ParkerChronicle.net
Data skewed due to cold
BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COMDouglas County saw a drop in the number of people experiencing homelessness who were counted as
ISSUE 12 INSIDE: CALENDAR: PAGE 11 | VOICES: PAGE 12 | SPORTS: PAGE 20
VOLUME 21 |
part of the Denver metro area’s annual snapshot of the unhoused this year compared to last, according to early data.
And while it’s di cult to pinpoint what causes unhoused people to be located in or outside of Douglas County on one night per year, county o cials attribute the decrease to
the work of a new team that helps connect the unhoused in Douglas with services.
“Having a (resource) navigator paired with law enforcement seems to be the secret sauce,” county Commissioner Abe Laydon said during a Feb. 9 news conference announcing the preliminary numbers.
Parker Police Department’s O cer Eric Graham and his K-9, Kato, are Mr. February’s in Vested Interest in K9s 2023 calendar.
Kato, one of the two police dogs at the Parker Police Department, received his ballistic vest from Vested Interest in K9s.
Dangerously cold weather rolled into Douglas County and around the Denver area at the end of January, potentially a ecting the metro area’s annual Point in Time count.
When outdoor conditions are so harsh, unhoused people might
SEE HOMELESS, P8
BY HALEY LENA HLENA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
In an e ort to conclude all platting in Downtown Parker, the community development team proposed two minor plats for the Daisy Rowley House and the Exchange Building properties during the Feb. 6 town council meeting.
e Parker town council unanimously approved the Daisy Rowley House Minor Development Plat on Pikes Peak Drive.
According to Ashley Chasez, from the Community Development Department Planning Division, the property was annexed in 1981 when the town was originally incorporated. However, it has never been platted.
e site includes two lots. One is an existing single story building built in 1993 that is currently being used as the o ce for Plum Creek Funding.
e other lot includes two structures, one of which is the existing building from 1917, and the other is a large accessory garage behind the historic home that is currently being used by Ryan & Company, Inc. a local contracting company.
e minor development plat will establish the two parcels as legal lots of record as is required by the Municipal Code.
“ is proposal will create two legal lots,” said Councilmember Laura Hefta. “And it allows for the continuation of existing uses and will provide opportunity for future re-development within the context
‘If I can return the favor and help them out and kind of get their business name more out there to public knowledge, then I’m all for it.’
O cer Eric Graham
In Douglas County, three people make the decisions that a ect roughly 370,000 residents. Often, those choices come from the majority of two commissioners.
Now, a bill in the state legislature could change that, expanding the number of members on a county’s board of elected leaders to ve. e bill would a ect several Front Range counties with large enough populations, including Douglas County, where the board has become known for its bitter con icts.
“To me, it is a simple good governance issue, but there is pretty much united bipartisan opposition from county commissioners who would be impacted,” said state Rep. Bob Marshall, a Highlands Ranch Democrat and one of the bill’s top supporters.
Commissioners serve as a county’s elected leaders, somewhat similar to city councils. ey make policy decisions that largely a ect parts of the county that are “unincorporated” — areas that sit outside of municipalities.
In Douglas County, that includes Highlands Ranch and many other areas, such as Franktown and Roxborough.
e idea to add two more commissioners in Douglas County came up in discussion in a county meeting in
August. Commissioner Abe Laydon remains opposed.
“ e last thing counties need are more politicians,” Laydon said in a statement about the state legislature’s bill. “Whether you have three or 30 commissioners, there will still be a majority and a minority vote
unless it’s unanimous.”
Other counties already have five
Some Colorado counties already operate with ve commissioners. Under current rules, once a county has more than 70,000 residents, a citizen’s group or the county commissioners can put a question on the ballot asking residents if they wish to add two more.
Of the 12 counties who are eligible through their population size, several have moved to ve commissioners, including Adams, El Paso and Arapahoe counties. Weld County and Pitkin County have moved to ve commissioners as part of their home-rule charters — essentially the counties’ own constitutions.
Denver and Broom eld have city council structures with about a dozen members each.
Boulder County has attempted to approve the expansion at least four times, according to Douglas County sta . e counties that would be a ected by the bill are Je erson, Larimer, Douglas, Boulder, Pueblo and Mesa, all of which have three commissioners.
e proposal, state House Bill 23-1180, was introduced on Feb. 8. Another of its top supporters is state Sen. Kevin Priola, a Democrat who represents parts of Adams and Weld counties.
“While counties with populations of less than seventy thousand may be adequately represented by three commissioners, counties with populations of seventy thousand or more require greater and more diverse representation,” the introductory part of the bill reads.
Douglas leaders have long clashed Douglas County Commissioner Lora omas, at the losing end of many 2-1 votes, has said she requested the information about possibly expanding the Douglas board after several residents asked her about the possibility.
“I’ve always been opposed to it
because it would grow government,” she has said. “But I don’t know how to break this logjam with George (Teal) and Abe.”
e relationship among Douglas County’s commissioners began to fray in April 2021 when Teal and Laydon voted to remove omas from her position as chair following a national media request gone awry. e two accused omas of using her role as chair of the board to lie to residents and “attempt to in uence the board” after she wasn’t selected to speak with the media outlet. Also part of the con ict among the commissioners are multiple layers of legal wrangling that stem from an investigation Teal and Laydon initiated after accusing omas of circulating an anonymous letter that criticized speci c employees in the Douglas County Sheri ’s O ce, allegedly creating a hostile work environment. ey also accused her of emailing county legal representation with a request not authorized by the full board.
e $17,000 investigation into omas by outside legal counsel found that while omas had distributed the letter, doing so did not create a hostile work environment. It also found she did direct legal representation to provide her with information the board had determined to keep secret.
omas appeared in a CBS Colorado news story in July discussing the con dential report that showed the results of the investigation, prompting the Douglas County government’s attorney to nd that omas could have broken the law by doing so.
A second investigation ordered by Laydon and Teal — this time conducted by the Arapahoe County Sheri ’s O ce — did not nd probable cause to believe that omas committed the crime of rst-degree o cial misconduct.
omas held a news conference in November and called the probe “yet another bogus investigation.”
BEAUTIFUL DISPLAY OF IRISH DANCE FOR ALL AGES!A bill introduced in the state legislature would require larger counties to expand to five-member commissions. There are currently three commission members in Douglas County. FILE PHOTO Laydon opposed measure
While the Cherry Creek School District approved salary increases to recruit and retain teachers, the Douglas County School District is forced to be more creative in addressing the ongoing issue.
During the Feb. 7 meeting, school board members considered the option to partner with developers to create housing options for teachers who cannot currently a ord to live in Douglas County.
Despite being one of the state’s largest school districts, Douglas County has struggled to compete with other districts in teachers’ salaries, and the results of the November election did not help.
Voters rejected a mill levy measure, which was slated to go directly towards teacher salaries.
Superintendent Erin Kane has raised concerns with the salaries teachers are receiving, stressing the current starting salary for a teacher in the district is $43,680, which is out of touch with the cost of living in the county.
According to the U.S. Census, the median household income in Douglas County is $127,443. e average monthly cost of living is over $4,000. While school board members are considering returning to voters
again next year to ask for more funds to pay teachers, they are currently looking at the a ordable housing options.
Shea Properties, a local housing developer that built out Highlands Ranch, has proposed building on 10 acres of land owned by the school district in Meridian Village near Parker. e land was originally set aside for a new school but is too small.
Shea would then develop the property with low-income apartments.
Board members seemed receptive to the proposal.
In neighboring Arapahoe County, Cherry Creek’s school board approved salary increases to start in
the 2024-25 school year. According to the Feb. 8 news release, new Cherry Creek teachers will start at $57,000 per year, around $14,000 more than Douglas County.
Cherry Creek teachers “across the spectrum of classroom experience” will also get salary increases, and additional compensation will be available for teachers and certi ed sta who further their education, according to the release.
is new salary schedule was part of a compensation package approved Feb. 6 by members of the Cherry Creek Education Association, an organization that represents the teachers, education professionals, counselors, nurses and mental health professionals in the Cherry
Creek School District.
“ is salary update is designed to provide competitive compensation for all of our teachers and certied sta , and is aligned to our core values as a district,” Superintendent Christopher Smith said in the release. “ is week’s announcement is part of our ongoing e orts to ensure that all of our sta earn fair and competitive wages for the work they do in service of students.”
Cherry Creek School District said it hopes the salary increase will attract new teachers to work for the district, which is hiring for many positions across schools and departments, according to the release.
Reporter Tayler Shaw contributed to this story.
BY SARAH MULHOLLAND COLORADO PUBLIC RADIO
Coloradans may owe federal taxes on last year’s TABOR refunds.
e IRS says the state’s residents should hold o on ling their tax returns until the agency gures out how it’s going to handle the issue. e IRS issued the directive to residents of several states that received refunds or special payments in 2022.
Coloradans shouldn’t have to pay any taxes on TABOR refunds, according to the state’s revenue department. TABOR, which stands for the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, goes back to 1992 in Colorado. e law requires the state to return excess state revenues to taxpayers.
“We have done so on various occasions and through various statutory methods,” Dan Carr, a spokesperson for Colorado’s revenue department, said in an emailed statement. “We have provided this informa-
tion to the Internal Revenue Service in response to the questions they’ve raised to many states. We will continue to monitor the IRS process and be clear on our position that these refunds are not taxable.”
Colorado’s excess tax revenues totaled about $3 billion last year. at resulted in sizable refund checks of $750 for individuals and $1,500 for joint lers. Normally those refunds would have been paid this spring, but Gov. Polis and the legislature moved up the timeline to last summer.
Last year, 19 states o ered special tax refunds and payments, according to the Associated Press. Many were meant to provide relief from in ation. Colorado’s TABOR refunds, though not prompted by in ation, were issued at the same time as the other states’ checks. is story is from CPR News, a nonpro t news source. Used by permission. For more, and to support Colorado Public Radio, visit cpr.org.
Whenever you are outside and you notice a piece of trash, please stop and dispose of it properly. What isn’t collected today is picked up in the next rainstorm and sent directly to the nearest creek. From the moment this small piece of trash enters our waterways, it is responsible for a tremendous amount of damage. Local stormwater agencies are teaming together to bring you this message. We take this so seriously that we posted this ad rather than send you more garbage in the mail.
One thing is clear: our creeks, rivers and lakes depend on you. THIS STORMWATER
A man suspected of stealing catalytic converters last October in Centennial has been arrested, the Arapahoe County Sheri ’s O ce said in a Feb. 7 news release. ree catalytic converters were stolen Oct. 7 from Toyota Tacoma trucks at EcoShield Pest Solutions, located at 7275 S. Revere Parkway in Centennial, the sheri ’s o ce said in the release.
After an initial investigation, Arapahoe County Sheri ’s O ce investigators found the stolen parts at a local scrap yard in Denver, but the suspect was still at large, according to the sheri ’s o ce.
On Nov. 30, investigators sought an arrest warrant for Jeremiah Jansen, 47, on three felony charges: identity theft, criminal mischief and theft. Douglas County Sheri ’s O ce deputies arrested Jansen Jan. 3 on an unrelated charge of motor vehicle theft, according to the release.
