Lone Tree Voice 010523

Douglas County Health beats Jan. 1 deadline

Commission, sta celebrate a year of progress

BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

e Douglas County Health Department is o cially a go. Not that there was any concern in meeting

the Jan. 1 deadline in a split last year from Tri-County Health, as o cials have been either ahead or on time in the project timeline throughout 2022.

As the Jan. 1 deadline for the complete split came, Health Director Mike Hill continues to be con dent in the work done in 2022 and going forward in 2023 and the future.

Jan. 1 marks the o cial disband-

ment of Tri-County Health, which served Adams, Arapahoe and Douglas counties for more than seven decades. Douglas County started the disbandment, with Adams and Arapahoe counties later following suit.

After the COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States in 2020, Douglas County o cials fought the pressure to wear masks in public, which

became the tipping point to push for separation. As Tri-County Health ordered mask mandates, Douglas County rejected it and moved forward in 2022 to create its own health department.

With what seemed like an uphill battle to complete in just a year, Hill, who came to Colorado from

School board advocates for more funding, local control

2023 priorities outlined

BY MCKENNA HARFORD MHARFORD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Local control, school safety and increasing educational funding are a few main themes of the legislative priorities approved by the Douglas County school board ahead of the 2023 General Assembly.

School board members spent hours across multiple meetings and in the winter retreat discussing the district’s legislative priorities before approving them on Dec. 13. e legislative priorities document is updated annually and used to inform lawmakers on the district’s position relative to potential policies.

“It’s really for us to convey, as a board of seven, to our elected legislators things that we are particularly interested in policies that we would advocate for, things we want to see, but it’s also certain statements or positions that we disagree with,” Board President Mike Peterson said.

Local woman succeeds without facial expression

BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

For the majority of people, feelings are shown through expressions whether it be a smile, a frown or a look in one’s eye. However, for Madi-

cial expressions is impossible due to a rare condition known as Moebius syndrome.

Moebius syndrome is a rare neurological condition that primarily a ects the muscles that control facial expression and eye movement, which is essentially facial paralysis.

e condition is rare, with estimates saying only 20 people per million are

Madison’s mom, Monica Woodall, said when Madison was born she was diagnosed with Moebius immediately. Among other symptoms, Monica said Madison had club feet, which surgery has since corrected, no lateral eye movements and limited facial movements.

roughout the discussions, the board was able to compromise on legislative priorities around school safety by highlighting the need to address both gun violence and mental health of students. Language was also added to advocate for more law enforcement training, as well as specifying that the district opposes allowing guns on school

Castle Rock resident Madison Woodall

COURTESY PHOTO

California to lead the charge, said sta ng levels are where they should be, inspections are underway, and they are at the budget set by the Douglas County Commission.

Not a divorce

Commissioner Abe Laydon said he has never considered Douglas County leaving Tri-County Health to be a divorce as others have labeled it. Instead, Laydon said it is more of an “empty nest” scenario. Douglas County grew and outgrew Tri-County Health, with local residents needing di erent services than those in Adams and Araphoe County.

“With a county of our size, it’s bizarre not to have our own health department,” Laydon said. “ ings are di erent here locally and you need to have a health department that is unique. We have grown and it was time to go.”

One of the main challenges over the last year was sorting out the logistics on how to separate from Tri-County Health. Hill said at rst the main challenge was dealing with the resentment created from Douglas County’s o cial decision to split from the three-county agency.

Hill said once di erences were set aside, Douglas County’s health department worked well with the sta from Tri-County Health to do what is in the best interests of the public.

Agreeing with Hill, Laydon said he commends Tri-County Health Director John Douglas for his professionalism and work with the county to meet established deadlines.

Hill said working together is important because the county wanted a smooth transition in getting services transferred to Douglas County, following a lot of the same systems Tri-County Health o ered, including in the areas of restaurant and childcare inspections.

Commissioner George Teal credited Hill for the success in implementing the services required by law for a health department and in establishing priorities that t Douglas County.

“We have had Mike coach us on how to get established and on what we need to do to get set up,” Teal said.

Services o ered

According to information provided by Wendy Holmes, Douglas County’s director of communications, about 80% of the service demand for the county health department is associated with consumer protection, such as retail food and childcare.

Caitlin Gappa, assistant director for environmental health, came to Douglas County from Tri-County Health and is con dent in the work done to get the new health department operational.

Gappa explained that the environmental side of the health agency focuses on restaurant and childcare inspections and on keeping the county’s water supply safe.

Inspections are fully operational in Douglas County, Gappa explained, with 124 inspections being completed since getting operational on Sept. 1. Currently, there are 1,300 retail food establishments in the county. ese establishments include restaurants, convenience stores, grocery stores and food trucks.

Gappa said she worked in emergency services with Tri-County, but her area of expertise is environmental health.

To keep up with inspections and demand, Gappa said, the county has hired 11 sta members to keep the environmental health department operational.

Gappa said the biggest challenge in 2022 was meeting the Sept. 1 deadline to get operational, noting there has been some pride and celebratory satisfaction in how hard the sta worked to meet the project timeline.

Just ahead of the Jan. 1 deadline, Hill said the Douglas County Health Department is 99% ready to go.

HEALTH DEPARTMENT

Douglas County will be hosting a community town hall event on Jan. 19 to provide updates and answer community questions on the formation of the health department.

The event will start at 6 p.m. at 100 Third St. in the commissioner’s hearing

To join online, call 833-380-0668. Learn more at https://www.douglas. co.us/board-county-commissioners/ meetings/live-town-halls/

e department will not be providing clinical services in-house. Instead, the county will contract with STRIDE Community Health Care to cover medical needs for county residents.

According to Holmes, because 95% of Douglas County’s 370,000 residents have health insurance, there is little demand for clinical services, or public health.

“ is feels good, but I never thought (establishing a new health department in a year) was impossible or daunting,” he said. “We have a good team. I knew we were going to succeed and we have.”

STRIDE services are located in Parker.

Sta ng and budget goals

Hill said when he was hired, commissioners stressed the budget would not go over the $2.6 million that had been allocated each year to Tri-County Health. Hill estimated that with fewer sta members, the county will be adequately served through a $1.8 million budget.

Commissioner Lora omas said when she made the motion to split from Tri-County in July 2020, she knew it was the right direction.

“Mike Hill has delivered what was requested of him,” she said. “A 21st-Century health department that meets all of our public health needs, which costs $700,000 less than (Tri-County) did. I am proud of this achievement.”

In the split, o cials from Adams County estimate they will hire an estimated 180 employees. Arapahoe County o cials estimate hiring about 200 health department employees. Douglas County aimed lower at about 41.

With the exception of the struggles in getting an accountant, Hill said, the department will be fully sta ed by the end of January. When asked about the decrease in sta , Hill explained that besides outsourcing public health services, administrative costs will be a lot lower.

Hill said Tri-County Health operated with administrative positions at the top with HR and other sta . In Douglas County, those services are already established. Established county services will be used in tech support, communications and other administrative areas.

Teal said 2022 the hard work to create the department was done, noting that the process is not over now that it is up and running.

Comparing the health department to a car, Teal said, “We will need to continue to check the tires, change the oil and ll it with gas.”

Teal said 2023 will be show the county how well everything operates.

TOWN

Since Sept. 1, the newly-created Douglas County Health Department has conducted hundreds of inspections. SHUTTERSTOCK IMAGE

Monica said in spite of the condition being so rare when Madison was diagnosed, she actually knew what Moebius was because she had see it covered on an Oprah episode.

Monica said her daughter did not feed from a bottle normally, and the young mother had to learn a lot in the rst 10 days of Madison’s life in the hospital.

While symptoms vary by case, Madison said, “ is condition makes it where the nerves in my face just never developed completely. It’s hard to show any emotions. My speech can be slurred a little bit.”

While some issues have faded over the years, Monica said Madison, now 23, grew up without the ability to use the muscles in her face, meaning she does not blink properly and can’t smile or frown like others.

Monica said in growing up and going to school, Madison was never very social. She mostly kept to herself and kept quiet.

