FORT LUPTON PRESS S E RV I N G T H E C O M M U N I T Y S I N C E 19 0 6
VOLUME 119
WEEK OF JUNE 9, 2022
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25 , 2020
VOLUME 117
THE SEASON FOR SHARING
75cI
ISSUE 23
Some Congress candidates don’t live in districts
ISSUE 48
At least three hopefuls in Colorado primaries reside in other places BY SANDRA FISH AND JESSE PAUL THE COLORADO SUN
The Auxiliary from the American Legion Post 102 fire a rifle salute May 30 during the Fort Lupton Memorial Day Remembrance PHOTO BY SCOTT TAYLOR Ceremony at Hillside Cemetery. See more photos on page 3.
Re-8 teachers: Pay increase isn’t enough
At least three candidates running in Colorado’s congressional primaries this year live outside the districts they’re seeking to represent, a rare but legal move that leaves them vulnerable to political scrutiny. Several other congressional candidates in the state are relative newcomers to their political parties. The Colorado Sun analyzed voter registration and voting history records for 25 congressional and statewide candidates
$24.50 to $44.27. Future pay increas- School, is a second-year teacher. She told the Re-8 school board she’d es are tied to performance, not love to stay because her students experience, in the district. “are inspirational.” At the same The proposed salary ranges for School teachers in the Weld Re-8 time, she asked the school board to Superintendent Alan Kaylor range School District are not happy with SEE ELECTION, P17 from $135,000 to more than $182,000. bring its salary structure so it’s in a proposed pay increase of 4.6 perline with other districts. The district’s school-to-alliance cent next school year. Some may “Veteran teachers have told me program manager could earn befollow a number of other teachers that the district is non-competitive tween $54,600 and $81,400. and leave the district. when it comes to pay,” she said. Former FLEA President Kim The district’s next negotiat“When teachers leave, that puts Flanagan, who is a literacy ing session with the Fort Lupton more pressure on teachers, like specialist at Twombly ElemenEducation Association is Thursday, me.” tary School, asked the board not to June 2, according to Re-8 board Twombly Elementary School approve the salary schedule until President Susan Browne. The salart teacher Mitchell Wilcox said negotiations conclude. ary schedules for certified, classithe district was “hemorrhaging” “You trust us to provide the best fied and administrative employees education. You trust us to take care teachers at a rate of 26 percent Fort were on the May 26 agenda. Lupton Middle School language of the mental health needs of all The proposal for licensed staff BY BELEN WARD arts teacher Val Durfee told the our students,” she told the board. is based on years of experience, BWARD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM board one of her colleagues was “We teach because we love our called “steps.” The district prostudents. We help them become the working three jobs to make ends posed adding 2.1 percent more Two potential candidates to take best human beings they can be. We meet. money for step increases plus John Biner’s seat as Fort Lupton “We’ve heard the suggestion of trust that teachers will be fairly 2.5 percent to the base pay. As an High School’s principal met with pursuing a master’s degree. Our compensated. We trust that you example, a first-year through a parents, staff, and students June 1, response is `With what time and fifth-year teacher with a bachelor’s will honor the negotiation process. answering questions on what they Every year before Thanksgiving, First United Methodist Church in Fort Lupton andwhat the Fort Lupton Food Clothingwill Bank provide community with money?’” she said.and “The We trust that you will be problem degree could make $41,000. bring as principal. members with food boxes. This will be the program’s 10th consecutive year. Above, Joe Hubert, left China Garcia and Sue Hubert with Change 4 Change, district covers the tuition, but it’s solvers rather than problem-makAmong classified employees, the Biner is retiring from Fort Lupton ers.” draft hourly pay scales forhelps tutors High School at the end of the school another organization that with the food drive. See more on Page 2. spread out over two years. The periodic loan repayment used out Brogan Rotha, a second-grade range from $13 to $23.47. For an of reach for many educators.” teacher at Twombly Elementary accountant, the pay ranges from SEE PRINCIPAL, P3 BY STEVE SMITH SSMITH@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
FLHS Parents meet principal candidates
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June 9, 2022
Our Family Helping Your Family AMATO
24-Hour Phone Lines 303-654-0112 • 303-857-2290 Brighton: 75 S. 13th Avenue Obituaries, Arrangements and Resources Online at
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Lee & Sandy Amato May 16, 2022
After nearly 32 years of marriage, Joseph Lee Amato and Sandra Jean Amato passed away together Monday, May 16, 2022. Lee Amato (73) was born January 13, 1949. He grew up in Fort Lupton, Colorado, on his parents’ dairy farm. Lee graduated from Fort Lupton High School in 1967 before being drafted during the Vietnam War. After returning home from the Army and finishing college at University of Northern Colorado with a degree in physical education, he was offered a coaching and teaching position at Fort Lupton Middle School. Before he could decide what he wanted to do, his father passed away in 1976. He ended up selling all the dairy cows and stayed on the land, farming hay and started a commercial beef herd that grew to include 50 momma cows. He would work long hours in the field during the day and then run into town at night where he coached boys basketball for 47 years.
and Sandy began their beautiful love story together on June 2, 1990 when they married. When they were not at school they were with family, they shared a love for the country and all the cattle they raised together. In their spare time at home, they enjoyed watching movies and going out to local restaurants. Lee would often admire Sandy’s beauty, external and internal, as if there was no one else around them when they were together. As did she. Even when her health declined and her speech was difficult she would still say, “I love you Leesy”. There is no question, they were the most devoted couple and set a wonderful example of life and love.
Lee is survived by his sister, Bonnie (Jay) Shaw of Fort Lupton, CO. Sandy is survived by her sisters, Kathy (Jim) Yocum of Dunlap, IL and Margie Rosenberger of Pittsboro, IN. Along with their nieces and nephews; Kevin Sandy (Gorman) Amato (66) was born (Laurie) Shaw, Brian (Keri) Shaw, Julie (Eric) February 1, 1956. Sandy grew up in Peoria, Emeterio, Kerry (Brandy) Yocum, Andy IL. She graduated in 1974 and went on to Yocum, Katie (Daniel) Musisi, Alison (Dave) pursue her degree in education at Illinois State Johanson, and Jonathon (Terra) Rosenberger University. Sandy moved to Colorado in 1984 and their great nieces and nephews; Emma, and started teaching French at Fort Lupton Ryan, Braxton, Kellen, Caiden, Lucy, Reid, High School where she taught for 26 years Morgan, Olive, Desmond, Kenley, Clayton, until she retired early due to a brain tumor and Kyle. that unfortunately cut her career short. She Lee and Sandy were preceded in death by was incredibly patient, kind, and devoted their parents. to her students. She was always well put together and nothing was ever out of order. There will be a Celebration of Life Memorial She would stand out in the hallway with her Service on Friday, June 10, 2022, at 2:00 pm long red hair and vibrant blue eyes. She was as to honor them both. The celebration will be at beautiful as she was humble. Fort Lupton High School in the gymnasium. Lee was a substitute teacher at Fort Lupton High School where the two of them met. Sandy would help with the books where Lee coached basketball and with a little encouragement from other staff members, it wasn’t long until they started dating. Lee SCHREINER
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the scholarship fund for Lee and Sandy Amato. Checks should be made payable to “Weld Community Foundation” in care of Bank of Colorado, PO Box 228, Fort Lupton, CO 80621.
Lois “Dode” Mae Schreiner
September 22, 1938 - January 22, 2022
Lois “Dode” Mae Schreiner passed away on January 22, 2022 in Lafayette Colorado. She was a longtime resident of Brighton and Longmont Colorado Born on September 22, 1938 in Missouri Valley, Iowa to Henry Palmer (deceased in 2002) and Erma Grossner Palmer (1991). She married Carl Schreiner in 1957 (deceased in 2012). Lois had one sibling, Frank Palmer (deceased in 2003. Lois graduated from Longmont High School in 1956 She worked in the Adams County Library system at Northglenn Library and Brighton Library for many years until she retired. She is survived by her nieces, Cheryl Shepherd (Scott) of Lafayette and Brenda Palmer of Westminster. Special in her life were niece Renee Schreiner, great nephew Kellen Shepherd, Randi (Patrick) Baldwin and John Schreiner. Lois and Carl lived on acreage outside of Brighton. They enjoyed the country life, raising horses, caring for their property and friends. Their doors were always open to visitors any time of the day or night. They belonged to the Elks and the VFW where
volunteered and they shared many happy times with family and friends. Lois especially enjoyed being together with her family, traveling, celebrating birthdays and holidays and any time they could all be together. Lois and Carl considered their many nieces and nephews as if they were their own children. Many great memories were made with Uncle Carl and Aunt Dode. Lois loved the fall and the mountains of Colorado. She was an avid animal lover, adopting many stray cats and a few other rabbits and birds. Lois enjoyed painting with water colors and exploring other mediums. She left numerous works of art she created that are now treasured by her family. Lois was kind, caring women, leaving a great empty place on this earth but joining her beloved Carl in heaven. She will be forever in our hearts. Contributions can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association https://www.alz.org/ professionals?form=alz_donate Graveside Services will be held on Thursday, June 2, 2022 at Fort Logan National Cemetery at 2:00PM Staging Area “A”
CARDENAS
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Victor Antonio Cardenas August 29, 1962 - May 18, 2022
and always stay safe. Vic loved those closest to him fiercely, and never wavered when it came to his commitment and support for those he held near to his heart.
On May 18, 2022, Victor Cardenas, passed away too soon. Vic was born August 29th in 1962, to Ernesto and Celia Cardenas (Garcia) in Idaho Falls, Idaho. He was the third of six children; Ernest Jr., Adelfa, Lisa, Delia and Orlando. In his younger years, Vic worked in the potato fields, along side his family and friends which he shared so many fond memories of throughout his life. He loved everything about farming. He then went on to join the INEL SRT (Special Response Team) training with Special Forces teams and his mentor, Tai, to protect our great nation. Vic was extremely patriotic. He served as a proud member of that team, from 1984-1994, and regularly shared his stories of the amazing adventures he experienced while serving. He was honored to serve alongside his elite team members, and was recognized with airborne tactical and firearms instructor certifications just to name a few. Vic then began the next leg of his life’s journey, moving to Colorado where he became a very well-known electrician and mentor to many. Vic never lost sight of his roots in the SRT, and used that experience to earn his black belt in Aikido, in Boulder Colorado, sparring with everybody he loved, teaching them to defend themselves DOTY
Vic achieved much in his life, but was truly passionate about screenplay writing. He worked tirelessly on his stories about saving those being oppressed. He loved nothing more than writing, watching college football, and listening to Metallica in his man cave. He dreamed of one day becoming a writer and opening a dog shelter. Vic is survived by his mother, Celia Cardenas, sisters; Adelfa Bauer, Lisa Nate and Delia Cardenas, and brother, Orlando. He is also survived by his loving wife, Julie Cardenas, children, Mark and Sara, grandson, Noah, and granddaughter Dani. Along with many nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephew. Vic is proceeded in death by his father, Ernesto Cardenas and brother Ernest Cardenas, Jr. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made, in Victor’s name, to the Denver “Dumb Friends League” https://www.ddfl. org/ or, a meaningful charity of your choice. Family and friends are all invited to celebrate, Vic, at Noon, on June 11, 2022. The celebration of life will be held at, 2106 East 102nd Avenue in Thornton, Colorado.
Doreen N. Doty
January 16, 1942 - May 21, 2022
Doreen Doty, 80, of Brighton, Colorado, entered the gates of heaven and into the loving arms of her Savior from her home on May 21, 2022. Doreen Nettie Mowrey was born in Denver, CO, on January 16, 1942, and was the youngest of two children born to Nettie Baker and Sammy Mowrey. Doreen grew up in Derby, Colorado, where she met the love of her life, Ed Doty, in 1957, and the two married on May 25, 1958. They built a house in Brighton, CO, in 1963 where they raised their four children and resided for 52 years. Doreen loved to bowl, travel, shop, and decorate her home each holiday, right down to her Easter tree. She loved her coffee, doing crossword puzzles, watching game shows, cookies, and Dum Dums. Most importantly, Doreen loved her husband, Ed, of 63 years, and her children, grandchildren, and greatgrandchildren. Doreen is survived by her son Mik Doty,
her three daughters, Lynda (Hans) Brewster, Tina Gutierrez, Susan (Jaime) Chavez, 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren, brother Kenny Mowrey, and her nieces and nephew. Doreen is preceded in death by her parents, her husband Ed, infant daughter, Cindy Doty, nephew, Bob Townsend, grandson Richard Lambert, and daughter-inlaw CJ Doty. Doreen had an amazing love for Our Lord and was our prayer warrior. She was steadfast in her faith. While we rejoice in her being united with our Heavenly Father, we will miss our beloved mom tremendously. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a memorial contribution to the Richard Lambert Foundation www. richardlambertfoundation.org/memorialgiving or a meaningful charity of your choice http://www.richardlambertfoundation.org/ memorial-giving
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Fort Lupton Press 3
June 9, 2022
PRINCIPAL FROM PAGE 1
year after 26 years as a public educator. He is finishing his contract through June. Assistant Principal Gordon Fort Lupton High School candidate Douglas Gordon is the current high school assistant principal. Gordon grew up in Central Illinois and studied at IlliGordon nois State University in 1992, receiving his bachelor’s degree in History education. He received a master’s degree from the University of Northern Colorado in special education and an educational specialist degree in administration. “In 1994 after the birth of our second child, I put my career on hold for seven years and was a stay-a-home dad. My wife and I along with our two children moved from Illinois to the great state of Colorado in 1999,” Gordon said. Gordan began his teaching career at Windsor High School in 2000, working as a special education teacher for six years and a history teacher for nine years. “After 15-years in the classroom, I transitioned to administration and worked as the Dean of Students at Mead High School for three years and was hired in 2019 as the new assistant principal at Fort Lupton High School,” Gordon said. “On a personal, I’m a diehard Las Vegas Raiders and St. Louis Cardinals fan.” Alumnus candidate Fort Lupton High School candidate Dr. Cynthia TrinidadSheahan attended the Fort Lupton School in the 1970s when the Bilingual education program Trinidadwas established. Sheahan. “That’s when I learned to speak and read Spanish,” said Dr. TrinidadSheahan. Dr. Trinidad-Sheahan’s family moved to Loveland, Colorado, at the end of her 7th-grade year at Fort Lupton Middle School, and she graduated from Loveland High School in 1986. Dr. Trinidad-Sheahan received her bachelor’s of Administration in Elementary and Bilingual Education from the University of Northern Colorado and a master’s in Linguistic Development from the Colorado University Boulder. In addition, she earned an education specialist certification in school leadership and administration with principal licensure from the University of Northern Colorado. She received a doctorate in education, equity, diversity, and inclusion leadership from the University of Colorado Denver in 2019. Trinidad-Sheahan has experience as assistant principal, principal and as executive director. She also worked as a volley-
ball coach for 14 years, “I have been an advocate, educator and community member whose work has spanned over 20-year in Colorado school districts,” Trinidad-Sheahan said. “Supporting students, educators and families to achieve graduation with a plan for the future has be my reason and passion for education.” Trinidad-Sheahan has been married for 35 years with three children, one grandson and a granddaughter under two years old. Parents ask questions The Fort Lupton parents asked several questions of the candidates. Trinidad-Sheahan was asked how she would prepare the school to keep students safe. “My priority is school safety because kids can’t learn if they don’t feel safe. And parents won’t take their kids to school and feel comfortable if their kids aren’t safe or feel secure about dropping them off, “ Trinidad-Sheahan said. “The first thing we have to do is assess the building and make sure that the building itself has the alarms where they need to be and safety where it needs to be. Also, meet with everybody to make sure that they understand safety protocols, that students understand safety protocols, and that it is conveyed, understood, and practiced with everybody and within our building and the surrounding community. Because it’s team effort, safety is a team effort. It’s not just one person’s responsibility.” Several parents told Assistant Principal Gordan their concern about what the school does to keep students off their cell phones during class and engaged. Gordon said he works with teachers to help them keep their kids listening. “When I evaluate a teacher, I go in and do an observation. We talk about everything as an observation to help the teacher grow,” Gordon said. “I make recommendations you might want to work on or try. Are you pushing the kids hard enough or too hard? There are different things you can do when giving feedback.” He expects that to be a priority for his staff. “I’ll expect my assistant principal to do the same thing when giving them that feedback. It’s part of the evaluation process in the observation part,” Gordon said. “When I’m sitting there in the room, and I give them those tips that help. “I do a combination of informal and formal. So, we have to let the teacher know and schedule those formals. I like the informal, so I can come to the classroom anytime and see what’s going on, and I can stay for the results. I try to do at least two to three informal depending on the teachers. Jim Roedel, Fort Lupton High School’s chief operating officer, said the two candidates will go through a third interview with our Superintendent Alan Taylor and Marci Hester Chief Academic Officer on June 3. Then early next week the selection will be made.
