23 minute read
CALENDAR
Thu 7/01
JumpBunch- Sports and Fitness for Parent/Tot for Parent/Tot
@ 3:15pm Jul 1st - Jul 29th Jul 1st - Jul 29th Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-289112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760 3760
Featured
Music Bingo at Pour Tap House @ 7pm / Free
Pour Tap House, 12433 East 104th
Avenue, Commerce City Fri 7/02
Adventure Explorers: Water Series
@ 2pm Jul 2nd - Jul 23rd Jul 2nd - Jul 23rd Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760
4th of July BBQ
@ 4pm Offsite, 6060 E Parkway Drive, Commerce Offsite, 6060 E Parkway Drive, Commerce City. 303-289-3760 City. 303-289-3760
Featured
Comedy Night at Mother Tucker Brewery - Thornton @ 7pm / $18-$54
Mother Tucker Brewery, 2360 East 120th Avenue, Thornton Sat 7/03
Featured
Standley Lake Bird Walks @ 7am
Standley Lake Regional Park &
Wildlife Refuge, Simms St & W 100th Ave, Westminster. standley lake@cityofwestminster.us, 303425-1097 Breathe Carolina Featured
Adams County Stars & Strips @ 10am
Riverdale Regional Park, 9755
Henderson Road, Brighton. jjack son@adcogov.org, 303-562-1597 Sun 7/04
Featured
Northglenn July 4th Celebration @ 8am
E.B. Rains Jr. Memorial Park, 11701 Community Center Drive,
Northglenn. agarst@north glenn.org, 303-450-8935 Cruise to the fort Independence Day car show
@ 12pm / $10 213 S Harrison Ave, 213 South Harrison Avenue, Fort Lupton
Featured
Fort Lupton July 4 @ 1pm 203 S Harrison Ave, 203 South
Harrison Avenue, Fort Lupton. cro mano@fortluptonco.gov, 720-9284071 Colorado Rapids
@ 7pm / $33-$998 DICK'S Sporting Goods Park, 6000 Victory Way, Commerce City
Ninja Nation Competition Featured
Thornton Traditional Fourth of July event @ 4pm Carpenter Park Fields, 11000 Col‐orado Boulevard, Thornton. festi vals@thorntonco.gov, 303-2557800
Featured
4th of July Fireworks @ 7pm
Westminster City Park, 10455
North Sheridan Boulevard, West‐minster. prl@cityofwestminster.us Mon 7/05
4-Day Horsemanship Summer Camp
@ 8am / $350 Jul 5th - Jul 8th Promenade Stable, 23901 E 160th Ave, Brighton
Baking Craze II
@ 3pm Jul 5th - Jul 8th Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760
Life Isn't Easy
@ 4pm Eagle Pointe Recreation Center, 6060 E. Parkway Dr., Commerce City. 303-2893760
STEAM Rollers
@ 4:30pm Jul 5th - Jul 8th Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760
Video Game Design
@ 8pm Jul 5th - Jul 8th Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760
Tue 7/06
July Boot camp
@ 1am Jul 6th - Jul 28th Fort Lupton Recreation & Parks De‐partment, 203 S Harrison, Fort Lupton. 303-857-4200
powered by
Featured
Free Legal Clinic @ 2pm
Anythink Wright Farms, 5877 East 120th Avenue, Thornton. morgan@ hayday.org, 303-405-3298 Discovery Kids- Down By The Farm
@ 4pm Jul 6th - Jul 8th Eagle Pointe Recreation Center, 6060 E. Parkway Dr., Commerce City. 303-2893760
Discovery Kids- What is Friendship?