Madison said it was hard at times growing up when she would be different from other children. However, growing up in Castle Rock, Madison said she was never bullied or made fun of like other kids she has met with the disease. Madison said she just learned to explain to people why she does not smile. Students and friends would ask a few questions, Madison said, but mostly left her alone.

Monica said with multiple surger-

ies, procedures and a lot of growth over the years, Madison has grown into a successful adult thanks mostly to services and support provided by the Moebius Syndrome Foundation.

With so few people having Moebius, Monica said it was tough to nd support to help face the challenges with Madison, who was her rst child.

Eventually, Monica and Madison started attending annual conferences hosted by the foundation. At these gatherings, Monica said, she was able to talk to other parents dealing with similar issues and Madison was able to nd lifelong friends who understood the challenges of Moebius.

e two attended their rst conference when Madison was a year old and have continued going ever since.

“Over the years she would feel comfortable and at peace because she was around people with the same condition,” Monica said. “She was able to see adults who showed her they are able to live successful lives.”

Madison said the conferences helped a lot because she found friends who didn’t judge her or ask questions — they understood why she can’t smile.

“It’s a good resource for people,” Madison said. “It’s rare, so it’s isolating. When I heard from people — I learned there were resources and treatment. ere were options for therapy.”

Madison agreed that seeing adults with the condition speak and show her they succeeded was helpful.

Madison recently nished college she was not interested or didn’t care because her facial expressions couldn’t show them she wanted the job.

Instead, Madison said she practiced seeming more engaged by asking more questions and keeping dialogue owing.

“It’s really hard to decide if you should tell your boss,” Madison said. “I don’t want this condition to de ne who I am. I know if I work to maintain eye contact and appear as engaged as possible it will help me.”

Madison got the job and is in her rst month working as a detention specialist with the Douglas County jail.

As the Moebius Syndrome Foun-

dation continues to provide support by Moebius, the nonpro t recently

According to the press release, the mission of the foundation is to provide information and supbius syndrome and their families, promote greater awareness and drome, and to advocate for scientific research to advance the diagnosis and treatment of Moebius syndrome and its associated conditions.

To spread awareness and education about Moebius syndrome, the Moebius Syndrome Foundation along with multiple craniofacial organization partners will celebrate Moebius Syndrome Awareness Day (MSAD) on Jan. 24, 2023.

According to the press release, this is a day when members of the Moebius community around the world wear purple, host awareness and social events, and share information about Moebius syndrome across social media.

Monica, left, and Madison Woodall

COURTESY PHOTO

SCHOOLS

FROM

property with the sole exception of law enforcement.

“We are saying it’s important to us as a school district that anyone who is carrying a firearm on DCSD property is exclusively employed as a security officer, that is their one and only responsibility, and those individuals meet the training,” board member Elizabeth Hanson said at the Nov. 15 meeting.

When it comes to the district’s goal for academic excellence, the legislative priorities focus on supporting local control, providing school choice and examining accountability measures, like state testing, to ensure they are effective and not overly burdensome.

Many of the priorities call for more school funding from the state, as well as oppose unfunded mandates and the diversion of public school funding elsewhere, including vouchers. The board also urged federal funding for recovery from the effects of the pandemic to

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continue.

School board members also encourage legislators to expand financial literacy and career and technical education for students.

For legislation regarding teachers, the district asks for additional pathways to teacher certification, while maintaining standards, and disapproves of mandates burdening teachers and overwhelming classroom instruction time for standardized testing.

Board members thanked Peterson for his efforts to corral the thoughts of the group into one document that the whole board could agree on.

“I’m really proud of some of the positions we’ve taken,” board member David Ray said. “I’m proud of the fact that we can say with confidence, we don’t support vouchers. I’m proud of the fact that we can say ‘we want gun violence to go away.’”

Your Douglas County Health Department is fully launched

The Douglas County Health Department is now providing all public health services in Douglas County. How did we decide which services to provide? We listened to you. Learn more and read the Public Health Improvement Plan online. Visit douglas.co.us and search Health Department.

Christmas tree recycling

Douglas County provides several drop-off locations to recycle your Christmas tree. For locations, dates, and instructions on how to prepare your tree for recycling, visit douglas.co.us and search for Christmas tree recycling

Skip the trip - motor vehicle services just a click away

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Renew your driver license or motor vehicle registration and more from the convenience of your smartphone, tablet, desktop or laptop. You can also renew vehicle registrations at MVExpress kiosks. Find information at DouglasDrives.com

Are you a Douglas County property owner?

Your property tax statement or postcard notification is scheduled to be delivered the week of Jan. 16

Pay your taxes online at douglascotax.com More information visit douglas.co.us/treasurer Distribution of your taxes yourdougcotaxes.com

Interested in becoming a foster parent or adopting a child?

Information nights are free and open to anyone interested in learning about foster care and adoption. Join the meeting via Zoom on Jan. 9 or Jan. 23 from 6-7:30 p.m. Call 303-636-1KID for more information, or to register online, visit collaborativefostercare.com

What’s happening with your County government?

A Farm Bureau.

A Community.

A Family.

At Colorado Farm Bureau, we’ve worked for 103 years to protect what makes rural Colorado special. As a member you’re a part of a close knit community that protects rural Colorado and the agriculture industry. You’re part of a family.

Join the Farm Bureau Family today and help us grow a vibrant rural communities and strong local economies. You’ll have access to thousands in members-only benefits and like-minded farm and ranch families from across the state.

Become a member at www.ColoradoFarmBureau.com

Our commitment to open and transparent government includes online posting of information about public meetings at which the business of government is conducted. To view public meeting agendas, participate in-person or remotely, or watch select meetings via live stream, visit douglas.co.us and search for Business Meetings / Public Hearings.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day o ce closure

Douglas County offices will be closed Monday, Jan. 16, 2023.

Many services are available at DoItOnlineDouglas.com

Visit douglas.co.us

DOUGLAS COUNTY’S TOP NEWS OF THE YEAR

BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Douglas County had a year full of news, with plenty of issues surrounding water, COVID-related topics regarding the development of a new health depart-

ment, masks and legal battles. e school board made state and national news through its ring of Superintendent Corey Wise, which still has a lasting e ect through all of 2022. e south metro team for Colorado Community Media covers all

of Douglas and Arapahoe counties. In 2022 the sta included South Metro Editor elma Grimes, Editor Scott Gilbert, current writers McKenna Harford, Haley Lena, Tayler Shaw, Ellis Arnold and former writers Elliott Wenzler and Robert Tann.

1: Records offer detailed look at day the Douglas County School District superintendent was asked to step down — Colorado Community took an in-depth look at what transpired before former superintendent Corey Wise was fired in a 4-3 vote of the Douglas County School District Board. The article dives into recordings of phone calls between board members as the four-member majority called minority members to tell them about their plans.

• What led to the story: In February, the four-member majority fired Corey Wise without cause. A lawsuit was then filed by Highlands Ranch resident Robert Marshall, alleging open meeting law violations.

• Updates: While a judge ruled

the four-member majority did violate open meeting laws, an appeal was filed. This could be the makings of a 2023 top story as the trial date slated for January has now been delayed.

-Robert Marshall, a Democrat, was elected to represent House District 43 in the 2022 election

-Corey Wise filed a wrongful termination lawsuit that has not been resolved.

-Erin Kane was later named the district’s new superintendent

2. Republican candidates for sheriff answer Q&As — The race to replace Sheriff Tony Spurlock was mainly held during this year’s Republican primary as the fourcandidate battle did not go without stories and controversy.

EDITOR’S PICKS FOR TOP STORIES

Besides the most read stories for 2022, Colorado Community Media reporters did a lot of work to dig deeper into a variety of topics in Douglas County, including a look at how commissioners behave and how towns are handling growth, water issues and crime.

Here are South Metro Editor elma Grime’s top picks for 2022:

1. Douglas County car thefts consume law enforcement — Car thefts were a trending topic in all of 2022 and will likely continue in the new year. In April, Community Editor McKenna Harford dug deeper into the data and talked to law enforcement o cials on how much time

ghting the ongoing battle takes.

