feasible for new houses or developments with multiple units, Novick said. ey’re often cost prohibitive for existing homes.

ese systems also come with a catch: Local governments need water rights that allow for reuse, which limits the adoption of grey water programs, and new installations are only legal if the local government has o cially approved grey water reuse. People with pre-existing systems should check with their local programs to see if their system can be grandfathered in.

As of July, six local governments have approved grey water reuse, including the city and county of Denver, Pitkin County, Fort Collins, Grand Junction and Golden.

ose who draw water from wells will need to check their permits. Exempt well permits, for example, do not allow reuse of indoor water for outdoor irrigation.

If a grey water system saves 25

gallons per day and is installed in 500,000 homes, it could save 14,000 acre-feet per year. at’s enough water to supply 28,000 homes, Novick said.

But the counties that have approved grey water ordinances have seen little uptake. As of June, Denver had approved 30 systems; Castle Rock, 29 systems; and Pitkin County, zero, according to each county’s program manager.

Whether water e ciency measures translate into conservation in the Colorado River Basin depends on factors ranging from where a resident lives to local water management decisions.

Water pulled from the Colorado River Basin on the Western Slope never returns to the basin. Front Range residents could use less water in the hope that more water could stay on the Western Slope, but there are no incentives for Front Range water providers to give up such a valuable resource because of water savings, said MacGregor, the water law expert at CU.

“Anyone who pockets (water) savings can make a ton of money by selling those savings to another water user,” he said. “ e question is, what is the mechanism for leaving water on the Western Slope through conservation?”

Even if a water e ciency program is enormously successful, cities and towns can still choose to use their water savings toward building new developments, rather than leaving them in reservoirs.

“ is is the really frustrating part of what’s happened in a lot of areas. It’s like, you look at it, and e ciency has increased per capita, use has decreased over time, but we’re still susceptible to drought,” MacGregor said. “It’s because we’re not actually banking those savings.”

If at-home water e ciency measures are adopted widely, and the

unused water is conserved for the future, those savings can help storage at local reservoirs and even help meet environmental and ecological needs by keeping more water in streams. It could even be used by downstream water rights holders who might have their supply cut o earlier in a dry year.

But there’s no guarantee that the water will reach the Colorado River’s main storage reservoirs, like Lake Powell on the Utah-Arizona border. at would require complicated, interstate legal and administrative procedures — an option being explored by Colorado.

Experts are adamant: Residents should still try to use water e ciently at home.

If Colorado residents are more efcient in their water use, then cities and towns could pull less water from rivers and streams on the front end, which leaves water in the stream for others. Landscapes could be better able to withstand wet and dry years with the addition of native plants. Treatment plants spend less money on treating water before releasing it, which could help with water bills, experts say.

“ is isn’t a situation that there’s going to be one thing that’s going to solve the problem. It’s more of a case of incremental change, so every little bit helps,” Novick said. “If you’re saving a gallon of water by taking a shorter shower, or two gallons of water — if everyone were to do that … all of that would add up. We have to think of this more holistically.”

is story is from e Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. For more, and to support e Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun.com. e Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.

Immigrant rights groups allege increased, arbitrary use of solitary confinement at ICE detention center in Aurora

BY TATIANA FLOWERS THE COLORADO SUN

ree immigrant rights organizations have led a complaint with the Department of Homeland Security demanding an investigation into what they say is the increased and arbitrary use of solitary con nement at the Denver Contract Detention Facility in Aurora.

e American Immigration Council, the National Immigration Project and the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network led the complaint on behalf of people who are currently in the detention center or were recently housed there.

e facility, owned and operated by GEO Group Inc., is where the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency holds people who have pending or recently concluded immigration cases. Most of the people held there are seeking asylum or protection from torture in their home countries and are typically awaiting hearings in immigration court, said Laura Lunn, director of advocacy and litigation at Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network.

e complaint states people with disabilities are disproportionately impacted by the overuse of solitary con nement at the facility. It alleges a pattern of placing people at risk of self-harm in isolation to in ict punishment and gain control rather than providing a safe environment and adequate medical and mental health care.

e complaint also alleges that GEO Group has failed to ensure professional conduct by its sta and that ICE and GEO Group have jeopardized the health and safety of all people detained there including those who have survived assault and fear violence.

e complaint, which includes interviews with eight people identied by pseudonyms, calls on the Department of Homeland Security to end a contract between ICE and GEO Group, release the people detained there and permanently close the

facility.

At a minimum, the complainants said, they are asking DHS to promptly investigate the use of solitary connement and the incidents reported in the complaint, and probe whether the facility is complying with ICE policies before recommending corrective actions for sta .

“Under no circumstances is assignment in a special management unit used in a retaliatory manner or without careful adherence to the performance-based national detention standards and the ICE noti cation procedures,” a GEO spokesman wrote in an email. “As a service provider to a federal agency, GEO is required to meet DHS policies and standards and plays no role in creating them.”

To ensure that violations described in the complaint don’t occur at other detention centers, the immigration groups are also asking ICE to end the use of solitary in all the facilities it contracts with and implement stricter measures of accountability for the locations that violate these obligations.

“ICE is responsible for the safety of detained individuals, which it has repeatedly demonstrated it cannot provide,” said Rebekah Wolf, senior policy counsel at the American Immigration Council.

“ e egregious use of solitary connement is detrimental to detained individuals’ mental and physical well-being,” she said. “ e misuse and overuse of solitary con nement leaves people in detention fearful to report safety concerns for fear of its punitive use, and without recourse to protect themselves.”