@ 8pm Jul 6th - Jul 8th Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760
Wed 7/07
Historic Home Tours- Windsor Castle (7/7)
@ 4pm Eagle Pointe Recreation Center, 6060 E. Parkway Dr., Commerce City. 303-2893760
Featured
Thu 7/08
Teen Strength and Conditioning
@ 3:30pm Jul 8th - Jul 29th Bison Ridge Recreation Center, 13905 E. 112th Avenue, Commerce City. 303-2893760
Picnic In the Park- Fairfax Park (7/8)
@ 4pm Offsite, 6060 E Parkway Drive, Commerce City. 303-289-3760
Pot is boiling over as lawmakers, health o cials react to growing number of cases
BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Before the 2020 pandemic, Kelly Blike described the behavioral health situation for both adolescents and adults in Colorado as a boiling pot of water, fi lled to the rim. Now, that pot is spilling over with no containment in site.
“There has always been a mental health crisis in Colorado, COVID just echoed it,” said Blike, a social worker at the UCHealth Highlands Ranch Hospital. “The isolation and lack of physical contact has exaggerated a problem that was already in place. We cannot ignore the problem. We have a long way to go.”
As businesses and life appear to be returning to normal from the pandemic, Blike said hospitals are still dealing with the residual effects.
Dr. Ben Usatch, director of emergency medicine at the Highlands Ranch hospital, said the 21-bed emergency room has a handful of patients needing mental health care on any given day. The numbers are not decreasing, and he does not think they will any time soon.
“There is a post-COVID syndrome that we are going to be cleaning up for a long time,” he said.
In June, Children’s Hospital Colorado (CHC) declared a crisis. The statewide organization reported an increase in young patients attempting suicide and presenting to local emergency rooms with issues related to substance abuse and eating disorders.
CHC has facilities around the Denver metro area in Highlands Ranch, Broomfi eld, Centennial, Parker, Wheat Ridge, Denver and Aurora.
Dr. Jenna Glover, director of psychology training at CHC, said in past years, there was a decrease in suicide attempts and emergency room visits for behavioral health in the summer months. That is not the case this year.
“We’re anticipating a spike in these visits as kids return to a ‘normal’ school year where they may be confronting challenges with setbacks in their education and inperson interactions,” she said.
Usatch said he has never seen so many adolescent patients being admitted to the hospital because substance abuse with drugs and alcohol has become debilitating.
Blike said during the pandemic parents were struggling to cope with restrictions, changes and fi nances. It is no surprise that children and teens were just as heavily impacted, she said.
In June, CHC called on the state Legislature to step up and start helping them deal with the growing crisis. Since the call for help, Sarah Davis, a media relations coordinator for CHC, said lawmakers did take a step forward in the 2021 legislative session.
Heidi Baskfi eld, CHC vice president of population health and advocacy, said passing Senate Bill 137, the Behavioral Health Recovery Act, is a step in the right direction. The new law provides short-term investment in critical priority areas like community-based youth crisis services, additional residential beds, and more resources for school-based health centers.
Another step in the right direction, Baskfi eld said is House Bill 1258. The bill, Rapid Mental Health Response for Colorado Youth, establishes a temporary program to facilitate youth mental health services in response to identifi ed needs.
On June 18, Gov. Jared Polis signed HB 1258 into law during a special ceremony that included bipartisan support from Reps. Dafna Michaelson Jenet, D-Commerce City, and Kevin Van Winkle, R-Highlands Ranch, and Sens. Janet Buckner, D-Aurora, and Rob Woodward, RLoveland.
As the bill was signed by Polis, Van Winkle said HB 1258 is one of the most important pieces of legislation passed in the 2021 session.
Michaelson Jenet sponsored both HB 1258 and SB 137. The Adams County representative said when she ran for offi ce her primary platform was youth mental health. After the 2021 session, Michaelson Jenet said she is happy the two bills passed because they are not just Band-Aids on a growing problem. They are real steps forward to help a lot of people, she said.
“For years I have been banging the drum that we are in a suicide pandemic,” Michaelson Jenet said. “(HB 1258) opens up access for kids who are not getting the support they need right now. This will help all demographics and ages.”
Baskfi eld said the rapid response program will provide youths easy access to screening and treatment through an app-based screening tool. The $9 million bill will create the Temporary Youth Mental Health Services Program, reimbursing providers for three mental health sessions for young patients.