• Related Stories: e e ects of an out-of-control crime rate when it comes to car thefts is showing as multiple shootings involving police and suspects have occurred in 2022, including one between Douglas County sherri ’s deputies and suspected car thieves in Lone Tree.

2. Douglas County Health Department — During the COVID-19 pandemic and masks controversy, Douglas County opted out of TriCounty Health, which served as a partnership between Douglas, Adams and Arapa-

HERE IS A LOOK AT THE TOP 10 MOST READ STORIES FOR 2022 IN DOUGLAS COUNTY:

Superintendent Corey Wise speaks with Becky Myers at a Douglas County School Board meeting. Myers began her term as a school board member in November 2021.

FILE PHOTO BY JESSICA GIBBS

• What led to the story: Colorado Community Media worked to create an indepth list of questions covering topics ranging from the state’s Red Flag laws to mass shootings in schools and public locations.

• Updates: Darren Weekly went on to win the primary and general election. Weekly will take over the county’s top spot in 2023.

-Holly Kluth: She was defeated in the primary and still has a pending lawsuit against Spurlock.

-Lora omas: She was defeated in the primary and remains on the Board of County Commissioners.

3.  Fallout continues: High-ranking Douglas County School District o cial resigned in condemnation of superintendent’s ring — After former superintendent Corey Wise was red, Special Education Services O cer Sid Rundle resigned after 28 years with the district. In resigning,

TOP PICKS

hoe counties. With a Jan. 1, 2023 deadline, a lot of work had to take place and has.

• Update: e county is pleased to say they have met deadlines, are operational and operating within set budget limits. Colorado Community Media will continue to monitor the program’s progress in 2023.

3. Could Douglas County add two more commissioners? — As bickering between Commissioners Lora omas, Abe Laydon and Georg Teal continue, Colorado Community Media’s former reporter Elliott Wenzler looked into what would or could happen if the board was increased from three to ve.

• Related stories: As the in ghting has continued with Laydon and Teal teaming up against omas, the board also approved spending $17,000 in taxpayer dollars in 2022 to have the lone female board member investigated. While the investigation did not turn up anything of substance, Teal and Laydon later ordered another investigation, which had the Arapahoe County Sheri ’s O ce also say omas did not break any laws.

4. With fentanyl deaths on the rise, south metro police, advocates grapple with solutions — Fentanyl’s presence in Denver’s south metro region and Colorado has continued to increase over the past ve years — but the numbers have sky-

Rundle wrote, “Despite their propaganda, they do not value loyalty, hard work, dedication, relationships, decency, humility, or integrity. Instead, they showed themselves to be rmly yoked to political in uence, arrogant ideology, and a disdain for due process.”

4. Early election update: Weekly takes quick lead in ballot county— As much as voters were interested in what candidates for sheri had to say, they were just as interested in the results. In both the primary and general elections, sheri -elect Darren Weekly took and held the lead.

5. As school measures fail, Kane vows to return next year — In 2022, the Douglas County School District reviewed teacher salaries and other district needs. e board ultimately decided to ask voters for a $60 million mill levy override and $450 million bond. Voters said no to both questions. While election analysis on the results is still ongoing, Superintendent Erin Kane said the issue will likely be revisited.

rocketed since 2020, when the drug overtook methamphetamine as the leading killer in Colorado, according to data from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE).

5. Castle Pines continues to face troubled waters — ousands of homes dot the hills of Castle Pines, a central Douglas County community about 20 miles from the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. But underneath those houses and their hills, a problem lurks. As residents ush their toilets, shower and rinse out their sinks, their untreated wastewater enters an aging system that’s struggling to do its job. ere is no doubt these problems will continue to ow into 2023.

6. Douglas County moves forward with possible funding for large water supply proposal — In July, Douglas County commissioners announced they were exploring the possibility of using COVID relief funds to secure future water by purchasing San Luis Valley supplies. e project was met with opposition from the San Luis Valley, water experts and Colorado’s U.S. Sens. John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet.

• What led to the story: is became an ongoing issue throughout much of 2022 with Commissioner Lora omas opposing the idea while Commissioner George Teal supported it. In a later meeting, Commissioner Abe Laydon was the deciding vote to not use COVID funds. However, the topic has not died completely and may come up again in 2023.

6. Douglas County School District Board res superintendent Corey Wise in 4-3 vote — After the school board elections, the new majority said they would re Corey Wise, which they did during a Feb. 4 meeting. However, the campaign promise did not come without controversy.

• What led to the story: Colorado Community Media started hearing about the potential dismissal a week before as minority school board members held a special meeting to talk about the process and their disagreement with how majority members were handling it.

• Updates: Corey Wise has led a wrongful termination claim against the school district, which has not been settled to date. Wise has since taken a new job with the neighboring Cherry Creek School District.

7. Weekly declares victory in Republican sheri primary — After a contentious primary race, Weekly, the head of investigations, was able to declare victory. In his victory speech,

Weekly said, “I’m extremely excited. I’m going to take the Douglas County Sheri ’s O ce to the next level.” Weekly will take over from Sheri Tony Spurlock in January.

8. Douglas County clerk and recorder candidate Karen Je erson — Readers were able to learn a lot about candidates in the 2022 elections as Colorado Community Media presented Q&As and pro les. Ahead of the November election, readers were interested in Democrat Karen Je erson, who ran against Republican Sheri Davis.

• Update: Davis went on to win the election. e Republican clerk will be sworn into o ce in January.

9. Douglas County School Board directors allege superintendent improperly threatened with termination — Taking their case to the public, three minority members, David Ray, Susan Meek and Elizabeth Hanson, alleged in a Jan. 31 publicly-noticed meeting that the majority members, Mike Peterson, Christy Williams, Becky Myers and

Kaylee Winegar, gave former superintendent Corey Wise an ultimatum to resign or be red prior to his Feb. 4 termination. e majority members denied the allegations.

10. Autopsies in Franktown area double homicide show other injuries, drug use — e Franktown community was shocked when Casey Devol was arrested and charged with murder in 2022 for allegedly killing his sister and her boyfriend.

• What led to the story: On Feb. 8 the Douglas County Sheri ’s O ce responded to a call in Franktown on Russellville Road. Upon arrival, deputies found Jessica Mitchell, 32, and her boyfriend Bryan Gray, 34, dead in the home’s garage. According to autopsies, Gray had six gunshot wounds and Mitchell had three.

• Update: Devol has since pleaded not guilty to the charges and continues to go through the court process. Recently, Devol waived his right to a speedy trial. e new trial date is slated for June 2023.

Just Say NO to Extremism

Assault on Democracy . . .

Two years ago this week, on January 6, 2021, a planful mob of political Extremists attacked the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., a violent assault on Democracy and the Rule of Law not seen since the Civil War. These violent Extremists, including Coloradans and Douglas County residents, sought to prevent Congress from formalizing the 2020 Election. Five people died and many were injured including 138 police officers. Four officers who responded to the attack killed themselves within seven months. Let’s not forget what happened that day. And let’s not ignore the continuing struggle for our American Democracy.

The Fight for Freedom Continues . . .

American Democracy is based in The Rule of Law. Since America’s founding, The Rule of Law has been defined by The People, in our governance, laws and rules. The Rule of Law is not defined by individuals or extreme political ideologies. In our Democracy, no one is above the law; no one can use intimidation and threats to force beliefs on the rest of us.

Just Say NO to Extremism . . .

Extremism has no place in our community, in our elections, or in our government and institutions. Each of us deserves equity and respect. Defeating Extremism starts in our homes, neighborhoods and communities, right here in Douglas County.

Stand-up for Democracy . . .

