Life on Capitol Hill 0520

Life On LifeOnCapHill.com

May 2020

Founded in 1975

CAPITOL HILL VIRTUAL MUSIC Swallow Hill teachers offer online lessons

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BRAIN FOOD

Denver Public Schools delivers meals during remote learning

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A PATH OUT St. Francis-Warren Residences project underway

P15 STAYING POSITIVE Small business owners talk struggles to keep doors open

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2 Life On Capitol Hill

May 2020

DENVER PROVIDES AUXILIARY SHELTERS Vasi Reiva, a Denver Division of Public Safety cadet, helps set up a library inside the makeshift shelter for unhoused men at the National Western Center. April 8. The city of Denver on April 9 opened an auxiliary shelter in the National Western Complex to provide housing and services for people experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Set up in the Hall of Education, the facility can provide shelter for about 600 men. On April 20, the city also implemented another auxiliary shelter in the nearby Denver Coliseum.

This facility can host about 300 women and transgender individuals presenting as women who are experiencing homelessness. The auxiliary shelters provide relief to the city’s existing homeless shelters, which faced challenges to provide physical distancing for individuals during the public health crisis.

KEVIN J. BEATY/DENVERITE)

Business Matters

By Christy Steadman | csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com Editor’s Note: On April 24, Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock announced that the city and county’s stay-at-home order was extended to May 8, and on May 5, he provided an update on what types of businesses will be permitted to re-open come May 9.

These businesses include: Offices, retail and commercial businesses — must operate with 50% or fewer of employees on-site with physical distancing measures of at least six feet between employees and customers.

Salon services including pet groomers, tattoo shops and personal trainers — must operate by appointment only and with fewer than 10 people or 50% occupancy, and with physical distancing measures in place as well as use of personal protection equipment such

as face coverings/masks.

Limited health-care providers such as chiropractors and optometrists — operation regulations are the same as with salon services.

Field services such as in-person real-estate showings.

All businesses reopening must implement certain protective measures in addition to physical distancing such as offering special hours for vulnerable populations, providing hand sanitzer and/or wipes at entrances and frequent disinfecting of workplace common spaces. Additional recommended protective measures include symptom and temperature checks for employees.

The following businesses will remain closed for the time being:

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Dine-in restaurants and bars, but can remain open for take-out, delivery and curbside pickup services.

Movie theaters, concert venues, stadiums and similar venues.

Recreational facilities including playgrounds and libraries.

Gyms with limited exceptions.

Denver is following the state’s order on prohibiting large gatherings, including those of 10 or more people, through May 26.

Business Matters is a monthly column featuring business news in Denver. The May Business Matters column is a listing of some restaurants that provided information on their operations, as of April 30, on Colorado Community Media’s What’s Open feature on its websites. For May, the column includes both the Life on Capitol Hill and Washington Park Profile coverage areas.

While the May Business Matters column reflects only businesses in the food service industry, Colorado Community Media urges you to reach out to your favorite local businesses — including retail, fitness and salon services — to find out their reopening status.

If you are a local business that would like to announce any updates to your operations, email Christy Steadman at csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com.

Denver Pizza Company Open for takeout, delivery and take-andbake pizzas. Place orders by phone or online.

Address: 309 W. 11th Ave. in the Golden Triangle Contact: https://denverpizzaco.com/

1017 E. 9th Avenue | Denver, CO 80218 303-837-8846 | denver.thegreatframeup.com

Carmine’s on Penn Available for takeout Wednesday through Sunday from 4-7 p.m. Orders can be placed

by phone beginning at noon, and all orders must be pre-ordered and prepaid. The pickup area is limited to one person at a time.

Address: 92 S. Pennsylvania St. in the Speer neighborhood Contact: www.carminescolorado.com, 303-777-6443 Reivers Bar & Grill Open for to-go service. Orders can be placed by phone or the UberEats app.

Address: 1085 S Gaylord St. in Washington Park Contact: https://reiversbarandgrill.com, 303-733-8856 The Cookery at Myrtle Hill Open for carryout or curbside pickup.

Address: 1020 S Gaylord St. in Washington Park Contact: https://thecookeryatmyrtlehill. com/ Restaurant Olivia Open for takeout service from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily with menu options that include to-go, fresh pasta kits and take-and-bake lasagna; as well as cocktails and wine.

