September 10, 2015
THIS WEEK IN
VOLUME 3 | ISSUE 5 | FREE
LIFE
LOCAL
Purchasing local eggs boosts farm families, state economy
Page 12
CastlePinesNewsPress.net D O U G L A S C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O
A publication of
ELECTION 2015
WHAT’S INSIDE
School board field set
Always prepared: Boy Scout builds dog agility course. See Page 6
Trust, tax dollars and school choice among dividing issues By Mike DiFerdinando mdiferdinando@coloradocommunitymedia.com
were among approximately 200 seized from a ranch near Conroe, Texas, in late June. The Franktown facility answered a call for help from the Houston Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. With room for more than 100 horses, Harmony Equine Center at 5540 E. Highway 86 was in a position to
The race for the three open seats on the seven-member Douglas County Board of Education will pit three incumbents against three challengers endorsed by the group Douglas County Parents this November. In District A, incumbent Craig Richardson will take on Wendy Vogel. DCSD Board President Kevin Larsen will face off with AnneMarie Lemieux in District C. And incumbent Richard Robinson and David Ray will vie for the District F seat. The challengers are rallying behind concerns over trust and transparency with the current board, what they consider to be the mismanagement of tax dollars, and losses in educational opportunities for students. “After over a decade as a regular volunteer in my children’s classrooms, I began noticing changes that were negatively affecting our • School disschools,” Lemieux said. trict wants U.S. “I became worried that Supreme Court ruling on vouchdistrict leadership was ers. Page 4 more concerned with marketing expensive • Meet the school pilot reforms rather board candidates. than wisely spending Page 5 educational tax dollars with the primary goal of student success.” Current school board members say they are proud of what they have accomplished during the past few years, especially when it comes to student achievement, teacher pay and school choice. “I’m most proud of the very, very strong academic achievement we’ve had for our students,” Richardson said. “Our test scores and graduation rates have gone up across the board. I’m also proud of the way that we have been able to implement a system of teacher pay that rewards our people for their expertise and performance.” Douglas County Parents points to what it calls “a failure to inform the public” of plans to spend $16 million on a new teacher evaluation system and a failure to meet the
Horses continues on Page 8
DCSD continues on Page 4
Water color: Rocky Mountain Watermedia returns. See Page 17
Football: Castle View begins season against Bear Creek. See Page 22
INSIDE
The 61 horses taken in by the Denver Dumb Friends League’s Harmony Equine Center in Franktown were among 200 found emaciated at a ranch in Texas. Courtesy photos by Dumb Friends League
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PL E ASE R ECYC LE
Neglected horses get second chance Harmony Equine Center takes in 61 abused animals from Texas By Chris Michlewicz cmichlewicz@coloradocommunitymedia.com A Franktown shelter is giving 61 neglected horses a new place to call home. Appearing emaciated and exhausted, the horses taken into the Dumb Friends League Harmony Equine Center Sept. 1 and Sept. 4
Nature, color are at forefront for artist Castle Rock resident takes part in Colorado Artfest By Shanna Fortier sfortier@colorado communitymedia.com Janelle Lindley knew from a young age that art was her thing. But when she was little, growing up in Georgia in the 1950s, everyone took piano lessons. Not art. She kept asking to take art classes, but none was available. It wasn’t until she was in seventh grade, in Texas, that she finally took her first official painting class. From there, she developed her
craft, eventually attending Baylor University and majoring in art. Lindley taught elementary art for 18 years, and after retiring a few years ago, moved to Castle Rock. “We always wanted to live in Colorado because we vacationed here,” she said. Three days after she moved to the area, she participated in her first Colorado Artfest. Now, two years later, it’s one of the shows she looks forward to the most. Nature is what inspired Lindley to create her colorful mixed media pieces. “I do what I call paper painting,” she said. “I like the visual texture and bright colors. This combines the two.” Artist continues on Page 11
Janelle Lindley will give a paper painting demonstration Sept. 12. Photo by Shanna Fortier