As of Feb. 7, Jansen was in custody at the Douglas County Detention Facility. He was being held in lieu of $10,000 bond on the Arapahoe County charges, and he also faces additional criminal charges in Douglas County, per the release.
“ e investigator assigned to this case did an excellent job not only
tracking down the stolen catalytic converters, which is extremely tough to do, but also remaining diligent in identifying and tracking down the suspect,” Arapahoe County Sheri ’s O ce Sgt. Matt Davis said in the release.
Arrests are rarely made in catalytic converter theft cases, and stolen catalytic converters are typically not recovered, the sheri ’s o ce said in the release.
“Catalytic converters are stolen primarily for their valuable metals,” the sheri ’s o ce said in the release. “ ieves steal them from unattended vehicles and since they’re not easily traceable, there’s a lucrative market for the stolen parts.”
According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, catalytic converter thefts increased 1,215% between 2019 and 2022.
One method of preventing such thefts is catalytic converter etching, in which an identi cation label is placed on the catalytic converter. e Englewood Police Department will host catalytic converter anti-theft events Feb. 24 and Feb. 25 in which people can sign up to get a free, do-it-yourself etching kit. ose interested in learning more about the events can visit: lockdownyourcar.org/events.
Additional measures residents can take to protect against thefts involving vehicles include locking their car, parking in secure areas and removing any valuables from their car, according to the Colorado Auto eft Prevention Authority.
The Colorado Sun is a journalist-owned, award-winning news outlet that strives to cover all of Colorado so that our state — our community — can better understand itself.
In this way, The Sun contributes to a more vibrant, informed and whole Colorado.
The Sun, launched in 2018, is committed to fact-based, in-depth and nonpartisan journalism. It covers everything
from politics and culture to the outdoor industry and education.
Now, The Colorado Sun co-owns this and other Colorado Community Media newspapers as a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy. The Sun is CCM’s partner for statewide news.
For Colorado Sun stories, opinions and more, and to support The Sun’s misssion as a member or subscriber, visit coloradosun.com.
Thefts dramatically increase
“ ey’re a nationwide nonpro t organization that donates ballistic armor, Narcan and life-saving kits speci cally to police dogs all over the country for no cost to the handler or the agency,” said Graham.
According to Vested Interest in K9s, the organization has donated more than 4,948 K-9 ballistic vests since 2009.
To receive a vest, the dog has to be a current certi ed working police dog, at least 20 months old and they can’t be one year away from retirement, said Graham.
Each year, the organization chooses 12 dogs that they’ve donated a vest to and their handlers to be in the calendar.
“If I can return the favor and help them out and kind of get their business name more out there to public knowledge, then I’m all for it,” said Graham.
Kato is a 7 year old German Shepherd Belgian Malinois mix and has been partners with Graham for over ve years.
Originally from Slovakia, Kato came to California at just over a year old to Gold Coast K9 where he started with drug work obedience training.
Graham got Kato when he was 18 months old.
“I spent a month out in California, training me on how to be a good partner with him,” said Graham.
After initially being certi ed in California, Graham and Kato came back to Colorado where they have continued drug training. According to
Graham, they train all the time with at least two days of the month dedicated to training days.
“He, I’m sure, saved my life more times than I’ll ever know,” said Graham.
Kato is also certi ed in human tracking and article searches.
In addition to school and public demonstrations and teaching classes on what K-9 teams do, Kato has served Parker by aiding in drug arrests and nding weapons used in commission of crimes.
“He has helped me make arrests that I would have never been able to make without him,” said Graham. “Cases getting solved where he has recovered evidence during an article search that probably never would have been solved without him locating evidence.”
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Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet shares the same national security concerns as many other lawmakers over the popular, Chinese-owned social media app TikTok.
And he wants to see something done quickly.
Bennet has written to the heads of Apple and Google asking them “to remove TikTok from your respective app stores immediately.”
e Democrat, who sits on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, points out in his letter to Apple’s Tim Cook and Alphabet’s (Google’s parent company) Sundar Pichai, that the app “collects vast and sophisticated data from users, including faceprints and voice prints.”
“TikTok poses a unique concern because Chinese law obligates ByteDance, its Beijing-based parent company, to ‘support, assist and cooperate with state intelligence work.’”
Bennet is worried that the Chinese Communist Party “could weaponize TikTok against the United States.”
TikTok has more than 100 million users in the United States, according to Bennet’s letter.
It’s these same privacy and national security concerns that led Colorado GOP Rep. Ken Buck and Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley to intro-
duce a bill last week to ban TikTok in the United States.
“ ey are gathering information on Americans that they will use in a cyber war against America,” Buck told CPR News, noting a user might not think much of giving the company their birth date. But add that to their bank information and other personal information, and the result could be used against them. “And if we don’t seek to protect Americans that don’t understand and don’t understand what the Chinese Communist Party is doing, we’re making a big mistake.”
Buck said he’s asking for the platform to be purchased by a U.S. company if it wants to keep operating in the United States.
e two GOP lawmakers got a bill passed last Congress banning TikTok on government devices, but it took over a year and half to make it through the process to the president’s desk.
Going straight to the companies might limit access sooner than a bill through Congress, if they’re interested in complying.
Lawmakers will get a chance to ask TikTok’s chief executive questions next month, when he’s scheduled to testify in front of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
is story is from CPR News, a nonpro t news source. Used by permission. For more, and to support Colorado Public Radio, visit cpr.org.
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Douglas County offices will be closed Monday, Feb. 20, 2023. Many services are available at DoItOnlineDouglas.com
Help is available at ImatterColorado.org. Take a brief assessment to find out if your child is eligible for free counseling. For additional resources in and around Douglas County, visit douglas.co.us and search Mental Health Resources
If you need immediate support, call Colorado Crisis Services at 1.844.493.TALK(8255) or text TALK to 38255. If you are experiencing a life-threatening emergency, call 911.
Do you know a Douglas County teenager, between the ages of 13 and 19, who has overcome adversity and created positive change in their lives, as well as the lives of others? Nominate them for a 2023 Douglas County Outstanding Youth Award by March 3. Visit douglas.co.us and search Youth Awards
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.
“scrape together enough resources” to pay for a motel room — thus ying under the radar of the annual tally, said Jamie Rife, director of the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative.
“We don’t have the data yet, but we (may see) that more people stayed inside or found a couch to stay on,” said Rife, whose organization oversees the count.
January’s numbers may not ocially come out for months, but data from recent years paint a picture of increasing homelessness in the Denver metro area. e newest o cial numbers, based on 2022’s count, suggest any potential rise in homelessness last year wasn’t as drastic as earlier in the coronavirus pandemic. Still, last year’s count showed nearly 1,600 people in the metro area newly became homeless, and that’s just among those who stayed in shelters.
In Douglas County — where homelessness is typically rarer and less visible than in areas closer to Denver — o cials continue new e orts to try to address the problem.
at includes Douglas County’s Homeless Engagement, Assistance and Resource Team of “navigators” who respond to homelessness, working with law enforcement when safety is a concern.
“Overall, our numbers are decreasing each month, and the HEART team is out there taking proactive steps,” said Ti any Marsitto, a supervisor with HEART.
Numbers a mixed bag
Data from recent years suggest homelessness has increased in the Denver metro area — a trend that predates the pandemic but was likely worsened by it, as the coronavirus crisis disrupted people’s housing and employment.
In 2021, compared to 2020, the metro region saw a 99% increase in the number of people new to experiencing homelessness in shelters, according to the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative.
For 2022, the 1,600 people counted as newly homeless in shelters represented a drop from the previous year — but still a 22% increase over 2020.
In Douglas County, o cials quickly presented early data from this year’s count. ey highlighted that the overall number of homeless dropped to 57, down from 78 last year, with the count of unsheltered
homeless dropping to 27, down from 50.
In 2020, Douglas County’s overall count — sheltered and unsheltered — was 53. In 2019, that number was 14, and in 2018, it was 34. ( e metro area did not count unsheltered homeless in 2021 due to COVID-19 safety concerns.)
Because the Point in Time count generally takes place on a single night and can be a ected by weather or other variables, the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative does not recommend looking at data trends year over year, although the count remains an often-cited statistic.
A more representative count across the metro area involves data from homeless-service providers year round. Between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021, more than 32,000 people accessed services or housing support related to homelessness in the metro region, according to the initiative.
at number sat at about 28,000 people between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 2022, based on data from agencies that partner in what’s called the Homeless Management Information System.
Meanwhile, the one-night count marked 6,884 people overall in the metro area in 2022. at compares to 6,104 in 2020.
Rife, the initiative’s director, said COVID was “a big part” of recent data. She noted that more people staying in congregate shelters or participating in certain programs set up in response to COVID might no longer show up in the Homeless Management Information System due to the programs winding down. Some people might be staying outdoors, she said.
“I would not draw the conclusion that homelessness is decreasing,” Rife said.
During the Feb. 9 news conference, county o cials in Castle Rock directly tied the decrease in Douglas’ one-night homelessness count to the work of the HEART program in recent months.
“Today, there are fewer people living on the streets of Douglas County than there were in 2022. Why? Because every morning three expert resource navigators and three law enforcement o cers wake up on a mission,” the county wrote in a news release.
But large percentage shifts are more likely in Douglas County, where the annual count tends to be in double digits. By contrast, Jefferson and Arapahoe counties’ 2022 tallies each sat at about 500. In Denver, the number was about 4,800.
Also complicating the picture: People without homes don’t always stay in the same area. Many unhoused people say they are not from Douglas County but were there because of a lack of transportation or sweeps pushing them out of other cities. Per Douglas County Sheri ’s O ce data collected on 152 contacts from January to June 2022, only 6% of them were from the Douglas County area, with the remaining either coming from the Denver area or out of state. Resources for the unhoused tend to be concentrated closer to, and within, Denver.
e Point in Time count itself is subject to some variations year to year, Rife noted.
“I would say the PIT as a count is di cult simply because there’s a
lot of variances every year because weather contributes to that, di erent volunteers (participate),” Rife said.
In Douglas County, the HEART program launched in 2022 and served as a new tool in this January’s count.
“ is is the rst year we had the HEART and leaned on their knowledge and experience to guide our unsheltered count e orts,” Rand Clark, the county’s community services manager, said in a statement.
Laydon, one of the county’s elected leaders, said his expectation was that the count would have been higher this year in Douglas County in light of HEART’s involvement in the process, so he was glad to see it was lower.
Regardless of the broad trends, it’s clear that programs like HEART can make a di erence in individuals’ lives.
Marsitto, the supervisor with HEART, shared one success story at the news conference.
In October, the team contacted a 73-year-old woman who had been living in her vehicle for the past year, Marsitto said. After assessing her needs, HEART secured a hotel space for her for two weeks and found a shelter for elderly women that took her in. She has since moved into transitional housing, where she pays monthly rent for her own unit based on her income.
Marsitto said it’s important to hear the stories of unhoused people and understand their needs and the barriers they face.
“ at’s what our team is doing — we’re hearing their story,” Marsitto said.
of the existing zoning and supports the goals and strategies of our Mainstreet master plan.”
e application for the Gladys O’Brien House minor development plat will be continued in March.
e council also consecutively approved the minor development plat for the Exchange building at the intersection of Mainstreet and Pikes Peak Drive.
e parcel, also annexed in 1981, is developed with a two-story commercial building that contains o ces, including where Councilmember Brandi Wilks’ o ce is located.