A good-sized crowd turned out for Fort Lupton’s annual Memorial Day RememPHOTO BY SCOTT TAYLOR brance Ceremony at Hillside Cemetery May 30.
Fort Lupton ceremony honors those who served BY SCOTT TAYLOR STAYLOR@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
C
hilly morning weather May 30 didn’t slow Fort Lupton’s annual Memorial Day remembrance ceremony at Hillside Cemetery. Temperatures were 55-degrees as the ceremony started but had warmed up to about 64-when it wrapped up.
The ceremony featured hymns and patriot songs from the Fort Lupton Community Choir and Fort Lupton United Methodist Church youth choir, bagpipes, rifle salutes and speeches. A single-plane flyover kicked the ceremony off and an echo taps performance -- with one bugler at the front playing taps and a second at the rear playing a counterpoint echo -- closed the ceremony.
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4 Fort Lupton Press
June 9, 2022
Clean mountain drinking water source opens for Fort Lupton Northern Water officials, Fort Lupton officials, Fort Morgan officials, Northern Water Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District board members and some employees cutting the ribbon. PHOTO BY BELEN WARD
BY BELEN WARD BWARD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
A new Northern Water Eastern Pump Plant in Platteville will begin bringing clean Colorado mountain water to the cities of Fort Lupton, Fort Morgan and Hudson, officials said at the plant’s ribbon-cutting ceremony June 1. “It’s neat to see the culmination of a project. A lot went into it with all the participants and Fort Lupton is one that is paying for this facility,” said Carl Brower, Northern Water Head of Project Management Department.”It’s a beautiful facility and it’s something that Fort Lupton ought to be proud of and will serve them well for many years to come.” The Eastern Pump Plant provides water for the growing needs of its downstream users, such as Fort Lupton, Fort Morgan, Hudson and the Morgan County Quality Water District. The pump increases downstream capacity by 63 percent and is located west of Platteville on the Fort Lupton /Hudson section of the Southern Water Supply Project pipeline. “I’m excited it will help to make sure that we have a consistent treated water supply for our citizens,” said Chris Cross, Fort Lupton city administrator. Fort Lupton councilman Claud Hanes agreed. “It’s going to increase our volume since Fort Morgan started this project,” Hanes said. “It gives us more capacity and it’s a good project.” “We are one of the end-users on this pipeline for the extra capacity.
We got the money budgeted, and we’re excited that it’s now ready to go,” said Brent Nation, director of utilities for the City of Fort Morgan. According to officials, The Eastern Pump Plant construction began in January 2020 on one acre, costing about $10M. The SWSP participants paid it in a percentage to the overall increase of capacity and benefit. Fort Lupton and Fort Morgan spent the most significant portion as the primary beneficiaries with increased capacity. The funding was through the SWSP Water Activity Enterprise. Brower, head of Northern Water’s project management department, said he has been working on this project since the early 90s with the initial planning of the pipeline. Residents had plenty of water but could not drink it because it was full of nitrates, a kind of water contamination from runoff or leakage from fertilized soil, wastewater, landfills, animal feedlots, septic systems, and urban drainage. “I remember talking to the city of Fort Lupton city council back then back in the early 90s, when they
were drinking nitrate-laden water out of their wells,” Brower said. “It was the planning of the whole Southern Water Supply project that ultimately brought water to Fort Lupton. “ Brower said some of the old-timers in Fort Lupton and Fort Morgan used a windmill water station where you could go and get clean water. “Because it was contaminated with high nitrates, they had problems, particularly with infants and some other health issues,” said Brower. It’s when Fort Lupton planned to invest in cleaner water. “I remember talking to them initially about the amount of money this will cost,” he said. “Thankfully, they could get creative on the financing back in the day for that original project. They were able to get some grant money for cleaner water. Today with the new pump plant, it adds to that supply.” Pipelines for canals Mike Applegate is the president and chairman of the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District
board. He has been on the board since 1991, when the original pipelines were planned and built. “It’s great to continue the improvement in delivery,” Applegate said. “It’s water conservation, and you’re delivering it through pipelines- now a lot it is not going down canals.” Applegate said the project was a vision as far back as 1937, but didn’t happen until now. “We all have a responsibility and the participants to be good stewards of this water that we’re blessed with,” Applegate said. “The modernization of these types of pump plants that were are doing for this project is good examples of being good stewards. The quality of life for the people out here changed remarkably once they started getting the higher quality water delivered.” The Eastern Pump Plant was completed in January 2022 with five 700-horsepower vertical turbine pumps with room for six more in the new 5,200-square-foot facility. It has 20 new valves and 350 PSI working pressure with 4,160 volts-medium voltage. Brower said it brings additional capacity to the system to allow more water supply if needed, especially during the summer peak times when it is sweltering hot. “Adding another pipeline for capacity was far less expensive. Most of the year, Fort Lupton is still able to get all their water from Carter Lake just by gravity; mother nature makes it work,” Brower said. “But this kind of supercharged it, adding a bit more flow throughout the summertime.”
Primary ballots hitting mailboxes BY MEGAN VERLEE COLORADO PUBLIC RADIO
Colorado voters — it’s time to start thinking about politics again. Clerks will start mailing primary ballots to voters in the state starting this week, and for many, that process will also come with a flurry of text messages. Colorado uses a service called BallotTrax that allows voters to sign up for text alerts at each stage of the voting process — from when it’s
425 S. Denver Ave, Fort Lupton 303-857-7180
mailed out, to when the completed ballot is received back at the clerk’s office and their signature is verified. The Secretary of State’s office said nearly two million Coloradans are already signed up for BallotTrax, out of 3.8 million active voters statewide. “Initiatives like BallotTrax increase transparency and confidence in our elections by allowing Colorado voters to track their ballot from when they are sent, received, and counted,” said Secretary of State
fortluptonlibrary.org
Jena Griswold in a statement. Primaries in the state are semiopen. Registered Democrats and Republicans only get their own party’s ballot, while unaffiliated voters receive both, but can only return one in order for it to be counted. At the top of the ticket, only Republicans have contested primaries this year. They have multiple candidates in the races for governor, U.S. Senate, and Secretary of State, as well as in three high profile congressional races — in districts three,
seven and eight. Democrats, who have more incumbents up for reelection have fewer high-level contested primaries, although multiple candidates are vying in congressional districts one and three. Primary Day is June 28. All ballots must be returned by 7 p.m. that evening. This story is from Colorado Public Radio, a nonprofit news source. Used by permission. For more, and to support CPR News, visit cpr.org.
Fort Lupton Press 5
June 9, 2022
BRIEFS Summer camp registration Sign up for Fort Lupton’s summer camp 2022 is now open. Camp is for kindergarteners through fifth-graders. Visit https:// www.fortlupton.org/347/SummerDay-Camp for more information. July 4 party is July 2 Fort Lupton’s Independence Day celebration is two days early this year, Saturday, July 2, at the city’s recreation center, 203 S. Harrison Ave. The ingredients didn’t change. There will be food, fireworks, the region’s only Ninja Warrior Course, water slides, a bounce house obstacle course, a bouncy boxing arena, a tractor people mover, face painting, food trucks, shaved ice-cream cones and a live concert. The fireworks show at Coyote Creek Golf Course, courtesy of the Fort Lupton Fire Department, starts at dusk. Vendor, volunteer and sponsorship opportunities are available. Call 720928-4071 for more information. National Night Out Fort Lupton’s observance of National Night Out will be at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 2, at Koshio Park, 131 McKinley Ave. It’s a chance to meet police officers in an informal setting. It’s also an opportunity to enjoy hot dogs and hamburgers hot from the grill. There will be bounce houses, games and a tug-o-war. Gummball 5K The fifth annual Gummball Rally will be Saturday, Oct. 1, at Adams County Regional Park, 9755 Henderson Road, Brighton. The 5K walk/ run is in honor of former Adams County sheriff’s deputy Heath Gumm, who died in the line of duty in 2018. The cost is $30 for racers 13 and older and $10 for 12 and younger. Those 12 and younger get in free. Each includes a shirt/swag bag guaranteed with entry by Sept. 14. Packets will be available for pickup at 4201 E. 72nd Ave. from 3 to 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 30. Proceeds benefit a nonprofit that supports law enforcement and first responders. For more information, email tracykilgore71@gmail.com. ONGOING Hours change at historical park The South Platte Valley Historical
Park will be open for public visitation the first weekend of the month from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Individual tours outside of the first weekend of the month are available by contacting the society at lancaster. lupton@spvhs.org or calling 303-8579360 and leaving a message. Splash pad The city of Fort Lupton is searching for comments about and sponsorships for a new splash pad. Sponsor funds will be used for the splash park and amenities. Call 303857-6694 Donation time The Fort Lupton Food & Clothing Bank is asking for donations of canned fruits and nuts, varieties of dry pasta and pasta dinners, peanut butter and canned meat such as tuna (including the pouches). Other potential donations could include chicken, Vienna sausages, spam and salmon. The bank also needs personal items, such as toiletries and baby needs. Drop off donations at the food and clothing bank’s back door, 421 Denver Ave., weekdays between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Call 303-857-1096. Teen hangout Teens can stop by the Fort Lupton Pubic & School Library Wednesdays to play crafts, video games and hang out with friends after school. Walk with a doc Platte Valley Medical Center’s cardiac rehab team and Walk With A Doc will host monthly walks with Dr. Christopher Cannon, an interventional cardiologist at Brighton Heart and Vascular Institute. This is a walking program for everyone interested in taking steps for a healthier lifestyle. After a few minutes to learn about a current health topic from the doctor, spend the rest of the hour enjoying a healthy walk and a fun conversation. It’s a great way to get out, get active and enjoy all the benefits that come from walking. Blessings in a Bag Fort Lupton’s Backpack Program helps school children in need with a backpack of healthy food. It’s an all-volunteer program and is in need of volunteers. If interested in volunteering or donating, call 303-718-4440. Mail donations to Blessings in a Bag,
306 Park Ave., Fort Lupton 80621. Drop-in child care The Fort Lupton Recreation Center offers drop-in child care from 8:30 to 11 a.m. Mondays and Wednesdays or Tuesdays and Thursdays. Call 303857-4200. Committee openings Fort Lupton has openings for several of its citizen advisory committees. Visit https://www.fortluptonco. gov/966/I-Want-To-Apply-for-a-Committee. Boards/committees’ openings The city of Fort Lupton is looking for volunteers for its historic preservation board, the Fort Lupton Urban Renewal Authority, FLURA business representative (a five-year term), FLURA alternate member (term expires March 5, 2023) and library board trustee (term expires December 2024). Call Alyssa Knutson at 720-466-6128. Fort Lupton senior lunches Senior lunches are available at noon Mondays at the Fort Lupton Recreation Center, 203 S. Harrison Ave. Sign up by noon the previous Thursday. Call 303-857-4200, ext. 6166. Coffee group Fort Lupton’s weekly coffee group sessions are at 8 a.m. Wednesdays. Call 303-857-4200. Silver Sneakers Silver Sneaker Yoga is available Fridays from 9 to 9:45 a.m. and from 10 to 10:45 a.m. at the Fort Lupton recreation Center, 203 S. Harrison Ave. Water aerobics The city’s water aerobics class meets from 6 to 6:45 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at thke Fort Lupton Recreation Center, 203 S. Harrison Ave. Call 303-857-4200. Pen pals Fort Lupton’s senior pen pal program through Twombly Elementary School is looking for participants. Learn more at: https://www.fortluptonco.gov/950/Senior-Pen-PalProgram Craft classes Monthly craft classes through the Fort Lupton Recreation Center (203 S. Harrison Ave.) are available. Call 303-857-4200, ext. 6166 with questions.
Free short-term radon test kits Weld County residents can receive a free radon test kit (one per household, while supplies last). Test kits can be requested online at www. drhomeair.com/weld, according to a statement. Call the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment at (970) 400-2226 or visit: www.weldgov.com/go/radon.
Warm Line up and running Community Reach Center is offering a Warm Line (303-280-6602) for those who want to talk to mentalhealth professionals about anxiety, lack of sleep and strained relationships, among other topics. The professionals can facilitate referrals to other programs for assistance. The line is not for crisis intervention. Those feeling unsafe or suicidal should call Colorado Crisis Services (1-844-493-8255) or text 38255 or visit the Behavioral Urgent Care Center, 2551 W. 84th Ave., Westminster. Also, the center’s COVID-19 Heroes Program is set up to assist healthcare workers during the pandemic. Those who live or work in Adams County can receive up to six free counseling sessions. Use the Warm Line for support and free counseling. Brighton’s community intake loca tion is at 1850 E. Egbert St., on the second floor. It’s open from 8 a.m. to noon Tuesdays.
