Denver Herald 122922

Small drop unlikely to reverse skyrocketing home prices

Sellers, buyers play waiting game

BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Danielle and Stephan Storinsky “saw the writing on the wall.” It foretold how the housing market might change. So, earlier this year, the married couple sold their Arvada townhome.

ey timed it just right. ey capitalized before concerns about in ation took center stage. ey sold their home when the metro area was gripped by historically high housing prices.

ey bought their townhome about ve years ago for $285,000. ey sold for $521,000.

“ at part’s pretty nice because now we have a decent amount of money to put down on something,” Stephan Storinsky said.

But now, on the other side of cashing in, they nd themselves playing a waiting game. Even with the tidy pro t they hauled in, they are struggling to nd a home at a good value.  Houses on the market today “are just not worth the price that people are asking,” said Stephan Storinsky.

e couple are living with parents, constantly keeping their eyes open

for a good deal.

e couple isn’t alone. While the number of available metro area houses shot upward in a year, so has the number of days those homes are sitting on the market until they sell, according to the latest report by the Colorado Association of Realtors.

One sign of the cooling real estate market are For Sale signs outside homes, an indication realtors are no longer overwhelmed by prospective clients.

e shift comes as mortgage rates — the amount of interest people

pay on their home loans — ticked steadily upwards in recent months, making housing that’s been rising in price for the better part of a decade even costlier. e only light at the end of the tunnel lately could be a slight drop in interest rates. But a drop in home prices might not be in the cards, one metro-area realtor says.

“I think it’ll be a small increase throughout the rst half of the year and then potentially a small decrease the last half of the year,” said Andrew

in Denver who has rental properties in Je erson County.

But, overall, home prices are expected to keep going up, Abrams said.

As it is, the market is stagnating. Not only are there buyers like the Storinskys playing a waiting game, but many prospective sellers don’t want to leave behind the cheaper mortgage payments they clinched before, likely on mortgage loans with

Abrams, a real-estate broker

United Airlines provided a festive flight to the North Pole for Warren Village families on Dec. 17. Families boarded a decorated plane at DIA for the special flight — over Colorado Springs and back — before landing at United Airlines’ maintenance hangar, which was magically transformed into the North Pole. There, the families enjoyed games, treats and visits with Santa Claus and other holiday characters

COURTESY OF WARREN VILLAGE

Flu cases, hospitalizations on the rise

O cials push for vaccinations

BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Flu cases are on the rise, and according to state health o cials, hospitalizations are higher this year than they have been in the past 10 years. e surge has a variety of causes, including people not getting the u shot as consistently as in past years.

Dr. Ben Usatch, UCHealth ER director at Highlands Ranch Hospital, said COVID vaccinations brought on this onslaught of “mixed emotions” that resulted in other annual shots being a ected — u shots being one of them.

“ e bottom line is u vaccines are the best protection to get through the season,” Usatch said. “ ey do not hit the target right on the head, but they make a big di erence.”

In reality, said Dr. Reginald Washington, HealthOne chief medical o cer for Presbyterian/St. Luke’s Hospital and Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children, with all the u strains, the vaccine’s e ectiveness is between 50% and 70%. But even with those odds, people fare better through the season with the shot that has nothing to do with COVID.

“Flu vaccines are not 100% e ective,” Washington said, “they never have been. is year, it is 70% e ective. People are just tired of being told to get a vaccine. But it does need to be updated every year.”

According to the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention and Prevention (CDC), recent studies show that getting a u vaccination can reduce the risk of u illness between 40% and 60% during u season.

Even with the vaccination burnout, Colorado residents have already exceeded last year’s u-shot numbers, according to the Colorado Department of Health and Environment, with 1.68 million getting the u shot. Last year at the same time, 1.66 million were vaccinated. Still hospitalizations are increasing and health o cials say people are not getting the shot at rates they did before the COVID pandemic.

Brian Spencer, with the state health department, provided data showing that pre-pandemic numbers had higher rates of vaccinations in Colorado. During the 2018-19 u season, 1.9 million got the u shot. In 2019-20 just over 2.1 million got the annual shot.

“In some states, u cases and hospitalizations are at their highest marks since the H1N1 u pandemic back in 2009,” said Dr. Eric France, chief medical o cer of the state health department. “Flu vaccines are recommended for everyone aged 6 months and older, with rare exceptions. Flu vaccines are the best way to prevent spreading the u to people who are most at risk, including older adults, young children, people who are pregnant, and people with certain chronic health conditions.”

According to the state health department, it can take up to two weeks for the shot to be fully e ective, which means during holiday gatherings this month, the unvaccinated can spread

the u faster.

On a national level, the CDC reported at least 13 million have had the u already this year, with 120,000 hospitalized. ere are more than 7,300 deaths reported.

According to state health data, cases in Colorado include:

• ere were 306 people hospitalized with in uenza during the week ending Dec. 3, for a total of 952 people hospitalized with u since Oct. 2.

• ere have been 1,700 RSV-associated hospitalizations in the ve-county Denver metro area, which includes Adams, Arapahoe, Douglas, Je erson and Douglas counties, since Oct 1. e state health department recommends:

• Adults 65 years and older should get one of three speci c u vaccine types. If one of these three products is not available, people aged 65 years and older can get any other ageappropriate in uenza vaccine. People can talk to their doctors about which vaccine is best for them.

• Children younger than 9 years old who are either getting the u vaccine for the rst time or have only previously received one dose of the vaccine should get two doses of the vaccine. e second dose should be given at least 28 days after the rst dose.

• Pregnant women have more serious complications if they get the u. e u vaccine can be given in any trimester of pregnancy.

Medicare, Medicaid, CHP+, and most private health insurers cover the full cost of the u vaccine. Coloradans without health insurance can still get the u vaccine for free at certain health care providers. Call ahead or

Flu vaccinations still have not gone back to pre-pandemic numbers and cases and hospitalizations are increasing. SHUTTERSTOCK

schedule online with your local pharmacy or health care clinic to make an appointment for the u vaccine.

With the trifecta of COVID, RSV and u cases increasing, Dr. Sam Dominguez, the infectious disease specialist at Children’s Hospital Colorado, said children should not only get updated u vaccinations but should also have the COVID and chickenpox vaccinations.

With RSV and group A strep cases increasing, Dominguez advised parents that being fully vaccinated and keeping kids home when sick will help decrease illness this season.

Washington said besides vaccinations, practicing good hygiene in washing hands and getting tested for COVID, RSV and the u when symptoms are persistent is important.

Group A strep causing concerns in Denver metro area

Complicates trifecta of viruses

BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

With a trifecta of illnesses already hitting the Front Range hard with spikes in COVID, RSV and the u, state health o cials are now concerned with the increasing number

of group A strep cases in children.

Brian Spencer, with the Colorado Department of Health and Environment, said the state health department is closely monitoring the increase in pediatric hospitalizations caused by group A strep.

Group A strep is a bacteria that can cause many di erent infections. Group A strep infections most commonly cause sore throat, a mild and common condition that doctors say can be easily treated. While

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rare, group A strep infections may be severe and cause diseases like pneumonia, sepsis, toxic shock syndrome and necrotizing fasciitis.

“We are working with hospital partners in a coordinating role to ensure resources are available for those who need them,” Spencer said in the Dec. 15 news release.