In addressing prospective con ict
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of interest concerns, the council took a 4-1, saying they had no concerns with allowing Wilks to be a part of the discussion. Hefta voted against the majority.
In addition, the council voted unanimously to approve the sketch and preliminary plan for Compark Village South Tract A for 33 residential lots, approximately 1.2 acres of open space and about 1.24 acres of park space. e park will include play equipment, shade structures, a display garden and a connection to the Regional Trail System.
Other business during the meeting included approving two contracts for more than $500,000 for road development.
e nal design contract for the Lincoln Avenue Widening from Keystone Boulevard to Parker Road was approved in the amount of $1.7
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million. e project will convert the roadway from four lanes to six, including the widening of four bridges and will add multiple dedicated right-turn lanes at select major intersections.
According to Bob Exstrom, from the engineering and public works department, the project will impact about 29 public and private properties. In the nal design phase, Felsburg Holt and Ulleving will provide right-of-way and easement acquisition services.
Construction is tentatively scheduled to start in 2024 and continue through 2025. e council also approved a $133,352 addition to the original contract amount of $941,013 for the Dransfeldt Road Extension nal design contract modi cation.
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BY SONYA ELLINGBOE SELLINGBOE@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
“Nature’s Blueprint: Biomimicry in Art and Design” is geared to make us really look hard at what we nd around us, with a sensitivity to what design ideas may have followed an initial look by someone out there ...
At the entry we nd a group of bronze forms, including one at the right height and location for a small visitor to touch — a really welcoming way to open an exhibit geared to stretching the visitor’s imagination — no matter what the size and age.
Photos illustrate how trees inspired Gaudi’s sculptured columns in the beautiful Sagrada Familia cathedral in Barcelona and motionrelated art inspired by trout and mushrooms, mountain goats, fruit bats, peregrine falcons, owing water and more ...
A robot that climbs trees was inspired by the motion of an inchworm and another display addresses the question: “Can animals make art?”
A prosthetic arm adapted to mountain climbing is inspired by a bird’s claw.
Here the huge nest of a bower bird is decorated with a collection of blue objects the bird had gathered over time.
And a cockatoo is singing in a highly-styled manner: apping its wings and turning its head just so ...
is intriguing exhibit is loaned by the Mid America Arts Alliance, from the Innovation Lab at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon, and will stretch the imagination of visitors of all ages. (Families on cross-country treks may want to include this well-recognized museum in travel plans ...)
One will undoubtedly be more aware of what’s nearby on the next walk — be it around a city block or in the woods — in the foothills or on a mountain trail.
Even very young children can learn to slow down and search for what’s near their feet as they walk,
The Littleton Museum, 6028 S. Gallup St., Littleton, is open Tuesday through Sunday: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, with the last entry at 4:30 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. littletongov. org/museum or 303-795-3950.
resulting in some peculiar treasures carried home at times ... Hopefully, there’s a small shelf at home where they can exhibit the latest nd. Or in some cases, a special cage may be needed, as well as the correct food for a nd ... We found some great books at the library about what to feed whatever it is ... an essential part of a young naturalist’s library.
From Feb. 17 to May 14, Colorado artist Christopher Warren will exhibit “REinterpreting REcreating Nature,” a body of work that includes sculptures from throughout Warren’s career and his Beatnik Prints, showing his exploration of nature and art via topographic maps ... His exhibit opens with a Feb. 17 talk at 4 p.m. and reception at the museum. See beatnikprints.com for more information.
Thu 2/23
Art: Hands-On Introduction to DSLR Photography (16+yrs)
@ 2am Feb 23rd - Mar 22nd
PACE Center, 20000 Pikes Peak Avenue, Parker
Sun 2/26
Tue 2/28
Stephen Pearcy @ 8pm
Wild Goose Saloon, 11160 S Pikes Peak Dr, Parker
Fri 2/24
CW & Twenty Hands High @ 8pm
The Englewood Tavern, 4386 S Broadway, Englewood
Phat Daddy @ 8pm
Q's Pub and Grill, 10133 W Chat�eld Ave, Littleton
Koyo @ 8pm Gothic Theatre, 3263 S Broadway, Engle‐wood
Friday Movie - The Good House @ 9pm Heather Gardens Clubhouse, 2888 S. Heather Gardens Way, Aurora
Binomio De Oro De America en Concierto @ 10pm / $50-$80
Stampede, 2430 South Havana, Aurora
Fleming Mansion Walkthrough (for permit holders only) @ 10pm
Fleming Mansion, 1510 S. Grant St., Den‐ver. 720-913-0654
Sat 2/25
Highlands Ranch 5k/10k @ 9:30am / $33-$48
9651 S Quebec St, Highlands Her‐itage Regional Park, Highlands Ranch
American Authors @ 8pm
Gothic Theatre, 3263 S Broadway, Englewood
Wed 3/01
Theater: Parker on Broadway (1015yrs) @ 12:30am
Mar 1st - May 9th
PACE Center, 20000 Pikes Peak Ave., Parker
Kids’ Zone: Dino Stomp (3-6 yrs) W/S23 @ 5pm
Mar 1st - Mar 29th
Parker Recreation Center, 17301 E Lincoln Ave., Parker
Declutter Your Home @ 6pm
Mar 1st - Mar 29th
Dan Bremnes: Marriage Date Night @ 6:30pm
Authentic Life Church, 6500 W Coal Mine Ave, Littleton
Bayside "Just Like Home" Tour (with I Am The Avalanche + Koyo)
@ 7pm Gothic Theatre, 3263 S Broadway, Englewood
Trouble Bound: AMERICANA CIRCUS @ 7pm
Moe's Original BBQ, 3295 S Broadway, Englewood
JD Eicher @ 7pm Twenty Mile House Concerts, 11875 Cattle Lane, Parker
Banda Los Recoditos @ 9pm / $50
Stampede, 2430 South Havana, Aurora
Baking Soda Volcano @ 11am
Sinners & Saints, 221 Perry St, Castle Rock
Heather Gardens Clubhouse, 2888 S. Heather Gardens Way, Aurora
Mad Caddies @ 8pm Gothic Theatre, 3263 South Broadway, En‐glewood
DJ Rockstar Aaron: Forbidden Bingo at 'Bout Time Pub & Grub @ 8pm
Bout Time Pub & Grub, 3580 S Platte River Dr A, Sheridan
Thu 3/02
Denver Concert Band: A European Sojourn @ 2pm / $22
Lone Tree Arts Center, 10075 Commons Street, Lone Tree. Info@ DenverConcertBand.org, 720-5091000
Mon 2/27
Modern Swing Mondays @ 6pm / $10 Stampede, 2430 South Havana, Aurora
Volleyball: Youth - Ages 10 to 12Spring 2023 @ 11pm
Feb 27th - May 6th Parker Fieldhouse, 18700 E Plaza Dr, Parker
Shallow Side @ 8pm
Wild Goose Saloon, Parker
HE$H @ 9pm
Going to 5
ecently, State Rep. Bob Marshall did exactly what he said he was going to do when he ran for o ce — he introduced a bill that would require large counties to expand from three- to ve-member boards of commissioners. If the bill is approved, that would mean Douglas County will go from three to ve commissioners.Arapahoe County already has ve commissioners, which means they would not be impacted by the bill. However, Arapahoe County operates without a lot of incommission ghting, has good discussion and debate and is a great example of why a ve-member board can be a lot more functional.
When it comes to party lines, I would like a better balance of Republicans and Democrats on the Arapahoe board, given there is currently only one Republican, but that’s not a huge complaint.
In Douglas County, the current commissioners are great evidence of why a three-member boards is not good in representing a county with 360,000 people and growing. e argument against the bill is that it “creates more government,” not less. I get not wanting more government, but is having two more commissioners added to a currently dysfunctional board a bad thing?
I have never been a fan of the all-yes boards. I like my elected boards to have a balance of voices and opinions. If all members of a council, commission or school board have the same thoughts, beliefs and ideals — you will get a lot of rubber-stamp voting without thoughtful discussion and debate.
Local city and town councils, with fewer residents than all of Douglas County, currently have more elected o cials looking out for their best interests.
In Douglas County, residents currently have George Teal and Abe Laydon deciding where and how money is spent. ey are making decisions on zoning, land use and water. If Commissioner Lora omas does have an opposing view or opinion — it doesn’t seem to matter as the two men on the board have clearly formed an alliance. is alliance means if one supports a project — the other will get in line to do the same. ese are schoolyard games that should never been the norm on a local, elected board. is alliance has cost taxpayers plenty of money in approving investigations against omas that have yielded nothing more than tens of thousands of dollars in wasted taxpayer dollars.
At the very least, two more commissioners being asked to approve another frivolous investigation might ask questions and vote against it.
With two more commissioners, decisions might still end the same way, but I bet there is more discussion, fewer alliances and probably a healthier representation of what residents in Douglas County deserve.
What I love about Rep. Marshall introducing the bill, House Bill 23-1180, is that he can’t be bullied. He is at the state level and the two-member majority can’t just quash it. Do I think the bill will pass? It’s early and hard to say. e argument of having more government oversight could win out in halting it in its tracks. However, I do hope our elected o cials at the state level give it true thought and consideration.
If it is passed in the 2023 session, counties that would be a ected by the bill are Je erson, Larimer, Douglas, Boulder, Pueblo and Mesa, all of which are counties with three commissioners.
elma Grimes is the south metro editor for Colorado Community Media.
VOICES
A publication of
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Web: ParkerChronicle.net
We cannot manage what we do not know WINNING
when they said they would do it.
Ultimately, he decided to call their boss because they wanted to provide a coaching opportunity for the young new hire. e leader was grateful and said, “ ank you as I cannot x something that I do not know is broken, and I cannot manage what I do not know.”
ere is so much sensitivity around what we can say and what we cannot or should not say. We fear that it may not be our place to say anything at all, after all we may become the one where others choose to point the nger of blame. We would rather keep our mouth shut and let the next person who receives bad service or experiences a problem be the one to share their concerns. Maybe they are braver than we are in those moments.
e question becomes this, wouldn’t we want to know if something that we, or someone in our family, circle of friends, or company was doing something, or had done something, that wasn’t right and could potentially be harmful to others or to our family or business? Most of us would answer the same way, of course we would.
In the case above, the leader did use it as a coaching moment and the young account executive embraced the feedback and became determined to make a change in his response times and doing what they said they would do
ERIN ADDENBROOKE Marketing Consultant eaddenbrooke@coloradocommunitymedia.com
s a partner and potential sales channel to the enterprise selling team, they were faced with a decision to make about an interaction they had with a new account executive they had just started working with. ere was a lack of follow-up on the account executive’s part and the partner was torn between letting the young account executive’s boss know, or not.Another friend I know stopped going to the same co ee shop they had been stopping by every morning for years. When I asked them why, they said that the shop had started serving co ee that wasn’t as hot as it should be. I asked them if they let the manager know. ey shook their head and said, “No.” is was a simple or minor issue that, if the manager had known or been told, could have been easily resolved.