Here’s a list of locations where you can receive a test for COVID-19: Brighton Advanced Urgent Care, 2801 Purcell St. Call 303-659-9700 or visit https://advurgent.com/locations/brighton/ Brighton Salud, 1860 E. Egbert St. Testing is available on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Call 303-6972583 or visit https://www.saludclinic.org/covid-testing Fort Lupton Salud, 1115 Second St. Testing is available on Tuesday and Thursday. Call 303-697-2583 or visit https://www.saludclinic.org/covidtesting
Alcoholics Anonymous The Brighton chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous meets at 147 S. Second Place. Meeting times are 10 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Sundays, noon and 7:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 6 p.m. Thursdays and 9 p.m. Fridays. Call 303-659-9953 or visit www. brighton1aa.org.
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6 Fort Lupton Press
LOCAL
June 9, 2022
VOICES Widening your world: low vision resources
C
hanges in vision are more common as we age, and many people feel like their world gets smaller. This shrinking feeling can be joined by anxiety, frustration, worry and even embarrassment. Instead of leaning on family and friends, many pull away and withdraw — which adds to the sensation of a shrinking world. This can lead to loneliness, isolation, even a loss of agency. But, vision loss is not the end. It’s a transition. With support and training the world can grow again — even if the underlying cause of the vision issue cannot be reversed. The idea of “treatment” might sound so formal — maybe even disconnected and clinical. But support can offer chances to connect with another human who is living the same experiences. It can offer chances to talk to an expert who can help offer ways to keep doing the things that make life exciting. Support can come from a service that reconnects people with the
LIVING AND AGING WELL
Kim Wardlow
world around them, with a licensed professional, or with a group that gets together to talk about common concerns and frustrations. Knowing you are not alone can be the key to moving forward. There are many organizations offering help:
Audio Information Network of Colorado (aincolorado.org) AINC offers on-demand podcasts and broadcasts for the blind. That is, AINC offers a 24/7 streaming service that can be listened to, plus shows that can be listened to on demand. Content includes local newspapers, podcasts about life with vision loss, Reader’s Digest, and many, many others. AINC services empower individuals to be self-sufficient, connected to community, and continuously learning. Content also includes
podcasts that amplify the voices of people with print barriers. Ensight Skills Center (ensightskills. org) Ensight Skills Center and Curtis Strong Center are low vision specialists providing accredited, professional low-vision services to enhance the lives of people struggling with vision loss. They provide what is needed to live independently with low vision. Ensight offers: • Assessment of remaining vision • Occupational therapy and skills training • Education and support • Orientation and mobility instruction Beyond Sight Inc. (beyondsite.com) Beyond Sight is a technologyoriented retail store providing individual low vision consultations. For Beyond Sight, the goal is to provide tools and techniques to allow individuals living with macular degeneration, glaucoma,
diabetic retinopathy, and other eye conditions to continue to stay independent. From simple handheld magnifiers to text-to-speech video magnifiers, and everything in between, Beyond Sight has the experience to match the tool to each individual’s goals and abilities. 303-795-6455, scott@beyondsight.com Kim Wardlow is the executive director at Audio Information Network of Colorado. To learn more, contact 303-786-7777 or visit ainc@ aincolorado.org. This column is hosted by the Seniors’ Council of Douglas County. Please join us for our next presentation July 7 at 10 a.m. at Oakwood Senior Apartments, Community Room, 559 Oakwood Drive, Castle Rock. Our presenters will be Penn Street with Audio Information Network of Colorado and Lorrie Spoering with Colorado Talking Book Library. For more information, please visit www.MyDougCoSeniorLife. com, email DCSeniorLife@douglas. co.us or call 303-663-7681.
Fear and scarcity or hope and abundance: choice is ours
I
nterest rates going up, inflation on the rise, and empty shelves where baby formula used to sit. Wars raging in Ukraine and other parts of the world. A resurgence of COVID, although mostly mild symptoms, is still making its rounds, with some becoming severely ill. Gasoline prices out of control. Employees hard to find. Midterm elections, a leaked opinion about a possible overturning of Roe v. Wade, battles over school curriculums, make this is the perfect time to choose fear and scarcity over hope and abundance. Or does it? You see, it’s not only asking if the glass is half full or half empty, but also more like asking if the ocean is half full or half empty. Any one of the events mentioned above is enough to push us over the edge. Imagine trying to understand and cope with all of them at the same time, while also dealing with all of life’s other challenges and difficult seasons of life, sickness, divorce, losing a loved one, loss of a job, and other things that happen to us that are mostly out of our control. If ever we were going to buy into
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fear and scarcity, the time is now. Or is it? I was told a long time ago that hope and fear are the same thing, either word is a belief that something will happen in the future. Some will choose to pick Michael Norton fear, stressing and worrying about that bad thing that is coming next. Others will choose hope, believing that whatever is headed our way will be a good thing, maybe even a great thing. Those who choose fear will think with a scarcity mindset, but those of us with hope will still see the opportunity for abundance. And when I speak of abundance I am not speaking of money, profits or things. No, I am speaking of an abundance of faith, hope and love. I am speaking about an abundance of people being kind, good, gentle and compassionate. When we live with the fear and scarcity mindset it is easy to let go of the goodness and kindness, and
WINNING WORDS
LINDA SHAPLEY Publisher lshapley@coloradocommunitymedia.com
the other traits mentioned above that we can still find in abundance if we look for them. And when we live with in fear and scarcity it starts us down a slope that leads to selfishness, resentment, anger, isolation, envy and dread. The reality is that there are some very serious and frightening things happening in our world. If you are like me and have children and grandchildren, you may be thinking about this through the lens of a parent or grandparent with your thoughts centered on their future, and what happens if we can’t solve some of these things now or in the relatively near future. For every situation, conflict, or problem mentioned above, there are thought leaders working on resolutions. We may not appreciate what they are doing, or who is leading the charge, or which side of the aisle they may be on, but I firmly believe there are enough good people with great intentions trying to do their very best to restore things to order so that solutions and agreements can be made and that there will be a better
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tomorrow for everyone, regardless of which side we are on. How can we move from fear and scarcity to hope and abundance? I think that will be different for all of us. I can only share what I believe to be true and where my family and friends draw their encouragement when it comes to living with hope and abundance. We use words of love, hope, and encouragement with one another. We text or call each day with a message of love. We go to church, we read our Bible, and we pray. Zig Ziglar used to say this, “Each day I read the newspaper and my Bible, this way I know what both sides are up to.” Which is it for you, fear and scarcity or hope and abundance? I would love to hear your story at mnorton@xinnix.com, and when we can go out in the spirit of hope and abundance, it really will be a better than good year. Michael Norton is the grateful president of XINNIX, a personal and professional coach, and a consultant, trainer, encourager and motivator to businesses of all sizes.
Columnists & Guest Commentaries Columnist opinions are not necessarily those of the Press. We welcome letters to the editor. Please include your full name, address and the best number to reach you by telephone. Email letters to staylor@coloradocommunitymedia.com Deadline Wed. for the following week’s paper.
Fort Lupton Press (USPS 205880) A legal newspaper of general circulation in Ft. Lupton, Colorado, Fort Lupton Press is published weekly on Thursday by Colorado Community Media, 143 S. 2nd Pl., Brighton CO 80601. . PERIODICAL POSTAGE PAID AT Ft. Lupton and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address change to: Fort Lupton Press, 750 W. Hampden Ave., Suite 225, Englewood, CO 80110
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Bubble Run - Denver - 2022 @ 7am Jun 11th - Jun 12th Riverdale Regional Park, 9755 Henderson Rd., Brighton Tim Ostdiek @ 6:30pm 300 Suns Brewing, 335 1st Ave, Longmont
Tunisia: Twist and Shout @ 6pm Carpenter Park, 3498 E 112th Ave, Thornton
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Birding Adventure Camp @ 9am / $300 Jun 13th - Jun 17th Bird Conservancy's Environmental Learning Center, 14500 Lark Bunting Lane, Brighton. 303-6594348 ext. 49 Full Cord @ Muse Performance Space @ 7pm Muse Performance Space, 200 E South Boulder Rd, Lafayette
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Ryan Hutchens at Bitto Bistro @ 6pm Bitto Bistro, 14697 Delaware St #1000, Westminster
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Tue 6/14 Civic Center Park and Golden Triangle Public Art Tour @ 12pm Denver Arts and Venues, Varies Locations for Public Art Tours, Denver
IndianRaga @ the Rockies @ 7:30pm / $25 Parsons Theatre, 1 East Memorial Parkway, Northglenn. mstricker@ northglenn.org, 303-450-8888 JACK WHITE: The Supply Chain Issues Tour
Anavrin's Day at Hoffbrau @ 9pm Hoffbrau, 9110 Wadsworth Pkwy, Westminster
Fri 6/10
Nationwide Wild Horse Freedom Rally 2.0 @ 1pm Colorado State Capitol, 200 East Colfax Avenue, Denver. terihall1957@yahoo.com, 804-339-2685
The Diabolics: The Tiki on Main
@ 8pm 1STBAN� Center, 11450 Broom�eld Ln, Broom�eld
Sun 6/12
Bally's Casino @ 2:15pm Fort Lupton Recreation & Parks De‐ partment, 203 S Harrison, Fort Lupton. 303-857-4200
Jenny Shawhan: Sheridan Denver Downtown @ 4pm Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, 1550 Court Pl, Denver
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@ 6:40pm / $8-$285 Coors Field, 2001 Blake St., Den‐ ver DJ Rockstar Aaron: Forbidden Bingo at 'Bout Time Pub & Grub @ 8pm Bout Time Pub & Grub, 5225 W 80th Ave, Arvada
Wed 6/15 Wolf Loescher
New Kids On The Block: The Mixtape Tour 2022 @ 8pm / $29.95-$209.95 Ball Arena, 1000 Chopper Circle, Denver
@ 1:10pm / $8-$285 Coors Field, 2001 Blake St., Denver
Teens: Boondocks : June
Colorado Rockies vs. Cleveland Guardians
Bunny Blake Music: The Glenn Bar & Grill
Colorado Rockies vs. Cleveland Guardians
@ 4pm Jun 16th - Jul 14th Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760
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@ 10:30am Anythink Huron Street, 9417 Huron Street, Denver. dalvarez@anythin klibraries.org, 303-452-7534
Prenatal Fitness
@ 9:30am The Village Community Church, 11800 Ridge Pkwy Suite 140, Broom�eld
@ 7pm Tiki on Main Street, 836 1/2 Main St, Louisville
Yarn Bombing with Anythink
@ 5pm Summit Tacos, 237 Collyer St, Longmont
Colorado Rockies vs. Cleveland Guardians
@ 5pm Fort Lupton Community / Recreation Cen‐ ter, 203 S. Harrison Avenue, Fort Lupton. 303-857-4200
Rockies Game @ 5:30pm Fort Lupton Recreation & Parks De‐ partment, 203 S Harrison, Fort Lupton. 303-857-4200
Many Mountains: Concerts in the Park w/ Chain Station @ 6pm Louisville Community Park, 955 Bella Vista Dr, Louisville
Mountain Adventures- The Karakoram Mountain Range
@ 6:40pm / $8-$285 Coors Field, 2001 Blake St., Denver
@ 7pm Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760
Acoustic Syndicate
Mamma's Marmalade
Chain Station
@ 8pm Ophelia's Electric Soapbox, 1215 20th St, Denver
@ 7pm Muse Performance Space, 200 E South Boulder Rd, Lafayette
@ 7pm Louisville Community Park, 955 Bella Vista Dr, Louisville
@ 6pm The Glenn Bar & Grill, 11140 Irma Dr, Northglenn
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8 Fort Lupton Press
June 9, 2022
Bluedevils march for graduation Fort Lupton’s 154 graduates celebrate 2022 commencement BY SCOTT TAYLOR STAYLOR@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Comfortable skies greeted 154 Fort Lupton Bluedevils and their families and friends May 28 as the Class of 2022 celebrated their commencement exercises. The ceremony, at the school’s Phelps Athletic Field, featured performances by the Fort Lupton High School band and speeches by Class of 2022 Valedictorian Brandi Horton, who urged her classmates to take time to enjoy their lives, and Salutatorian Robert Campbell Principal John Biner noted that the class of 2022 had amassed $1.53 million in scholarship support to help further their education.
Fort Lupton’s graduating class of 2022 gathered with family and friends May 28 to celebrate graduation. In all, 154 graduating seniors gathered their diplomas during the ceremony.
Students get their diplomas and shake hands with member of the Fort Lupton High School faculty and the Weld Re8 Board PHOTOS BY SCOTT TAYLOR of Education May 28 at Phelps field.
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June 9, 2022
LOCAL
SPORTS
Fort Lupton Press 9
Off to college, adulthood and college sports ‘Having your own bedtime’ part of adjustment for former high-school athletes BY BY STEVE SMITH SSMITH@COLORADOCOMMUITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
It’s a rite of passage. High-school students swap the comforts of home, home-cooked meals and laundry services in exchange for the first taste of responsibility, finding their own meals and ways to keep their clothes clean. Welcome to college. While it’s quite the switch for the majority of college freshmen, those who choose to be athletes have to budget in practice time, film sessions, game days/nights and travel into their new-found routines. We talked with almost a dozen former high-school athletes about their first year in college. In the first of a three-part series, they discuss the basic adjustment to college and how well they handled it. Adjustment highlights Vershon Brooks played football at Brighton High School. He’s doing the same at Luther College in somewhere. “The adjustment from high-school to college sports was definitely noticeable right away,” he said. “The small details in every little think you do matter. Little details in how you train, how you practice all adds up, and it will show on the field. Honestly, there was nothing really tougher. Only thing I can say that got tougher was just the speed of the game.” Chase Prestwich, who played baseball at both Brighton and Frederick high schools, said there was lots of adjusting. “Everyone is stronger, faster and bigger in college sports. It is something you have to get used to,” said the Northwestern State freshman. “Baseball in college requires a lot more time. The days are longer - practices, team meetings, going for treatments, looking at videos, etc. I’d say adjusting to the strength of everyone has been the hardest part.” Former Frederick basketball player Izayah Elize agreed with the strength piece. “Only 7% of athletes play at the next level, so obviously you have to be elite to play,” he said. His former classmate, Ryan Chacon, winner of two state track-and-field titles as a senior last spring, said there was lots to factor into his adjustments. He’s running cross country at Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kansas. “For me, a key one was time management,” Chacon said. “It’s a big key in college and determines your character to the coach.” Adams City alum and multi-sport athlete Gerardo Caldera chose Waldorf College and its football team. “When I first got here, things ran faster than what they did in high school,” he said. “Everything here is
at a faster pace, and you either keep up with it or you get left behind.” Former Stargate School student and Legacy High School swimmer Emma Kulbida took her talent to Carnegie Mellen, an NCAA Division III school in Pittsburgh. “The good thing about choosing to compete at a D3 level was the lower commitment to athletics. However, even at a D3 level the commitment level is very high,” she said. “We practice eight times a week, including lifts. So the practice time commitment is similar to what it was in high school.” The actual meets (each weekend, she said) take up “lots of time.” “The difficulty of training depends on how much effort you are willing to put into practices, so that stayed the same for me going from high school to college,” she said. “However, the time commitment increased, and it has been really difficult to figure out how to balance school and swimming.” Her former classmate at Stargate, Madison Roecker, is on the cheer team at Nebraska-Wesleyan. “The adjustment from high school to college sports was slightly difficult at first,” she said. “I had to learn how to manage my time better to account for longer practices alongside a more rigorous academic schedule.” Another Stargate alum, Erica Derby, played soccer for Northeast Community College in Norfolk, Nebraska. She said she didn’t have to make much of an adjustment. “For the soccer side, everything stayed almost the same. Except we practice in the morning before school, not after school like in high school,” she said. “There was a bit of an adjustment for my classes, though. In high school I was used to having every class every day and homework for that class every night.” That changed this year. “I have classes two or three times a week, which makes the homework due in two days, not one,” Derby said. “It took me about a week or so to get used to that. Other than that, everything was a smooth transition for me. I have a lot more free time that I did in high school. But soccer fills some of that, and the rest I use to study.” Former Riverdale Ridge baseball player Dakota Pruitt had a built-in advantage for his first year at Otero Junior College. “The switch from high-school to college athletics was pretty easy,” he said. “I had a lot of help from older friends and my brothers. They gave me advice and ways to make it through. So without them, I would be a lost puppy.” Brighton High School alum Eli Bowman played football at the South Dakota School of Mines. “At first, the adjustment from high school to college football is pretty big,” he said. “I was definitely humbled being surrounded by guys that are bigger, faster and stronger. The overall mindset was a big change too. In high school, not everyone was as committed as me. But in college, SEE SPORTS, P10
Frederick’s Izayah Elize faces off against two players from Mountain View March 2021 FILE PHOTO photo.