According to the state health department, two school-age children with group A strep died in the Denver metro since Nov. 1.

e total number of invasive group A strep cases reported in Colorado among pediatric patients since Nov. 1 is now 11. Typically, Spencer said there are one or two cases reported per month in patients under 18 years old.

Local health o cials are concerned because kids and adults can get strep along with other viral respiratory illnesses like COVID, u

lower interest rates.

“Sellers are hesitant to sell at a lower price than their neighbors from last spring and leave their low interest rate behind, and buyers are afraid what the future will bring in terms of interest rates and home prices,” opined Kelly Moye, a Realtor in the Boulder and Broom eld area, in a statement.

A short break in price hikes

A deeper dive into the data shows that the median, or typical, price of a Denver area single-family home has seen a seven-month decline.

e price sat at $587,500 in November — still eye-catchingly high, but just a 1.3% increase from a year earlier, according to the Realtor association’s December report.

By contrast, in December 2021, the change in median home price was up a whopping 18.3% from a year earlier.

Something to keep in mind is that fall months typically see a slowdown in price growth and home sales each year. But the degree of the slowdown since March “has been more dramatic than normal seasonality, and I think that is dictated by interest rates,” Abrams said.

It’s a calculation that means big changes for families looking to buy homes. Take, for example, a $600,000 home with a 20% down payment.

If the mortgage interest rate sits at 6.5%, the family’s monthly mortgage

payment would be about $3,700, Abrams said. On the other hand, at the 3.5% rate locked in by buyers in years past, the mortgage monthly payment would be $2,800.

Feeling priced out

And so the Storinskys’ strategy to cash out while the market was at a high has come with a down side.

ey were “originally looking at around $650,000, but interest rates the way they are, we’re probably down into the max $600,000. But probably, more realistically, $550,000 to $575,000 is where we’ll end up,” Stephan Storinsky said.

e Storinskys are scouring the north and west metro area for a home – Lakewood, Arvada, Wheat Ridge and part of Westminster.

Danielle Storinsky, 31, a legal assistant, and Stephan Storinsky, 35, a utilities technician, said they’ve been more fortunate than many people in the market.

But the homes he and his wife have seen don’t seem worth it. e listed pictures of a place may “look great,” but in person leave something to be desired, he said.

“I’ve lived here my whole life, and I’ve seen what houses have sold for,” Stephan Storinsky said. “So for me, it’s just not worth it.”

“It’s hard to compete with people from out of state who come from California” and bring large sums of cash, he added. “Seems like you’re pricing the locals out of market.”

e Colorado Association of Realtors de nes the seven-county Denver metro area as Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broom eld, Denver, Douglas and Je erson counties. e

association’s latest report is based on November data.

Long-term price drop unlikely, Realtor says Abrams takes issue with predictions that raise the specter of a housing market crash.

“I disagree pretty strongly, and I think the practices that were done before the Great Recession are dramatically di erent than the market today,” Abrams said, adding that “the lending practices back then were just not nearly as strong.”

Before the Great Recession, banks

were giving loans to people they knew couldn’t keep up with them, Abrams said.

Another di erence: Fewer houses are on the market today, Abrams said.

In metro Denver, there were about 7,300 homes on the market as of Nov. 1, but in 2006, there were about 3 1/2 times more homes available, Abrams said.

ough it’s tough to predict the market amid concerns over in ation and interest rates, the metro Denver housing market could behave in a more stabilized way in 2023.

sign calls attention to a home for sale Dec. 5 in southeast Denver.

PHOTO BY ELLIS ARNOLD

For physical and mental health, woman finds success with ketamine

BY ALISON BERG, JEREMY MOORE ROCKY MOUNTAIN PBS

After a car crash nearly six years ago left her with bouts of chronic neck pain, anxiety and depression, Allison Foley felt as though she had exhausted all her treatment options. Nothing worked.

Various medications, talk therapy and numbing agents seemed to put a bandage over the underlying issues, but the pain always bubbled to the surface when initial dopamine hits wore o .

After years of frustration, Foley spoke with a friend in California who used ketamine to cope with similar issues. Foley heard Colorado was introducing a similar program o ering ketamine therapy and decided to give it a shot, feeling she had nothing to lose.

After three months of taking a small ketamine dose once a week at home, Foley said her life transformed.

“I was actually able to face the pain head-on and create a new narrative around it that’s helped me not only manage my chronic pain but accelerate my life to the next level,” Foley said. “I can’t say that ketamine has xed my chronic pain, but it’s given me a di erent lens to view my life.”

e United States Food and Drug Administration classi es ketamine as a Class III substance, meaning it is legal for medical purposes in all 50 states.

Several practitioners in the Denver area prescribe ketamine. Foley obtains her treatment throughWondermed LLC,a platform that provides ketamine doses and therapy services to remote patients. Foley takes her dose once a week at her

Denver home and meets with a clinician monthly to discuss progress. Because ketamine alters Foley’s mind, she takes it under the supervision of a close friend or family member, though she said she has never had any issues while under its in uence.

“ e experience is very calming,” Foley said. “It’s essentially like a warm hug.”

Foley said the ketamine helps her “step outside herself” and look at her anxious thoughts from an objective place, rather than being consumed by them.

“ ere’s a voice that can get louder or quieter depending on the day or depending on what I’m going through that can really disrupt my life,” Foley said. “ is treatment has given me the opportunity to allow my true inner healer to step up and have a dialogue with that negative voice.”

e experience lasts about an hour, and Foley meditates, journals and processes her di cult emotions and memories without being consumed by them.

“It allows you to go to a deeper level of your subconscious and eliminate the anxiety that comes with working on a deeper level of yourself,” Foley said.

Lauren Swanson, a physician’s assistant and lead clinician with Wondermed, said ketamine di ers from antidepressants and other psychedelic medications because it is fast-acting and grows new neural connections that change a person’s brain, allowing them to shift their perspective and cope with traumas or pain.

“You have these major shifts and that’s what sticks with you after the ketamine is gone,” Swanson said. “It’s molding that neuroplasticity to your bene t in a way that works for you.”

In addition to aiding mental health treatment, ketamine is also used as an anesthetic in hospital settings

and for animals. In larger doses, ketamine can tranquilize a person or immediately ease suicidal thoughts.

Ketamine has had recent national attention from a case in Colorado. Administered improperly, it can have fatal consequences. Earlier this year, an amended autopsyfound that Elijah McClain died because paramedics injected him with too large a dose of ketamine. McClain was put in a neck hold and injected with ketamine after being stopped by police in Aurora for “being suspicious.” McClain’s death resulted inlegislation that restrictedhow the drug can be used by rst responders.

e Mayo Clinic reportedthat ketamine can have negative interactions with dozens of other drugs, which is why the drug is recommended only to be taken with a prescription. Additionally, the clinic’s website states ketamine can produce unwanted side e ects, both during and after usage, which can include dizziness, fainting, seizures and unusual tiredness or weakness.

Still Swanson said those like Foley who are working with mental health diagnosis of anxiety and depression are nding the small, prescribed doses of ketamine work “remarkably well” for those patients.

Swanson said ketamine is one addition to a recent renaissance of psychedelic drugs used in mental health treatments. Colorado recently legalized psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic purposes. Swanson said psychedelics have become a popular choice when traditional selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have not worked or have come with a cost of too many side e ects.

is story is from Rocky Mountain PBS, a nonpro t 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.