We know parents who have approached the o cials of the school where their child was being bullied. e o cials were given the opportunity to x what was broken. ey now knew what they had to manage, yet they refused to take action. e nal outcome was that the child was transferred to another school and thankfully, was met with a new set of friends who they became very close with, enjoying a wonderful and safe high school experience.
It’s no di erent at home or in any relationship. If we do not know what is broken, we cannot manage or x what we do not know. We have to provide others a safe environment to share what they see as a problem or an area that can be improved, and then be vulnerable enough to acknowledge that it can be better and then take the steps necessary to x the problem.
Two of the most important ingredients to any
Columnists & Guest Commentaries
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MICHAEL DE YOANNA Editor-in-Chief michael@coloradocommunitymedia.com
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SEE NORTON, P13
We read with befuddlement, and more than a thimbleful of bemusement, CCM’s article covering the “hissy- t de jour” emanating from that local Center of Arrested Development — our County Commission.
At the center of this Vast Confabulation of Conspiracy is the county’s underwriting of metal detectors at STEM School. Apparently, Chairman Laydon’s Department of TOP SECRECY deemed disclosure of this milliondollar purchase too sensitive for the eyes and ears of parents, students and simpletons like taxpayers.
In the nest traditions of innuendo and disinformation, Laydon implicated not only DougCo’s Resident Punching Bag, Lora omas … he felt compelled to pull the Local Free Press into his dark and stormy story. Like many DougCo politicians, Laydon believes the First Amendment applies only to his allies … and the Free Press better watch it.
Never mind information on these metal detectors had been publicly released days before. To Laydon, reality spins around him, as the center of all, something adjustable for political convenience … reminiscent of his infamous declaration, “let me be the rst to state that the COVID pandemic is over” at the time when it wasn’t.
One of these days, DougCo’s conservative voters will determine that, perhaps, the Arrested Development series has been on for one season too many, and it’s about time to nd higher quality programming.
Lloyd Guthrie Roxborough ParkSupport Democrats
Joe Biden was not my choice for the Democratic nominee. I voted for Bernie Sanders. I am willing to admit now that Joe is probably the only Democrat who could have beaten Donald Trump. It had to be a moderate. I am also willing to concede that Joe has been a very e ective president, especially given the small Democratic majorities in Congress in the rst two years of his term.
In less than two years, the Democrats passed a sizable COVID relief package, brought our troops home from Afghanistan, and also added a signicant infrastructure bill, green energy incentives, more taxes on wealthy corporations, allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices, allowing hearing aids to be sold over the counter, at least modest student debt relief, and the president has been integral in holding the western alliance together in assisting Ukraine in their war e ort against Russia.
No one likes high gas prices or in ation, but those are worldwide prob-
successful relationship, husband-wife, parent-child, teacher-student, employer-employee, company-customer, or any other relationship are communication and trust. And when we can honestly and openly share with others what needs to change or be managed better, most times we will be seen as being helpful as again, none of us can x or manage what we do not know is broken or a problem in the rst place. How about you? Do you feel safe and comfortable sharing with your
lems. No one wanted to see those 13 Marines killed by a suicide bomber at the airport in Kabul, but the American casualties would likely have been far worse if we had stayed. Lastly, lawlessness in Central America, Haiti and elsewhere has people walking hundreds of miles at great peril to get away from it. Add refugees from Afghanistan, Ukraine, Africa, and the Middle East, and there are no easy answers.
Overall, the present Democratic coalition has the country moving in the right direction against great odds, and we need to get behind them.
Marcus Pohlmann Highlands RanchUnhappy about story is letter will be worth writing if it can convert just one of your liberal journalists away from their woke ideology as expressed in your second of a four-part series, e Long Way Home by Nina Joss and Haley Lena Jan. 26, reporting on the housing crisis. e article is the epitome of woke ideology because of the accusations made from beginning to end that essentially accuse the U.S. for systemic injustice in housing.
Instead of any consideration of our American ideals around equal opportunity this article focuses on a socialist Utopian ideal with many examples of unequal outcomes. Not surprisingly this very lengthy article ends advocating mandatory liberal training to combat discrimination for real estate licenses.
First, don’t ask about the facts in this article, ask why the Colorado Community Media (CCM) is editorializing about identity politics and race baiting. No mention is made of the problem put on hardships cases which are the outcome of living in a free society, also known as an imperfect world, which is the history of our country. e Long Way Home series is being published in all the 24 metro Denver newspapers, and for a good reason none of the testimonials in this week’s article relate to any of our Douglas County jurisdictions.
Nobody will disagree that it’s easy to nd biased journalists these days, they’re everywhere, so the fault of biased reporting lies with the editors and a biased sta . e paper identi es 25 people contributing to this series. I can’t help but wonder where people like these journalists come from. For me, I don’t personally know anyone whose as severely handicapped with racial prejudice about identity politics as the publishers of this article.
Smith Young ParkerHousing and diversity
Kudos to Colorado Community
boss, partner, co-worker or the manager of a store where you frequently shop what is broken or needs to be managed better or di erently? Or would you rather someone else take that responsibility? I would love to hear your story at gotonorton@gmail. com, and when we can be open to managing and xing what we know to be broken, 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.
Media for a piece of ne local journalism with “ e Long Way Home” series examining Colorado’s housing crisis.
e January 26 articles detailing racial inequities in Denver’s suburban communities like the Littleton area, where I live, provide important insight — and highlight the need for all of us to redouble e orts for social change.
As the series illustrates, Littleton and surrounding towns didn’t become lily-white by accident. Government policies assured racial and economic segregation via redlining, racially restrictive covenants, and large-lot zoning. Today, Denver metro is highly racially segregated, ranks 13th among the most highly economically segregated urban areas, and 40th among U.S. large metro areas for upward mobility of below-median-income families.
Today’s a ordable housing emergency is compounded for our Black, Latinx, and Native American neighbors who face historical barriers designed to exclude them from generational wealth-building as well as present-day ingrained prejudices. is is not a healthy situation for our community or our nation.
Visionary racial justice leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. fought to pass the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA), enacted 55 years ago this April. anks to the FHA, local groups like the Denver
Metro Fair Housing Center (funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development — HUD, help persons facing discrimination to le complaints with Colorado’s Civil Rights Division or in federal court. And the framers of the federal law had the wisdom to include a provision for “Afrmatively Furthering Fair Housing” which requires local governments to take steps to reverse historic segregation via a renewing ve-year action plan they submit to HUD.
Still, many folks in white skin identity today do not realize the extensive bene ts of living, working, and learning in diverse communities for all racial and ethnic groups. Major employers are realizing the bene ts, but the embrace of diversity lags in our suburbs.
As we work together locally to cope with the a ordable housing crisis, we need to use all the tools provided by federal and state law to increase local diversity. Let’s move toward a Denver metropolitan area where every individual, group, and community enjoys equal housing opportunity and access in a bias-free and open housing market, where integrated neighborhoods are the norm, and the private and public sector guarantee civil rights.
John Paul Marosy, outreach and education coordinator, Denver Metro Fair Housing Center Je erson CountyDiane A Callahan, 87, passed away Jan 26th, 2023 at Parker Senior Living at Morningstar after a long battle with dementia. She was preceded in death by her husband, Paul Callahan, and brother, James Coville, and parents, Glenna and Kenneth Coville. Diane was
survived by all three of her daughter, Susan Baker, Jill Morrow, and Wendy Conger. Additionally she has three surviving grandchildren. For a full obituary please go to www.monarchsociety.com
While working out at a gym in Golden recently, someone approached Ty Scrable and asked if he was associated with Colorado School of Mines. Scrable had to explain that, no, he’s just a Golden resident.
Unfortunately, Scrable said, this isn’t the rst time it’s happened.
“I get that a lot,” he said. “People think I’m a student, professor or tourist because I’m Black.”
Systemic racism stubbornly remains in Golden. But, as Scrable said, it has morphed from Ku Klux Klan demonstrations in the 1920s and racist housing policies in the 1940s to something less overt but still widespread and endlessly frustrating.
Because White people make up the overwhelming majority in the city and, thus, are seen as the norm, Scrable said, “many people don’t view me as part of my own community.”
In the wake of Black Lives Matter demonstrations in the summer of 2020, many cities and newspapers across the United States have started reckoning with their pasts, examining how they’ve contributed to systemic racism, learning what they can do to be more inclusive and fair. e Golden community has started the process, and now it’s the Golden Transcript’s turn.
e newspaper, which now is part of Colorado Community Media, isn’t immune to biased coverage. is report is the product of its journalists attempting to examine the paper’s coverage of the Black community since the Civil Rights era and own up to its mistakes.
Since 1866, the Golden Transcript — known as the Colorado Transcript for its rst 103 years — has been a record keeper for Je erson County. While its stories are extensive and valuable, the paper contains original and reprinted content that was harmful to the Black community and other marginalized groups.
Just one example is its coverage of the Black Panther Party, a group that gained national attention in the late 1960s for its response to policing in Black communities across the country.
Between 1969-1971, the newspaper published approximately 170 articles that referenced the Black Panther Party. Nearly all of these articles
In our newspaper this week, you’ll see an article about the Golden Transcript. It’s one of two dozen newspapers owned by Colorado Community Media, which also owns this paper. The article tackles the issue of systemic racism in the Transcript’s pages.
The idea for the project started in 2020, when the Colorado News Collaborative, Colorado Media Project and Free Press convened the Black Voices Working Group, which was made up of Black leaders, community members and journalists. The group addressed media coverage and focused on how to improve trust in mainstream media among the Black community. Acknowledging past harm was the No. 1 recommendation made by the group.
A few months later, I attended a Denver Press Club event where Jameka Lewis, a senior librarian at the BlairCaldwell African American Research Library, illustrated biases in mainstream local media coverage of the Black Panther Party in the 1960s and ’70s while exhibiting rare prints of the Black Panther Press. Many of Lewis’ examples came from the Transcript. Most articles were wire stories from
other cities, but editors still chose to run them, affecting perceptions of the party in Golden.
We pursued and were awarded a grant from the nonpartisan Colorado Media Project to explore, uncover and analyze this issue in the form of the special report that is in this edition of your newspaper.
Our newsroom, which is predominantly White, also participated in the Maynard Institute’s diversity, equity and inclusion Fault Lines training along the way. West metro editor Kristen Fiore was a speaker at the Advancing Equity in Local News convening with journalists from publications like the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Washington Post to talk about this project.
We believe this story is important beyond Golden — and we hope to spark conversations in our communities across the Denver area about race and inclusion and how our news coverage impacts those issues.
Linda Carpio Shapley is publisher of Colorado Community Media, which runs two dozen weekly and monthly publications in eight counties. She can be reached at lshapley@coloradocommunitymedia.com
presented the group in a negative light, with words such as “fugitive,” “thugs” and “militants.” And, the Transcript appeared to rarely cover the Black community in the city and wider region. Because of this, their voices are missing in archives, now online as an important chronicling of Colorado’s history.
By not including these voices in an accurate light, and by publishing stories that reinforced harmful stereotypes and/or recorded Black people’s traumatic experiences in an apathetic or ippant way, the Golden Transcript’s coverage contributed to systemic racism, according to researchers and Black community leaders.