Frederick High School runner Ryan Chacon comes out just ahead of Ponderosa and FILE PHOTO Glennwood Springs runners in the 2019 the state 4A track meet.
10 Fort Lupton Press
June 9, 2022
SPORTS FROM PAGE 7
everyone has the same winning mindset, so the coaches and the players all expect a lot more from you.” Former Brighton swimmer Jespyn Bishop chose to play water polo at McKendree University in Lebanon, Illinois. He called his adjustment “definitely weird,” in part because water polo is not a sanctioned sport in Colorado. “ I just had my club team on its own, unlike some of my teammates and other athletes who had both,” he said. “The change though was definitely a little overwhelming at first. The level of play I came into was much higher than what I was used to.” His team had more weekly training and weight sessions. “It definitely took me a few weeks to get in gear, but eventually with repetition and motivation from my teammates I got the hang of it all,” Bishop said. “I would have to say the most difficult part about it was that as soon as I arrived, we pretty much had to jump into season. We had our preseason/tryouts for the D2 roster in the first two weeks. I ended up being one of four freshmen to make the varsity roster, which was pretty exciting.”
Dakota Pruitt
Graded adjustments Derby said the switch for her was easy. “I do miss my family but I enjoy the independence I have in college,” she said. “I made good friends on the soccer team.” “Personally, I think I have handled
the switch well,” Pruitt said. “It’s just getting used to having your own bedtime.” Bowman thought he handled the switch well, too. “At first, it was a lot of work, but I was able to play in every game as a freshman, so that gave me some con-
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fidence and incentive to keep going,” he said. Brooks said his switch was “a little rough.” “Leaving loved ones and friends has been the hardest part,” Brooks said. “My family is my biggest motivation in everything I do, so not seeing them
on a daily basis was a big change.” Roecker said she was able to acclimate to her new surroundings “quickly.” “There’s definitely a learning curve” Kulbida said. “The first couple months were definitely a struggle. Although it is far from easy now, I realized that time management and keeping a rigid schedule but still setting time aside to relax and take breaks has been extremely important. Also, I’ve learned the importance of prioritizing sleep and recovery.” “The way I’ve handled the switch is I’ve stayed up some nights finishing homework and assignments just to stay on top of my academics, because I know my ability to work well on the field but I’m also a student before an athlete,” Caldera said. Chacon joined those who have handled the switch well. “My teammates and coach pushed me so I can be the best I can be,” he said. For his part, Bishop said it took some time to get used to the changes. “I was in a totally new living situation as well,” he said. “I think it took a good portion of first semester to get comfortable. I still am not fully comfortable, and I don’t think I ever will because being 12 hours from the place where I grew us is definitely weird. I am though starting to get use to the area here, which is good.” “You’ve got to have confidence and hold your ground,” Elize said. “It’s not always easy. But you have to have confidence.” “I have handled the switch fine,” Prestwich said. “I try to stay on a sleep schedule and overall routine, because I know my days will be long.”
Fort Lupton Press 11
June 9, 2022
Clouds greet Frederick’s graduation class of 2022 Frederick High School Warriors graduated 264 as the school’s class of 2024 celebrated the rite of passage with family and friends on a cloudy May 28.
On Christopher Siverly’s cap is a collage of photos of all his pets.
The Frederick High School students walked into a packed stadium with family and friends.
Valedictorian Nina Palmer speech, “teachers and administration, we are here because of your dedication to education who have influenced the future at least one in cap and gown today. Palmer is going to school to student zoology at Colorado State University.
Left, Johnny Terrell assistant superintendent, Mr. Chico Garcia St. Vrain Valley School board member, Mark Allen commencement speaker, Doug Jackson assistant principal, and Ashlie Swanson Dean of Students.
Principal Russell Fox gave a speech that the class of 2022 was the largest graduation class in Frederick History. “ So class of 2022 the last of the warriors, I wish you luck as you head into the world.”
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12 Fort Lupton Press
Wildfire art creates beauty out of tragedy BY LUKE ZARZECKI LZARZECKI@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Robert Nesladek carves wood. He works in a sawdustfilled studio behind his house in Arvada, which he has owned for 47 years. He uses two wood lathes to carve out bowls, vases and other works of art from wood charred by wildfires. One of those lathes was handed down from his grandfather to his dad, then to his uncle and now to him. He started working with wood after he quit drinking. “I had to find something to keep my hands busy,” he said. Out of a devastating event, wildfire art aims to create something beautiful — a vase, a painting or a poem. Nesladek transforms the wood burned by wildfires into beautiful shapes. He said burned wood takes on different characteristics because of the intense heat that dries out the log. “It puts a lot of that charcoal gray color into the wood, and it just kind of runs through it,” he said. “It just is really nice to work with.” Starting out, the wood is filthy. “As soon as you touch it, you think ‘I’m not going to even mess with that stuff. It’s just nasty,’” he said. “But as soon as you get the bark off, it’s clean inside, and it’s dry.” Nesladek turns the wood on the lathe quickly and shapes it with different chisels and blades. Once the burned charcoal coating the wood is removed, he starts to mold the center of the wood that endured intense heat but
LOCAL
June 9, 2022
LIFE
wasn’t directly touched the fire. After he reaches the shape he wants, he applies a clear stain. “It amazes me how something so nasty, so devastating, can turn into something so beautiful,” Nesladak said. Painting from within Creating art from wildfires can also help begin the healing process after such a tragedy. For Alissa Davies, of Boulder, that involves intuitively painting emotions onto canvas. After the Marshall Fire, Davies said she and her community felt an extreme sense of loss and fear. “We’ve had these wildfires in our community, and every time the wind blows, we all feel this kind of collective trauma,” she said. “What’s going to happen to this place?” Davies describes herself as an intuitive artist — stepping up to a canvas with no idea of what the end result will be. She looks inward to get in touch with her feelings and then paints. After the Marshall Fire, she returned to her studio to begin addressing her emotions and out came Firescape 1, 2 and 3. “We all are very affected by external events that happen around us,” she said. “(Painting) is just a highly therapeutic process for me.” She said fires come with an immense, intense energy that she channeled into the paintings. She said she experienced those feelings even though she didn’t lose a house to the fire, but instead, she channeled the hardships of those who did. She champions art therapy programs in Boulder and surrounding communities where people can learn to get in SEE FIRE, P13
Radha Marcum
COURTESY OF RADHA MARCUM
Robert Nesladek with three vases he created out of the leftover wood from a PHOTO BY LUKE ZARZECKI wildfire.
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Alissa Davies posing in front of her series “Firescape.”
PHOTO BY LUKE ZARZECKI
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The wood lathe Nesladek uses to PHOTO BY LUKE ZARZECKI carve his wood.
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Fort Lupton Press 13
June 9, 2022
Strong summer starts for Denver
T
he Denver metro area really shines during the summer months. There are all kinds of outdoor options for dining, live music and activities, while classic concert spots and cultural hubs are still doing their thing. With such a bevy of options, you really can’t go wrong. But just in case, I’ve collected five options to help start the season off proper. Let the night shine bright at Earth Illuminated As Ray Charles once sang “nighttime is the right time,” and the grand re-opening and debut of Dark Mode at Earth Illuminated celebrates this very important truth. Presented by the award-winning production team at Blazen Illuminations, the exhibit reopened at the Denver Pavilions, 500 16th Street Mall, Suite 280, with a new look and feel. According to provided information, Dark Mode wants guests to come away awed by the beauty of nature during nighttime. Each scene visitors explore makes use of theatrical lighting and immersive sound design, projection, special effects and more. There are more than 40 scenes spanning a 13,000 square foot space, with interactive props and more. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit EarthIllu-
COMING ATTRACTIONS
minated.com.
Thor lands at Red Rocks Red Rocks Amphitheatre is back in the movie business with the full-time return of in-amphitheater film screenings as part of its Film on Clarke Reader the Rocks series. Gates open at 6:30 p.m. for every show, with musical guests taking the stage at 7 p.m., followed by the film presentation at 8:30 p.m. And the season is starting with a blast of Marvel fun in the stellar “Thor: Ragnarok.” The screening will be on June 13 at Red Rocks, 18300 W. Alameda Parkway in Morrison. For those who haven’t seen the film, it’s the third in the Thor trilogy and director Taika Waititi lets the story and cast cut loose, resulting in one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s best entries. Visit www.denverfilm.org/programs/film-on-the-rocks/ for the full schedule, information and tickets. The Mugician comes to Dazzle Jazz Jazz music is one of the few genres that maintains a passionate commitment to tackling current
events going on both locally and on a grand scale. And Ferguson, Missouri’s, Keyon Harrold made one of the most stunning musical statements of the 2010s with his 2017 album, “The Mugician.” The album features contributions from extremely talented musicians like Gary Clark Jr., Robert Glasper and Bilal. Harrold will be performing as part of Dazzle’s 2022 Keeping It Cool summer concert series, which features two Grammy awardwinning artists, a Colorado Hall of Famer and more. He’ll go live at 7 p.m. June 10 at Dazzle Jazz, 1512 Curtis St. in Denver. Tickets and information can be found at www.dazzledenver.com. Clarke’s Concert of the Week — The Hold Steady at the Bluebird Theater We could all use a positive jam or two these days and that’s what Minneapolis’ The Hold Steady specialize in. Over the group’s eight albums and almost 20 years of touring they’ve built up a rabid fanbase thanks to Craig Finn’s incisive character sketches and the group’s bar-band soundscapes. Last year they released one of their most acclaimed albums in years in “Open Door Policy,” but they’re stopping in Denver as part of a tour that was supposed to be in support of 2019’s great “Thrash-
ing Thru the Passion.” The group is finally playing a three-night run at 8 p.m. June 16 and 9 p.m. June 17 and 18 at the Bluebird Theater, 3317 E. Colfax Ave. The Hold Steady is truly one of the best live bands around right now and the Bluebird is the perfect venue for them. Get tickets at www.bluebirdtheater.net/events. Arvada throws an epic pool party Who doesn’t love a good pool party? Arvada’s Fitz Fest provides that on a large scale, with activities for everyone, whether they get in the pool or not. The event will be held from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. June 18 at Fitzmorris Recreation Center, 6340 Independence St. The party includes three hours of swimming at the Fitzmorris outdoor pool, three bounce houses, Apex on Ice `ice’ skating, a yoga session, face painting, sports demonstrations, Ninja course, Imagination Playground, food and drink, carnival and yard games. In other words, practically all the summer fun a person could want. Pre-register for Fitz Fest at https://apexprd.org/event/fitzfest/. Clarke Reader’s column on culture appears on a weekly basis. He can be reached at Clarke.Reader@hotmail.com.
FIRE FROM PAGE 12
touch with their emotions and put them onto paper. Those programs give people space to freely create art. She touches on her semester in college at the Art Institute of Chicago where it wasn’t so free. Her painting classes created an intense environment with critiques and competition from professors and students. The art therapy classes were different, she said, in that they created a more encouraging environment. “There’s that level of acceptance,” Davies said. “Instead of thinking art is for the precious few, it gives people the view that we all really know what to do with paint. It might not be pretty, and it might not look like what’s in our head, but that’s OK, and it’s better that way.” For those affected by the Marshall Fire, art therapy can begin those conversations, both verbal and not. “It’s always important to talk it out, but I think those nonverbal ways of expressing are equally as powerful and helpful,” Davies said. Sometimes, it just takes a few breaths and a blank canvas. To get in touch with her emotions before she paints, Davies mediates. While painting, she turns off her mind and moves very quickly. “I’m constantly turning my canvas,” she said. “You can click over into that flow state, you know that feeling of when time kind of gets
Firescape 1, 2 and 3 by Alissa Davies.
weird, it’s suspended. It’s bliss.” Burning wood Radha Marcum of Boulder started writing at age 7 on her mother’s typewriter. Fast forward to today, and she’s a poet creating poems rooted in ecological, social and personal landscapes of the American West. “I grew up in the West, so wildfire has always really been in my awareness,” she said. In 2019, she began writing more about wildfires. The burning of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris triggered her new topic. She visited the cathedral with her husband within weeks of the roof burning. Replacing the ceilings, made of oak beams from Europe’s ancient forests, remains almost impossible because those forests are long gone, she said. “At the same time that we were losing this magnificent humanmade structure, we were also los-
PHOTOS BY LUKE ZARZECKI
ing nature’s cathedral,” she said. “I think of the old growth forests in North America.” It reminded Marcum of visiting the Redwood forests in Northern California. “Thinking about the history of people who have been in these places, whether it’s a cathedral or a forest, there’s a sense of continuity, and so when you lose a forest or you lose a cathedral, you’re losing that sense of continuity with ancestors and which people would come before you,” she said. Hence, she started writing about wildfire, and the Marshall Fire made the topic even more personal for her. “When it happens in your backyard, and when you’re watching the effects in real time, that I think is profound,” she said. “I think in art, and in poetry, in our writing, we have the opportunity to meditate on what is happening right here, right in front of us.”