Steve Kotecki, a spokesman for the agency’s Denver eld o ce, said he would not comment on speci c allegations detailed in the complaint. ICE takes allegations of misconduct seriously and sta are required to abide by company policies that outline professional and ethical behavior, he said.

When a complaint is received, it is investigated, he said. ICE encourages

ling complaints about detention facilities by calling 888-351-4024, he added. ICE is committed to ensuring people in its custody live in safe and humane environments under appropriate conditions of con nement, Kotecki added.

However, growing research shows solitary con nement is ine ective, dangerous and inhumane and leads to new or worsening mental health conditions. In the worst cases, prolonged isolation also leads to selfharm and suicide.

“When Biden ran for o ce he pledged to end the use of solitary con nement in the criminal setting and he issued an executive order in May 2022, on this issue,” said Ann Garcia, a sta attorney at the National Immigration Project. “From our perspective, his urgency to end the use and overuse of solitary con nement in the criminal setting certainly should extend to civil immigration settings.”

e complaint in July follows a di erent one that was led in April 2022, which alleged racial discrimination, excessive force and retaliation against two Black immigrants housed at the ICE detention center in Aurora.

“We haven’t seen any response about any of the group complaints that we have led out of Aurora,” Lunn said.

Numerous complaints about medical and neglect and inadequate care for people held at GEO have been led with DHS, according to the complaint. Since 2012, three people detained have died at the Aurora facility. e deaths were avoidable and stemmed from poor medical care provided by GEO Group, the contractor providing health services, according to the complaint.

After Evalin-Ali Mandza died in 2012, an ICE contractor review found medical sta were unfamiliar with the organization’s chest pain protocol, that appropriate cardiac medicine was not given to Mandza while he was having a heart attack and that the long length of time it took

to get him to a hospital all may have contributed to his death, according to the complaint.

e ICE O ce of Professional Responsibility’s review of Kamyar Samimi’s death at the detention center in 2017 found medical sta did not fully comply with several of its standards, such as maintaining an adequate number of medical sta and providing an on-call doctor with whom nurses could consult. Sta also failed to seek emergency care for Samimi after the only full-time physician followed GEO policy and ordered that Samimi be cut o from the methadone he had been legally taking for 20 years. He was held in solitary con nement in the medical unit for the last 16 days of his life, according to the complaint.

On June 4, 2018, immigration organizations led a complaint about the Aurora facility’s failure to provide adequate medical and mental health care. And on June 11, 2019, the organizations led a supplement to the former complaint highlighting the experiences of ve additional people.

Melvin Calero Mendoza died at the Aurora facility on Oct. 13, 2022, from a pulmonary embolism that likely stemmed from a toe injury he sustained while playing soccer, which was left untreated for months.

Recent interviews with people who have been detained there con rm that the agency continues to fall short of meeting ICE detention standards, the complaint states.

“It is important to highlight that this is happening in the state of Colorado, a place that works diligently to provide a welcoming and hospitable refuge to immigrants, migrants, and refugees,” Lunn said. “ is complaint underscores that our local and state governments cannot prevent this type of harmful treatment as long as ICE operates in our communities.” e complaint alleges ICE is violating its 2011 Performance-Based National Detention Standards, which provides guidance on how to create a safe environment, including for survivors of assault or violence.

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©

TRIVIA

Answers

Solution

2. GEOGRAPHY: In which country is Mount Everest located?

3. LITERATURE: Which novel contains the line, “Big Brother is watching you”?

4. HISTORY: Who was the second president of the United States?

5. WEATHER: What is a cloud shaped like a ying saucer called?

6. TELEVISION: Which TV comedy features a character named Opie Taylor?

7. MOVIES: What is the name of Argus Filch’s cat in the “Harry Potter” series?

8. MATH: What is the only even prime number?

9. MEDICAL: What is the common name for the ailment called dysphonia?

10. ANIMAL KINGDOM: How many stages are in a butter y’s life cycle?

1. e Who.

2. Nepal.

3. “1984” by George Orwell.

4. John Adams.

5. A lenticular cloud.

6. “ e Andy Gri th Show.”

7. Mrs. Norris.

8. Two.

9. Hoarseness.

10. Four (egg, larva, pupa and adult).

(c) 2023 King Features Synd., Inc.

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CORPORATE STRUCTURE REORGANIZATION OF INTERMOUNTAIN HEALTH, SCL HEALTH, SCL HEALTH – FRONT RANGE, INC., AND INTEGRITY HEALTH

Intermountain Health hereby gives public notice of its proposed corporate structure reorganization of Intermountain Health, SCL Health, SCL Health - Front Range, Inc., and Integrity Health, which aims to

align the Intermountain Health system further to better provide high-quality, accessible, and affordable healthcare to more patients and communities. As part of the reorganization, SCL Health’s longstanding affiliate Integrity Health, which includes Platte Valley Medical Center, would be integrated as a secular division of the Intermountain Health system. Additionally, SCL Health - Front Range, Inc., which includes Lutheran Medical Center and Good Samaritan Medical Center, would be reorganized under the same secular division of the Intermountain Health system alongside Platte Valley Medical Center. The reorganization is intended to further the Intermountain Health system’s commitment to helping people live the healthiest lives possible and exceed their expectations for health. The parties further believe the reorganization will only enhance their ability to deliver clinical excellence, provide value-based care that improves lives, and continue to support and improve health in all communities, including rural and underserved ones, through value-based care, effective clinical integration, and innovative approaches.

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