Jameka Lewis, senior librarian at the Denver Public Library’s Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library and a freelance researcher on this report, said Transcript readers may have had their beliefs about the Black Panther Party, and the Black community in general, shaped by the Transcript’s negative portrayals.
“ ere is harm when it comes to media and the Black community in Denver and Colorado,” Lewis said. “If we want to repair the harms, we have to acknowledge that (they are) factual.”
Alfonzo Porter, editor-in-chief at Denver Urban Spectrum and a journalism professor at Metropolitan State University of Denver, said mass media has been at the epicenter of “propagating negative images and re ections of the AfricanAmerican community.”
“It really stems out of our country’s background, and we’re still dealing with those biases,” he said.
While almost all of the Transcript’s stories about the Black Panther Party were from wire services like United Press International, Porter said the Transcript and other newspapers are accountable for reprinting those stories.
“It’s exactly like original reporting, because … the editorial sta sat in a room, looked at this piece, determined that it was appropriate and ran with it in the paper,” he said.
The Black Panther Party
e Black Panther Party for Self Defense started in 1966 in Oakland, California. Founders Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale started the organization as a response to police brutality there and in other Black communities, according to Lewis’ research.
e party had a 10-point program that included demands for Black liberation and societal
How national, Denver-area papers covered the party Sisters Ida Daniel, Pat Rogers and JoEllen Greenwood grew up in Denver and graduated from East High School in the ’60s and early ’70s. ey recalled reading e Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News and watching the nightly news on TV. ey also listened to the city’s Black radio station, KDKO, and read Black-oriented magazines like Ebony and Jet.
Overall, the three didn’t recall a lot of news stories about Black people in the mainstream press, unless it was negative. e news covered Black people who were arrested for murder, robbery, rioting and other crimes. Rogers summarized the coverage as: “Be afraid of Black people.” at kind of coverage played out with the Black Panthers. In 2016, e New York Times analyzed stories about the Panthers, noting “journalists were at once fascinated and frightened by them” and their activities in the 1960s and ‘70s. Coverage about the Denver Panthers in Black newspapers in the area at the time was scant. Of those Lewis researched, the Black-owned publication e Denver Blade published the most articles on the group’s activities, both locally and nationally, in 1969.
Its coverage appears to be fairly balanced, Lewis said.
One Blade article discussed the Panthers’ orga-
improvement. Eventually, the Black Panthers led more than 35 community programs across the country, like the Free Breakfast for School Children Program — also known as e Free People’s Food Program, which helped feed Black children from economically disadvantaged families.
In Denver, a chapter gained recognition in 1967. Led by Lauren Watson, the chapter’s history was largely erased or ignored, Lewis said, adding that the Denver Panthers were instrumental in the ght for civil rights in Colorado.
It’s important to note that many Black community members both then and now have mixed feelings about the Panthers and their work, Lewis stressed.
Longtime Denver residents she interviewed formed their opinions largely based on what they read about the Black Panthers in newspapers and saw on TV. Yet that coverage contrasts with what many in the community saw the Denver Black Panthers doing. ey were involved in school board and City Council meetings, provided free meals for children, and worked to
nizing a meeting to discuss policing and police presence at Cole Jr. High School in Denver’s diverse Whittier neighborhood. It chronicled the Black community’s e orts to address a racial gap between teachers and Black students. One possible solution, and likely at the suggestion of the Denver Black Panthers, was to establish Cole as a Freedom School, a concept that focused on Black pride and Black liberation in academics.
In contrast, the Denver Post also covered the meeting but didn’t mention the Panthers’ involvement in organizing the event or the Freedom School proposal. In a review of Post archives, the story focused on arrests. e Denver Blade coverage did not mention any Black Panther arrests.
“Oftentimes, it was up to Black news media to cover this group in a more comprehensive way, which I believe e Denver Blade did,” Lewis said. “It covered all aspects of the local and national Panthers, and o ered readers a more balanced view of the members of this group.”
e Denver Blade stopped operating in 1970.
How Golden’s newspapers covered the Panthers
e Transcript published approximately 170 articles that used the terms “Black Panther” or “Black Panthers” between 1969-1971. Almost all of these were reprinted stories from wire services, which seldom described anything positive about the party or its members.
improve the welfare of their neighborhoods and its residents.
“Many Black people believed what the media said about the Panthers,” said Terry Nelson, a lifelong member of the Denver community. “ … It depended on the source. We recognized that the newspapers weren’t telling the truth about the members. … We knew that the Denver members were active in schools, speaking with teachers and parents. We never saw that in the major newspapers.”
Tracie Keesee, a former Denver police captain and co-founder of the Center for Policing Equity, described how during this tumultuous period, the press played into the hands of government o cials.
Newsrooms considered police as trustworthy and well-respected sources, so it was easy for them to hand reporters a story and have it taken at face value, Keesee said.
Keesee added: “We see it now, right? at divisiveness in the media, the stories that are being told — or not being told.”
e only article referencing the party’s free breakfast program was published April 30, 1970, about Baltimore police rounding up Black Panthers suspected of killing a patrolman. After searching party headquarters, police searched a school where it conducted its breakfast program, among other locations.
In contrast, the Colorado School of Mines student paper, e Oredigger, published at least two stories about the Black Panther Party. Both were straightforward accounts of Lauren Watson, the head of the Denver chapter, visiting Golden.
Ultimately, while coverage of the Black Panthers varied by publication, the Golden Transcript failed to cover the party’s community initiatives or involvement. It did, however, print dozens of wire stories about the party’s supposed criminal activity and police raids associated with the group.
e coverage used negative language to describe the Panthers, their neighborhoods and any activities they were involved in. Because of this, Golden-area residents absorbed and believed what they heard and saw in the news coverage, Lewis stated.
e role of the press in forwarding racial inequality really shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone, Keesee said, especially to communities of color.
“It’s not just that person that wrote the story,
that person had an editor, right?
ere wasn’t anything in that editor’s mind that said, ‘Yeah…this seems a little biased. Did you even go into the community, or did you just take that o the wire and repeat it?’”
ere’s no excuse for sloppy journalism, as it is harmful and contributes directly to a larger narrative, Keesee said.
“When you talk about media coverage, there were only three channels on the television, back then; there was no social media,” she said, adding, “the newspapers were cranking out those stories overnight and you were waiting for your morning paper. Nobody was up waiting for breaking news. So, the news that was coming out, it was more focused and easier to control.”
And when news was breaking, “it
Golden in the 1960s and ’70s
Built on lands traditionally inhabited by the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Ute and other tribes, Golden City was founded in 1859. According to Allan Tellis, a doctoral student of political science at the University of Colorado-Boulder and freelance researcher on this report, Golden has never had a signi cant Black population.
Census data from 1960 shows that the Golden division of Je erson County had 28 Black residents. By 1970, that number had increased to 86. Overall, those numbers represent 0.15% and 0.27% of the total population, respectively, according to Tellis.
As of 2020, Golden had 388 Black residents, representing 1.9% of the city’s population.
Longtime Golden residents recalled how many of the city’s Black residents in the late 1960s and early ’70s were associated with Colorado School of Mines as students, professors or their family members. As far as discussions about the Black Panther Party speci cally or race relations in general, longtime White residents said the topic didn’t come up much because there wasn’t a large Black population in the area.
Rick Gardner, a resident who has studied Golden’s history extensively, said the community had “other preoccupations at the time,” such as labor clashes at the Coors brewery and the Vietnam War.
John Akal, a longtime Goldenite and current columnist for the Transcript, described how he spent his summers in Chicago, where it was “a whole di erent situation.” Because of the 1968 Chicago riots, which were sparked by the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Akal remembered a lot of racial tension in the city at the time.
But that was Chicago.
Golden was di erent, but not necessarily better.
The KKK in Golden Overt discrimination in Golden against Black people and other
was breaking only one way, and those narratives were pretty narrow,” she added.
The newsroom
During this timeframe, the Transcript was a daily paper with a small sta of six and a wire service that provided regional and national news.
Neil Paulson, who was managing editor from 1970-75, said the paper relied on United Press International reports to cover many issues, including the Black Panthers.
“It was a terrible service, especially for a small paper,” he said. “It cost us a little more, but eventually we went to e Associated Press.”
e only dictate from the paper’s owners, e Kansas City Star and the Great (Kansas) Tribune, was to run a local story on the front page, Paulson said. National and regional stories ran inside.
Paulson noted that Golden’s population at the time, as it is today, was
communities peaked with the Ku Klux Klan, which had a strong presence in the city and throughout Colorado, particularly in the 1920s.
e Klan began in Denver in 1921 and eventually “all but took possession of the state of Colorado,” according to a report in the Steamboat Pilot. Klan members throughout Denver gathered on Golden’s South Table Mountain for cross-burnings and other rituals. According to Golden History, the mountain could attract up to 10,000 members.
Overall, the Klan helped prevent or deter unknown numbers of Black people from carving out lives in the area. History Colorado recently released ledgers of KKK membership that show seven members of the terrorist organization resided in the Golden area, Tellis added.
Racist housing policies, practices
While the Klan’s activities are certainly one reason Golden has a small Black population, it’s not the only reason. Discriminatory housing practices also contributed.
Don Cameron, a former Jefferson County teacher and current Golden city councilor, has researched zoning history and discriminatory housing policies and practices, including some accounts recorded in the Transcript.
While many Black residents in Denver were constricted by redlining, their counterparts in Golden faced other challenges.
“Starting in the ’20s and into the ’40s, it was common for people to say that they would only sell their individual property to those of the Caucasian race, or non-Negro race individuals,” Cameron stated in a self-published article about Golden’s zoning history.
“ e courts backed up this right because they were protecting the homeowners’ use of their land and had no civic duty to prevent this discrimination,” the article continues. “Blacks were excluded from being shown properties in these restrictive neighborhoods, and if they tried to purchase them, (they) might have it taken away soon
predominantly White.
He knew two Black Goldenites during his years as editor. One was Monroe Jordan, an assistant chef at downtown Golden’s historic Holland House, who later worked at the nearby Ace-Hi Tavern.
When Jordan died, Paulson ran a story on the front page that brie y memorialized him but mostly discussed an attempt to nd his relatives, as no one had come forward to claim Jordan’s body nearly two weeks after his death.
Readers didn’t react positively to the front-page piece.
“I got a couple of nasty phone calls, but no one admitted to their bias,” Paulson said. “ ey refused to apologize, of course. ey said I shouldn’t have put that on the front page. In typical Golden fashion, there was nothing speci c, other than to say, ‘You shouldn’t have done that.’ e thought of another race didn’t exist.”
For the Transcript’s newsroom, Paulson said there was no “codi ed
policy on racism” during his time there.
“We condemned it, but we made little e ort to actively attack it,” he said. “( e) Black Panthers seem remote from Golden, where there were few Black families.”
One place where Paulson thought racism showed up was on the editorial page. e paper had four syndicated columnists every day who lived outside the community. ey were selected by the publisher because “they were cheap and not already being published by the two Denver dailies,” he stated.
Paulson said he had no doubt the paper could be accused of racism for its coverage in those days.
“But I’d like to think it was by omission rather than intent,” he said. “We rarely spoke of racism and did little to come out against its pernicious e ects. I don’t remember anyone on the sta making racist remarks, and I think I would have remembered that.”
after.”