Address: 290 S. Downing St. in Washington Park Contact: www.oliviadenver.com, 303-9990395, info@oliviadenver.com Devil’s Food Bakery Full-service bakery open for carryout or curbside pickup from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

Address: 1004 S. Gaylord St. in Washington Park Contact: https://devilsfoodbakerydenver. com/

Life On Capitol Hill 3

May 2020

Metro Caring needs volunteers, donations Anti-hunger nonprofit continues to serve amid pandemic

LEARN MORE Metro Caring is continuing its operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. To learn more about the organization, visit www. metrocaring.org. The website includes information on the organization’s needs for volunteers and financial donations during this time, as well as information about its operations for food distribution.

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Teva Sienicki, CEO of Metro Caring, points out that everybody has a story that revolves around food — whether it’s gardening fresh veggies with a relative, a specific dish that always accompanies a holiday dinner, or cooking that special meal from a recipe that has been passed down for generations.

“Food is something that brings us together,” Sienicki said. “We can love through our sharing of food traditions.”

And during this time of social distancing, Metro Caring is working to continue its mission of providing healthy, nutritious food and spark a togetherness in the community.

Metro Caring, at 1100 E. 18th Ave. in Denver, is a nonprofit anti-hunger organization that primarily serves the seven-county Denver metro area. Metro Caring has an emphasis on providing healthy, nutritious food “while building a movement to address the root causes of hunger,” states its website.

In the midst of COVID-19, Metro Caring is facing increased pressure to supply food for those who were already facing food insecurity and those who now need support following job loss.

“The need has gone through the roof,” Sienicki said, adding that it far surpasses the need during the Great Recession of 2008-2009.

Volunteer Lydia Nelson-Gardner packs a food box at Metro Caring, a nonprofit anti-hunger organization that has an emphasis on providing healthy, nutritious food.

COURTESY OF MICHELLE CHRISTIANCE PHOTOGRAPHY

“This pandemic is exposing inequities in an acute way. (And) those needs are not going to go away overnight.”

Sienicki added that the economic crisis will likely continue after the public health threat has subsided, and will have a long-term effect.

Metro Caring is dedicated to working with the community to meet people’s immediate need for food, and, in fact, is primed to respond quickly in such a crisis, said board

member Iris Gardner.

“Metro Caring’s model works because it gives people dignity during a time of need,” Gardner said. The model, she said, “is working with the community, rather than for the community.”

Though Metro Caring continues to operate with some adjustments to adhere to mandated social distancing measures, it is in immediate need of additional volunteers and financial

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donations.

Financial donations will support Metro Caring’s ability to buy food in bulk, and purchase personal protective equipment for volunteers.

As for volunteers, Metro Caring is asking that prospective volunteers are healthy, younger than age 65 and can commit to three, two-to-three-hour shifts each week.

“Volunteers are the heart of helping Metro Caring move forward,” Gardner said. “When we can give a part of ourselves, we reap the rewards, ten-fold.”

Gardner has always had a passion for providing access to nutritious for all people. She grew up in Denver and knew of Metro Caring, but moved out of state for 10 years. Upon returning, she began her volunteer journey with Metro Caring. In the past four years, she has worked in the organization’s Fresh Foods Market, helped establish the Spanish-language cooking classes and currently serves on the board of directors as she pursues a graduate degree and is employed fulltime.

“There is a special vibe at Metro Caring. It’s a slice of Denver — of Colorado,” Sienicki said.

“Everyone has different strengths and assets that they bring, (which) creates a rich environment. It’s really an incredible family.”

4 Life On Capitol Hill

May 2020

Lights glow with appreciation

BY CHRISTY STEADMAN CSTEADMAN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

“Their dedication cannot be taken for granted, so we are inviting everyone to show their thanks by showing their lights,” Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock said of first responders and essential workers.

When you get your invitation to take the 2020 census, make sure you’re counted.

When the clock reached 8 p.m., people across the nation howled in unity from their balconies, front lawns and back yards. In that moment, first responders everywhere flipped their public safety vehicles’ lights on.

In Denver on April 9, just past 8 p.m., Mayor Michael B. Hancock led a countdown.

“Three. Two. One. Light this building,” he said.

And with that prompt, Denver’s City and County Building downtown lit up in red and white lights.

The lighting took place to honor first responders and essential workers on the front lines battling the COVID-19 pandemic.

The City and County Building at 1437 Bannock St. will be lit up through April 30 as an expression of gratitude during the stay-athome order.

“I’m humbled by the sacrifice and service I have witnessed in recent weeks, and these lights on our City and County Building honor our Denver heroes and the heroes everywhere leading the response to this pandemic,” Hancock said.

Residents are also encouraged to decorate a tree, bush or window with lights.

“Their dedication cannot be taken for granted, so we are inviting everyone to show their thanks by showing their lights,” Hancock said of first responders and essential workers. “Stay home. Keep Calm and Denver on.”