• Hold Extremists, people & elected officials, accountable for what they say & do

• Stop violence against our fellow citizens, elected officials & public servants

• Hold fair elections, insist on the best candidates & accept the results

• Bring civility to our conversations

• Get involved, learn the truth and support Freedom for each & every one of us

VOICES

The good and bad

This month marks the one-year anniversary of me taking over as the south metro editor for Colorado Community Media. ese are 11 newspapers spanning over Arapahoe and Douglas counties and, to some degree, Elbert County. I say to some degree because we have a great member of our sta , Scott Gilbert, who deserves credit for going above and beyond as he took Elbert County duties to a high level this year. Let’s put him and his work with freelancer, Chancy Gatlin-Anderson, in the good column for all of 2022.

Beyond my o ce, as editor, I have seen a lot of great things happening throughout the Denver metro communities.

I continue to be thoroughly impressed with Littleton and the work the council and community do. It is a good community, setting a great example in many areas. Littleton’s council operates with the kind of forethought all our communities need.

I love their board that makes recommendations on the environment. To answer world problems, local work has to be done in our cities and towns. It’s not all about Washington all the time.

Another major example for Littleton is the fact that the city buys into the concept that a ordable housing is in crisis mode right now and programs must be approved to move forward and keep working-class families in the communities. When a teacher cannot a ord to live in the community in which they teach — it is a tragedy. When retail, restaurant and everyday workers are hard to nd — a lack of a ordable housing is the reason.

From supporting federal measures to creating their own programs locally, Littleton is thinking about sustainability, growth and stability. at is a good thing to have right now.

In Douglas County, a ordable housing is becoming even more scarce. I think Parker Chamber CEO T.J. Sullivan said it well when he brought up the ght against apartments and rentals. Without people working and living in our communities — they cease to function well.

One of my reporters recently talked about teachers in Douglas County driving through the metro area along I-25 and passing the neighboring district Cherry Creek knowing teachers there are paid more money. ey drive past the higher-paying district to Douglas County where they make less to do the same job. at is not good and not worth it to that teacher.

I was surprised that both the district’s

ballot measures to bring in more funding failed. If we continue to pay teachers like crap — we are going to keep losing the best teachers and quality is going to continue to decrease.

In the area of transparency — I have to say Castle Rock and Littleton are fantastic. Castle Rock creates websites that are informative, easy to maneuver and make me feel like they care if their citizens know what is happening.

eir sta is also top-notch. Led by Melissa Hoelting, Castle Rock’s communication operations are great. ey are proactive and when asked for interviews, information and their time, they are receptive.

e same can be said for Littleton.

Now the bad — law enforcement. One of my pet peeves since joining the media in Colorado is that common response — “It’s under investigation.” I fully agree that information must be protected to do the work good detectives and police have to do. However, when the public information o cer uses that “It’s under investigation” loophole to the point of abuse — I get completely frustrated.

e public’s right to know and the laws protecting that are there for a reason. When a police department says there is no further information and nothing further is happening with a case — I cannot really support the “It’s under investigation” response.

Trying to get information on the Charles Hay Elementary closing due to a potential threat in Englewood is a perfect example. Waiting and stalling to get the information we nally got is not necessary. Work with us — we work with you.

In Centennial and Arapahoe County I have loved watching the growth and commitment to dealing with homeless issues, even appointing someone to lead the e orts. I love it because this problem is not going away, cannot be ignored and cannot be shrugged o .

To end, I must say in regards to mental health issues facing our area and nation — it’s a mixed bag. In Douglas County the program is fantastic. Seeing Community Response Teams up close — I love the work and goals they have.

Arapahoe County is also following suit and improving mental health response operations.

However, after participating in the Douglas County Youth Congress program this year, I can say — we are not doing enough. ese teenagers spoke honestly about counselors being paid but not really listening, about fears of even speaking up and about all the stress and pressure they face without an outlet.

We have to continue the work to do better, since 2023 is now here.

elma Grimes is the south metro editor for Colorado Community Media.

ERIN ADDENBROOKE Marketing

AUDREY

ERIN

LINDSAY

New year, new plans, new attitudes

WINNING

No matter where you are in the world, this week o ers us all the opportunity to enter the new year with a new plan and a new attitude. Even if we believe we have the right plan and a great attitude, there could be room for a little improvement raising the bar for ourselves and those around us. What if we could make the slightest incremental improvements to our existing plans and our outlook? I think you would agree that we would experience even greater results.

ese past couple of months have kept us busy with clients and internally with business planning, writing sales plans, prospecting plans, training plans, new onboarding plans, and working with clients and friends on creating and building vision boards that help provide visual reminders of our goals and what we expect the new year to bring. And if we forget or fail to plan, this old quote often attributed to Benjamin Franklin still holds true all these years later, “By failing to plan, you are preparing to fail.”

Now some of us might be thinking that our plans are just ne, and our attitude is exactly where it needs to be. Whenever I hear this, I am reminded of something my great uncle Harry would always say, “ ere is nothing so good it couldn’t be better, and nothing so bad that it couldn’t get worse.” So, even if we believe our plans are solid and our attitude is good and positive, maybe we could take one last look at our plans and give ourselves a check-up from the neck up to try and identify any blind spots we may have missed.

When it comes to planning, I am a big advocate of using a planning tool. I am a little biased to the Ziglar Performance Planner as it is an annual planner that helps me not only manage my days and meetings, but it also helps me to plan out my goals for the year and track those goals each and every day. It also contains some of Zig’s most famous motivational quotes, and when I read those each day, it de nitely inspires me, and ensures my attitude is in the right place as I glance at those words of wisdom throughout my day. If you aren’t using one, I would highly recommend that you nd one that works for you and your schedule.

How do we develop and maintain a positive attitude in a world that can sometimes feel so negative? at is a question I receive from many of you throughout the year. And here at the beginning

SEE NORTON, P12

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Thelma Grimes

Shoppers face statewide fee for bags

after that date until their existing inventory is gone.

What if businesses don’t comply?

BY JESSE PAUL THE COLORADO SUN

Colorado businesses are required to charge consumers a 10-cent fee for each plastic and paper bag they carry out of the store as of Jan. 1. at’s because of a bill passed by the state legislature in 2021 and signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat.

e fee, which isn’t subject to the state’s 2.9% sales tax, may be higher if a town, city or county enacts a higher charge.

People who are in federal or state food assistance programs don’t pay the fees as long as they can prove that they are enrolled in one of those programs.

Businesses are required to send 60% of the bag-fee revenue they collect to the municipality they operate in. If the business is within an unincorporated part of a county, the money will be sent to the county.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Show kindness, not cruelty

I was particularly moved by the homily given at Christmas morning Mass about “holy moments,” and how each of us can provide a powerful kindness to another person in need.

Just the week before, my granddaughter mentioned a children’s Christmas story book she had been given years ago, and it was such a sad story about a little girl. I said, “I think it was “ e Little Match Girl!”

For some reason, I had been thinking about that story too. How easy it would have been for someone to have seen that cold and hungry little match girl and provided her a “holy moment,” buying a few of her matches.

e sadness of this story came into sharp relief thinking about the Christmas Eve stunt Texas Gov. Greg Abbott pulled, sending three busloads of migrants to Washington,

NORTON

FROM PAGE 10

of the year is the perfect time to take control of our own attitude regardless of what the world throws our way. Setting our foundation upon an attitude that starts with gratitude. It’s really di cult to slip into a negative head space when we are grateful for everything we have and everyone in our circle of friends and family.

Maintaining a positive and healthy attitude isn’t just about gratitude alone, we also must be careful of what we allow to enter our minds. Again, here at the beginning of the year it is a fantastic time to create a reading calendar for the year of the good books that we want to read, books that inspires us and that keep us grounded. It’s a great time to

Local governments would be required to spend the money on the following initiatives:

• Bag-fee enforcement costs

• Waste-diversion programs, including outreach and education  e remaining 40% of the bag-fee revenue will be kept by businesses.

Stores that collect less than $20 in bag-fees in a given quarter don’t have to remit the revenue to their municipality or county and can keep the money.

Plastic bags will be banned in Colorado starting in 2024, with some exceptions e 2021 bill also bans the distribution of all single-use plastic bags in Colorado starting in 2024. But there are asterisks.