Perhaps the most evident example of this was in 1942, when Logus Butler and Susie A. Allison paid $1,500 for 30 acres near present-day Boyd Street in north Golden. ey planned to build on it, but they were forced to sell a few months later after Golden residents drove them out.
“A large number of citizens appeared before the City Council
Wednesday evening,” the Transcript reported Oct. 22, 1942, “and stated that a group of colored people had taken possession of the land recently purchased by them east of the Clark’s Garden addition, within the city limits of Golden, and were apparently staking out some building sites.”
After Butler and Allison were
forced to sell the land, plots on the same land were listed for sale two
In the community
While growing up in Denver in the ’60s and ’70s, Daniel and her sisters used their education and life experiences to help them decipher which news stories were biased and which were reputable. ey also relied on family and friends’ advice.
“I don’t think news at the time covered Blacks in the world that they lived in,” Daniel said. “To me, the general stories about how Blacks lived, what they did, what their concerns were and some of their needs, were not covered.”
The sisters felt this trend in coverage didn’t change until the ’80s, when news about Black people and Black communities became more prominent.
As an example, Daniel described how The Denver Post did a feature article on her late husband, Wiley Y. Daniel, who was a prominent attorney and
For Goldenites
In more recent years, especially in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the Black Lives Matter rallies in the summer of 2020, the Golden community has started examining the long reach of systemic racism in and around the city. e City of Golden started work on its Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan, and groups like Golden United and Golden Anti-Racism Collective formed.
While these are good rst steps, real change has to start with people’s attitudes, GAC members Scrable and Michele Minihane said.
Although many Goldenites are open-minded and inclusive, Minihane personally believed there are still some residents who “do not value an integrated community and don’t feel like it’s important to make people of color feel welcome.”
She added: “I don’t get the sense that (attitudes) have changed a lot in 40 or 50 years.”
Scrable agreed that tangible changes, whether in attitudes or policies, have been slow. He said it’s going to take time and everyone working together to make Golden a more welcoming and inclusive place.
e two described how the Golden Anti-Racism Collective has become a place where people can share their experiences, examine systemic racism’s impact on the community, and nd ways to improve Golden for current and future generations.
As of last month, GAC has about
years later. Ownership was restricted to “members of the Caucasian race.”
ese accounts are just glimpses of Golden’s treatment of people of color, but Tellis emphasized how they demonstrate “institutionalized
the state’s first Black U.S. district court judge. She also recalled how e Post’s society section ran pictures of positive stories happening in the Black community.
“I do think it began to change in the ’80s,” Daniel continued. “ ere were positive stories (but) … the stereotypes were still going on.”
Diversity in the newsroom also seemed to improve during this timeframe, the sisters said. They recalled Reynelda Muse, the first Black person to anchor a newscast in Colorado, and Bertha Lynn, who started in Denver television in 1976.
While a lot has changed in how traditional outlets cover Black people and Black communities, the sisters believe there’s still plenty of bias. Rogers admitted that she avoids local news because there are still more negative stories about Black people than positive ones.
“I think there absolutely still is biased coverage,” she said. “I don’t want, every day, to hear
400 members on an email list and a few dozen who come to its regular meetings. ere are several subgroups within the Golden Anti-Racism Collective that tackle di erent topics such as policy and policing, education, and books and media.
While the bulk of the members are White, any Goldenites of color are welcome to join and participate as they’re able, the members said.
e group has established a unique partnership with the Golden Police Department, as some of its members sit on the department’s community engagement group, GAC member Sandra Knecht explained. GAC and other community members have given feedback on various department policies, particularly around use of force.
GAC members also try to comment on City Council discussions and participate in other local matters, including education, youth outreach and a ordable housing. In doing so, the group has developed partnerships with Shelton Elementary, the Golden Library, Colorado School of Mines student groups, Golden United and other groups that share GAC’s goals.
Similar to GAC, Golden United formed after the 2016 election as “there was a fair amount of division, nationally and locally,” Ronnie Rosenbaum said. e group sought to bring people together and encourage respect for those who have di erent ideas and opinions.
Rosenbaum, who’s vice president on Golden United’s board of directors, described the partnership between Golden United and
anti-Black behaviors and norms” in the area. So, he said, it’s no surprise that the Black Panther Party, an organization that “unapologetically called for Black liberation and the dismantling of White supremacist power structures, would catch the
about, ‘there’s another Black person who got in trouble.’”
Going back through American history, the Urban Spectrum’s Porter described other incidents where media outlets didn’t give Black people the bene t of the doubt. He listed the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and the Emmett Till lynching as examples of the media portraying those involved as “guilty until proven innocent,” adding how the trend has persisted into today’s coverage of police shootings and similar incidents.
“And it seems as though that mentality continues to manifest in those organizations in their treatment of our community,” he said. “And so, it’s always the bad news. ere’s really never any positive re ections.”
Regarding news coverage of the Black Panther Party, the journalism professor described it as a peaceful organization that was responding to violence “against
GAC, saying the two groups and others joined forces for a rally in summer 2020 and pushed City Council to approve the “Golden Stands with Black Lives” banner on Washington Avenue.
Minihane stressed how the GAC believes systemic racism impacts all Golden residents, regardless of race, and recommended locals read “ e Sum of Us” by Heather McGhee to learn more about that impact.
In summer 2020, the Golden City Council produced a series of resolutions meant to address its history of racial exclusion and racist domination of non-White groups, Tellis stated.
ese resolutions included: Resolution 2736 – Declaring Racism a Public Health Crisis
Resolution 2747 - Declaring Support for Black Lives and Racial Equity rough a Public Display, and
Resolution 2748 - Declaring A Commitment to Anti-Racism Actions
Resolution 2736 states, “the Golden City Council recognizes that racial inequities have become institutionalized in the policies and practices of many agencies, governmental and otherwise. Council recognizes the need to examine seemingly neutral policies and practices to determine whether they are contributing to inequity and, where needed, change or eliminate the policy or practice as cities have a long history of decision and policy making that have resulted in classist and racist outcomes.”
ire of local reporting.”
Tellis added: “Golden has displayed a deep commitment to the marginalization of Black people. To re ect on this legacy is pivotal if we desire to not replicate the racial strife and injustice of our past.”
African-American people in an attempt to say, ‘We will protect our community.’”
“ e idea was that Black folks with guns clearly scared the hell out of people,” Porter continued. “Because obviously, if you’ve got a gun, then you’re going to be violent. And it’s only that mentality because of our profession (as journalists). Our profession has continued to promote that re ection — still does, to this day.”
As for Golden and the Transcript’s coverage of the Black community, Porter believed it likely made Black residents feel unsafe and unwelcome, saying, “ ey know that any coverage of them will not be balanced and fair.”
Fairness and racial equity are concepts Golden, Denver, the United States and journalism as a profession need to work on, he stated.
“I don’t see our profession doing enough work in that area,” Porter said. “I hear the talk. But I’m not seeing anything to back it up.”
Building on that, the city hired a consultant in June 2021 to develop a Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan based on community input. After developing it for more than a year, the plan outlined four goals: Create a culture of inclusion and belonging throughout the community of Golden; Increase access to services and resources for diverse community members;
Foster an organizational culture and environment within the City of Golden that’s committed to racial equity, diversity and inclusion; and Expand economic opportunities for diverse businesses.
Along with the REDI Action Plan, the consultants also recommended dozens of strategies toward these goals and an implementation plan.
For instance, public documents and other information should be available to those who don’t speak English or have di erent abilities. City boards and commissions should have a more inclusive recruiting process to ensure diversity among their members.
e city also should host training about Golden’s history, structural racism and implicit bias.
e City Council adopted the REDI Action Plan in December 2022 and called on the community to ensure Golden achieves the four goals in a timely, e ective way.
e plan was developed with race as the leading element because of how widespread and
damaging racial inequalities are in the United States, according to city consultants. However, the REDI Action Plan is overall intersectional, examining how to make Golden a better place for people of all ages, abilities, gender identities, sexual orientations, socioeconomic backgrounds, religions and other demographics.
Officials said the next step is to assemble an implementation team of community members and city staffers to make recommendations to City Council on how to achieve goals. Golden expects to assemble the team this spring.
In a Feb. 10 email, Mayor Laura Weinberg highlighted city officials and community members’ ongoing work to “live up to our value as a welcoming and inclusive city.”
“I applaud the Golden Transcript’s work to identify its role in racial inequities in the past and its role in systemic racism,” she stated. “The City of Golden has undertaken similar work … (and) I look forward to this year’s actions to take the information from our new REDI plan and put community-driven solutions into practice.”
For the Golden Transcript
While the Transcript’s ownership and newsroom has changed greatly since the late 1960s and early ’70s, it’s not immune from the biases and attitudes that riddled its past coverage and contributed to systemic racism in and
around Golden.
Scrable said reading the Transcript’s past coverage of the Black community can be “demoralizing,” but even recent stories have failed
to represent Black voices.
He pointed to an Aug. 31, 2020 Transcript story about City Council’s decision to display a “Golden Stands With Black Lives” banner over Washington Avenue. The story said the banner would be displayed for 60 days, “an amount of time intended to symbolize how long it took for slave ships to cross the Atlantic.”
Scrable and his GAC co-chairs did advocate for 60 days, but they never assigned any symbolism or significance to the number.
“It might’ve been said (in the meeting), but it wasn’t us,” Scrable said of GAC. “It was a misquote.”
newsroom and on the pages of its two dozen publications, Publisher Linda Shapley said. CCM wants to ensure all local voices are heard and included, while also reflecting on racial equity, diversity and inclusion. CCM will strive to consider the lenses through which the staff decides to cover stories in the first place. Appreciating differences in CCM’s coverage areas, like history and culture, will guide the newsroom in its efforts.
4:00 PM TO 6:50 PM
The Knights of Columbus at Ave Maria Catholic Church in Parker are having a fish fry every Friday night in Lent
EXCEPT Good Friday starting February 24th We serve delicious fried fish, baked fish, or nuggets, with cole slaw, French fries or baked potato, mac and cheese, and dinner rolls. Iced tea, lemonade and coffee are free.
Years
Kids under 5 years are FREE! Clam Chowder is $3.00 per bowl.
The Ladies Auxiliary will be selling delicious deserts, with prices ranging from $1.00 to $3.00.
Please come and enjoy a delicious dinner in Brownstein Hall at Ave Maria Church!
After the Aug. 31, 2020 story, Scrable received about 20 phone calls from people upset about the supposed symbolism. He felt the Transcript hadn’t done enough research and ultimately misrepresented the facts, and that insensitivity created a very frustrating experience.
He wanted the Transcript to ensure there are positive stories about people from historically marginalized groups, and do better educating Goldenites about their neighbors’ achievements and experiences.
Scrable added: “I’m looking to the Transcript to paint a positive picture for all people of color … and representing ‘all’ versus ‘a few.’”
The Colorado Community Media newsroom acknowledges it has work to do, and this February 2023 report is only the first step in what the team hopes will open a wider conversation about systemic racism and media coverage for years to come. Working on this report brought CCM staff members faceto-face with outdated practices and implicit biases.