To put in perspective what HB 1258 can do for Colorado’s youths, Michaelson Jenet noted that text in the bill says it will help 26,000 young people. However, she believes it will help reach thousands more, as the tools are available for free.
Michaelson Jenet said the bills passed in 2021 are just a steppingstone — the state has a long road to recovery in addressing mental health issues for both adults and adolescents.
KIDSFUN ZONE PETTINGZOO
FOODTRUCKS GIGANTIC SHAVEDICE!
BEERGARDEN
Benefiting FortLupton Food&ClothingBank
4
th July -OF-
FORTLUPTONFIRE WATERSLIDE
LIVEMUSIC
RIDEONTHE
PEOPLEPULLER FACE PAINTING
CAR&BIKE CAR&BIKE SHOW! SHOW!
ProudlyBroughttoYouby
COMMUNITYPARK
203S.HARRISONAVE.FORTLUPTON NINJA NATION
12:00pm-4:00pmFREECoursePractice 4:30pm-6:30pmCompetition(signup) FREEACTIVITIESALLDAY! 1:00PM-7:00PM EVENINGCONCERT-6:00PM FIREWORKSATDARK
BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Long before the behavioral health crisis reached the public spotlight, the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment saw a need for more public outreach to help parents and teens.
In collaboration with the Colorado Department of Human Services, the state health department unveiled the Forward Together program in 2020.
As state health-care providers are reporting drastic increases in mental health emergencies among the state’s adolescents, Forward Together works to empower adults to support mental health for teens and youth.
Lena Heilmann, the youth suicide prevention coordinator for the Colorado Department of Health, said Forward Together aims to help parents and their children become more connected.
The website, forwardtogetherco. com, is separated into two sections, one for parents and the other for youth. The site encourages discussion, providing coping tools and ideas.
Heilmann said for those who feel suicidal, there is help and a way to get past the current crisis.
“When we are talking about suicide, it is a complex issue,” Heilmann said. “There is no one reason. We know that connectiveness is the most powerful, empowering tool. We want to empower young people to identify a situation and make sure they seek support from a trusted adult.”
Forward Together is not about having a one-size-fi ts-all approach. There are links for teens feeling alone, having problems with parents, struggling to fi t in, in need of encouragement, or feeling depressed.
After clicking on the area that more closely ties with how a person is feeling, Forward Together provides a variety of tools to help the struggling adolescent cope, deal, and plan to get past dark days.
Heilmann said the Forward Together program is a good tool because it is so interactive.
“This program provides support with problem-solving and helping to understand and make sense of feelings,” she said. “We are working to empower young people to know who can be trusted and what to think about. In general, supporting young people is critical. We have to identify barriers preventing children from getting access to help that is crucial to getting better.”
For parents, the site provides ideas, conversation starters and resources on topics ranging from hobbies and confl ict to substance abuse and mental health.
As with the youth page, parents can fi nd help to deal with specifi c issues they are seeing in their children. From working to build better relationships to identifying risky behavior, the site provides tools and tips for parents to connect with their children.
Metro area sky will be lit up with variety of celebrations
BY RYAN DUNN RDUNN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
With COVID-19 restrictions lifting throughout most of the state, communities throughout Colorado are planning triumphant returns to Independence Day festivities. Here are some events scheduled for the Fourth of July weekend throughout the Denver metro area:
Adams County’s Stars and Stripes returns from its pandemic hiatus for Saturday, July 3, at Riverdale Regional Park, 9755 Henderson Road, Brighton. There will be a 5K race, a cornhole tournament, live entertainment and musical fi reworks. See more at http://adamscountyfair.com/starsandstripes.
Arvada The Arvada Festivals Commission will put on a fi reworks show on July 4 at Stenger Soccer Complex, 11200 West 58th Ave., Arvada, from 7-10 p.m. Personal fi reworks are not allowed. More information can be found at https:// arvadafestivals.com/independenceday.
Brighton Fourth festival will start at 5 p.m. on July 4 at Carmichael Park, 650 E. Southern St. Bands will perform for a few hours and food trucks will be parked nearby. There will be fi reworks sometime after 7 p.m. The city encourages attendees to bring blankets, lawn chairs, sunscreen, bug repellent and drinking water.