For her, that can mean looking at specific changes in her surroundings. One example she points to is a poem about a plum tree in her backyard that she moved inside due to the drought. Another poem looks at smoke drifts and ashes falling in her backyard. Those ashes, she said, are forests, people’s homes or wildlife. Some float in from other places. “There’s a connection between different parts of the country, between you and the landscape, between the ecology, the trees, the wildlife,” she said. “We’re all affected by these events, whether or not they’re burning our structures, or they’re burning the forest.” Marcum sees her poems as an invitation to readers to recognize the events happening around them. “(It’s about) connecting with what’s really going on, rather than being sort of numb and overwhelmed by the news or by statistics,” she said.
14 Fort Lupton Press
June 9, 2022
Socioeconomic gaps between Black, Latino and white Coloradans narrowed, but equity remains ‘a dream unrealized’ BY TINA GRIEGO AND BURT HUBBARD COLORADO NEWS COLLABORATIVE
Chasing Progress is a Colorado News Collaborative-led multi-newsroom reporting project examining the social, economic and health equity of Black and Latino Coloradans over the last decade. The project builds off 2013’s “Losing Ground,” an I-News/ RMPBS series that tracked similar measures from 1960-2010. We welcome stories of your experiences last decade as well as suggestions for future Chasing Progress stories at chasingprogress@ colabnews.co
The family of Maria Bocanegra Tejeda, 22, not pictured, gets ready to leave the family’s house for Maria’s 2022 University of Northern Colorado graduation ceremony in Greeley, Colorado on May 7. Pictured are Maria’s parents Guadalupe Bocanegra, 59, top, and Raquel Tejeda, 49, front, and PHOTO BY HYOUNG CHANG/THE DENVER POST Maria’s sister Rosalinda Bocanegra Tejeda, 15.
Maria Bocanegra Tejeda awakens as the rising sun lights her room. Her room. In the house her family owns. That fact is still capable of surprising her, so far removed it is from her cousins’ crowded trailer in the crowded mobile home park where she spent nearly half of her 22 years. The night before, she draped her navy graduation robe over the chair near the bed. Her cap lay nearby, its mortarboard top emblazoned with the words: “Cultura es orgullo. Orgullo es exito.” Culture is pride. Pride is success. The rallying call of her University of Northern Colorado sorority. She can hear her parents in the kitchen. Her dad would be running on a few hours of sleep after his shift at the beef processing plant and the hour-long midnight bus ride home from Fort Morgan to Greeley. What he feels about his daughter’s graduation, he later will say, is beyond his capacity to put into words. He walks around the house two hours before the ceremony wearSEE EQUITY, P15
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Maria Bocanegra Tejeda, 22, puts on her graduation gown and cap for the 2022 University of Northern Colorado graduation ceremony at PHOTO BY HYOUNG CHANG/THE DENVER POST her home in Greeley, Colorado on May 7.
Maria Bocanegra Tejeda’s decorated graduation cap for the 2022 University of Northern Colorado graduation ceremony photographed at her home in Greeley on May 7. a The Spanish words translate to “Culture is Pride, Pride is p PHOTO BY HYOUNG CHANG/THE DENVER POST w Success.” The Bocanegra Tejeda family poses in front of a sign announcing the site of their future Habitat for Humanity home in Greeley at an April, 2, 2019, groundbreaking ceremony. From left, Guadalupe, Jose, Raquel, Rosalinda, Maria and Herminia. PHOTO BY KRISTINA RATZI/ GREELEY-WELD HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
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EQUITY FROM PAGE 14
ing a black cowboy hat and white jeans that puddle over his boots. He tries to keep his tears at bay. Maria’s mother does not even try. Years ago, when her dad was driving past UNC, Maria pointed to the campus and told him, “One day, I’m gonna come here.” He, with three years of formal education, a laborer his whole life, told her the university was for rich people. She reminded him of this recently. Not to shame him, she says, but to acknowledge how far they had come since settling in Greeley in 2010. In the decade that followed in this, one of the fastest-growing communities in one of the nation’s fastestgrowing states, the Bocanegra Tejedas worked their way from renters to homeowners, from a one-earner household on the poverty line to two earners with a monthly cushion big enough to ensure their mortgage did not devour them. Maria, the eldest of four, became the family’s first high school graduate, its first to enroll in college. “It’s going to take a while to settle in,” Maria says as she curls her hair on graduation morning. “So much changed. In 2010, I didn’t know if college was a possibility and the optimism wasn’t there. But now, it’s not just dreams. Now, we have a foundation we can build on.” Inching forward on shaky ground The Bocanegra Tejeda family symbolizes the most hopeful version of the story of Colorado’s Black and Latino residents from 2010 to 2020. In several key measures of socioeconomic progress, each group moved a little closer to white Coloradans, who also saw many gains. A Colorado News Collaborative (COLab) analysis of U.S. Census and other data found that over the course of the last decade, poverty rates among the state’s Black and Latino residents fell to historic or near-historic lows, high school graduation rates, particularly for Latinos, shot up, Black and Latino median household income climbed at rates that outpaced inflation, and Latino homeownership cracked the 50% mark for the first time since the Great Recession. Nowhere else in the nation saw a greater narrowing of the gaps in poverty levels between Latinos and whites than Colorado. Our state was also among the top 10 that experienced narrowing gaps in median household income between Latino and white, and Black and white households. Progress toward parity is progress toward equity, which, as Colorado Health Foundation President and CEO Karen McNeil-Miller puts it,
“is essentially the American promise that people will have what they need in order to thrive economically, socially, spiritually, physically, emotionally.” That thriving is the engine of Colorado’s future. Population projections show growth will be led by younger Latinos and African Americans, and more Coloradans of color will enter the workforce as aging white workers retire. But if the upward trends tell one story, the underlying gaps tell another. Progress was tempered by the reality that in the last decade a Black or Latino Coloradan was still twice as likely to live in poverty as their white neighbors, and Black median household income was two-thirds that of white. Even with the slight upward tick, the rate of homeownership — the main path to generational wealth — among Latinos here remained lower than it was in 1970, while the rate among Blacks hasn’t cracked the 50% mark since at least 1960. Four-year college graduation rates among Latino residents 25 years and older inched upward during the decade, but still remained in the teens, 10 percentage points lower than Black Coloradans, and 31 points lower than white. The state’s long and acknowledged history of importing college-educated whites while failing to homegrow the potential of its youth of color created the nation’s largest Latinowhite higher education gap and the second-largest Black-white gap. Expand the definition of higher education to include two-year degrees and career-technical certifications, and Black and Latino Coloradans attainment rates still remained a fraction of their white peers. When three of every four students who made up the growth in the state’s high school population over the last decade were Latino, the consequences of the failure to ensure more can achieve a higher education are obvious. “If we don’t (close the gaps), we will continue, decades on, the way we have decades past where we have this blaring equity gap, and we have unfulfilled, unactivated potential,” says Colorado Department of Higher Education Executive Director Angie Paccione, who in 2020 launched the agency’s Office of Educational Equity. “And how sad is that? How bad — not just sad — how bad for this state?” Education affects employment. It affects wages. It affects who gets hired first and fired last, and in Colorado, as elsewhere, Black and Hispanic unemployment rates pegged higher than whites in the hard days of 2010 and the humming days of 2019. Progress was also tempered by the nature of the decade itself. The
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economy rose from the trough of the Great Recession and its lopsided decimation of Black and Latino income and wealth to settle into a historically long, slow expansion that brought low unemployment, gradual wage increases and huge gains in home equity. Then the pandemic struck. COVID-19’s disproportionately deadly path through Black and Latino communities and its hammerblow upon the lower-paying industries in which they are overrepresented reframe the view of narrowing equity gaps as something temporary, a side-effect of economic recovery. In a matter of months, the pandemic revealed truths about the hard-wired nature of inequity that the years before may have blurred, says state Rep. Jennifer Bacon (DDenver), who calls the Census data a representation of a “dream unrealized.” ”We have not been intentional in undoing the intentional harm of the past,” she says. “For centuries, we denied people access not just to homes and jobs, but to knowledge because of their skin color and place of birth. And unless we are intentional, a sustained intentionality, we are going to see these gaps persist.” The most skeptical view, shared by Pastor Del Phillips, chairman of the Colorado Black Leadership Coalition, sees any uncritical celebration of the data as the most dangerous kind of placation, “a trademark of the oppressor to always make you think you are better off than you are.” Accepting a narrowing gap at face value, he says, creates an escape hatch that allows the wielders of power to dodge responsibility for past harm and future repair. “If the gap represents me on one side of the Grand Canyon and whites on the other side of the Grand Canyon, and they’re saying, ‘Just jump. The gap is not as large as it was before,‘ well, I’m still going to fall to the bottom,“ Phillips says. “And that’s the way I look at this. It doesn’t matter that (the gap) is less. The challenge is that it’s there.” Connecting the dots COLab and its partners, including The Colorado Sun, Chalkbeat, Kaiser Health News, The Denver Post, KGNU, the Boulder Reporting Lab, and the Denver Voice, are working together to examine the last decade’s trends. Long-term changes are often imperceptible in real time. By analyzing a decade of data in hindsight and pairing that data with Coloradans’ experiences we can begin to take stock of what has changed, how, why, and what’s next. In coming weeks, news outlets around the state will be reporting on homeownership, high school graduation rates and Black infant mortality. Future stories will cover higher
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education and poverty, among other issues. Because our state’s Indigenous and Asian American and Pacific Islander populations are so small, the Census data is unreliable for similar analysis of those communities. But state data, particularly about educational attainment and health inequities, show our state’s Native population faces among the greatest barriers to well-being. Numbers never tell the whole story. The Census Bureau’s data are no different. COLab started with the Census’ five-year American Community Survey (ACS), a daily rolling poll conducted over 60 months. The every-five-year statistical snapshots can be good for measuring changes over time, but are terrible for pinpointing the events of a single year. For that reason and the Census Bureau’s challenges surveying communities of color, particularly during the pandemic, this data cannot size up the socioeconomic impacts of 2020’s hardships. But we can see from state data that the single last year of the decade upended previous years’ positive trends in, among other things, high school graduation, college enrollment and unemployment rates. Life expectancy reversed across all groups, with Black life expectancy plummeting from 78 years old to 74, what it was in 2000. White life expectancy, in comparison, fell by a little more than a year to just over 80 years old. What numbers don’t reveal about the decade, day-to-day experiences do. Data shows a greater percentage of people have moved above what the federal government defines as poverty. This is not the same thing as being self-sufficient, stable, flourishing. “Sure, families might be financially doing better on paper,” says Nita Gonzales, a longtime community leader in Denver. “But that may mean that you’ve got both parents working or one parent working two jobs, and they’re transporting all over the place because they have to look for housing out of the city farther away from the metro area, and that reduces time with their kids. “ ...I’m seeing that we made gains, I am not discounting that. But it’s not enough. And I don’t know how permanent it is. That’s my concern. It’s no time to sit back.” The tide’s ebb and flow Maria, along with her mother, Raquel, and her three siblings, moved to Greeley from Mexico in 2010, during the aftershocks of the Great Recession. Her father, Guadalupe, was already working a union job at the Cargill meatpacking plant, where he was bloodletting cow after cow suspended before him. He SEE EQUITY, P16
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EQUITY FROM PAGE 15
remembers the recession meant reduced working hours. Maria remembers him coming home smelling of blood. The family of six and two nephews lived in the aging three-bedroom mobile home. The plumbing backed up. The kids took turns doing homework at the small kitchen table. The family’s best hope for homeownership lay in the Greeley-Weld Habitat for Humanity with its $500 down payments, lower-than-conventional interest rates, and mission to serve families like theirs. The organization wants its homeowners to stay homeowners and build generational wealth, so it requires that no more than 30% of before-taxes monthly income go to the mortgage. For the Bocanegra Tejedas, the line between enough and not enough was too thin for comfort. In late 2018, Raquel took a cleaning job at McDonald’s. The timing was good. Weld County was booming. The state was in the second year of an escalating minimum wage hike that would take it from $8.31 an hour in 2016 to $12 an hour in 2020. Their $257,000 house was the last of 14 built on a block just off Highway 34 in south Greeley. As Habitat families do, the Bocanegra Tejedas helped build their neighbors’ homes. They helped build their own. The living room with a picture window looking out upon the front porch and the front lawn. The two bathrooms. A bedroom for mom and dad. A bedroom for Maria. A bedroom for Herminia. A bedroom for Rosalinda. A bedroom for Jose. And a kitchen big enough for a table where all the kids could sit together and do their homework. They moved in in February 2020, a month before the pandemic hit. Among the challenges of interpreting the decade’s narrowing gaps in Colorado is teasing out the complex interplay of larger economic or demographic forces with state or local policies and programs. How much was the tide? How much was the boat? When it comes to poverty, income and homeownership, the overwhelming response to those questions was that the tide was everything.