Restaurants that prepare or

D.C., where the migrants, including children, were dumped o in the bitter freezing cold without adequate clothing or shoes.

Shocked into action by this cruel Christmas Eve stunt were volunteers who provided “holy moments” of shelter, clothing, and food to these fellow human beings.

Perhaps some people applaud Gov. Abbott, as well as Govs. DeSantis and Ducey, for “owning the libs” by mistreating migrants. I would urge these folks to take few minutes to rst read the Hans Christian Andersen tale of e Little Match Girl and absorb the moral of the tale, and then read the Dec. 22 article in the News-Press headlined “Forced to Flee.” Perhaps it may prompt some “holy moments” of support for rational, comprehensive, and long-overdue immigration reforms.

Marilyn Beem Castle Rock

nd the podcasts that are lled with powerful and positive information that can motivate and challenge us to grow in mind, body, and spirit.

How about you? Is the new year the right time to reevaluate your plans? Are you failing to plan? Or are you all over this and have a brilliant plan and a wonderful attitude? Either way, I would love to hear your story at gotonorton@gmail.com, and when we can take the time to create a plan that will help us to achieve all that we hope to achieve in the new year, and support that plan with a positive attitude, it really will be a better than good life.

Michael Norton is an author, a personal and professional coach, consultant, trainer, encourager and motivator of individuals and businesses, working with organizations and associations across multiple industries.

serve food in individual portions for immediate on- or o -premises consumption would be exempt, as would stores that operate solely in Colorado and have three or fewer locations.

Businesses that are still allowed to o er plastic bags must collect a fee of at least 10 cents on each bag. e fee may be higher if a city or county enacts a higher charge.

Say goodbye to plastic foam

It’s not just plastic bags that are being done away with. e 2021 bill also bans polystyrene products — such as Styrofoam — across the state starting on Jan. 1, 2024.  e only exception is that restaurants will be able to continue using polystyrene products for takeout

Municipalities and cities will be able to sue businesses that don’t comply with the new bag-fee and styrofoam rules.

ey also may assess the following nes:

• $500 for a second violation

• $1,000 for a third or subsequent violation

e nes can be assessed per violation during a retail sale. In other words, if a business illegally handed out 10 plastic bags during one transaction, they would be considered to have violated the law only once.   e measure also repeals a state prohibition barring local governments from introducing restrictions on plastic materials that are more stringent than the state’s.

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

e Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.

SHUTTERSTOCK IMAGE

Lawmakers, Polis gave green light to new charge during 2021 session

BY TAYLER SHAW TSHAW@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

When two friends joined forces to donate socks to homeless shelters in January 2012, they had no idea it would lead them on a path to creating a nonpro t that has collected nearly one million pairs of socks for people in need throughout the U.S.

e Sock It To ‘Em Sock Campaign, co-founded by Sue Lee and Phillis Shimamoto, collects and distributes new pairs of socks for people experiencing homelessness and those in need, such as low-income families, Marshall Fire victims and migrants who arrived in Denver in late 2022.

Although it was more than a decade ago, Lee remembers nearly every detail of how the nonpro t originated. She was in the soup aisle at King Soopers, shopping for anksgiving dinner on a Tuesday night in 2011.

“As I was literally grabbing a can of cream of mushroom soup, written in my head were yellow block letters with a red outline, and it went like a marquee and went across my head, inside my head, and it said, ‘Sock It To ‘Em Sock Campaign, socks for the homeless.’ And it kept rotating,” Lee said. It made her stop in her tracks.

“Literally, it was written — so it wasn’t like a thought I had conjured up,” she said. “If the message were from God, I looked up and down the aisle to make sure nobody was around, and I said, ‘Seriously? You think I have nothing else to do?’”

e message kept repeating as she nished shopping. She walked to her car and, out loud, said, “OK, I’ll do it.”

“I got in the car and I called Phillis. And I said, ‘Phillis, you won’t believe what just happened. I might have gotten a divine message, I don’t know,’” Lee said.

Lee suggested they ask their friends to gather new pairs of socks through the end of December, and then take them to some homeless shelters in January.

“I was like, ‘Well, let’s do it,’” Shimamoto said.

During the rst week in January 2012, in 7-degree weather, Lee and Shimamoto took 575 pairs of socks to three locations.

“And at every location, they were saying, this is the number one clothing need,” Lee said.

Shimamoto said after they found out socks were “the most requested item and the least donated,” they decided to continue collecting socks.

“We said, well, let’s do what we can. Let’s try to make it as big as we can,”

Shimamoto said. “And who knew that after all this time, we would be on our way to a million socks.”

The value of socks

Educating people about the value of socks, especially to people experiencing homelessness, is part of the nonpro t’s work, Lee said.

ere are an estimated 10,857 people experiencing homelessness on a given night in Colorado, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

e research article, “Foot Conditions among Homeless Persons: A Systematic Review,” cited a study that found people experiencing homelessness walked a median of ve miles each day.

In another study, it was reported “that only 61% of homeless participants changed to a clean pair of socks daily.”

With walking being their primary mode of transportation, many people experiencing homelessness go through their socks fairly quickly, Lee explained.

“A pair of socks on a homeless person might last two to three days,” she said. “It’s really important to be — have those constant socks out there at shelter services and agencies for them.”

Lee said people sometimes only picture men as experiencing homelessness. However, a November 2014 report by the American Institutes for Research stated approximately 2.5 million children are homeless each year in the U.S.

“We had to educate people that … we need socks for men, women and children,” she said.

Something else Lee informs people of is the danger of foot ailments for people experiencing homelessness.

“One of the main reasons a person who’s homeless goes into the emergency room is a foot ailment, and they can die from that,” Lee said. “One way to stop that from happening is for them to have clean, dry socks to wear on a regular basis.”

“Every time someone gives socks, they should realize this might save a person’s life,” she said.

Eric Hill, an emergency medicine physician and the EMS medical director for the Medical Center of Aurora, said cold weather injuries and foot problems are high on the list of reasons people experiencing homelessness go to the emergency room.

“Especially around the wintertime, when you get really cold spikes, we tend to see more of it, especially in the days afterwards when they already have the frostbite,” Hill said. “ ey’re at a much higher risk just given their exposure levels and lack of appropriate clothing for that kind of environment.”

He noted people experiencing homelessness come to the emergency room for other, variable reasons, such as issues related to mental health and substance abuse.

“ ey may come in with (an) alcohol-related issue or drug-related issue, but when you’re actually evaluating them, you see that they actually have signi cant feet problems with that,” he said.

e toes are very susceptible to frostbite, he explained, saying having regular access to dry, clean socks is a big part of preventing foot ailments.

“Access to good footwear, waterproof, recurrent socks, is a great thing,” Hill said.

Becoming a nonprofit

After continuing their work of collecting socks in 2013, by 2014, Lee and Shimamoto realized they needed to o cially establish themselves as a nonpro t, which they did in 2015.

In the beginning, Lee and Shimamoto were counting, sorting, bagging and storing the socks themselves.

Now, members of the National Charity League do almost all of the counting, sorting and bagging for them, Lee said, and then the socks are stored in a storage unit until they’re ready for pickup from an organization that needs them.

e nonpro t collects and distributes socks in a variety of ways, and it has had in uence in least 47 states in the country, Lee said.

One of the methods for collecting socks is through sock ambassadors, which Lee said is any person, business, place of worship, or organization that collects new socks for the nonpro t.

“And then they get them to us, we count, sort and bag them, and we get them out to shelters, services and agencies,” Lee said.

Over the years, the nonpro t has given socks to more than 200 shelter services and agencies, Lee said. ey also give socks to individual people who may be assembling “blessing bags” and want to include socks in them for people experiencing homelessness, she added.

Among the extensive list of sock recipients is Cardenas Ministries, a family operated nonpro t based in Henderson, in Adams County, that hosts a range of events and initiatives aimed at giving back to the community.

“We just enjoy doing stu in the community, whether it’s for kids who are underprivileged or whether it’s for the women’s shelters, homeless,” said Valerie Soto, one of the family members.