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.

Annual bird count coming

Denver Audubon Center to hold event Jan. 1

BY SONYA ELLINGBOE SELLINGBOE@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

In earlier days, there was a tradition of hunting called “ e Side Hunt,” according to a story from the Nebraska Audubon Society. Hunters chose sides and went out into the woods to see who could shoot the largest number of furry and feathered creatures on that day. e hunter with the largest pile of dead creatures was the winner. But by the late 1800s, scientists were growing concerned about the declining bird population and ornithologist Frank M. Chapman suggested a new tradition: a Christmas bird census. “Let’s count the birds instead of shooting them,” he proposed.

On Christmas Day 1900, Chapman and 27 colleagues organized bird counts in 25 locations that ranged from the Canadian city of Toronto to Paci c Grove, California. Participants counted 18,500 birds, belonging to 90 species.

In the 101st count in 2000-2001, 52,471 participants in 1,823 locations in 17 countries reported, and by winter 2012-2013, 71,531 people were involved in 1,823 locations.

Fast-forward to today and the Christmas Bird Count has grown to over 75,000 participants annually in

the U.S., Canada and over 20 countries in the Western Hemisphere. More than 2,500 active Christmas Bird Counts take place in the U.S.  One hundred years have passed and researchers have used the information gathered to learn how changes in habitat have a ected bird populations, with discouraging data resulting in many locations, with many species ...

In addition to the U.S. bird counts, the event is held in Canada, the Paci c Islands, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. ( ere

are instructions for starting a new circle, but it must be done by Dec. 1 each year ... Counts can be done any day between Dec. 14 and Jan. 5.)

Some participants have simply reported on the feeders in their own back yards, while others have taken their binoculars out to visit a park or wild area, sometimes forti ed with a thermos of hot chocolate and a sandwich.

ere’s no cost to participate, but birders in a given area may register in advance and gather at a given location and perhaps pair up or go in

small groups to cover an area. Signing up in advance is necessary and a set area is designated in advance. A beginning birder may be paired with an experienced person.

e Denver Audubon count will be done on Jan. 1 and there is a list of gathering places within a 15-milediameter circle from the north city limits to Mississippi Avenue, west to Buckley Field and north to Rocky Mountain Arsenal.

e Denver Audubon website includes a page to register at any one location: Sand Creek and Commerce City, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Blu Lake, Sand Creek and West Aurora, 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.; south section of the South Platte River south to Conuence Park, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.; South Platte Central 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Buckley Space Force Base, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Cherry Creek State Park, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; Cherry Creek Trail-University Boulevard, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Denver Botanic Gardens and Washington Park, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.; north section of the South Platte River, 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.; southeast Denver north of Hampden Avenue, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.; City Park and Park Hill, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Upcoming programs at Denver Audubon also include: “Birding Insights: Wooed by Woodpeckers” from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Jan. 7 and “Birding Insights: Bluebirds of Colorado” from 10 a.m. to noon on Feb. 25, both at the Denver Audubon Center.

The handsome northern red-shafted flicker and associates found tasty snacks a few years ago in the old wood siding at the Audubon Society of Greater Denver’s Nature Center, which was once a ranch house.

COURTESY PHOTO

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VOICES

12 Denverites of 2022

December marks the close of another year. ese past months have brought some wonderful stories about your Denver neighbors. Here is a look back at 12 of the most memorable, beginning with last December.

December 2021

rough Denver Park Ranger Jessica Johnson, we learned about the fabled Eugene Field House in Washington Park and its namesake founder, a famous poet and journalist who lived from 1850 to 1895. tinyurl.com/CCM-EugeneFieldHouse

January

Gerard Rudofsky discussed his passion for Zaidy’s Deli & Bakery, a popular Jewish eatery that he ran for 35 years. He closed it in the fall of 2020 but it re-opened the following summer under new ownership. Instead of retiring, Rudofsky, 81 at the time we reported the story, stayed on as a consultant of sorts, a job that included greeting and interacting with patrons — something he particularly enjoys. tinyurl.com/CCM-Zaidys

February

Chereka and Fathima Dickerson lled us in on the Welton Street Café’s upcoming move. e family ownedand-operated restaurant has served

FROM THE EDITOR

Denver’s Five Points community since 1986. Operating as a takeout and catering business — as well as participating in a recent anksgiving food drive — fundraising e orts continue so the restaurant can re-open in a new space at 2883 Welton St. tinyurl.com/CCMWeltonStreetCafe

March

JK Costello told tales of volunteering as a Snow Buddy for one of his Denver neighbors. Snow Buddies shovel snow in the winter for older adults through the nonpro t, A Little Help. tinyurl.com/CCM-ALittleHelp

April

Andrea Malcomb, director of the Molly Brown House Museum, shared some insider stories about the late Titanic survivor, who famously hailed from Denver. tinyurl.com/CCM-MollyBrownHouseMuseum

May

Denverite Rachel Norkin invited everyone to roll around the city with the Denver Urban Skate Troop — known

as DUST. She founded the skating group in 2018. tinyurl.com/CCM-DUST

June

Teenager Layla Duong shared how golf helped her build inner strength, self-con dence and resilience. She became a junior coach with First TeeColorado Rocky Mountains, working directly with about 40 local young people as a mentor. tinyurl.com/CCM-FirstTee

July

e Colorado Youth Pipe Band invited us to a rehearsal after moving into a new space in Washington Park. Denver resident Neil Gillette formed the band in September 1989 with one goal: to provide a fun, nurturing place for youth.

tinyurl.com/CCM-ColoradoYouthPipeBand

August

We got to get to know Denver’s own Madison Manning, who represented Colorado in the 65th Distinguished Young Women National Finals. She became the rst local representative to place within the top eight of the overall competition and was the rst African American to represent the state.

tinyurl.com/CCM-MadisonManning

September

Rudy Jimenz-Diaz told us of the culinary achievements he accomplished thanks to the Youth Employment Academy. YEA is a nonpro t program of the Denver Housing Authority that helps underserved youth become successful in the workforce.

tinyurl.com/CCM-YouthEmploymentAcademy

October

Shanna B. Shelby, chief curator at the McNichols Civic Center Building in Denver, invited the community to experience the building’s three fall exhibits that highlight Navajo and Sioux artists and photographical depictions of Native American life. e exhibits are free and open to the public and run through Dec. 18.

tinyurl.com/CCM-NativeAmericanArt

November

We learned how Clara Ricciardi’s e orts helped make the Denver Art Museum more inviting and welcoming to all. Since the early 1990s, Ricciardi has served as the museum’s rst Spanish-language programs coordinator, providing bilingual tours and translating the museum’s bilingual gallery labels and way nding. She also helped implement the DAM’s annual Día del Niño celebration, which marked its 20th year this year.

tinyurl.com/CCM-bilingualDAM

Behind every door is opportunity for change

Last week I was speaking with the CEO of one of our customers and he shared with me that although he has been in his role for almost two years, he feels like every door he opens presents itself with an opportunity for improvement. And although he was referring to the areas of his business, it made we wonder if the rest of us maybe looked for doors to open where we could also make improvements personally or professionally.

is time of year, I have often written about goal setting and goal achievement in the past as New Year’s Eve in all its New Year’s resolution splendor calls for us to think about what we may want to change, do di erently, do better, or improve. Some take this time very seriously and have a well thought out and balanced plan for how they are going to enter the year, start strong and nish even stronger. Others take a more casual approach, maybe even waiting right up unto the clock strikes midnight before declaring their resolu-

WINNING WORDS

tion.