COURTESY OF THE CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER

Did you know funding for the community programs you care about is based on census numbers? Make sure you and your community are counted by responding to the 2020 census.

we’re in this together

This year, you can answer online, by phone or mail.

Learn more about the census at 2020census.gov.

Denver’s medical workers, firefighters and police officers gathered — socially distanced — in downtown Denver on April 9 to be recognized for their commitment to serving the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

CHRISTY STEADMAN

Life On Capitol Hill 5

May 2020

“Having been cooped up in my house since March 1 — my daughter most likely caught one of the first cases in Colorado — without access to a hairstylist, that’s the first thing I’ll do. And then I will get down to Charlie Brown’s on 10th and Grant and belt out all the songs that got me through this, like ‘My Favorite Things,’ ‘Cabaret’ and ‘Livin’ On a Prayer.’” -- Rachel Griffin, Cheesman Park COURTESY PHOTO

WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU’RE GOING TO DO ONCE THE CRISIS IS OVER?

“One: So. Many. Flippin’. Hugs. Two: Visit the Denver Botanic Gardens. It’s my happy place and I miss it a ton!”

-- Michelle Witt, Capitol Hill COURTESY PHOTO

Denver issues public health order to wear face covering Staff report A public health order was issued to mandate wearing a face covering in certain public places in Denver.

The public health order, issued by Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock

through the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment, went into effect on May 6 and will last until further notice.

Per the public health order, a face covering is mandatory for customers and employees of retail and commercial business, including gro-

cery stores. A face covering should also be worn in other public places such as at bus stops and facilities that offer health care services.

Face coverings may be factorymade or handmade. They should be made of multiple layers of washable cloth, fabric or other soft or

permeable material, without holes, that cover the nose, mouth and surrounding areas of the lower face.

It should fit snugly but allow for breathing without restriction.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers guidelines on suitable homemade face-coverings

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6 Life On Capitol Hill

May 2020

Deborah Collins performs during Swallow Hill Music’s One Epic Night Fundraiser in October 2018. Because of COVID-19, Swallow Hill is temporarily closed, but is offering some virtual programming and many of its teachers are independently offering online music lessons.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF JOHN LEYBA

Beloved music institution doing what it can until reopening

By Christy Steadman

S

csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

wallow Hill Music is a place that builds community.

“There’s such an energy about it,” said Cheri Gonzales, Swallow Hill’s development manager. “Not having that during this time has been challenging.”

On March 25, Swallow Hill Music CEO Paul Lhevine announced a temporary closure of the music organization because of statewide and local social distancing measures in place to stop the spread of COVID-19.

“Our goal is to ensure when this crisis is over, Swallow Hill will once again be able to open our doors, bring our teachers back to work and invite our community to come together as the music community that means so much to so many,” Lhevine said in a statement.

SEE SWALLOW HILL, P7

Swallow Hill Music, a local nonprofit music organization, is temporarily closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but there are still ways the community can support it.

You can become a member, make contributions/monetary donations to support its various programs, or take a music lesson — note that teachers are managing their lessons independently In the meantime, Swallow Hill is offering some virtual programming.

Visit swallowhillmusic.org to learn more.

The Deborah Solo Trio, consisting of Swallow Hill instructor Deborah Collins, center, Kari Clifton on cello and Swallow Hill instructor Chadzilla Johnson on percussion, performed in Swallow Hill’s Tuft Theatre in October 2018.

Life On Capitol Hill 7

May 2020

SWALLOW HILL FROM PAGE 6

Swallow Hill Music, 71 E. Yale Ave., is a nonprofit music organization founded in 1979. It hosts a variety of programs, including a music school, live music concerts and community outreach such as music therapy, enrichment and early childhood education.

“We have such a vibrant history of how we’ve evolved over the years, and our place in the history of the Denver music scene has created such a strong group of supporters,” Gonzales said. She added that even in the midst of the challenges during COVID-19, “we’re going to continue to engage with our community.”

With all the in-person programming on pause, Swallow Hill has been implementing new ways to engage, such as offering virtual programming, Gonzales said. For example, streaming concerts online, hosting jam sessions via Facebook Live and providing The Fox family Devin Fox has been a rock music fan all his life. He evens owns an electric bass guitar that, for the past decade, he has been wanting to learn to play.

After seeing how beneficial Swallow Hill has been for his children, Devin Fox finally signed up for a lesson, only to have it canceled because of COVID-19.