“We were buying socks and we never had enough socks to give out,” Soto

said.

During one of their events, roughly four years ago, they connected with someone who introduced them to Lee and the Sock It To ‘Em nonpro t.

“Sue has just been a big blessing. We’ve been able to help so many people because of Sock It To ‘Em,” Soto said.

She said they’ve received thousands of socks from the nonpro t, which are distributed through e orts such as their holiday events, gift bags they assemble for people experiencing homelessness, and their school supplies donations to southern Colorado communities.

Recently, Cardenas Ministries’ had about 1,000 pairs of socks from Sock It To ‘Em to hand out during its December “Spirit of Giving Parade of Toys” event, in which they gave out hats, gloves, socks and toys to families at di erent housing developments in Brighton and Commerce City.

“ ey’re angels on earth,” said Gloria Estrada, the mother of Soto, about Sock It To ‘Em. “ e need is there.”

Soto said she can speak from experience, as when she was growing up, both of her parents were in college and there were “ ve of us kids.”

“We didn’t have enough clothes. We were very, very poor at that time,” Soto said. “And we would have to share socks.”

When children come up at the events and pick the pair of socks they want, it creates a good feeling, Soto said.

“Sock It To ‘Em, I’m telling you, they are just so amazing,” Soto said.

Cathy Law — the project manager for the Volunteers of America Colorado AmeriCorps Seniors Retired Senior Volunteer Program in Denver, Douglas and western Arapahoe counties — also praised Sock It To ‘Em for its partnership with Volunteers of America.

“It’s an amazing partnership,” Law said, explaining they rst connected in 2016. “Sue and Phillis give me a bunch (of socks), and then I can distribute them in the community because we have partnerships with these other agencies.”

Law said she’s taken socks to many di erent places, such as to the Volunteers of America veterans’ service center and to food banks Volunteers of America works with.

“I really feel like it’s a heartbeat in the community, where they’re connecting people,” Law said about Sock It To ‘Em.

“ ey’re showing you that an act of kindness can go so far,” she added. “And that if you believe in something, you can make it happen.” e nonpro t’s impact is also

growing outside of Colorado, as Lee said the nonpro t gets submission forms from across the country of people wanting to do sock drives.

ere are also people called “sock sherpas” who o er to transport socks to areas outside of Colorado.

In some states, smaller networks of people working together to collect and donate socks are forming, Shimamoto said.

“ at’s always been our goal, is to be able to have pods of people in di erent states who can connect with one another and kind of build a small community,” Shimamoto said. “Hopefully, it just gets bigger and bigger.”

Support from Colorado cities, towns

Even before earning its o cial nonpro t status, Sock It To ‘Em began making a name for itself in Colorado cities and towns.

On the Friday before anksgiving in 2014, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock proclaimed the second Wednesday in December a “Sock It To ‘Em Work Day,” Lee said.

Following the proclamation, Lee emailed seven mayors the next Monday asking for their support as well.

e next night, she went shopping for anksgiving in the same King Soopers at the same time as she had in 2011.

“I’m in the soup aisle and literally, I’m grabbing a can of cream of mushroom soup, and my phone goes o in my pocket,” she said.

It was Catherine Marinelli, the executive director of the Metro Mayors Caucus, a voluntary, regional association of 38 mayors. She told Lee two mayors had forwarded the email Lee sent to the caucus.

“And she goes, ‘We love this idea,’” Lee said.

Marinelli invited members of Sock It To ‘Em to attend the caucus’ legislative holiday party, which was the same day as the proclaimed work day, and said the mayors would be bringing socks to donate.

“And that got some other mayors interested in us,” Lee said.

One of those mayors was Clint Folsom, who was the mayor of Superior from 2014 to 2022. e town began collecting and distributing socks to people experiencing homelessness, Lee said.

When the 2021 Marshall Fire destroyed more than 1,000 homes in Boulder County, displacing residents, Shimamoto reached out to Folsom to donate socks.

In total, they donated about 16,000 pairs of socks, Lee said.

“It was really cool to be able to give back to them after all that they had given to the community all of those years,” Shimamoto said. “It really warmed our hearts to be able to see that come full circle.”

A lot of the 16,000 pairs for Superior came from other cities who held Sock It To ‘Em sock drives, Lee said.

“It was really emotional,” she said. e cities of Centennial, Greenwood Village and Englewood hosted sock drives again in late 2022, collecting new pairs of socks of all types and sizes through mid-January.

Schools have also joined in on the sock drives, such as High Five Preschool in Castle Rock, Bradford Primary School in Littleton, and Timberline Elementary School in Centennial.

Some schools, on the other hand, are the recipients of socks through the nonpro t’s sock drawer program.

ese drawers are typically implemented in Title I schools, which are schools receiving federal resources due to having a lower-income student population.

“Many of those kids go to school and they don’t have socks, and so we decided to do sock drawers,” Lee said. “And so we get them into schools and then we try to replenish them as we can.”

Some volunteers in the Retired Senior Volunteer Program gave back to Sock It To ‘Em by putting together sock drawers, Law said.

Since the 2022-23 school year began, the nonpro t established approximately 22 sock drawers in schools across the Denver metro area, Lee said.

Law re ected on how many people are involved in the collection and distribution of socks to people in need.

“By the time that individual gets that pair of socks, it’s not just a pair of socks. It’s those hands of love that say we’re thinking of you — and sometimes that’s more important, is just people knowing that someone’s thinking of them,” Law said.

Looking ahead

Sock It To ‘Em plans to celebrate collecting one million pairs of socks on Feb. 16, re ecting on how the nonpro t has grown over the past decade and how it can continue to do so.

Expanding the sock drawer program, as well as the sock ambassador program, across the country are on the list of goals Lee has for the nonpro t’s future.

Another goal is raising funds.

“It would be signi cant to raise a quarter of a million dollars — that

duties may include calling schools to see if they want a sock drawer, overseeing sock ambassadors, or transporting socks.

Lee encouraged those interested in learning more about the nonpro t and participating in it to ll out the submission form on their website: sockittoemsockcampaign.org.

Looking back at how the nonpro t has evolved over the years, Lee and Shimamoto encouraged people to pursue their ideas.

“If you have an idea, do it — and

don’t be afraid that you won’t know

in uence that will know how to help to ask themselves: “what if, what else

e two friends expressed gratitude for all the ways people have supported their vision and nonpro t.

“We wouldn’t be able to be able to do what we do if it wasn’t for them,” Lee said. “It’s thousands of people who have really participated in where we are today.”

“Everybody’s contribution has meant something to someone,” Shimamoto added. “And everybody who has contributed one pair of socks has contributed to this large amount that just keeps growing every year.”

Tammie Limoges, the chief development and operations o cer of the nonprofit, smiles alongside Sue Lee, showing o the sock drawers in the nonprofit’s storage.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF SUE LEE

Sue Lee, left, and Phillis Shimamoto pose next to their Sock It To ‘Em sign in 2015.

‘Entanglements’ with nature

IF YOU GO

BY SONYA ELLINGBOE SELLINGBOE@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Metropolitan State University’s Center for Visual Arts starts o a new year with “Entanglements,” a new lens-based exhibit of works by 11 national and international artists, which will run from Jan. 13 to March 25 at the CVA Gallery, 965 Santa Fe Drive, Denver. March is Denver’s Month of Photography, and these works interpret artists’ views about how we, as humans relate to nature and its resources.  Eleven di erent views, that is ... e opening reception will be on Jan. 13, from 6 to 8 p.m., and the public is welcome to attend then or visit this handsome gallery. (Admission is free.) “Entanglements” was curated by Cecily Cullen and Natascha Seideneck, who teaches at MSU.

ere is an agenda stated: Artists hope to inspire viewers into action that is supportive of the natural environment. Check the CVA website for programmed events as some artists will be speaking at the gallery. Example: Amy Hoagland will speak at 5 p.m. on March 9 and Regan Rosburg will speak at 5 p.m. on Feb. 9. She has written a book called “Church of Water: A Portrait

The CVA is located at 965 Santa Fe Drive, Denver. (It has parking by the entrance.) Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Friday; noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Admission free. 303-615-0282, msudenver.edu/cva.

of the Arctic.” She teaches at Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design in Lakewood.