And then there are those of us who simply do not believe in the nonsense of New Year’s resolutions — if we are going to make changes and improvements, we just get it done on our time and when we are good and ready.

Let’s revisit what my customer shared about opening doors and nding opportunities to improve. What would it look like if we put some intentionality behind this year’s game plan for our lives, goal setting, or business planning? Looking at all doors, every area of our personal and professional life, to identify areas that if we made some level of improvement, that it would bring us greater joy, success, wealth, vitality, or help to get us in better shape physically, mentally, or spiritually. Maybe we start by looking to open

LINDA SHAPLEY Publisher

lshapley@coloradocommunitymedia.com

MICHAEL DE YOANNA Editor-in-Chief michael@coloradocommunitymedia.com

THELMA GRIMES South Metro Editor tgrimes@coloradocommunitymedia.com

those doors that we haven’t opened in a long time. As a matter of fact, these doors have remained locked for so long that we must give them a rm tug to pry them open. ese are those doors to opportunities that we have always known we should have opened long ago, but we made the decision to focus on those other areas of our lives to make changes to instead. Or our desire to change gave way to laziness, and then laziness gave way to procrastination, and procrastination eventually led to defeat.

Next, we can start with those doors of opportunities for change that we opened last year, last month, last week, or even yesterday and then for whatever reason we closed them. We had an inspiring or motivating moment, we opened the door, saw an area of life or work that we wanted to improve, and we may have even started before closing the door again. ese are the easiest doors to open and re-explore as they once had our attention and intention to want to change. Something we wanted to

CHRISTY STEADMAN Editor csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

LINDSAY NICOLETTI Operations/ Circulation Manager lnicoletti@coloradocommunitymedia.com

ERIN ADDENBROOKE Marketing Consultant eaddenbrooke@coloradocommunitymedia.com

start doing or maybe even something we wanted to stop doing, and those feelings are probably still in our hearts and top of mind.

e rst doors were those hard ones, the second doors were the easy ones, and now here are the most intriguing doors. ese are the doors of opportunity we have yet to think about. Behind these doors lie untapped potential, new and creative ideas, bold steps, and big goals. By opening these doors, we become energized with new direction, inspired by what we see, and motivated by what we might become along the route of this journey.

Are there doors that are rusted shut, needing to be pried open? Are there doors that could be opened quite easily getting you back on track? Are there doors waiting for you to open, those doors of opportunity that could lead you to bigger and brighter goals and change? I would love to hear your story at gotonor-

Columnists & Guest Commentaries

Columnist opinions are not necessarily those of the Herald-Dispatch.

We welcome letters to the editor. Please include your full name, address and the best number to reach you by telephone.

Email letters to letters@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Deadline Wed. for the following week’s paper.

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Christy Steadman

Michael Norton

Take part in lifetime learning

At the Douglas County Seniors’ Council Meeting on ursday, Feb. 2, you’ll be introduced to a program that anyone of a certain age will appreciate. It is called OLLI at DU, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at University of Denver. OLLI o ers an array of online and in-person classes that will spark your interest in a range of subject areas.

You’ll also get a sample course from OLLI at DU instructor and travel writer Bruce Caughey who has been teaching various courses for OLLI over the past four years. No matter how long you have lived in Colorado, Caughey will nd a way to surprise you with what he has learned during a lifetime of travel. Come enjoy a multimedia and slide show presentation entitled “Out of the Way Places in Colorado” and learn about the many other courses that OLLI at DU provides in a relaxed, non-competitive atmosphere.

OLLI at DU has been around for 26 years and is now taking registrations for its Winter Term that starts on Jan. 9 (https://portfolio.du.edu/ olli). Courses last four to eight weeks and are facilitated by experienced and passionate teachers. Try one of the following courses: Aging and Spirituality; Alfred Hitchcock movies; Economic Crashes and Crises; Historical Survey of Yellowstone National Park; New Yorker Essays from a Chaotic Decade (1960s); or Essential Jazz Recordings.

OLLI at DU recognizes that we need to maintain our social connections and we o er many ways to connect with those who have a similar interest in lifelong learning. We o er special blended learning sessions with excursions, as well as social and travel outings for our members.

Lifelong learning does have an impact and we should pay attention to the research that shows that staying cognitively active throughout life — via social engagement and intellec-

FROM PAGE 8

ton@gmail.com, and when we can place intentionality behind seeking opportunity behind all these doors, it really will be a better

tual stimulation — is linked to better health and overall quality of life. Learning with other like-minded adults has documented positive effects on wisdom, motivation, social interaction and general wellbeing. is impact was the inspiration behind the foundation of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute network (OLLI) back in 1977. OLLI at DU is part of a network of more than 150,000 students at 124 institutes across the U.S

OLLI at DU is proud to announce a partnership with Douglas County Libraries. Caughey’s weekly “Travel Sampler” will kick o at the Parker Library each week starting on Jan. 11. He will provide details on his journeys across Colorado, New Zealand, Greece and, most recently, the United Kingdom and Ireland. Stay tuned for information about ve other OLLI at DU classes to be held at various Douglas County Libraries during 2023.

Please plan to attend the meeting on ursday, Feb. 2 at the library in Castle Rock, 100 S Wilcox, from 10-11:30 am. e meeting is free and open to the public.

Bruce Caughey co-authored “ e Colorado Guide,” “Colorado’s Best” and “Crete: O the Beaten Track” and has written dozens of freelance projects in magazines and newspapers. He served as the communications director for Douglas County Schools before being named the executive director of CASE (Colorado Association of School Executives). He retired from that role in 2016 and has served as a consultant, writer, board member and most importantly, an instructor at OLLI at DU. portfolio.du.edu/olli

is column is hosted by the Seniors’ Council of Douglas County. For more information on meetings and activities, visit www.MyDougCo. Email us at dcseniorlife@douglas.co.us.

than good life.

C R O W S S U P D R O E L Z Z

An asylum-seeker charts her path in the Denver suburbs

BY ROBERT TANN COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA

Amid turmoil, a single mother strives to nd community in the Denver metro area after leaving hers behind.

In late 2018, a woman now raising her daughter near Denver made a life changing decision. She would leave her home country of Venezuela, a choice she did everything she could not to make.

e woman, a single mother in her mid40s, had been enjoying an ambitious life of public service with a career that began in the government’s transportation department when she was barely 19. She went on to become a nurse, a lawyer, a radio host and eventually to teach at the college level.

A threat on her life changed everything.

“I didn’t choose to leave until I had a gun pointed to my forehead,” she said, recounting the day military o cers broke into her home and threatened her life. “I fought hard not to try to move to Colorado. It was really, really hard.”