June 9, 2022 Almost. The Bocanegra Tejedas would not have become homeowners last decade without a targeted local affordable-housing program like Habitat. They, like hundreds of thousands of Coloradans, also benefited from the state’s push to expand access to health care before and after its 2013 Medicaid expansion. For the Bocanegra Tejedas, Medicaid offered secondary insurance to help cover the costs of treating Guadalupe’s diabetes and other chronic medical conditions. Health insurance doesn’t show up in Census household income or poverty data, which mostly counts wages, but being able to afford seeing a doctor has ripple effects in wellbeing that stretch into classrooms, workplaces and pocketbooks as well as into the economy. And the state’s 2016 voter-approved gradual increase of the minimum wage helped Black and Latino workers like Raquel who are disproportionately concentrated in lower-wage jobs. The decade was also bookended by two emergency booster shots: The Federal Reserve’s Great-Recession policies to goose the economy and the housing market with low long-term interest rates and Congress’ pandemic aid. The straight-to-bank-account stimulus payments in addition to expanded unemployment assistance and child tax credits kept some of the gaps from worsening, says Christian Weller, a Center for American Progress senior fellow and public policy professor at the University of Massachusetts-Boston. Thanks to the housing boom, wealth gaps actually shrunk marginally in the first two years of the pandemic because Black and Latino households hold more of their wealth in homes, says Weller, who studies the Black-white wealth gap nationally. But the headwinds of this current decade are strong. Both inflation and the raising of interest rates to combat it exact a greater toll on Blacks and Latinos, he says, “and those are the groups less able to sustain an economic shock … because they have less wealth, less money in the bank.” The Colorado Health Foundation’s recently released annual Pulse poll of nearly 3,000 state residents found the rising cost of living and housing a top concern across race and ethnicity. (The Foundation is a COLab funder.) Among those surveyed, a greater percentage of people of color re-
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ported they had to work multiple jobs to afford housing in the last year and are worried they may lose their homes in the next. Seizing a fleeting moment Equity as a byproduct of the economy and equity as a goal are two very different things. The former can co-exist with a myth. The latter exposes it. “The myth is that people are a product of their individual choices,” The Colorado Health Foundation’s McNeil-Miller says. “So, ‘people are poor because they make poor decisions. People are behind in education because they didn’t study hard enough. People don’t own houses because they didn’t work hard enough.’” Yes, McNeill-Miller says, individual choices are important, but the fact is “people can do all the right things and make all the right decisions and still, they can’t move forward because there are policies and practices and programs that disadvantage them.” Ask Rosemarie Allen, founder, president and CEO of the Aurora-based Center for Equity & Excellence, about her family’s home-buying experiences, about having 800-plus credit scores and good incomes and money in the bank for downpayments, only to be turned down by lenders or offered subprime or higher-interest loans. Ask Allen, who is Black, about the family’s decision to circumvent possible racial bias in appraisals during her son’s 2018 refinance. The pipes in his home burst. The house was freezing. The toilets weren’t working. “We thought, ‘Oh, my goodness, the appraiser is coming, and it’s going to be too low’. So we had our white friend go. I didn’t ask him to lie. I just said ‘Can you be there? They’re going to assume you’re the owner. If they ask, you can say no.’ “ Allen says. “They gave us the most amazing appraisal ever. In that condition. I never would have believed it ever because we’ve had appraisals come in very low.” Here, as elsewhere, the murder of George Floyd in May 2020 and the demands for justice that followed accelerated state government’s ongoing shift away from individual departments working in isolation to close gaps toward a collaborative approach. The state unleashed a blizzard of new or updated executive orders, strategic plans and equity toolkits. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), which created an office targeting disparities in the late 2000s, declared racism a public health crisis in July 2020. The department explicitly named systemic racism in explaining why people of color in Colorado get sick and/or die at disproportionate rates. Black, Latino and Indigenous Coloradans have higher rates of asthma, cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, among other conditions. According to a Kaiser Health News data analysis, if Black and Hispanic infants had the same infant mortality rate as non-Hispanic white infants in the state, about 200 babies would have been spared from 2018 to 2020 alone. One of CDPHE’s presentations on COVID-19’s higher toll in communities of color traces biased policies affecting where people could live, where they could send their children to school, where they work, how much they earn, whose neighbor-
hoods got trees and whose got highways and industry and pollution. Ryan Ross, CEO of the Urban Leadership Foundation has been part of the state’s efforts to close gaps as cochair of the Colorado Equity Champions Coalition. In December 2020, the coalition released what it touted as the state’s first equity report for higher education. Still, Ross says he has trouble believing the efforts will endure. “You’re seeing work being done, or at least conversations happening to move things forward. But you are also seeing more actions that speak against that work in a louder way,” he says, pointing to the firing earlier this year of Aurora’s Police Chief Vanessa Wilson, who had strong support from Black and Latino community members. Still, Ross says, he is noticing “a greater sense of accountability and empathy and humanity around the treatment of Black and Brown folks, which I hope becomes the catalyst or catapult to real meaningful change.” Building new doors Maria understands her bachelor’s degree makes her an exception among Latinos. She gives credit to high school programs that support first-generation and lower-income students like the Greeley Dream Team and Gear Up, to counselors and advisers who helped broaden her vision, to the Pell grants and scholarships that ensured she would graduate debt-free. She says she found connection and guidance at UNC’s Center for Human Enrichment, which supports first-generation students. In her last year, she received additional support from the statewide College Opportunity Scholarship Initiative, whose students, most of them lower-income and students of color, outperform students with similar backgrounds with scholarships and mentoring. Even with support, Maria says she was plagued by imposter syndrome. Did she belong? Maybe a business administration degree was a mistake. But the big picture never left her. The Bocanegra Tejedas are immigrants and citizens. Even in their struggle, she says she never forgot she had choices her family in Guanajuato did not. You have to imagine your future, she remembers telling her siblings during shared homework sessions. “I’m doing it for my siblings, and then eventually for generations to come,” she says. “This is a huge change, not only for my family, but I think for our community.” To Maria, “equity is the American Dream.” It does not only open wider the doors of opportunity, It demands new doorways. New builders. Like her. Like her brother and sisters. Two weeks after Maria graduated from college, Herminia graduated from Northridge High School. She was second in her class, and one of 50 students statewide to win the prestigious full-ride Boettcher Scholarship, which aims to keep the brightest Colorado minds in Colorado. Herminia starts her engineering classes this fall at the Colorado School of Mines. Kaiser Health News reporter Rae Ellen Bichell contributed to this story. Email Tina Griego: tina@colabews. co. To learn more about COLab, visit colabnews.co.
Fort Lupton Press 17
June 9, 2022
ELECTION FROM PAGE 1
running this year in competitive primaries to learn where they live and more about their relationship with their political parties. In an election year shaped by redistricting, candidates have been jumping between races and changing their affiliations to find the race that’s right — or maybe most opportune — for them. Federal law doesn’t require congressional candidates to live in their districts. They just have to live in the state in which they’re seeking office. The three candidates running to represent districts they don’t live in are: • Tyler Allcorn, a military veteran running in the four-way 8th Congressional Republican primary, lives in west Arvada, which is in the 7th Congressional District. He said he’d move into the 8th District “when we win this race.” If he loses, however, he doesn’t plan to move. • Andrew Heaton, a businessman and one of three Republicans challenging U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn in the 5th Congressional District, which is based in El Paso County, lives in Lone Tree, which is in Douglas County. Heaton is therefore a resident of the 4th Congressional District. Colorado Politics reports he owns a medical marijuana dispensary and related facilities in Colorado Springs. • Alex Walker, an engineer and one of three candidates vying for the 3rd Congressional District Democratic nomination, lives in Avon, which is in the 2nd Congressional District. He was the subject of a Washington Post story about his campaign’s use of social media. David Torres, one of two Democrats vying for the 5th District nomination, lived in Lakewood when he launched his bid. But he grew up in Colorado Springs and recently rented a house and moved back there. All four candidates are political newcomers. Walker’s campaign said the
candidate was born in Virginia (even though the Washington Post story said he is a Colorado native), raised in Littleton and that he “has lived in Avon off and on for 10 years.” Amy Beihl, Walker’s campaign manager, said Walker lived in Los Angeles “for a portion of the pandemic,” but it’s unclear where Walker lives when he’s not in Avon. A spokesman didn’t answer that question, nor did he answer questions about where Walker is registered to vote, though it appears to be downtown Denver. “Voters have a lot on their minds — another horrific school shooting that took the lives of innocent children and teachers, a woman’s right to control her own body and protecting voter rights,” Beihl said in a written statement. “What they’re not concerned about is a candidate’s address.” Biehl added that Avon was within the 3rd District boundaries before redistricting last year. She said Walker chose to run in the 3rd District, as opposed to the 2nd District or the 7th Congressional District, where he grew up, “because Lauren Boebert is an embarrassment to Colorado.” Allcorn, meanwhile, said he is running in the 8th District, which spans from the northeast Denver suburbs to Greeley, because the “oil and gas industry was my family’s ticket to the American Dream and I want to keep the liberal politicians from ruining that dream for future generations of workers in the district.” He was born in Saudi Arabia and, after stops in countries across the world, landed in the Houston area with his parents in 1993 when he was 9 years old. He became a U.S. citizen in 2010 and moved to Colorado about two years ago. “I understand that some politicians have been planning to run for Congress since grade school and base every decision from where they buy a house, to what football team they root for on how it will help their ambitions, but that’s not me,” Allcorn said in a statement. It’s not a political death sentence to live outside a district you’re running to represent. U.S.
Rep. Jason Crow, D-Centennial, lived in Denver, in the 1st Congressional District, when he successfully launched his bid to represent the 6th Congressional District based in Aurora. Former U.S. Rep. Bob Beauprez, a Republican, lived in Boulder County, in the 2nd Congressional District, when he launched his bid to represent the 7th District. Party affiliation is new for some Some candidates may be new to their districts; others are new to their political party. Here are a few who recently became Democrats or Republicans: • Erik Aadland, an Army veteran, was an unaffiliated voter until registering as a Republican in March 2021, a few months before he joined Colorado’s U.S. Senate race. He later switched to the 7th Congressional District contest. • Rebecca Keltie, a Navy veteran running in the 5th District, belonged to the Unity Party before becoming a Republican on the last day of 2020. • Heaton switched his registration to Republican from Libertarian in December and then announced his congressional candidacy in February. He was a Republican until switching to the Libertarian party in 2008. • Adam Frisch, a former Aspen City Council member running in the 3rd District, registered as a Democrat in December after being an unaffiliated voter. He jumped into the race in February. • Mike O’Donnell, who is running to win the GOP nomination for secretary of state, switched from Republican to unaffiliated in 2019 and then back to Republican in November. Mail ballots in wide use Colorado’s vote-by-mail system is criticized by some Republican candidates this year, including Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, who is running for secretary of state, and state Rep. Ron Hanks, who is running for U.S. Senate. Hanks voted using mail ballots (i.e., not in person) in general and primary elections from 2014 through 2020. Voting information for Peters is
confidential, which voters may request if they fear for their safety because of domestic violence, stalking or other reasons. The Peters campaign did not return emails asking her to release the records. In fact, the only candidates who voted in person recently were Heaton and Laurel Imer, one of three Republican candidates in the 7th Congressional District. Heaton and Imer both voted in person in 2020. But Imer, who has cast doubt on the results of the 2020 presidential election, voted using mail ballots from 2008 through 2018. Voting information for state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, who is running in the 8th District, is also confidential. But Kirkmeyer asked the Secretary of State’s Office to make her voting history available to The Sun. It shows she’s voted consistently since 1988. Most candidates running this year have regularly voted in recent primary and general elections in Colorado. Here are a few exceptions: • Allcorn and Keltie only voted in Colorado’ 2020 general election in 2020 • Walker voted in the 2018 general election and the 2020 presidential primary election, but not the 2018 primary election and or the 2020 general election • Michael Colombe, a Colorado Springs Democrat running against Torres in the 5th Congressional District, voted in the 2016 general election and then didn’t vote again until November 2021 • Aadland voted in general elections from 2016 through 2020, but didn’t vote in any primary contests in those election years Residents can register to vote in the June 28 primary election at govotecolorado.com. This story is from The Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. For more, and to support The Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun.com. The Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.
OBITUARIES KRAFT
Marvin Kirk Kraft
April 28, 1959 - March 23, 2022
Marvin Kirk Kraft, age 62, passed away March 23, 2022, in Hernando, Florida. Marvin was born April 28, 1959, in Denver, Colorado to Sandy and Lucy Kraft of Brighton, Colorado. Marvin worked many different jobs but, farming he enjoyed the most. He had many interests including family, fishing, hunting, and trapping. Marvin also had a deep love for NASCAR racing. On June 24, 1979, he married Ronell Hinkley, together they have four children; Whitney (Nick) Rhoden of Fruita, CO, Beau (Sarah) Kraft of Thornton, CO, Lance Kraft of Elizabeth, CO, and Shonell (Jessie) Burch of Elizabeth, CO. Marvin and Ronell divorced in 1990. He later remarried Mary Dishman
on May 1, 2013, in Hernando, Florida. Marvin is survived by wife Mary, his parents, children, and eight grandchildren. He is also survived by his brother Les (Lanna) Kraft of Brighton, CO and Scott Kraft of Cody, WY. Along with aunts, uncles, nephews, many cousins and friends. Memorial services will be held on June 27th at Zion Lutheran Church, 1400 South Skeel St. Brighton, Colorado 80601 at 11:00am. Memorial contributions can be made to “Dumb Friends League” in Marvin’s name at 4556 Castleton Ct. Castle Rock, CO 80109 or Zion Lutheran Church at 1400 S. Skeel St., Brighton, CO 80601.
SHIPPY
Barbara S. Shippy
June 6, 1948 - May 29, 2022
Barbara was born on June 6th,1946 in Alamosa Co. She passed away on May 29th,2022 at her home in Fort Lupton with her family by her side. Barbara is now enjoying the beautiful beer garden in heaven. Barbara was a devoted wife, mother and grandmother. She loved being around family especially her Grandkids they were her life. She also enjoyed the company of her many friends dropping in to visit. Barbara enjoyed camping, working around the house and her yard, but best of all was the great family dinners and get togethers, nobody left hungry. Barbara married the love of her life David Shippy on August 1st 2003. She was
preceded in death by her father Elwood Buttman her mother Pauline Buttman & her brother Buddy Buttman. Survivors include her husband David Shippy Daughters Angel Grajeda (Mark) Paula Lefforge(Jim) Grandchildren Danyelle Grajeda, Brandon Grajeda(Emily) Shane Lefforge(Brittany) Tricia Grajeda(Hunter) Brian Lefforge. Great grandchildren Alliyah Lefforge, Adelyn Grajeda, Grayson Lefforge, Axton Lefforge & Bennett Grajeda. Barbara is also survived by a half-sister Judy & numerous nieces & nephews. She will be missed by so many. Funeral arrangements will be made @ later date.