Going forward, CCM’s goal is to include more voices of color in the
Other newspapers such as The New York Times, the Washington Post, The Kansas City Star, Philadelphia Inquirer and more have done similar analyses of their past coverage, and the Transcript encourages other newspapers in the region and across the country to do so as well, Shapley said, adding that it wouldn’t have been possible without a Colorado Media Project grant.
For all journalists, Porter stressed the importance of continuing to diversify newsrooms and ensuring fair, balanced and objective coverage and “stop convicting people without evidence.”
He called on more publications to review their past coverage and acknowledge its harmful impacts, saying it’s important to shine a light on the truth, to be honest and to be transparent.
“If we’re ever going to get past this, it’s going to take some truthtelling,” he said. “It will be hard. It will be difficult. But it really is one of the last vestiges to make this country what it said it was in the beginning — freedom and liberty for all. Which has not been the case for us.”
Rebekah Durham is the Arapahoe Philharmonic’s new concertmaster as the orchestra continues its 70-year history with conductor Devin Patrick Hughes. In addition to classical music, she performs indie rock and bluegrass in the area. e rst concert, “Rhythm and Blue,” will be at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 18 at Lone Tree Arts Center., 10075 Commons St., Lone Tree. Box o ce: 303-781-1892, arapahoe-phil. org.
Douglas County Libraries
Douglas County Libraries presents area authors and more ... CJ Box, best-selling Western author, will appear at 7 p.m. March 1 at Lone Tree Library with KOA Colorado talk host Ross Kaminsky to talk about his new Joe Pickett novel, “Storm Watch.” Sandra Dallas will appear at 6 p.m. April 22 to talk about her new novel, “Where Coyotes Howl.” Books will be sold at these events. Parker Library will host its Local Authors Showcase on March 11 at 1 p.m., where a panel will talk about their new books and then sell them. Also, Douglas County Libraries will host a traveling photography show — “ e Sammy Project Photography Show” — giving personal stories of people dealing with
mental health issues, at Castle Rock Library, through Feb. 28 and at Highlands Ranch in March; Parker in April and Lone Tree in May. See dcl.org.
Arapahoe Libraries
Arapahoe Libraries present graphic novelist R. Alan Brooks, who will spend an evening via Zoom with adults and teens on Feb. 23 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. His graphic hovels include “ e Burning Metronome and Anguish Garden” and he writes the weekly comic “What’d I Miss” for the Colorado Sun. Register and get Zoom information at 303-542-7279.
Lakewood Cultural Center e Takacs Quartet will appear at 7:30 p.m. March 4 at Lakewood
Cultural Center, 470 S. Allison Pkwy., Lakewood, with music by Haydn, Britten, Schubert. Tickets start at $25, 303-987-7845, lakewood.org/ LCCPresents.
Big dogs
e Dumb Friends League says adoption fees for big dogs (40 pounds and over) will be reduced by 40% through February. Both the Denver and Castle Rock DFL Centers have more large dogs than they can easily manage this winter.
Cly ord Still Museum
e Cly ord Still Museum in Denver will exhibit “AWful Bigness,” a collection of the artist’s biggest paintings, beginning this week, through
Sept. 10. 2023. e museum is at 1250 Bannock St., Denver. 720-354-4875, cly ordstillmuseum.org.
Kirkland Museum
”Vance Kirkland’s Cosmos” is open at the Kirkland Museum, 1201 Bannock St., Denver, with a changed display of Kirkland’s art selected by curator Hugh Grant and deputy curator Christopher Herron. 303-8328576, kirklandmuseum.org.
Soprano performance
Soprano Michelle DeYoung will perform at 7:30 p.m. March 30 at the Newman Center, 2344 E. Ili Ave., Denver. Tickets start at $34. 303-8717720, newmancenterpresents.com. She appears regularly with national and international symphony orchestras and opera companies.
Bird count
e Great Backyard Bird Count, conducted nationally by the Audubon Society, is this week. Take 30 minutes to count birds at your back yard feeder and report to the national organization. e local Audubon Center is looking for new members, including members of the Young Birders Club. See their website at denveraudubon.org for information — and pay a visit if you are not yet acquainted. Potential Master Birders Program members, who train for a year, will begin in July 2023. Check the website for young birder’s outings, Nature walks for adults and more...Urban Interns train March to May. 303-979-2473.
Cherry Creek’s Lawson Ficken won two events, Charlotte Wilson captured a third individual title and the Bruins’ three relay teams were also rst. at all added up to Cherry Creek winning its third straight Class 5A state swimming championship on Feb. 10 at the Veterans Memorial Aquatic Center in ornton.
It was the 29th overall state title for the Bruins since the sport was rst sanctioned in 1972.
“It’s always fun to win,” said Cherry Creek coach Karin Olmstead Dinsdale. “ is is an amazing group of kids. We have seven that have carried on the last four years and they have become part of my family and in many ways they are a special group.
“ e leadership we have on this team has been really good. When these seniors lost four years ago and were runners-up, they came back with vengeance and said never again. ey love to win and I love that. ey’ve got that taste of winning.
Cherry Creek’s dominance can put a lot of pressure on Bruins swimmers to keep being one of the top state contending teams each season, but it seems like nobody feels any undue pressure.
“Pressure is a privilege,” added Dinsdale, who is a former Cherry Creek swimmer.
I’m really lucky to be in a scenario to feel that. I put it on myself because I don’t want to let my team down but it’s fun. It’s de nitely scary. I was really nervous and I just tried to channel mine into being excited.”
Cherry Creek amassed 448 points in the title victory while Regis Jesuit was the runner-up with 367.5 points.
Two-time Class 4A state champion Heritage, which this season moved up to 5A, was third with 321 points.
e Eagles’ Mary Macauley, a twotime state champ last season, added
championship with a winning time of 2:00.67.
Ficken, a senior who will continue her education and swimming at Auburn next season, won the 50 freestyle in 22.64 and the 100 freestyle with a time of 48.77.
“It feels so good,” she said. “I’m just so lucky to swim with these girls and I’m just so honored to be able to pick it up and compete.”
Wilson, a junior, captured the 100 backstroke in 52.95.
Both Ficken and Wilson were on
than we have this season,” added Simonich. “ at’s why we got up and then we were able to keep that throughout the game. We’ve grown a lot. We all know where each other is at and we’re really playing well as a team.”
BY JIM BENTON SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIAHard work is starting to pay dividends for Highlands Ranch basketball player Ezra Simonich.
Simonich, a 5-foot-10 sophomore, scored 23 points on Feb. 7 in a Continental League showdown against Regis Jesuit which matched two top ten teams in the CHSAANow state rankings.
“I’ve been working real hard to get my shot going and I felt like the habit paid o ,” said Simonich.
She made ve 3-point baskets to lead the way for the fth-ranked Falcons, who used a strong second and third periods in which they outscored the Raiders 38-19 to pull away from the Raiders, who came into the game ranked sixth.
“We passed really well and we came out a lot faster and harder
“ e kids played great as a team,” said Falcons coach Caryn Jarocki. “ ey actually executed the game plan better than we have in the past. ey are learning to take what we learn in practice and executing that in the game.”
Highlands Ranch’s varsity roster is young with ve freshman, three sophomores and two seniors.
“We are a very young team and they are growing by leaps and bounds,” Jarocki said. “ ey are getting tougher every day. ey have been thrusted into roles that they shouldn’t have to play but they are. ey are young and they are doing it.
I’m proud of them.
“Now the sky is the limit. I think they are feeling the fever of it. ey are gaining con dence every day.” e Falcons’ two seniors, Mad-
with Alexis Greenhawt and Ana Loveridge that set a state record in the preliminaries and then broke it in the nals.
e Creek foursome turned in a 1:30.81 clocking in the nals which was 11 hundredths of a second o the national record.
In the 200 medley relay, Wilson, Katie Cohen, Maren McDonald and Alana Maxey won in 1:47.81 while Creek’s 400 relay team of Greenhawt, Ficken, Loveridge and Teagan Steinmetz won with a time of 3:23.66.
Highlands Ranch hoops team is young but playing hardCherry Creek’s girls swimming team won its third straight state championship and 29th overall on Feb. 10. PHOTOS BY JIM BENTON
Tori Baker (1) of Highlands Ranch drives around Lexi Meyer of Regis Jesuit during the Feb. 7 game. The Falcons won, 65-43, to remain unbeaten in the league. PHOTOS BY
die Groth and Bailey Williamson, had 12 and 10 points respectively against Regis.
In the game against Legend on Feb. 7, the Falcons rolled to a 50-39 victory.
Highlands Ranch faced piggyback league rst place games against both Regis and Legend and
won both contests.
With two games remaining in the regular season, the Falcons are 8-0 in the league and 18-3 overall. Legend is 7-1 and 14-7 while underRidge is 7-2 in the league and Regis 6-2.
Jarocki swelled her Colorado allbest winning mark to 716-186 in 34 years of coaching, including the rst 11 seasons at Colorado Academy. She has helped Highlands Ranch win seven state championships.
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Visa Technology & Operations LLC,.
A Visa Inc. company, currently needs a Senior Cybersecurity Engineer (multiple openings) (REF53050L) in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Job duties include: Meet with business users to determine and consult on requirements and design cloud infrastructure solutions from the ground up. Translate security and technical requirements into business requirements and communicate security risks to different audiences ranging from business leaders to engineers. The estimated salary range for a new hire into this position is $147,000.00 USD to $188,300.00
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USD. All positions report to the Highlands Ranch, Colorado office and may allow for partial telecommuting. Salary may vary depending on job-related factors which may include knowledge, skills, experience, and location. In addition, this position may be eligible for an annual bonus and equity. Visa has a comprehensive benefits package for which this position is eligible that includes Medical, Dental, Vision, 401(k), Employee Stock Purchase Program, FSH/ HSA, Life Insurance, Paid Time off and Wellness Programs. Qualified applicants should apply by emailing resume to careersus@visa.com. Must reference job code.
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P/T & F/T positions; responsible for propane delivery and customer service.
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Propane certification a plus. Insurance age requirement 26 with clean MVR. SVG is building a team, not just a job!
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Principal Solutions/Architect
TTEC Digital, LLC, Englewood, CO. Principal Solutions Architect – Commerce. Position is 100% remote. Leads and/or participates in project team to develop optimal solutions for client business challenges. Guides client through design, architecture, estimate, and delivery. Req. a bachelor’s in Comp.Science, MIS, Electrical Engin. or a rltd field. Min. of 5 yrs’ project leadership exp., including 2+ yrs’ exp. leading enterprise-level projects in a professional services or consulting environment. 4+ yrs’ exp. working w/ relevant Microsoft technologies in a professional services environment. Mastery of one or more of the following Microsoft-related disciplines: D365; Data & AI; Modern Workplace; and/ or Software Development. Travel required to unanticipated sites in the U.S. up to 50%. Salary range $200,000.00 to $216,000.00.
To apply, please visit https://ttecdigital.com/careers and apply under the Principal Solutions Architect – Commerce job title.