Having seen “so many injustices, so many inequalities” in her country, the woman charted a path of helping others. But the rise of Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela’s president since 2013, altered her trajectory. She viewed Maduro’s government as a brutal regime and spoke out against it, attending protests and using her platform as an educator to call attention to human rights abuses that have beendocumented by United Nations investigators.

at is how she became an asylum-seeker in Denver – one of thousands of immigrants in the area who’ve ed their home country, fearing for their safety.According to TRAC Immigration, a database of federal immigration data compiled and published by Syracuse University, Denver’s immigration court reviewed 2,875 applications for asylum between scal years 2018 and 2022.

As she currently awaits a court’s verdict on her asylum, which will determine her legal status in the United States, the single mom has found some security. In 2020, she and her daughter, who is middle school-aged, received temporary protected status — a form of legal protection which allows some immigrants to live and work legally in the U.S. but which must be renewed every two years. Venezuela isone of 15 countries designated for this protection by the federal government.

According to Violeta Chapin, clinical professor of law at the University of Colorado Law School, the protection is meant for those living in the U.S. facing situations that make it “impossible for individuals of that country to return back.” ose with this protection “have no immigration status, they’re just protected from removal for a temporary period of time,” Chapin said.

It means until a decision is made on her asylum case, the woman remains in a legal limbo, according to Chapin. If she is granted asylum, it a ords her more access to the social safety net along with greater work opportunities. If she is denied, she can still hold on to her temporary status and seek to renew it over the coming years, but she will not be recognized as an immigrant and could face deportation if her status is not renewed.

“ e United States immigration system is extraordinarily restrictive,” Chapin said. “It’s set up to make it very di cult to lawfully enter and live in the United States.”

‘Who was going to trust me?’ e days leading up to the woman’s departure from her home country were a desperate blur. As threats on her safety escalated, a colleague living in Denver reached out to help. Her son, in his mid20s, ed to Peru on foot, where he lives today.

Before leaving, the woman sold everything she owned, including her car, for about $1,300. With enough money in hand to ee, she ew to Denver with her daughter and another resident who was living in their former apartment complex.

Of the few possessions she brought with her was a binder full of her credentials. Degrees. Licences. Awards and honors.

With her career experiences, she had hoped to buoy her survival in America and secure a goodpaying job to support her family. But within days, doubt began to set in.

“Who was going to trust me,” she said. “I felt seen as an intruder, but I had so much to o er.” e colleague who o ered help found them an apartment to rent in the Denver suburbs. He put his name on the lease because she lacked the paperwork to get one on her own and charged her $900 for a deposit.

But after 10 days, they were all kicked out. Her colleague had become emotionally and mentally unstable, she said. e neighbor who had own to the U.S. with her decided it was time to part ways and has not been seen since, the single mom said.

It was December and the days were becoming shorter, darker, colder.

“It was the middle of the winter with a little kid, I didn’t know what to do,” the woman said. “I’m running out of money, but I cannot go back to Venezuela.”

Solace came when she turned to her daughter’s

school district, where she had enrolled her daughter in a middle school while they were housed. A parent of one of her daughter’s friends o ered them temporary stay at their home while she looked for a new apartment.

Public schools have been a crucial pillar of support for undocumented residents, according to Chapin. at’s thanks to a 1982 Supreme Court ruling, Plyer v. Dow, which prohibits public school districts from denying enrollment to the children of undocumented immigrants.

With a temporary roof and place to sleep, the single mom knocked on door after door wherever she saw an apartment available, worried that she was overstaying her welcome.

But deposits for every apartment she found were $1,000 or more, nearly eclipsing what money she had saved. And “everyone asked for papers,” she said, of which she only had a passport.

“What really surprised me, now looking back, is the lack of solidarity, the lack of empathy for people,” she said. “I was not here because I wanted to. I had to run away.”

Some relief came when a friend living in Miami sent the woman cash for a deposit. With it, she found a studio apartment outside Denver that a landlord allowed her to lease. ough rent was about $1,000 per month, she cut a deal with the

landlord for $200 o in exchange for her cleaning the outside of the building. Her deposit was $1,300. She said she couldn’t have been more grateful.  “All I had was my word, and he took it,” she said.

e woman had no access to safety net programs like SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, so she turned to a nearby church for nourishment. Whatever money she had left from the month would sometimes go to a toy for her young daughter. e woman said she was determined to provide whatever momentary escape she could for her.

But the fear of losing everything, of coming up a few dollars short for her rent, always loomed large for her. It still does.

‘Thousands, millions’ living in uncertainty

When the single mother applied for asylum in 2019, she could not a ord a lawyer to help with her case, though she has since found voluntary legal aid.

Chapin said U.S. immigration courts do not provide free public defenders for asylum-seekers. And whether an applicant has a lawyer or not can make a huge di erence in the outcome of their case, Chapin said, with most asylum cases being denied.

According to the Syracuse University database, of the more than 5,000 immigrants who applied for asylum through Denver’s immigration court between 2001 and 2022, more than 2,900 were denied. e single mom does not know when her case will be decided.

“ ere are a lot of people applying for immigration and asylum bene ts, there’s a lot of stress on the system right now,” Chapin said.

e single mom found some comfort when, in 2020, she and her daughter were granted their protected status. Since then, she has worked “everything, anywhere,” her heavy binder of credentials going unnoticed as she took jobs cleaning hotel rooms and serving food in restaurants.

Even with multiple jobs, the woman said she faced nancial uncertainty as she struggled to pay for housing, food and everything in between.

“You have to take on so many hours to work,” she said. “In this county to survive you need at least two jobs.”

In 2020, she moved to a new apartment, allowing her daughter to be closer to her school. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, her landlord raised rent from $1,050 to $1,350. Again, she moved.

Shortly before 2021, she found a one-bedroom apartment in a Denver suburb where she lives today. It is dotted with reminders of home, including her country’s ag hanging in the living room and photos of her son on the wall. She pays $1,200. Her deposit was $500. “I have no ability to save,” she said. “Deposits were a big burden.”

Recently, her income has steadied. She now works at an embroidery shop where she brings in about $2,000 each month. e rest she makes up driving for food delivery services, a job that at least a ords her the opportunity to spend more time with her daughter. ey listen to music on those drives or just talk.

rough all the discord, she said she’s worried most for her daughter’s well-being. When she can she’ll make a homemade meal, something healthy, usually Venezuelan.

For herself, she has gone through some therapy programs after becoming depressive and anxious. She does not want her daughter to feel the burden of her mental health, she said. What she wants more than anything now is to make a home where she can, for herself and her child.

Chapin said the woman’s story of survival is the same as “thousands, millions of immigrants, who live this existence every day.”

To build something beautiful e asylum-seeker said she is still waiting for the hard work to pay o , to see the “end of the tunnel.” But beyond just surviving, she wants to thrive.

“ e time that I’m supposed to be here in the United States is to build something beautiful, is to give something back,” she said. “A home is love, work, dedication, solidarity.”

She is currently taking online classes through Metropolitan State University of Denver in social communications, hoping to use the education to land a job in social work and reignite her passion for building community.

ough she has seen growth in her English skills over the past four years, she wants to take college classes to improve her prospects of a career. e most inexpensive course she found was about $6,000 per semester at the Community College of Denver — too much for her to spend currently. at money instead goes to rent.

While the change in her living situation has “been night and day,” she said it’s precarious. It would only take a rent increase of about $200 for her to no longer be able to a ord her apartment, she said.