18 Fort Lupton Press
June 9, 2022
Breast milk donations and goat milk How Coloradans are battling the formula shortage BY JESSICA GIBBS THE COLORADO SUN
Audra McNicholas went about her usual Monday routine on May 16, dropping her two daughters off at school before stopping at a store for her weekly grocery haul. Her shopping list typically includes infant formula for her son. The Greenwood Village mother nursed her girls, but that was not an option with her 11-month-old baby boy, who is adopted. McNicholas reached the formula aisle and discovered it bare. She tried another store. Then another. In disbelief, she Googled nearby markets and mapped out a route along C-470. McNicholas’ search spanned the suburbs from the north to the south and after scouring eight grocery stores for formula, she gave up. “I wanted to cry and panic,” she said. “I was like, ‘What am I going to do? I have one can of formula left.’” She called friends and family, hoping one of them could find some formula at their local stores. They couldn’t locate any either, she said. She put a plea on Facebook and got offers from loved ones in other states or in other parts of Colorado who said they could mail her formula, but that could take days. Among the dozens of comments on her post, McNicholas saw a suggestion that she thought might be her only option. Contact local goat farms, someone said. McNicholas and her siblings were raised on goat milk. She had an agricultural upbringing that made her comfortable with the idea of feeding goat milk to her son during the shortage. As someone with a deep appreciation for agriculture, she also liked the idea of supporting a local farmer. McNicholas made the call. A sign telling consumers of limits on the purchase of baby formula hangs on the edge of an empty shelf for the product in a King Soopers
grocery store in southeast Denver in early May. Parents across the country are struggling to find baby formula in stock in stores because of supply chain disruptions combined with a massive safety recall. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) The day after her marathon of grocery store runs, she picked up bottles of goat milk from a farm in Parker. She stopped worrying about when shelves would have formula stocked and said “that gut-wrenching feeling of, ‘What am I going to feed him? How is this going to work?’” eased. Addressing the shortage The formula shortage hitting stores across the U.S. was spurred by a combination of pandemic-related supply chain disruptions and the recall of some formula products. President Joe Biden launched what was dubbed Operation Fly Formula late last month, which allowed the USDA and Department of Health and Human Services to fly infant formula from overseas in an effort to restock store shelves faster. The first of three shipments arrived in the U.S. on May 22. In total, the mission will fly 1.5 million 8-ounce bottles of hypoallergenic formula to the U.S. The Biden administration also used the Defense Production Act to give some formula manufacturers priority among their suppliers and speed up formula production. Colorado announced May 31 that hospitals have begun to receive formula from those shipments. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment also created a webpage outlining resources and safety tips for families during the shortage. But until that aid reaches the masses, the formula shortage crisis has left families grappling. Some, seeing no other immediate option to feed their child, turned to alternatives like decades-old homemade formula recipes or animal milk, amid warnings from medical experts about the health risks those substitutes can pose But until that aid reaches the masses, the formula shortage crisis has left families grappling. Some, seeing no other immediate option to feed their child, turned to alternatives
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With formula shortages getting worse nationwide, families are looking for other opSHUTTERSTOCK IMAGE tions.
like decades-old homemade formula recipes or animal milk, amid warnings from medical experts about the health risks those substitutes can pose, such as harmful bacteria or nutritional deficiencies. Experts instead encouraged parents to keep searching for formula and call their pediatrician if they could not find any. Pediatrician offices might have cached sample formula they could provide to families in a pinch. Colorado sought to offer a safe solution by imploring lactating parents to become milk bank donors and by partnering with Mothers’ Milk Bank — emphasizing the bank is one resource for parents struggling to find formula for their infants. Gov. Jared Polis announced the partnership on May 17 and also encouraged people to make financial donations to the bank to help families purchase milk. Polis followed up the partnership by signing an executive order May 25 declaring the formula shortage a disaster emergency. The state will use $220,000 from the Disaster Emergency Fund to subsidize the cost of purchasing and shipping donor milk to families for 30 days. Families can receive up to 40 ounces of milk at no cost. The executive order also makes the price-gouging of formula unlawful during the declared disaster. Premature, sick and newborn infants will receive the top priority. The remaining milk will be available for babies up to 6-months old, and given to babies older than 6 months on a case-by-case basis. Rebecca Heinrich, director of Mothers’ Milk Bank, said the governor’s call for donations seems to have worked. The milk bank typically approves about 100 new donors each month and between 1,100 and 1,200 a year. Heinrich said she can’t estimate yet how many the bank could accept this year, but for heartening reasons — a wave of people who responded to Polis’ call are waiting to be vetted and approved as donors. “I am very happy to say that our phones have been ringing off the hook,” she said. Things to know about being a donor Heinrich said the bank is always looking for “healthy lactating people who have more milk than their baby
needs” to become donors. “That’s a very important component of this,” Heinrich said. “I understand with the crisis people may be swept up in altruism.” People wishing to donate milk can build their supply by continuing to nurse or pump, Heinrich said. They can speak with their doctors about vitamins and supplements, and she encouraged ample bonding time between a donor and their baby, such as skin-to-skin time. To ease the process for donors, Mothers’ Milk Bank will supply them with storage and sanitizing supplies. The bank can arrange milk deliveries and send a courier or a shipping box to people outside the Denver metro area. People who already have a freezer stash can also call to see about donating some of their milk. Mary Jones, a registered nurse and lactation consultant at Parker Adventist Hospital, said breastfeeding can be physically and emotionally taxing on a parent. Lactating parents who want extra support managing their milk supply can work with a lactation consultant or their doctors. “I think that moms who are doing this for the good of others, the extra steps you have to take can be more physically draining, but it probably is emotionally beneficial,” Jones said. “It kind of balances out.” A healthy mother with a healthy baby can donate from their child’s birth all the way to 18 months old. Some parents donate only small quantities, perhaps a bag or two, while others bring in coolers filled with milk. Any amount helps, Jones said. “The formula shortage thing is just beyond me. It’s a really scary thing,” Jones said. Jones has heard about parents in the community trying to revive their milk supply months after they stopped nursing. There is no harm in trying, she said. Lactating parents can resume pumping or nursing in an effort to restart their production, but she cautioned it’s highly unlikely to happen. “I’ve never seen it,” she said. “Breastfeeding and producing milk is something that takes work and you have to continue to do it, or it just doesn’t happen.” SEE MILK, P21
Fort Lupton Press 19
June 9, 2022
Coloradans need somewhere to safely dump old electronics BY MICHAEL BOOTH THE COLORADO SUN
Craig McNeal wrestles the Toshiba wall-mounted TV — once futuristic, now problematic — onto the recycling warehouse’s scale. While still wrangling it into position, he guesses: 60 pounds? The impassive scale reveals just how big is the challenge ahead: 64 pounds, to be precise, of obsolete plastic, metal and microchips that must be taken apart and reused responsibly. McNeal glances around the warehouse on Decatur Street in Denver’s Sun Valley, neat but crammed with the detritus of home entertainment culture: Computer monitors. Barrels of batteries pulled from kids’ toys. Keyboards that used to anchor garage bands and now just anchor garages. “I’m a huge nerd,” McNeal shrugs, as a dedicated recycler and a nostalgic. “I love seeing all the old game consoles. Nintendo. Game Cubes. Our record for one day was a little over 3,000 pounds.” The unwieldy Toshiba flat screen and the rest of the day’s haul came at the beckon of a new home electronics recycling service called Retrievr. Citing a major gap in U.S. recycling that leaves millions of pounds of outdated, potentially valuable materials wasted instead of reused every year, Retrievr makes appointment house calls to Denver homes to snag old computers, cords
and consoles off the porch. For now, the service is free because it is subsidized by major technology firms ranging from Apple to Dell to Google, which are under pressure to help increase recycling of electronics in ways that don’t leave toxic metals and plastics on garbage barges headed to lessdeveloped countries. For at least the next few weeks, Retrievr will waive its usual $20 home pickup fee for everything except big TVs and large computer monitors. TV pickups were initially free at Retrievr’s spring Denver launch as well, and wildly popular. The startup collected more than 100,000 pounds of electronics in the first few weeks. Now, pickups for big TVs start at about $30, and volume has decreased, though recyclers are convinced there are plenty more customers looking to clean out family rooms and basements. Retrievr contracts in Denver with McNeal’s employer, Blue Star Recyclers, for the pickups and sorting. Only about 17% of 53.6 million metric tons of consumer electronics are responsibly recycled and documented each year, according to a recent international report, leaving 44.3 million tons unaccounted for. The brands backing Retrievr have identified barriers to recycling including: no at-home pickup by municipal recyclers; no knowledge of one-time dropoff programs; desire for complex technology to be reused by someone rather than thrown away; and wor-
ries that private data are left on storage devices and will be abused. “So we’re working to address each of those barriers,” Retrievr CEO Kabira Stokes said. • The Retrievr website and other materials offer information on how to wipe data. If consumers can’t do it themselves, Retrievr certifies that its recycling handlers use standard wiping protocols. • The partners, who are also experimenting with a pilot in Philadelphia, are trying all forms of media to get word out, from TikTok to tables at farmer’s markets to listings in city recycling directories. • Used computers that look like they still have life in them are wiped of data and then offered to nonprofits and other potential re-users. • Final processing of recyclable materials is not done in Denver, but items are sent to others who take out the metals and other useful or toxic parts in a “certified chain of custody through the end-life of the material.” “We’re just trying to build out the ecosystem of options for people,” Stokes said. “We’re just trying to move these recycling rates.” The new service joins Colorado and local governments that are already on a forceful recycling push. Denver wants to boost the percentage of material residents keep out of the waste stream from 15% closer to the national average of 34%, with the city council likely to vote this month on a plan that would, for the
first time, charge for the volume of garbage while expanding recycling frequency and free composting. Colorado legislators passed a bill setting up a statewide “producer responsibility” program, where makers of consumer packaging will pay fees into a pool that will help cities and counties expand their recycling programs and create local markets for recyclable materials. Other specialty recycling programs are starting up privately, with Ridwell as one example. Ridwell is a subscription service that brings a box to the consumer’s doorstep that can be filled with hard-to-recycle items like batteries, plastic film, light bulbs and more. Ridwell’s basic service is $16 a month for a threemonth agreement. The company does not take large electronics. All the new programs are examples of how consumers want “that link between residents and responsible processors. People are so relieved to get these things out of their house and have something to do with it,” Stokes said. “We’ve also learned,” she added, “that people have a lot of televisions.”
This story is from The Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. For more, and to support The Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun.com. The Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.
New program could help build 16,000 homes BY ANDREW KENNEY COLORADO PUBLIC RADIO
Colorado is putting $150 million into a new housing program that is expected to support the creation of thousands of new houses, apartments and condos. Under a bill signed by the governor, the money will be loaned out at low-interest rates to local governments, nonprofits and developers. They’ll combine it with other sources of money to build housing at a manageable price point for people working in the area. They’ll then repay the debt into the “revolving” fund, allowing it to be loaned out once again. “This is a key issue going forward: Colorado’s a great place to live, but we need to reduce housing costs,” Polis said in an interview. “A combination of property tax relief, new tax credits, transformational investments in housing that are then leveraged with private sector investments will substantially increase the inventory and supply of houses in Colorado and help reduce prices.” State analysts expect the program could support 16,000 new units over a decade, said Democratic state Sen. Rachel Zenzinger, a sponsor. And it represents just a smaller part of nearly $650 million in housing spending authorized by the legislature this year, plus changes that could bring in more money in the future. Polis signed the bill at the edge of
a vacant lot in Arvada. The parcel, not far from busy 80th Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard, is the future site of an affordable housing project. The project is a collaboration of the city of Arvada and the nonprofit BeyondHome. House Minority Leader Hugh McKean, a Republican, said he supported the bill because it opens the door for more private development of housing. “If you can incentivize private capital, then you get what you want and you benefit a company to come and invest in our state. That’s the best possible solution,” he said. The new money comes from the state’s general fund. It’s possible in large part because the state’s budget is flush from rising tax revenue and Colorado has received billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief. But the new spending can’t close the vast gap in Colorado’s housing needs, estimated at 325,000 new homes over the next few years. Some housing advocates want lawmakers to go beyond simply funding new programs to make big policy changes; they’d like to see the state loosen local development restrictions to encourage more building. State lawmakers have been hesitant to override local leaders, who have historically set the rules for development. But they have tiptoed into the question of land use by offering financial incentives for cities that embrace denser construction. Gov. Polis also signaled his support for a failed proposal that would have
banned cities from enacting growth limits. Asked if he was interested in exerting more influence over local zoning codes, perhaps by using incentives, Polis responded “Yes.” More housing and homelessness legislation Other significant housing bills passed in 2022 include: • HB22-1304 to provide $178 million in grants to governments and nonprofits to help build affordable
housing and infrastructure. Local governments that use “sustainable land use best practices,” including by encouraging density, will get dibs on some of the money. • HB22-1366 to provide $105 million in grants for local governments and nonprofits to provide services and housing for people experiencing homelessness. • HB22-1378 to provide federal funds for the creation of a Denver metro campus for homelessness services.
20 Fort Lupton Press
June 9, 2022
C R O S SWO R D P U Z Z L E
© 2016 King Features Synd., Inc.
Solution
TRIVIA 1. GEOGRAPHY: Which country owns the Canary Islands? 2. MOVIES: Which movie features the song “Moon River”?
10. U.S. PRESIDENTS: Which president had an estate called The Hermitage?
3. LANGUAGE: What does the Latin phrase “non ducor, duco” mean in English?
Answers
4. ANIMAL KINGDOM: What is a group of ducks called?
2. “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”
5. LITERATURE: Which 20th-century novel features a character called Sethe?
1. Spain
3. “I am not led, I lead” 4. A raft
6. TELEVISION: What drive-in diner is featured in the 1970s TV sitcom “Happy Days”?
5. “Beloved”
7. MUSIC: When did Lynyrd Skynyrd’s anthem “Sweet Home Alabama” chart in the Top 10?
7. 1974
8. U.S. STATES: Which state’s motto is “Eureka”? 9. HISTORY: When did Wyoming give women the right to vote, hold public office and own property?
6. Arnold’s
8. California 9. 1869 10. Andrew Jackson
(c) 2022 King Features Synd., Inc.
Crossword Solution
Fort Lupton Press 21
June 9, 2022
MILK FROM PAGE 18
She also cautioned against parents obtaining donor milk outside of milk banks. Diseases such as HIV can transmit through breast milk, and unprocessed human milk can carry harmful bacteria. Milk banks interview donors, ask which medications they take — some are harmful for infants or immunocompromised babies — and conduct blood tests, among other screening steps. Milk given to a bank undergoes specific heating and cooling processes and is tested for bacteria, Jones said. “It is a very well-oiled machine. There are no limits to the extent they go to to make sure that it is safe,” Jones said. There are limits to the resources a bank can provide, Jones said.
Donor milk is expensive — typically costing between $3 and $5 an ounce — and that can pose a barrier to families who might turn to banks when they can’t find formula. Even if families could afford large quantities of donor milk, she said that is not in the spirit of a bank’s mission. “They are not somewhere to go buy 40 bottles,” Jones said. Each baby’s needs will differ, but a newborn infant might eat roughly 1 ounce each feeding, and need eight feedings in one day. After a couple of weeks, babies might begin eating anywhere between 2 and 5 ounces per feeding. A milk bank’s priority is providing milk to hospitals taking care of premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit or supporting mothers whose milk supply has not come in and their newborn needs milk in the meantime. That support can’t fall away during the crisis, Jones said.
In a typical month, Mothers’ Milk Bank would serve roughly 60 families. “It’s only been a couple weeks since this has really hit home with everyone,” Heinrich said. “We’ve gotten a lot of requests that probably would not have normally come to us, and we have to assume that’s because of the shortage.” For now, the bank is rationing how much milk it provides families. People can purchase up to 10 bottles, which contain 4 ounces of milk, each day. Heinrich was not sure how long the cap will be in place, but the bank wants to ensure everyone in need can receive some milk, she said. Heinrich said the bank is hoping to spur enough donations that it stores up more donations than what its hospital and NICU clientele needs, as it seeks to serve members of the broader community during the formula shortage.
“Even in this crisis we have to prioritize our NICU customers. We have to make sure that our hospitals are getting the milk that they need to feed premature babies, because it is absolutely life saving,” she said. Before launching its partnership with the state, Mothers’ Milk Bank contacted its existing donors to ask for any milk stores they might have. Donations were up the week of May 16 by about 10%, she said, and she hoped they would climb another 10% the week after. “And just keep going as fast and as quick as we can, in a safe and effective manner,” she said.
This story is from The Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. For more, and to support The Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun.com. The Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.