Castle Rock Run to Change Lives plans to host the Free Rock-It Run on July 4 in Castle Rock. The event will include live entertainment, a 5K, half marathon and races for kids from 7-11:30 a.m. at the Douglas County Fairgrounds, 500 Fairgrounds Road in Castle Rock. Races begin with a 5K at 9 a.m. Registration and more information can be found on the event page: https:// runtochangelives.org/rock-it-run/.
The Town of Castle Rock will provide a fi reworks show around sundown (9:30 p.m.) at The Meadows above Red Hawk Ridge Golf Course. The fi rework show will last about 15 minutes. The golf course will host a party featuring a performance by the 6202 Band from 6-9 p.m. Fireworks may be purchased legally in the town of Castle Rock from stands only on July 4. More information can be found at http://crgov. com/2658/Fireworks-in-Castle-Rock.
Commerce City The Colorado Rapids, in conjunction with Commerce City, will host its 24th annual 4thFest Celebration with a postgame fi reworks display at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on July 4. The Rapids will take on the Seattle Sounders at 7 p.m. followed by the state’s largest public fi reworks display after the match. This will mark the fi rst time the Rapids host a match at full capacity since March 7, 2020. More information can be found at https://www.coloradorapids. com/4thfest/.
Denver Elitch Gardens will put on a fi rework show that will begin around the park’s closing time. The park typically closes at 6 p.m. on Sundays. More information can be found at www.elitchgardens.com/ entertainment/fi reworks/.
Englewood is hosting a Fourth of July event on July 3 at Belleview Park and Cornerstone Park starting at 5 p.m. Local business vendors and food trucks will be in attendance, and a fi rework show will start at 9:15 p.m. More information can be found at https://bit.ly/3gHQhvx.
Evergreen’s Freedom Run 5k starts at 8 a.m. July 4 at Evergreen Middle School, ending at Nick’s Pro Fitness. The event benefi ts Mount Evans Home Health Care & Hospice. For more information and to register, visit freedomrunrace.org.
Evergreen Music Festival on July 4 will be from 9:30 a.m.-8 p.m. at the Buchanan fi elds. Tickets are $25, and proceeds are donated to the Evergreen High School performing arts program. For more information, to see the lineup of bands and to purchase tickets, visit evergreenmusicfestival.org.
Fort Lupton On the Fourth of July, residents will fi nd a ninja warrior course, face painting and fi reworks. Events begin at 1 p.m. at Community Park, 203 S. Harrison Ave.
Georgetown will host its annual Fourth of July parade and barbecue. The parade starts at 11 a.m. near City Park and will travel through downtown Georgetown. The barbecue starts at noon in City Park with a band starting at 12:30 p.m. Additional music and entertainment will be in the downtown area throughout the afternoon.
Golden will host a festival featuring live music, games, food and drinks on July 4 at Lions Park Ballfi elds, 1300 10th St., Golden. A fi rework display will follow at 9:30 p.m. More information can be found at https://bit.ly/3vyBjxz.
Highlands Ranch will host the HCRA Independence Day 5k, which will start at 9 a.m. at 9352 Dorchester St., Highlands Ranch. A youth run will also be included in the event. Registration can be completed the morning of the run or online. Look for the event link on hrcaonline. org/.
Fireworks light the sky above Englewood’s Belleview Park on Independence Day in 2017. The annual show was canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions, but Englewood City Council voted 4-3 on March 22 to go forward with the usual display this July 4. FILE PHOTO
FIREWORKS
niche.
“I started in drama class, and I found the class fun and I was invited to join the drama club. So I jumped into it and liked it ever since,” said Rose.
The drama club needs costumes, props, and stage décor, so Rose made it her inspiration and motivation to sell 20 VIP tables at the Fort Lupton July 4 event with the help of Fort Lupton’s Christie Romano, the city’s events coordinator, and Linda Kudrma, who is with the active adult
July Fill-Up Special! GLOBAL PROPANE
program at the recreation center.