“I’m living in the present right now and that’s all I can a ord to think about,” she said. “Yes, I can only pay so much and yes, we are in a very tight budget. But, I get to spend quality time with my daughter … we only have each other.”

According to Chapin, there are numerous reforms to U.S. immigration policy that could bene t residents living in uncertainty. About 11 million immigrants are undocumented in the U.S., Chapin said, and sta ng issues have left immigration courts across the country backlogged. For many immigrants, it can mean years waiting for a decision on their future.

Even with temporary protected status, many still face low-wage jobs as their only choice for employment. It is di cult for immigrants to translate credentials they earned in their home country to work in the U.S., Chapin said, and doing so comes at a large

nancial cost.

Allowing immigrants to use their quali cations to work more skilled jobs and authorizing citizenship for most of the 11 million already here “would bene t the economy tremendously,” Chapin said, given the U.S. is “desperate for labor.”

is need has been a major driver behind the immigration reform championed by U.S. Rep. Jason Crow, who represents Colorado’s 6th congressional district.

“We have a lot of people in Colorado who’ve immigrated from all over the world who have some substantial skills,” Crow said, “and it takes a long time to translate those licenses and certi cations.”

is fall, Crow helped introduce the bipartisanBridging the Gap for New Americans Act, which passed in both chambers of Congress before President Joe Biden signed it into law Oct. 17.

Over the next year, the legislation will direct the U.S. Department of Commerce to study how it can expedite translating out-of-country credentials. Crow said the ndings will likely spur more legislation to overhaul the process and allow immigrants more access to higher-wage professions.

“ ey can buy homes, they can enter our economy more fully, they can send their kids to college,” said Crow, who added this would be crucial to “addressing the sustainable workforce shortage in our country.”

But beyond the potential economic impacts, Crow said immigration reform is a “moral issue.”

“When the current laws and systems don’t treat people with basic dignity and respect, that alone is the reason to reform and change this,” he said, adding he is “optimistic” of bolder immigration legislation still to come.

For immigrants like the single mom in Denver’s suburbs, she is determined to build on her new life as she strives to nd what she loved most about her home: a sense of belonging. Often her mind wanders to her home country, to what she’s left behind. She talks every day on the phone with her son in Peru, who’s made a family of his own with his partner and their child.

Clasped safely in the folds of her heavy binder, amid her many certications and credentials, is a letter from him.

It reads: “ ank you so much for everything you’ve given me and taught me throughout life. It hasn’t been an easy road for both of us, I know, but it’s been worth it. I will try to prove myself to you for the rest of my life, you’ve done a good job.”

Editor’s note: As an immigrant with temporary protected status seeking asylum through the U.S. court system, Colorado Community Media withheld the source’s name and other identifying factors to protect her identity. Her interviews were conducted through an EnglishSpanish interpreter. All quotes from her have been interpreted from Spanish to English.

IMMIGRATION DESIGNATIONS

The United States has numerous designations for a person’s immigration status, each with its own caveats that dictate the legality of what a person can and cannot do. Here are what some of these statuses mean according to immigration lawyer and law professor

Violeta Chapin:

Refugee : Refugee status is granted to immigrants before they leave their home country. Refugees are authorised to live and work legally in the U.S. and are eligible for safety net programs but cannot vote. Most recently, a large amount of refugees in the U.S. have been from Afghanistan and Ukraine.

Asylum : This is similar to refugee status but is granted to someone after they come to the U.S. Because asylum can take months or years to be processed, some immigrants have the option of pursuing a temporary status in the meantime to afford them some legal protections and work authorization.

Temporary protected status : This status is only for people fleeing turmoil from certain countries. Currently, the U.S. has designated 15 countries for temporary protected status. Once granted, it must be renewed every two years and does not allow recipients to be eligible for federal programs, though they can be eligible for some state benefits depending on state law.

Green card : This status, officially called a lawful permanent resident but more commonly known as a green card, affords immigrants nearly all the benefits and rights as a U.S. citizen with the exception of voting. For asylees, those granted asylum, they must wait one year after receiving asylum to apply for a green card. Green cards typically need to be renewed every 10 years.

Naturalization : The final stage of immigration. With naturalization, immigrants are considered fully legal U.S. citizens and can vote in any and all U.S. elections. This status does not need to be renewed. Asylees can apply for it five years after receiving asylum and will need to pass a civics test to receive this status.

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PUBLIC NOTICES

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Legals

Summons and Sheriff Sale

Public Notice

DENVER COUNTY DISTRICT COURT, COLORADO

1437 Bannock Street, Room 281 Denver, Colorado 80202

In re: Parental Responsibilities concerning: Kyra Music Kitts

Petitioner: Anthony Kitts and Respondent: Robyn Kitts, n/k/a Robyn Doehring

Counsel for Petitioner Cory M. Curtis #40549 David Volk, #52112 Curtis Law Firm, LLC 5353 W Dartmouth Ave., Suite 504 Denver, CO 8027 720-263-4600

dvolk@cmcurtislaw.com Case Number: 2022DR31147 Division: 303 Courtroom: 303

SUMMONS FOR REGISTRATION OF FOREIGN DECREE

To the Respondent named above: This Summons serves as a notice to appear or respond in this case.

If you were served in the State of Colorado and if you wish to respond to the Petition, you must file your Response with the clerk of this Court within 21 days after this Summons is served on you.

If you were served outside of the State of Colorado and if you wish to respond to the Petition, you must file your Response with the clerk of this Court within 35 days after this Summons is served on you.

You may be required to pay a filing fee with your Response. The Response form (JDF 1315) can be found at www.courts.state.co.us by clicking on the “Self Help/Forms” tab.

The Petition requests that the Court have jurisdiction over the subject matter and of the person in like manner as if the original suit or action had been commenced in Colorado.

Once the orders, judgments and decrees are entered by this Court, either party may use the jurisdiction of this Court to modify, enforce, or to request new orders.

If you fail to file a Response in this case, the above matter may be decided without further notice to you.

CURTIS LAW FIRM, LLC

Date: 11/28/2022

By: /s/ David Volk David Volk, #52112

Legal Notice No. 81994

First Publication: December 22, 2022

Last Publication: January 19, 2023

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Storage Liens/Vehicle Titles

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Broncos Towing, 303-722-3555 (office) will be applying for title to the following vehicles, abandoned.

1)1997 Mercury 4 Door Green 655015

Legal Notice No. 81986

First Publication: December 15, 2022

Last Publication: January 5, 2023

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Notice to Creditors Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of MAUREEN A. HAYES, a/k/a MAUREEN HAYES, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR031346

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 17, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Gary Cox and Denise Cox Co- Personal Representatives 4801 East 9th Avenue, Unit 110 Denver, Colorado 80220

Legal Notice No. 81981

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Last Publication: December 29, 2022

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Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of MAGNUS GEORG ROOS, aka MAGNUS G. ROOS, aka MAGNUS ROOS, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31537

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 24, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Mats G. Roos, Personal Representative 2808 Crooked Stick Drive Plano, Texas 75093

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Last Publication: January 5, 2023

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Estate of LOIS ANDRES KAHN, aka LOIS A. KAHN, and LOIS MARY ANDRES KAHN, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31407

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 21, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Carolyn Bradley, Personal Representative 8197 S. Portal Way Sandy, UT 84903

Legal Notice No. 81984

First Publication: December 15, 2022 Last Publication: December 29, 2022

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Karen Elizabeth Brennan, Deceased Case Number 2022PR31673

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 15, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

James Brennan, Personal Representative P.O. Box 9296 Avon, CO 81620

Legal Notice No. 81976

First Publication: December 15, 2022 Last Publication: December 29, 2022 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Allegra Fey Winn, a/k/a Allegra F. Winn, a/k/a Allegra Winn, a/k/a Allegra Fey Searcy a/k/a Allegra F. Searcy, a/k/a Allegra Searcy, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31536

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado, located at 1437 Bannock Street, Room 230, Denver, Colorado 80202, on or before April 24, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Janica Winn, Personal Representative c/o Kathryn T. James, Esq.