CDL DRIVERS
HBS Trash is looking for CDL drivers in Kiowa, Elizabeth, and surrounding areas. Call 720-9231872 to learn more
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SDH Systems LLC has openings for the positions:
Software Developer with Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering Any, Technology, Management Information Systems/ Security or related to design, develop, implement, maintain and test business functions and web applications using a variety of languages, tools, methodologies and technologies. Develop, create and modify general computer applications software or specialized utility programs. Analyze user needs and develop software solutions. Design software or customize software for client use with the aim of optimizing operational efficiency. Software/UI
Developer with Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering any, Technology or related and 1 yr of exp to design and implement front-end business applications while working closely with developers to help generate requirements for backend development. Develop HTML5 prototype documents with CSS3 Style Sheets. Testing UI elements on mobile and desktops. Responsible for the Core UI framework, designs, implements and maintains it. Develop the front-end web page by using HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript and React/ Angular. Work location is Englewood, CO with required travel to client locations throughout the USA. Please mail resumes to
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2 bicycles, single bed complete never used, wheelchair, new poker table and shop vacuum. All for $500 or best offer. Will sell single items as well. Call 720-465-9022
WIDOWED MEN AND WOMEN OF AMERICA.
A social club offering many exciting activities and life long friendships. Social hours for all areas of Metro Denver. Visit Widowedamerica.org for details In your area!
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Split & Delivered $450 a cord Stacking $50 Call 303-647-2475 or 720-323-2173
Health & Beauty
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.
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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
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Donate Your Car to Veterans Today! Help and Support our Veterans. Fast - FREE pick up. 100% tax deductible. Call 1-800245-0398
Old Crows Antiques featuring The Root Beer Bar An Antique destination in Littleton Colorado
Join us on Memory Lane.
Something for everyone. Visit us for store info
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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!
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To place a 25-wordCOSCAN Network adin 91 Colorado newspapers for only $300, contact your local newspaper or email Colorado Press Association Network at rtoledo@colopress.net
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Public Trustees
PUBLIC NOTICE Parker NOTICE OF SALE Public Trustee Sale No. 2022-0191
To Whom It May Concern: On 12/14/2022 12:44:00 PM the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in Douglas County.
Original Grantor: JERRY W. MAES
Original Beneficiary: MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR AMERICAN FINANCING CORPORATION
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt: PENNYMAC LOAN SERVICES, LLC
Date of Deed of Trust (DOT): 7/20/2018
Recording Date of DOT: 7/27/2018 Reception No. of DOT: 2018045396
DOT Recorded in Douglas County.
Original Principal Amount of Evidence of Debt: $272,435.00 Outstanding Principal Amount as of the date hereof: $253,385.36
Pursuant to C.R.S. §38-38-101 (4) (i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust and other violations of the terms thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
The property described herein is all of the property encumbered by the lien of the deed of trust.
Legal Description of Real Property: LOT 120, COTTONWOOD SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 3, COUNTY OF DOUGLAS, STATE OF COLORADO.
Which has the address of:
8476 Wheatgrass Cir, Parker, CO 80134
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured 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, April 5, 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: 2/9/2023
Last Publication: 3/9/2023 Publisher: Douglas County News Press
Dated: 12/14/2022 DAVID GILL DOUGLAS COUNTY Public Trustee
The name, address and telephone numbers of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
RYAN BOURGEOIS Colorado Registration #: 51088 1391 Speer Boulevard, Suite 700 , DENVER, COLORADO 80204 Phone #: (303) 350-3711 Fax #: Attorney File #: 00000009587684
*YOU MAY TRACK FORECLOSURE SALE DATES on the Public Trustee website: https:// www.douglas.co.us/public-trustee/ Legal Notice No. 2022-0191
First Publication: 2/9/2023 Last Publication: 3/9/2023 Publisher: Douglas County News
the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in Douglas County. Original Grantor: Barbara J Sandoval and Elizabeth Poe
Beneficiary: Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. as nominee for Countrywide Bank, N.A., Its Successors and Assigns
Holder of Evidence of Debt: The Bank of New York Mellon F/K/A The Bank of New York as Trustee for CWHEQ Home Equity Loan Asset Backed Certificates, Series 2006-S4 Date of Deed of Trust (DOT): 5/18/2006
Recording Date of DOT: 8/28/2006
Reception No. of DOT: 2006073965
DOT Recorded in Douglas County.
Original Principal Amount of Evidence of Debt:
$95,000.00
Outstanding Principal Amount as of the date hereof: $72,619.75
Pursuant to C.R.S. §38-38-101 (4) (i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: the failure to make timely payments required under said Deed of Trust and the Evidence of Debt secured thereby.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
The property described herein is all of the property encumbered by the lien of the deed of trust.
Legal Description of Real Property:
LOT 49, STONEGATE FILING NO. 14B, COUNTY OF DOUGLAS, STATE OF COLORADO.
Which has the address of: 9847 Centre Cir, Parker, CO 80134-3313
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured 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, March 15, 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: 1/19/2023
Last Publication: 2/16/2023
Publisher: Douglas County News Press
Dated: 11/21/2022
DAVID GILL DOUGLAS COUNTY Public Trustee
The name, address and telephone numbers of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
ILENE DELL'ACQUA
Colorado Registration #: 31755 7700 E. ARAPAHOE ROAD, SUITE 230 , CENTENNIAL, COLORADO 80112
Phone #: (877) 369-6122
Fax #: Attorney File #: CO-22-947273-LL
*YOU MAY TRACK FORECLOSURE SALE
DATES on the Public Trustee website: https:// www.douglas.co.us/public-trustee/
Legal Notice No. 2022-0179
First Publication: 1/19/2023
Last Publication: 2/16/2023
Publisher: Douglas County News Press PUBLIC NOTICE
Notice of Unclaimed Property, Douglas County Public Trustee
To Whom It May Concern: On November 9, 2022, the real property owned by REXFORD D. EVANS located at 8404 PIONEER TRAIL, PARKER, CO 80134, was sold at the foreclosure sale conducted by the Douglas County Public Trustee. The sale number is 2022-0113. The amount the
property sold for exceeded the total amount owed to the lender, MIDFIRST BANK, by $341,918.33. This amount is now owed to REXFORD D. EVANS less the cost of this publication notice.
The legal description of the property is THE SOUTH 1/2 OF THE NORTHEAST 1/4 OF THE NORTHWEST 1/4 OF THE SOUTHEAST 1/4 OF SECTION 32, TOWNSHIP 6 SOUTH RANGE 65 WEST OF THE 6TH P.M., COUNTY OF DOUGLAS, STATE OF COLORADO.
To claim the funds, contact the Douglas County Public Trustee, 100 Third Street, Castle Rock, Co 80104, 303-660-7417. If the funds are not claimed by the owner entitled thereto before June 23, 2023, the funds will be transferred to the Colorado State Treasurer as part of the “Unclaimed Property Act”.
Legal Notice No. 2022-0113
First Publication: February 2, 2023 Last Publication: March 2, 2023 Publisher: Douglas County News-Press City and County =PUBLIC NOTICE
PURSUANT TO THE LIQUOR LAW OF THE STATE OF COLORADO, Big Apple Mart – 2 Parth Investments Inc. d/b/a Big Apple Mart - 2 has requested the Licensing Officials of Douglas County to grant a Liquor License for a Fermented Malt Beverage Off-Premises liquor license at the location of 2195 N Hwy 83 in Franktown, CO 80116. The Public Hearing on this application is to be held by the Douglas County Local Liquor Licensing Authority at 100 Third Street, Castle Rock, Colorado, 80104 on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at 1:30 p.m.
of
January 19, 2023
Paresh Patel – Owner/Officer
Douglas County News-Press ###
The above is a statement of gross salaries for Douglas County Government employees. This includes regular pay, overtime, sick and vacation pay, (where applicable) paid to employees during the year ending December 31, 2022. In addition to wages paid, Douglas County Government offers the following fringe benefits to all benefit eligible employees: Employee-paid health, dental, vision, and supplemental insurance premiums; matching retirement; the required employer’s match for Social Security and Medicare; unemployment insurance; short-term and long-term disability insurance; life insurance; accidental death and dismemberment insurance; workers’ compensation; flexible spending program administration fees (if applicable); and an employee assistance program. Some employees may also be offered auto benefit, uniform, phone, and / or tool allowances, as well as recognition awards. The County wide average percentage of salaries paid for the aforementioned benefits is 37.61%. This notice is published under the direction of the Board of County Commissioners in accordance with C.R.S. 30-25-111
ANDREW COPLAND
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE
Legal Notice No.: 944556
First Publication: February 16, 2023
Last Publication: February 16, 2023
Publisher: Douglas County News-Press
Withoutpublicnotices,thegovernmentwouldn’thavetosayanythingelse.
Publicnoticesare acommunity’swindowintothegovernment.Fromzoningregulationstolocalbudgets, governmentshaveusedlocalnewspaperstoinformcitizensofitsactionsasanessentialpartofyourright toknow.Youknowwheretolook,whentolookandwhattolookfortobeinvolvedas acitizen.Local newspapersprovideyouwiththeinformationyouneedtogetinvolved.
Noticesaremeanttobenoticed.Readyourpublicnoticesandgetinvolved!
There are any number of ways to move through the world. Every day, artist and historian Chloé Duplessis makes the conscious decision to move in love. As a woman of color and person navigating life with a disability (Duplessis is legally blind as a result of Stargardt disease, a rare disease that causes early macular degeneration), it would be easy to live with nothing but negativity. But her work over the last four years - including Denver’s rst accessible “I VOTED” stickerdemonstrates a passion for providing all viewers an insightful glimpse into
the lives and experiences of others.
“My diagnosis set me free,” Duplessis said. “If I don’t lean into my creative power now, when will I?”
Her latest show, Blind Spot, features 20 works of collage and fabric art that focus on history, accessibility and privilege. It’s on display in the free OZ Gallery, 9209 Dorothy Blvd. in ornton, through Friday, March 24. e gallery is open from noon to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on second Saturdays.
Duplessis’ work is largely inspired by the stories she hears while out touring the country, and by surveys she has audiences ll out centered on particular topics or themes. When the topic of what privilege looks like in modern society was raised, she knew it was important to examine.
“ e questions I asked people this time were, `Do you think privilege
exists? Have you experienced privilege? And how do you de ne privilege?’” she explained. “ e responses I received showed that we’re all having these di erent experiences right next to each other, but aren’t sharing them.”
When unveiling a new collection, most artists participate in the opening night festivities and maybe a special event here or there, but Duplessis goes above and beyond by making herself available to anyone who wants a guided tour through Blind Spot.
“Opening receptions are great, but many people aren’t able to attend, so I’m doing tours three days a week,” she said. “It’s not just about increasing accessibility for the show, but doing anything I can to support the arts.”
As a dedicated historian, once the exhibit’s run is nished, Duplessis will use collected thoughts from those
who have visited to make a new work to be donated to OZ, thus continuing the chain of powerful artifacts left behind for those who follow.
Duplessis’ work may be challenging at times, but there’s a de nite power in seeing others’ experiences honored and expanded upon. She hopes the work will have profound e ect on those who open themselves to it.
“I want everyone to see the exhibit in their own way and at their own pace,” she said. “If someone knows that privilege exits, they’ll be grati ed by what they see, and if they don’t think it exists, they should de nitely come see the work.”
For more details, visit www.thorntonco.gov/arts/Pages/exhibits.aspx.
Clarke Reader’s column on culture appears on a weekly basis. He can be reached at Clarke.Reader@hotmail.com.