“I chose to raise money for the drama club so that we could be able to make the experience in our theater plays even better than last year with new costumes, new make-up, and much more needed theatrical props and stage décor,” said Rose.
Rose’s hope and dreams for the future are to work hard in her sophomore and junior year so she can graduate early.
‘I will start my journey to become a certifi ed veterinarian and to open my practice veterinary facility,” said Rose.
The Fort Lupton July 4 event will feature another special Fort Lupton High School alumnus who will be
VOLUME DISCOUNTS! 500+
Gallon $1.449
Limited Offer
Teagan Joseph an Eaton High School junior student is performing the National Anthem at the July 4th event, and will be performing at the 100th celebration of the Lincoln
Memorial in Washington DC. PHOTO BY BELEN WARD
Commission to hold hearings on map, plans for 8th Congressional district
BY THY VO, SANDRA FISH, JESSE PAUL AND DANIEL DUCASSI THE COLORADO SUN
Colorado’s new, eighth congressional district would include the cities of Arvada, Westminster, Broomfi eld, Thornton, Brighton and Platteville, a preliminary map drawn by nonpartisan redistricting staff and presented to the state’s Independent Congressional Redistricting Commission on June 23 shows.
Staff placed the new district in the north Denver metro area for two reasons, said Jeremiah Barry, a legislative attorney advising the redistricting commissions.
“The fi rst reason was we recognize this was the fastest-growing area of the state,” said Barry. “The second was a recognition that although nearly 30% of the population of the state are Hispanics, none of the current seven districts are represented by a Hispanic.”
The map is a major fi rst step in the state’s once-a-decade redistricting process. It will evolve as the commission gets input from the public and interest groups over the next few months.
The preliminary map is based on 2019 U.S. Census Bureau estimates because of a months-long delay in the release of the fi nal population data collected during the 2020 Census. Once the U.S. Census Bureau releases that data in August, redistricting staff will have to adjust the map.
“It’s the starting line, but nowhere near the fi nish line,” Curtis Hubbard, a Democratic political consultant who is registered to lobby the redistricting commissions, said of the preliminary map.
The initial map, the public’s fi rst glimpse at how the 8th District may affect the state’s political landscape, also makes changes to the state’s existing seven congressional districts.
The 3rd District, represented by Garfi eld County Republican
Lauren Boebert, would gain Eagle,
Summit, Grand, Park, Teller and
Fremont counties, as well as some of western Boulder County. The
San Luis Valley and Pueblo County would be dropped and added to the 4th District, which includes northeast and southeast Colorado and is currently represented by
U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, a Republican from Windsor.
The 5th District, currently represented by U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, a Colorado Springs Republican, would contract to include only parts of El Paso County. Southeastern El Paso County and counties in the western part of the district would be drawn into other districts.
The 7th District, centered in Jefferson County and currently represented by U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, an Arvada Democrat, would shift south to include Castle Rock, dropping some of Denver’s northwest suburbs, including the bulk of Arvada.
Perlmutter, however, would remain in the 7th District under the preliminary map, though only narrowly — by about 50 yards.
The new 7th District looks to be the most competitive of the new map. In 2018, the Republican candidate won the attorney general’s contest in the new proposed district by 3 percentage points, though a Democrat won the statewide vote.
The 1st District, represented now by U.S. Rep. Diana Degette, a Denver Democrat, would encompass only Denver, dropping portions of Arapahoe and Jefferson counties.
The 6th District, represented by U.S. Rep. Jason Crow, a Centennial Democrat, would lose some of its northern half while continuing to include Aurora, Centennial and Littleton. Both of those districts went heavily Democratic in the 2018 attorney general contest, and, along with the 2nd District in Boulder and Larimer counties, are considered safe seats for that party.
Nonpartisan staff used the results of the 2018 attorney general contest, the closest statewide race in a recent, nonpresidential election year, as well as voter registration fi gures to measure political competitiveness of the redrawn districts.