Folkestad Fazekas Barrick & Patoile, P.C. 18 South Wilcox Street, Suite 200 Castle Rock, Colorado 80104

Legal Notice No. 81996

First Publication: December 22, 2022

Last Publication: January 5, 2023

Publisher: Denver Herald Dispatch

Public Notice

Notice to Creditors

Estate of Ron Sailors, a/k/a Ronald Forrest Sailors, a/k/a Ronald F. Sailors, a/k/a Forrest Sailors, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31332

All persons having claims against the abovenamed estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to: The Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 15, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Michelle R. Smith

Attorney for Jessica Farrar, Personal Representative 4 W. Dry Creek Circle, Ste. 100 Littleton, Colorado 80120

Legal Notice No. 81978

First Publication: December 15, 2022

Last Publication: December 29, 2022

Publisher: Denver Herald Dispatch Public Notice

Estate of John Patrick McHugh, a/k/a John P. McHugh, a/k/a John McHugh, a/k/a Jack McHugh, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31532

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 29, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Shelley J. Cook, Personal Representative Robert G. Frie (1796) Frie, Arndt, Danborn & Thiessen P.C. 7400 Wadsworth Blvd., #201 Arvada, Colorado 80003 303/420-1234

Attorney for Personal Representative

Legal Notice No. 81982

First Publication: December 15, 2022

Last Publication: December 29, 2022 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Shirley Diane Melemans, aka Shirley D. Melemans, aka Shirley Melemans, aka Diane Melemans, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31412

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 24, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Justin W. Blow, Esq. Attorney to the Personal Representative 3000 Youngfield St., Suite 100 Wheat Ridge, CO 80215

Legal Notice No. 81991 First Publication: December 22, 2022 Last Publication: January 5, 2023 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

PUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of JoAnn L. Castillo-Rau, aka JoAnn Louise Castillo, aka JoAnn Rau, aka JoAnn Castillo-Rau, aka JoAnn L. Rau Deceased Case Number: 2022PR30694

All persons having claims against the abovenamed estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before March 21, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Pamela L. Castillo-Feldhauser Personal Representative 5175 Benton Street Denver, Colorado 80212

Legal Notice No. 81983 First Publication: December 15, 2022 Last Publication: December 29, 2022 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Charles Winston Carter Jr., aka Charles W. Carter Jr., aka Charles W. Carter, aka Charles Winston Carter, aka C. Winston Carter, aka Charles Carter Jr., aka Charles Carter, aka Chuck Carter, Deceased Case Number 2022PR031461

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the Co-Personal Representatives or to Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 22, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Robert Avery Carter and Michael Jon Davidson Co-Personal Representatives c/o Michael P. Miller, Miller and Steiert, P.C. 1901 W. Littleton Blvd. Littleton, CO 80120

Legal Notice No. 81993

First Publication: December 22, 2022 Last Publication: January 5, 2023 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Sarah Jamie Kelly, aka Jamie Kelly, aka Sarah Jamie Blakeway, and Sarah Jamie Binion, Deceased Case Number: 22PR31591

All persons having claims against the abovenamed estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 17, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

8795 Ralston Rd, Ste, 113 Arvada, CO 80002

Legal Notice No. 81979

First Publication: December 15, 2022

Last Publication: December 29, 2022 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch Public Notice

Probate Court, Denver County, Colorado 1437 Bannock St, Room 230 Denver, CO 80202

In the Matter of the Estate of: Vera Mae Jenkins, a/k/a Vera M Jenkins, a/k/a Vera Jenkins, Deceased Tony C. Rossi #45051 Rossi Law, LLC 6215 Corporate Dr, Ste 101 Colorado Springs, CO 80919 Phone: (303) 859-4173 Email: Tony@RossiLawLLC.com Case Number: 2022PR031682

NOTICE OF NON-APPEARANCE HEARING BY PUBLICATION

A hearing on the PETITION FOR ADJUDICATION OF INTESTACY AND FORMAL APPOINTMENT OF PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE will be held at the following time and location or at a later date to which the hearing may be continued:

Date: February 13, 2023. Time: 8:00 a.m. Address: 1437 Bannock St, Room 230, Denver, CO 80202

Legal Notice No. 82009

First Publication: December 29, 2022 Last Publication: January 12, 2022 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of JOSEPH R. ALBI, SENIOR, a/k/a Joseph R. Albi, Sr., a/k/a Joseph R. Albi, a/k/a Joe Albi, Deceased Case Number 2022PR31395, Denver Probate Court.

All persons having claims against the abovenamed Estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to: Denver Probate Court, 1437 Bannock St., Denver, CO 80202, City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 22, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

/s/ Anthony D. Damon Personal Representative The Damon Law Firm, LLC 4465 Kipling Street #101 Wheat Ridge, CO 80033

Legal Notice No. 82003

First Publication: December 22, 2022 Last Publication: January 5, 2023 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Claude Merle West, a/k/a Claude M. West, and Claude West, Deceased Case Number: 2022 PR 31567

All persons having claims against the abovenamed estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative, or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado, on or before April 17, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Kristene M. West, Personal Representative c/o Poskus, Caton & Klein, P.C. 303 East 17th Avenue, Suite 900 Denver, Colorado 80203

Legal Notice No. 81985

First Publication: December 15, 2022

Last Publication: December 29, 2022

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

PUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Jessie J. Torres, deceased Case Number: 2022PR031487

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 29, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Laura I. Sheeder

Personal Representative 2 Inverness Drive East, Suite 102 Englewood, Colorado 80112

Legal Notice No. 82005

First publication: December 29, 2022 Last publication: January 12, 2023 Publisher: Denver Herald Dispatch Public Notice

DENVER PROBATE COURT, CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER, COLORADO 1437 Bannock Street, Room 230 Denver, Colorado 80202

In the Matter of the Estate of: PAULA VICTORIA ROLLINS, aka PAULA V. ROLLINS, aka PAULA ROLLINS, Deceased

Attorneys for Petitioner, Jerie Rollins: Zachary F. Woodward, Esq., Atty. Reg. 48265 Stephanie T. Schrab, Esq., Atty. Reg. 54039 SOLEM WOODWARD & McKINLEY, P.C. 750 West Hampden Avenue, Suite 505 Englewood, Colorado 80110

Phone: (303) 761-4900

Fax: (303) 761-2989

Emails: zach@solemlaw.com stephanie@solemlaw.com

NOTICE OF HEARING BY PUBLICATION

PURSUANT TO § 15-10-401, C.R.S.