Other artists with works included in “Entanglements” include: Persijn Brersen and Margit Lukacs; Dornith Doherty, Felicity Hammond, Jana Hartman, Marcella Kwe, Anastasia Samoylova, Sarah Sense and Alicia Wroblewska.

Hammond will have a photographic collage series titled “Hidden Gems,” described as “jumbled, chaotic mining landscapes with the detrius left by the mineral extraction industry.”

Hoagland’s installation, “ awing Web,” challenges the idea that human society exists separate from nature.

Broersen and Lukacs take recognizable landscapes and reimagine them in two works entitled “Mastering Bambi” and “Establishing Eden.”

Both lms feature familiar landscapes — familiar because they were used in popular lms, but minus the actors and set pieces ...

Metropolitan State University’s Center for Visual Art is located at 965 Santa Fe Drive in Denver. FACEBOOK IMAGE FROM 2013

Lens-based exhibit looks at how people relate to environment

Thu 1/12

Homestead Elementary @ 2:45pm / $400

Jan 12th - May 26th

Homestead Elementary School, 7451 S Homestead Pkwy, Centennial. 515-7080433

Legacy Point Elementary @ 3:30pm / $422

Jan 12th - May 26th

Legacy Point Elementary, 12736 Red Rosa Cir, Parker. 515-7080433

ARTS: Mini Picasso @ Harvard Gulch @ 5pm

Jan 12th - Feb 9th

Harvard Gulch Recreation Center, 550 E. Iliff Ave., Denver. 720-913-0654

ARTS: Preschool Pottery @ Harvard Gulch @ 6:15pm

Jan 12th - Feb 9th

Harvard Gulch Recreation Center, 550 E. Iliff Ave., Denver. 720-913-0654

ARTS: Art Adventures @ Harvard Gulch @ 11pm

Jan 12th - Feb 9th

Harvard Gulch Recreation Center, 550 E. Iliff Ave., Denver. 720-913-0654

ARTS: Piano Class: Beginning/In‐termediate @ Southwest @ 11:45pm

Jan 12th - Mar 16th

Denver Parks and Recreation (SOU), 9200 W Saratoga Pl., Denver. 720-913-0654

Fri 1/13

Ball Hockey: Adult - Coed Winter 23 -Thursday @ 2am

Jan 13th - Mar 16th

Parker Fieldhouse, 18700 E Plaza Dr, Parker

Walnut Hills Elementary @ 2:45pm / $356

Jan 13th - May 26th

Walnut Hills Elementary School, 8195 E Costilla Blvd, Centennial. 515-708-0433

Heritage Elementary @ 3:30pm / $356

Jan 13th - May 26th

Cherokee Trail Elementary, 17302 Clarke Farms Dr, Parker. 515-708-0433

ARTS: Mini Picasso @ Southwest @ 5pm

Jan 13th - Feb 10th

Southwest Recreation Center, 9200 W. Saratoga Pl., Denver. 720-913-0654

ARTS: Oil Painting Workshop @Athmar @ 5pm

Denver Parks and Recreation (ATH), 2680 W Mexico Ave., Denver. 720-913-0654

Neil Z @ 5:30pm

Black Bear Golf Club, 11400 Can‐terberry Pkwy,, Parker

Fleming Mansion Open House Tour (for future customers) @ 9pm

Fleming Mansion, 1510 S. Grant St., Den‐ver. 720-913-0654

Sat 1/14

ARTS: Pottery @ Harvard Gulch @ 5pm

Jan 14th - Mar 18th

Harvard Gulch Recreation Center, 550 E. Iliff Ave., Denver. 720-913-0654 Teague Starbuck

ARTS: Pottery Open Studio (Session) @ Harvard Gulch @ 7:30pm Jan 14th - Mar 18th

Harvard Gulch Recreation Center, 550 E. Iliff Ave., Denver. 720-913-0654

AOA: Trip: Brass Armadillo @ Platt @ 6pm

Denver Parks and Recreation (PPS), 1500 S Grant St., Denver. 720-913-0654

Anavrin's Day: Anavarin's Day back at Green�eld's� @ 8pm

Green�elds Pool & Sports Bar, 3355 S Yarrow St E101, Lakewood Proximo Nivel @ 8:30pm Stampede, 2430 S Havana St, Aurora

Larry Hernandez @ 8:30pm Stampede, 2430 S Havana St, Aurora

Mon 1/16

School Break Camp - 1/16 @ 7:30am / $45

Parker Fieldhouse, 18700 E Plaza Dr., Parker. 303-805-6315

Tue 1/17

AOA: Trip: Explore Blackhawk @ College View @ 4pm

Denver Parks and Recreation (CGV), 2525 S. Decatur St., Denver. 720-913-0654

YS: 5-14 Cheerleading @ Harvey Park @ 11:30pm

Jan 17th - Mar 7th

Harvey Park Recreation Center, 2120 S. Tennyson Way, Denver. 720-913-0654

Wed 1/18

National Western Stock Show Rodeo @ 5:30pm

Heather Gardens Clubhouse, 2888 S. Heather Gardens Way, Aurora

DJ Rockstar Aaron: Forbidden Bingo at 'Bout Time Pub & Grub @ 8pm

Bout Time Pub & Grub, 3580 S Platte River Dr A, Sheridan

Thu 1/19

Parent Guide to ADHD: ADHD 101 (18+ yrs)

@ 1:15am

Jan 19th - Jan 18th

Parker Recreation Center, 17301 E Lincoln Ave., Parker

Ladies Night @ 6pm / $5 Stampede, 2430 South Havana, Aurora

Cameras, Cooks, and KidsWilder @ 2:30pm / $190

Jan 19th - Mar 16th

Wilder Elementary, 4300 W Ponds Circle, Littleton. 720-996-0894

Teague Starbuck @ 6pm

The Pint Room, 2620 W Belleview Ave, Lit‐tleton

FRTC Presents ROCK OF AGES

@ 7pm / $20

Jan 19th - Jan 21st

Parker Performing Arts School, 15035 Compark Boulevard, Parker. psalyers@gmail.com, 720-2856705

powered by

Buntport Theater comes through again

303-494-0523, storiesonstage.org.

Curtis Center

SONYA’S SAMPLER

New from Buntport eater: “ e Death of Napoleon: A Play in Less an ree Acts” brings an interpretation of history from the highly entertaining Buntport eater Company, playing from Jan. 27 to Feb. 18 at its theater, 717 Lipan St., Denver. is clever group writes its own material and says the ticket price is “Name your own price.” ey request that audience members wear masks, please. 720946-1388, buntport. com.

Depot Art Gallery

e Depot Art Gallery, 2069 W. Powers Ave. in downtown Littleton, will open a New Members Show on Jan. 10 and resume hours : 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Free parking, admission. Housed in a historic Santa Fe RR station. See depotartgallery.org.

‘Master Class’

Opening at Littleton Town Hall Arts Center on Jan. 12: “Master Class” for ve performances. TownHallArtsCenter.org.

Stories on Stage

Stories on Stage: “Hall Pass to the Galaxy” plays at 2 p.m. Jan. 15 at Su Teatro, 721 Santa Fe Drive, Denver.

“Wild!” is the name of an exhibit by the Studio Arts Quilt Association at Curtis Center for the Arts from Jan. 7 to Feb. 25. It features 30 artists who were invited to let their imagination take them on a journey to a wild place. Reception from 6 to 8 p.m. on Jan. 14. Admission free. Gallery open 8:30-4:30 Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. 303-7971779, 2349 E. Orchard Road, Greenwood Village.

Englewood concert

Englewood Arts Saturday Chamber Music of the Masters: Jan. 28, 2 p.m. Silver Ainomae, cello. Tickets: $30/$25/$10. 303-806-8196, englewoodarts.org.