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Public Notices call 303-566-4123 Legals City and County Public Notice NOTICE CONCERNING PROPOSED BUDGET OF WELD RE-8 SCHOOL DISTRICT NOTICE is hereby given that a proposed budget has been submitted to the Board of Education of the Weld RE-8 School District for the ensuing year of 2022-2023; that a copy of such proposed budget has been filed at the Weld RE-8 Administration Office located at 200 S Fulton Ave, Fort Lupton, CO 80621, and online at www.weldre8.org, where the same is open for public inspection; and that such proposed budget will be considered at a public hearing of the Board of Education of the District to be held at 200 South Fulton Ave, Fort Lupton, CO 80621, along with virtually, on June 09, 2022 at 6:00pm. Any elector with the District may, at any time prior to the final adoption of the budget on June 23, 2022, inspect the budget and file or register any objections thereto. WELD RE-8 SCHOOL DISTRICT By: Jessica Holbrook Director of Business and Finance Legal Notice No. FLP639 First Publication: June 9, 2022 Last Publication: June 23, 2022 Publisher: Fort Lupton Press
City of Ft. Lupton Public Notice CITY OF FORT LUPTON NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING Notice is hereby given that the City of Fort Lupton is in receipt of an application for a special use permit referred to as the 711 Denver Ave (MillerChavez) Special Use Permit located at 711 Denver Avenue in Fort Lupton, Colorado, pursuant to the City of Fort Lupton Municipal Code Notice Requirements. The public hearings are to be held before the Planning Commission on Thursday, June 23, 2022, at 6:00 P.M., and before the City Council on Tuesday, July 5, 2022, at 6:00 P.M. or as soon as possible thereafter. The public hearings shall be held at the Fort Lupton City Hall, 130 S. McKinley Avenue in Fort Lupton, Colorado. In the event that City Hall is closed at the time of the hearings, the public hearings will be held remotely, accessible to the public by phone and internet. Information on how to attend the hearings will be provided in the agenda as posted on the City’s website, www.fortluptonco.gov. Further information is available through the City Planning and Building Department at (303) 857-6694. ALL INTERESTED PERSONS MAY ATTEND. LEGAL DESCRIPTION LOT 15 AND 16, BLOCK 15, FORT LUPTON AND A STRIP OF LAND 3 FEET WIDE ALONG THE SOUTH SIDE OF LOT 14, BLOCK 15, FORT LUPTON, COUNTY OF WELD, STATE
OF COLORADO Legal Notice No. FLP640 First Publication: June 9, 2022 Last Publication: June 9, 2022 Publisher: Fort Lupton Press Public Notice CITY OF FORT LUPTON NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING Notice is hereby given that the City of Fort Lupton is in receipt of an application for a Preliminary Plat known as the Cottonwood Greens PUD Filings 1-10 Preliminary Plat, located north and adjacent to 9th St. and west and adjacent to County Road 31 within the City of Fort Lupton, pursuant to the City of Fort Lupton Municipal Code Notice Requirements. The public hearings are to be held before the Planning Commission on Thursday, June 23, 2022, at 6:00 P.M., and before the City Council on Tuesday, July 5, 2022, at 6:00 P.M. or as soon as possible thereafter. The public hearings shall be held at the Fort Lupton City Hall, 130 S. McKinley Avenue in Fort Lupton, Colorado. In the event that the City Hall is closed at the time of the hearings, the public hearings will be held remotely, accessible to the public by phone and internet. Information on how to attend the hearings will be provided in the agenda as posted on the City’s website, www.fortluptonco.gov. Further information is available through the City Planning and Building Department at (303) 857-6694. ALL INTERESTED PERSONS MAY ATTEND LEGAL DESCRIPTION MULTIPLE PARCELS OF LAND SITUATED IN THE SOUTH HALF OF SECTION 33, TOWNSHIP 2 NORTH, RANGE 66 WEST OF THE SIXTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN, CITY OF FORT LUPTON, COUNTY OF WELD, STATE OF COLORADO, BEING MORE PARTICULARLY DESCRIBED AS FOLLOWS: COMMENCING AT THE SOUTHEAST CORNER OF SAID SECTION 33, AS MONUMENTED BY A 2-1/2 ALUMINUM CAP STAMPED “GEOSURV 1998, PLS 22097, AND CONSIDERING THE EAST LINE OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF SAID SECTION 33, AS MONUMENTED ON THE NORTH END BY A 2” ALUMINUM CAP STAMPED “ALPHA ENGRG 1997 25937” AS BEARING NORTH 00’09’31 WEST WITH ALL BEARINGS CONTAINED HEREIN RELATIVE THERETO: THENCE NORTH 00’09’31 WEST ALONG THE EAST LINE OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF SAID SECTION 33 1506.37 FEET TO THE SOUTH 1/16 CORNER BETWEEN SECTION 33 AND SECTION 34; THENCE NORTH 89’52’26 WEST ALONG THE SOUTH LINE OF THE NORTH HALF OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF SAID SECTION 33 205.84 FEET TO THE WESTERLY RIGHT OF WAY LINE OF WELD COUNTY ROAD 31 AS CONVEYED TO WELD COUNTY IN THAT WARRANTY DEED RECORDED MAY 23 1980 AS RECEPTION NO. 1825641 OF THE RECORDS OF WELD COUNTY. AND THE POINT OF BEGINNING; THENCE ALONG SAID WESTERLY RIGHT OF WAY LINE THE FOLLOWING TWO (2) COURSES: 1. SOUTH 11”’09’18” EAST 399.78 FEET TO THE BEGINNING OF A CURVE TO THE RIGHT HAVING A RADIUS OF 3789.72 FEET; 2. 489.60 FEET ALONG THE ARC OF SAID CURVE THROUGH A CENTRAL ANGLE OF 7 24’08”; THENCE DEPARTING SAID WESTERLY RIGHT
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OF WAY LINE NORTH 89’42’22” WEST 828.45 FEET; THENCE SOUTH 00’09’31” EAST 418.65 FEET TO THE NORTH RIGHT OF WAY LINE OF 9TH STREET THENCE ALONG SAID NORTH RIGHT OF WAY LINE THE FOLLOWING TWO (2) COURSES: 1. NORTH 89 42’22” WEST 455.38 FEET: 2. SOUTH 00’08’34” EAST 7.60 FEET; THENCE NORTH 89”42’22” WEST ALONG A 30 FEET NORTH FROM AND PARALLEL WITH THE SOUTH LINE OF SAID SOUTHEAST QUARTER 1048.85 FEET TO THE NORTH-SOUTH CENTERLINE OF SAID SECTION 33; THENCE SOUTH 89’50’24” WEST ALONG A LINE PARALLEL WITH AND 30.00 FEET NORTHERLY OF, AS MEASURED AT A RIGHT ANGLE. TO THE SOUTH LINE OF THE SOUTHWEST QUARTER OF SAID SECTION 33 1966.48 FEET TO THE CENTERLINE OF THE FULTON DITCH, BEING COINCIDENTAL WITH THE EASTERLY LINES OF THE EDELEN HEIGHTS MINOR SUBDIVISION NO. 1 RECORDED JUNE 6, 2018 AS RECEPTION NO. 4404851 OF THE RECORDS OF WELD COUNTY; THENCE ALONG SAID CENTERLINE THE FOLLOWING SIX (6) COURSES: 1. NORTH 0612’34” WEST 151.28 FEET: 2. NORTH 20’43’56” WEST 88.12 FEET; 3. NORTH 30·47’45” WEST 240.23 FEET; 4. NORTH 11’35’19” WEST 84.39 FEET; 5. NORTH 13”59’13” EAST 78.29 FEET: 6. NORTH 31’25’15” EAST 147.40 FEET TO THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF SAID EDELEN HEIGHTS MINOR SUBDIVISION NO. 1: THENCE CONTINUING ALONG SAID CENTERLINE OF FULTON DITCH THE FOLLOWING TEN (10) COURSES: 7. NORTH 38°52’08” EAST 65.88 FEET: 8. NORTH 67’22’4T EAST 93.12 FEET; 9. SOUTH 80”35’03” EAST 199.77 FEET: 10. NORTH 55·44’52 EAST 169.57 FEET: 11. SOUTH 83 4’28” EAST 232.47 FEET: 12. NORTH 48’40’18” EAST 227.84 FEET; 13. NORTH 67 11’05” EAST 165 . 39 FEET: 14. NORTH 78 11’40” EAST 180 .. 87 FEET: 15. NORTH 37’22’05” EAST SJ.66 FEET; 16. NORTH 04”39”12” WEST A DISTANCE OF 176.96 FEET {RECORD DISTANCE = 177.03 FEET) TO THE NORTH LINE OF THE SOUTH HALF OF THE SOUTHWEST QUARTER OF SAID SECTION 33; THENCE CONTINUING ALONG SAID CENTERLINE OF FULTON DITCH AND THE WESTERLY AND NORTHERLY LINES OF PARCEL AS DESCRIBED IN THAT DEED RECORDED DECEMBER 1J. 1984 AS RECEPTION NO. 1991950 OF THE RECORDS OF WELD COUNTY THE FOLLOWING FIVE (5) COURSES: 17. NORTH 04 39 12 WEST 31..82 FEET (RECORD DISTANCE = 31.62 FEET); 18. NORTH 24·35’11 EAST 259.79 FEET (RECORD DISTANCE = 259.75 FEET); 19. SOUTH 84’27’39” EAST 426 .. 41 FEET (RECORD DISTANCE = 426.35 FEET); 20.. SOUTH 62”30’49” EAST 185.28 FEET (RECORD DISTANCE = 185. 25 FEET); 21. SOUTH 44 49’ 05” EAST 187. 12 FEET (RECORD DISTANCE = 187. 09 FEET) TO THE NORTH-SOUTH CENTERLINE OF SAID SECTION 33, THENCE CONTINUING ALONG SAID CENTERLINE OF FULTON DITCH THE FOLLOWING SEVEN (7) COURSES: 22. SOUTH 44 49 05 EAST 119. 68 FEET; 23. SOUTH 67 19’06” EAST 102.80 FEET; 24.. SOUTH 53 17’11” EAST 266.98 FEET; 25.. NORTH 85 19’19” EAST 82.20 FEET: 26. NORTH 63”33’42” EAST 205.14 FEET; 27. NORTH 47’56’22” EAST 237.78 FEET; 28. NORTH 39’06’23” EAST 22.89 FEET TO THE NORTH LINE OF THE SOUTH HALF OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF SECTION 33 AND THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF PARCEL 1 AS DESCRIBED IN THAT WARRANTY DEED RE-
CORDED APRIL 24, 1989 AS REC. NO. 2177392 OF THE RECORDS OF WELD COUNTY: THENCE CONTINUING ALONG SAID CENTERLINE OF FULTON DITCH AND THE WESTERLY LINES OF SAID PARCEL 1 THE FOLLOWING FIVE (5) COURSES: 29. NORTH 39’06’23” EAST 246.83 FEET; 30. NORTH 16”42’35” EAST 177.01 FEET: 31. NORTH 02 13’20” WEST 191..53 FEET: 32. NORTH 11 45 35 WEST 367.88 FEET; 33. NORTH 29’31’20” WEST A DISTANCE OF 434.19 FEET TO A LINE PARALLEL WITH AND 30.00 FEET SOUTHERLY OF, AS MEASURED AT A RIGHT ANGLE, TO THE EAST-WEST CENTERLINE OF SAID SECTION 33: THENCE NORTH 89’58’06” EAST ALONG THE EAST-WEST CENTERLINE OF SAID SECTION 33 1422.77 FEET TO THE WESTERLY RIGHT OF WAY LINE OF WELD COUNTY ROAD 33; THENCE SOUTH 11’09’18” EAST ALONG THE WESTERLY RIGHT OF WAY LINE OF WELD COUNTY ROAD 31 1319.64 FEET TO THE POINT OF BEGINNING. Legal Notice No. FLP641 First Publication: June 9, 2022 Last Publication: June 9, 2022 Publisher: Fort Lupton Press
Public Notice DISTRICT COURT, COUNTY OF WELD STATE OF COLORADO 901 9th Ave Greeley, CO 80631 In the Interest of: Allison Salas Arreola, Respondent Attorneys for Petitioner: Aaron L. Evans, #27270 Timothy D. Bounds, #44180 Andrew Rogers, #52188 Evans Case, LLP 1660 South Albion Street, Suite 1100 Denver, Colorado 80222 Phone Number: (303) 757-8300 E-mail: Evans@evanscase.com; Bounds@evanscase.com Rogers@evanscase.com Case Number: 2022PR030228 NOTICE OF HEARING BY PUBLICATION PURSUANT TO §15-10-401, C.R.S.
Metropolitan Districts
To: Jose Leobardo Salas Alaniz Last Known Address: Unknown
Public Notice NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING ON THE AMENDED 2022 BUDGET NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of the SWEETGRASS METROPOLITAN DISTRICT NO. 1 (the “District”), will hold a meeting at 2500 Arapahoe Avenue, Suite 220, Boulder, CO 80302 and via Zoom Teleconference on Tuesday, June 14th, 2022 at 10:00 A.M., for the purpose of conducting such business as may come before the Board including a public hearing on the 2022 amended budget (the “Amended Budget”). This meeting can be joined using the following teleconference information: Zoom Meeting Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86110562186?pwd =Uld2RjJJNm1vTDFzQ2IrZ0RQYnVNQT09 Meeting ID: 861 1056 2186 Passcode: 584938 Call in Numbers: 1(720) 707-2699 or 1 (253) 215-8782 NOTICE IS FURTHER GIVEN that Amended Budget have been submitted to the District. A copy of the Amended Budget is on file in the office of 2500 Arapahoe Avenue, Suite 220, Boulder, CO 80302, where the same are open for public inspection. Any interested elector of the District may file any objections to the Amended Budget at any time prior to final adoption of the Amended Budget by the Board. This meeting is open to the public and the agenda for any meeting may be obtained by calling (303) 858-1800. BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS: SWEETGRASS METROPOLITAN DISTRICT NO. 1 /s/ WHITE BEAR ANKELE TANAKA & WALDRON Attorneys at Law Legal Notice No. FLP642 First Publication: June 9, 2022 Last Publication: June 9, 2022 Publisher: Fort Lupton Press
Misc. Private Legals
A hearing on the Petition for Approval of Settlement of Claims Pursuant to Rule 62 of the Colorado Rules of Probate Procedure for the above respondent. The Petition filed request Court approval of the settlement and the net settlement funds will be deposited to a restricted account for the benefit of the respondent. A hearing will be held at the following time and location or at a later date to which the hearing may be continued: Date: July 13, 2022 Time: 1:30 pm Division: 1 Via Webex Legal Notice No. FLP635 First Publication: May 26, 2022 Last Publication: June 9, 2022 Publisher:Fort Lupton Press
Notice to Creditors PUBLIC NOTICE NOTICE TO CREDITORS Estate of Curtis Gall, deceased Case Number: 2022PR141
All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to District Court of Weld County, Colorado on or before September 26, 2022, or the claims may be forever barred. Vicki Taylor Personal Representative 40 Taos Ct Red Feather Lakes, Colorado 80545 Legal Notice No. FLP637 First publication: May 26, 2022 Last publication: June 09, 2022 Publisher: Fort Lupton Press
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