To: Robroy Rollins and Timothy Fisher Rollins

Last Known Address, if any: None

A hearing without appearance on Jerie Rollins’ Petition for Adjudication of Intestacy and Formal Appointment of Personal Representative for: Jerie Rollins is seeking to open a formal intestate probate proceeding for Paula Victoria Rollins (DOB: 12/28/1937) and has nominated herself to act as personal representative of Ms. Rollins’ estate, will be held at the following time and location or at a later date to which the hearing may be continued:

Date: January 26, 2023

Time: 8:00 Courtroom or Division: Probate Address: 1437 Bannock Street, Room 230, Denver, Colorado 80202

IMPORTANT NOTICE*****

Any interested person wishing to object to the requested action set forth in the attached motion/ petition and proposed order must file a written objection with the court on or before the hearing and must furnish a copy of the objection to the person requesting the court order. JDF 722 (Objection form) is available on the Colorado Judicial Branch website (www.courts.state.co.us). If no objection is filed, the court may take action on the motion/petition without further notice or hearing. If any objection is filed, the objecting party must, within 14 days after filing the objection, contact the court to set the objection for an appearance hearing. Failure to timely set the objection for an appearance hearing as required will result in further action as the court deems appropriate.

Legal Notice No. 82006

First Publication: December 29, 2022 Last Publication: January 12, 2023 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Public Notice

Probate Court, Denver County, Colorado Court Address: 1437 Bannock St, Room 230 Denver, CO 80202

In the Matter of the Estate of: Carmen O Freyta, a/k/a Carmen Freyta, Deceased

Tony C. Rossi #45051 Rossi Law, LLC

6215 Corporate Dr, Ste 101 Colorado Springs, CO 80919

Phone: (303) 859-4173

Email: Tony@RossiLawLLC.com Case Number: 2022PR031683

NOTICE OF NON-APPEARANCE HEARING BY PUBLICATION

A hearing on the PETITION FOR ADJUDICATION OF INTESTACY AND FORMAL APPOINTMENT OF PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE will be held at the following time and location or at a later date to which the hearing may be continued:

Date: February 13, 2023.

Time: 8:00 a.m. Address: 1437 Bannock St, Room 230, Denver, CO 80202

Legal Notice No. 82007

First Publication: December 29, 2022

Last Publication: January 12, 2022

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

PUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Zenaida Ortega, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR607

All persons having claims against the abovenamed estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 24, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Dolores Gallegos Personal Representative 2596 W. Amherst Avenue Denver, Colorado 80236

Legal Notice No. 82001

First Publication: December 22, 2022

Last Publication: January 5, 2023

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Public Notice

Probate Court, Denver County, Colorado 1437 Bannock St, Room 230 Denver, CO 80202

Meggin Rutherford Attorney to the Personal Representative

FROM

and RSV at the same time.

While strep is a common infection kids get each year, Dr. Sam Dominguez, an infectious disease specialist at Children’s Hospital Colorado, said 2022 has seen a higher number of “invasive” cases of bacterial infections.

“It is common and easy to treat,” he said. “The invasive cases are relatively rare to see.”

For health officials at local hospitals and clinics, this is another complication to an already stressed system dealing with higher-than-usual cases of RSV in children along with flu and COVID cases increasing.

In November, Children’s Hospital sounded alarms about the unseasonably high rate of RSV cases, noting that hospital beds were in short supply because of the severity of the respiratory virus.

Dr. Ben Usatch, the UCHealth ER director at the Highlands Ranch hospital, said his doctors and staff have treated more younger patients this year than they are accustomed to.

With the Children’s Hospital south campus just across the street, Usatch said as they have filled up beds, the Highlands Ranch hospital is receiving an overflow of young patients.

“We will definitely take them, happy to do it,” he said. “With

adults and kids, we are seeing the big three — COVID, RSV and flu cases are running rampant. With young patients, management is different and you have to make different decisions.”

Currently, Usatch said the hospital is lucky if they do not see more than 18 respiratory cases in the emergency department per day.

HealthOne Chief Medical Officer Reginald Washington said he has seen the effects of the current season at both the adult and children’s level.

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Public Notices

Personal Representative

7603 E. Mercer Pl. Denver, Colorado 80237

Legal Notice No. 82004

Washington, who serves adults at Presbyterian/St. Luke’s and children at Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children, said hospitals experience the trifecta of illnesses every year. This year, he said, is raising more concern as cases and hospitalizations are higher.

Washington said while treatable, flu, COVID and RSV have similar symptoms to strep, which means kids and adults could have strep along with another virus.

With flu and RSV season start-

ing earlier than usual, local health officials said it is important for parents to be cognizant of a child’s symptoms and if anything is suspected, get them tested.

Washington said there is a specific test to diagnose all current viruses spreading across the Front Range. While there are not as many treatments for respiratory viruses, Washington said the sooner a patient is diagnosed with strep the better, because the disease is treatable and requires antibiotics.

Local health officials said there are some unusual circumstances that could be causing the increased rate of illness this year. Those circumstances are three years in the making as the pandemic pushed society to wear masks to decrease the spread of COVID.

Now, masks are off and some kids are being exposed to viruses and infections for the first time and their immune systems are not used to it.

While there is no vaccine to prevent group A strep, the state health department said there are steps that parents, guardians and caregivers (including child care facilities) in Colorado can take to help protect children and families.

Washington and Dominguez said children should be up to date with COVID-19, flu, and chickenpox vaccines, as getting these infections can increase risk for acquiring a group A strep infection.

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NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of HELENE MARIE YOUMANS, a/k/a HELENE D. YOUMANS, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31496

All persons having claims against the abovenamed estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 24, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Sherry Williams and Melody Hollagel Co-Personal Representatives c/o M. Carl Glatstein Glatstein & O'Brien LLP 2696 S. Colorado Blvd. Suite 350 Denver, Colorado 80222

Legal Notice No. 81997

First Publication: December 22, 2022

Last Publication: January 5, 2023

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

PUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Henry F. Anthone, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31400

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 22, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

First publication: December 22, 2022

Last publication: January 05, 2023

Publisher: Denver Herald Dispatch

Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of John Michael Moon, Deceased Case Number: 22PR31464

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 17, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

Carol Jo Larkin, Personal Representative 1515 Lafayette Ave., Unit 417 St. Louis, MO, 63104

Legal Notice No. 81987

First Publication: December 15, 2022

Last Publication: December 29, 2022

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Dorothy Frances Williams, a/k/a Dorothy Francis Williams, a/k/a Dorothy Williams, Deceased Case No: 2022-PR-31432

All persons having claims against the abovenamed estate are required to present them to the personal representative named below, or to Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 22, 2023, or the claims may be forever barred.

91978

Legal Notice No. 81999

First Publication: December 22, 2022

Last Publication: January 5, 2023 Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch Public Notice

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of GREGORY A. STUMPF, Deceased Case Number: 2022PR31597

All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to Denver Probate Court of the City and County of Denver, Colorado on or before April 24, 2023,

Legal Notice No.: 81977

First Publication: December 15, 2022

Last Publication: December 29, 2022

Publisher: Denver Herald-Dispatch

James F. Anthone

Michael Kent Williams Personal Representative 10809 Avenida Roberta Spring Valley, CA

Besides RSV, COVID and the flu- Health o cials are now concerned with the increase in group A strep cases along the Front Range. SHUTTERSTOCK