Saving Places Conference

Saving Places Conference will be held Feb. 8-10, in-person and online. Embassy Suites by Hilton, Boulder. Contact Colorado Preservation Inc., coloradopreservation.org or 303-893-4260. Register online: SavingPlacesConference. org. Tours of Boulder. Summer on the road sessions: Aug. 25-26 in La Junta. New livestreaming option.

Piano concert

Pianist Andrew Todd will perform on Feb. 5 at 2 p.m. at Littleton United Methodist Church, 5894 S. Datura St., Littleton.

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Help Wanted

LEGITIMATE WORK AT HOME

No Sales, no Investment, No Risk, Free training, Free website. Contact Susan at 303-646-4171 or fill out form at www.wisechoice4u.com

CyberSource Corporation

CyberSource Corporation, a Visa Inc. company, currently has an opening for Software EngineerSr. Consultant (multiple openings) (REF56680F) in Highlands Ranch, Colorado to: Improve the data quality/accuracy of all SRE reports. Work to automate all SRE reports using Hadoop, Cassandra, Oracle, Jira, and AskNow data sources along with Pentaho/PowerBI for the presentation layers. Position reports to the Employer’s Highlands Ranch, Colorado office and may allow for partial telecommuting.

Qualified applicants should apply by emailing resume to uscareers@ visa.com. Must reference job code: REF56680F

System Site Reliability Engineer

(FT; Multiple Openings)

Job Location: Centennial, CO Requirements: BS or equiv. in EE, IT, etc.

+3 yrs. exp. req’d. Exp. w/ UCaaS, Python, Bash, Linux OS, Jenkins, GitLab, CI/CD & VoIP req’d.

Mail Resume: RingCentral, Inc. Attn: HR Dept. 20 Davis Drive Belmont, CA 94002

Help Wanted

Light Housework Needed

Help Wanted for light housework in Highlands Ranch area. Own car needed. $25 per hour plus gas. (303) 791-6070

Visa U.S.A. Inc. Visa U.S.A. Inc., a Visa Inc. company, currently has an opening for Sr. Software Test Engineer (multiple openings) (REF56663L) in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Job duties include: Design, create, and execute test plans and test cases Risk and Debit Processing Services applications from business requirements and conceptual documents. Create, modify, and improve automated test suites, and setup, configure, and maintain software test environments.; Manager (multiple openings) (REF56316W) in Highlands Ranch, CO. Job duties include: Maintain and support of applications/services running on the HP Nonstop Blade and X86 platforms. Code and Implement One-Off and BAU requests. Develop and implement tools to automate configuration changes and operational procedures. All positions report to the Employer’s Highlands Ranch, CO office and may allow for partial telecommuting. Qualified applicants should apply by emailing resume to uscareers@visa.com. Must reference job code.

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Miscellaneous

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Merchandise

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Attention Homeowners! If you have water damage and need cleanup services, call us! We’ll get in & work with your insurance agency to get your home repaired and your life back to normal ASAP! 855-7677031

Health

DENTAL INSURANCEPhysicians Mutual Insurance Company. Covers 350 procedures. Real insurancenot a discount plan. Get your free dental info kit! 1-855-526-1060 www.dental50plus.com/58 #6258.

Medical

Attention oxygen therapy users! Inogen One G4 is capable of full 24/7 oxygen delivery. Only 2.8 pounds. Free info kit. Call 877-929-9587

Miscellaneous

Become a published author. We want to read your book! Dorrance Publishing trusted since 1920. Consultation, production, promotion & distribution. Call for free author`s guide 1-877-729-4998 or visit dorranceinfo.com/ads

FREE $20 Cash App Everyone! Yes It’s Real. Very Limited supply until we run out! Go to Free20Now. com

Free high speed internet if qualified. Govt. pgm for recipients of select pgms incl. Medicaid, SNAP, Housing Assistance, WIC, Veterans Pension, Survivor Benefits, Lifeline, Tribal. 15 GB internet. Android tablet free w/one-time $20 copay. Free shipping. Call Maxsip Telecom! 1-833-758-3892

Scrap Metal, Batteries, Appliances, Wiring, Scrap Plumbing/Heating, Cars/Parts, Clean out Garages/Yards, Rake, Yard work done w/chainsaw, Certified Auto Mechanical / Body Work & paint available Also can do inside or outside cleaning 303-647-2475 / 720-323-2173

DISH TV $64.99 190 Channels + $14.95 High Speed Internet. Free Installation, Smart HD DVR included, Free Voice remote. Some Restrictions apply. Promo Expires 1/21/23. 1-866-479-1516.

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The Generac PWRcell solar plus battery storage system. Save money, reduce reliance on grid, prepare for outages & power your home. Full installation services. $0 down financing option. Request free no obligation quote. 1-877-539-0299

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Littleton Symphony

The Littleton Symphony performs a “Winter Concert of Masterpieces” at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 10, at Littleton United Methodist Church, 5894 S. Datura St., Littleton. Tickets: 303-9336824.

Littleton art sale

The “Affordable Art Show” at Littleton Town Hall Arts Center, 2450 W. Main St. in downtown Littleton, runs through Feb. 6, with all pieces priced at $200 or less. Watercolors, oils, pastels, photography and mixed media pieces. Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and during performances.

Lone Tree

Tony Award-winning actress Laura Benanti performs at Lone Tree Arts Center, 10075 Commons St., Lone Tree at 8 p.m. on Jan. 13. Tickets: $45$65, 720-509-1000, lonetreeartscenter.org.

Denver Art Museum

Denver Art Museum continues “Saints, Sinners, Lovers and Fools: 300 years of Flemish Art” through Jan. 22 and has opened “Rugged Beauty: Antique Carpets from Western Asia,” introducing weavers from the 1500s to 1900s. rough May 28, 2023. Open every day. In May, Hamilton Building collection galleries will be reintroduced with the African collection, Modern and Contemporary Art and Arts of Oceana collection. See denverartmuseum. org.

Arvada Center

Arvada Center, 6901 Wadsworth Blvd., Arvada, has announced its Black Box Repertory Company and scheduled ornton Wilder’s “Our Town” from Feb. 24 to May 21 and “ e Book Club Play” from March 17 to May 18. Members are Lavour Addison, Claylish Coldiron, Diana Dresser, Tresha Farris, Kate Gleason, Geo rey Kent, omas Morgan-Arzola, Frank Oden, Samantha Piel, Josh Robinson, Archer Rosencrantz, Emily Van Fleet and Matt Zambrano. See arvadacenter.org.

The current

NOTICE OF SALE

of

Evidence of Debt

by the Deed of Trust described herein, has filed written election and demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.

THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that on the first possible sale date (unless the sale is continued*) at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, February 1, 2023, at the Public Trustee’s office, Philip S Miller Building Hearing Room, 100 Third Street, Castle Rock, Colorado, I will sell at public auction to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will deliver to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law. If the sale date is continued to a later date, the deadline to file a notice of intent to cure by those parties entitled to cure may also be extended.

First Publication: 12/8/2022

Last Publication: 1/5/2023

the Evidence of Debt and Deed of Trust.

Publisher: Douglas County News Press

NOTICE OF SALE

EXHIBIT

FROM PAGE 14

Hartman and Samoylova o er photographic series that juxtapose nature and human society while Sarah Sense (Chitimacha/ Choctaw) studies the relationship of her ancestors to the environment through an exploration of their landscapes.

Rosburg calls a viewer to action with her work called “dear future” re ecting on what we could change by taking action now ...

Castle Rock, Colorado, I will sell at public auction to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the

purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will deliver to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law. If the sale date is continued to a later date, the deadline to file a notice of intent to cure by those

Felicity Hammond’s “Hidden Gems,” a photographic collage series, will be part of Metropolitan State University’s Center for Visual Arts’ “Entanglements” exhibit. COURTESY PHOTO

This publicity image for Buntport Theater’s “The Death of Napoleon” is an altered version of “Portrait of Napoleon at Fontainebleau” by Paul Delaroche.

COURTESY PHOTO