Based on results of the attorney general race, Districts 1 and 2 would be solidly Democratic while Districts 4 and 5 would be solidly Republican.
Republicans would have an advantage of nearly 10 percentage points in the 3rd District and 3 percentage points in the 7th District, while Democrats would hold a 12.7 percentage point advantage in the 6th District and 7.3 percentage point advantage in the 8th District.
Colorado Democratic Party Chairwoman Morgan Carroll said she was disappointed by the map, arguing the proposed districts advantage the GOP. “While this preliminary plan seems to put a thumb on the scale for Republicans, it is too soon to know how the commissioners will change them,” she said in a statement.
Multimillionaire weighs in
Former DaVita CEO and multimillionaire Kent Thiry, who backed the constitutional amendments that created the independent commissions, also weighed in after the release of the preliminary map.
“These congressional seats belong to the people, not to a political party or interest,” said Thiry. “It’s still early in the process, but it appears the commission is responding to the mandate that it draw competitive districts whenever and wherever possible.”
Redistricting staff also isn’t convinced voter registration and outcomes from the 2018 attorney general race are the best metrics, Barry said.
“Given the population distribution in Colorado, it is diffi cult to draw more competitive districts,” Barry said. “When the fi nal data comes out from the Census Bureau, it likely will change, and maybe districts will become more competitive.”
Maximizing political competitiveness also wasn’t a high priority for this draft map, Barry said, as staff is required to meet all the other constitutional requirements fi rst.
Those constitutional requirements include equal population and adherence to the federal Voting Rights Act, which protects minority voters from gerrymandering.
The map creates three districts with Hispanic populations of more than 28%: District 1 with 28.6%, District 4 with 31% and District 8 with 29.9%, according to the preliminary data.
Staff also sought to keep rural areas together as much as possible, keep the San Luis Valley in one district and keep Boulder and Fort Collins together “due to the large research institutions in those towns,” Barry said.
“We should also point out, many times we received confl icting requests under public comments, concerning where some counties should be placed,” he added.
Focus on political boundaries
Staff also prioritized keeping entire counties and other political boundaries together over specifi c “communities of interest,” a term used to describe communities with shared needs and interests. Barry said staff had diffi culty identifying the geography of some communities named by members of the public.
“In this plan, of the 64 counties in the state, 55 are wholly contained within one congressional district,” Barry said.
Staff also acknowledged that comments from certain interest groups infl uenced their proposal, including the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, which pushed for a district capturing concentrated Hispanic populations in north metro Denver, and Club 20, which called for keeping the entire Western Slope in the same district.
The proposed map for the new Colorado Congressional District 8 covers much of the northern Metro Denver area, including Commerce City, Westminster, Northglenn,
Thornton, Brighton and Fort Lupton. COURTESY OF COLORADO INDEPENDENT CONGRESSIONAL COMMISSION
PAID ADVERTISEMENT
Declare your financial freedom
Independence Day is almost here. It’s important to recognize all the liberties we enjoy in this country, but you may still need to work at one particular type of freedom – and that’s financial freedom. How can you achieve it?
First, contribute as much as you can afford to your retirement accounts, such as your 401(k) or another employer-sponsored plan. And when your salary goes up, increase the amount you put into your 401(k) each year. Beyond your 401(k), you may also be able to contribute to an IRA, which also offers tax benefits, plus a wide array of investment choices.
Building your IRA and 401(k) is one thing – but protecting them is another. You may face situations in which you need a sizable amount of cash in a hurry, perhaps for a major car repair. Dipping into your retirement accounts early could result in penalties, but you can help avoid this setback by building an emergency fund.
Another way to help preserve your financial independence is to protect your income, which could be jeopardized if you become ill or injured. Your employer may offer disability insurance, but if it’s not enough, you may want to consider private coverage.
Here’s one more suggestion: Guard yourself against the high costs of long-term care, such as an extended nursing home stay. A financial professional can suggest an appropriate strategy.
By addressing these areas, you can go a long way toward attaining your financial independence.
This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor.