“He’s on hold right now,” Stefanie Fox said of her husband’s bass classes, but added that for her children, “anything that brings a sense of normalcy and joy in the house during this time, I’m willing to do.”

Dylan Fox, 9, and his sister Madylan, 6, have been involved with Swallow Hill for the past year. Madylan was in a group singing class and Dylan has been studying piano.

Madylan is a bit too young to take a music lesson virtually, Stefanie Fox said, but has been practicing her routine to the Jackson 5’s “ABC,” for which she’ll likely perform a private show for her family.

Dylan is continuing virtual private piano lessons with LaDamion Massey.

“I just like playing,” Dylan said. “It makes me excited to learn new songs, and it makes me calm playing music.”

Don Weinshenker Don Weinshenker never imagined he’d join a choir.

But now he’s involved with three — the Anschutz Campus Choir, and the choirs at the Washington Park United Methodist Church and Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church.

It was his teacher at Swallow Hill, Deborah Collins, who suggested he join a choir.

Swallow Hill is “rigorous enough that I learn, but (has) very supportive teachers who really want to make

some programming via Zoom.

Still, Lhevine added that Swallow Hill’s closure has likely hit the organization’s music instructors the hardest — on top of being laid off from their teaching positions at Swallow Hill, many earn their living as gigging professional musicians. Social distancing measures in Colorado include a ban on any gathering of 10 or more people.

Additionally, Swallow Hill realizes the value the school’s music lessons bring to many of the students, Lhevine said.

“Music is a way to bind people together,” he said. “And (especially) now, we’re all in our homes, looking into ways to bring joy during this difficult time.”

Though the teachers are handling their lesson offerings, schedules and fees independently, Swallow Hill has created a page on its website as a connector to Swallow Hill’s teachers so students can inquire about online/virtual music lessons. The list, which continues to be updated, had nearly 40 teachers listed as of mid-April who are offering classes through a variety of platforms

Dylan misses going to school and his friends, so keeping music in his life during this time was important, Stefanie Fox said.

“It brings such a good vibe in the house when we hear him practicing in his room,” Stefanie Fox said. “So continuing the lessons virtually was a good fit for us, to keep our lives as normal as can be.”

music fun,” Weinshenker said. “It quite literally has changed my life and allowed me to find opportunities to make music with others.”

Weinshenker has played the guitar off and on for about 40 years, but had always wanted to learn to sing. He became more serious about advancing his skill with the guitar — and started taking voice lessons — when he got involved with Swallow Hill about 3 1/2 years ago.

His wife, Erika Walker, started taking classes at Swallow Hill about 1 1/2 years ago. Today, the two are taking virtual, semi-private — meaning they do them together — voice lessons with Barry Brown. Though the virtual classes aren’t quite the same as inperson, they’re still a lot of fun and worthwhile, Weinshenker said.

Right alongside exercise and maintaining relationships, “music is so important in this time of staying at home,” Weinshenker said, “because it brings life and joy.”

including Skype, Zoom and many others.

Instruments range from banjo to violin, and piano to songwriting, just for a few examples.

Though Julia Hays, a fiddle and violin teacher at Swallow Hill, much prefers in-person instruction, she said the virtual and online setting is “OK and it will get us through this.”

“We can see each other, thanks to modern technology,” Hays said, “and students can still feel like they’re moving forward with their learning.”

Hays has been teaching at Swallow Hill for more than 20 years, and it’s the people that make Swallow Hill so wonderful, Hays said. “I get to meet people whose paths I never would’ve crossed.”

Although she is currently involved with a few bands, in recent years, Hays has been doing more teaching than performing, she said.

“Which has worked out beautifully for me,” Hays said. “I may have a full day of lessons back-to-back, but no two are ever The Chaviras Betty and Martin Chavira believe Swallow Hill is a special resource in the Denver community.

They especially enjoy attending Swallow Hill’s concerts, and specifically pointed to the monthly Top of The Hill concerts and annual Teacher Feature, both showcasing Swallow Hill faculty.

“The venues are small and intimate,” Betty Chavira said, “and you can see some outstanding musicians.”

The Chaviras are looking forward to being able to attend Swallow Hill’s concerts again, they said, which are not happening right now because of COVID-19.

But in the meantime, they are looking into virtual music lessons offered by Swallow Hill instructors.

The Chaviras retired about 10 years ago and have been members of Swallow Hill for about 15. Along with attending concerts, the two have participated in jam sessions and have taken a variety of classes at Swallow Hill. Between the two of them, they have studied music theory, electric bass, voice, guitar, ukulele and mandolin.

The Zwerling family When Ian Zwerling was in the second grade, he received a little keyboard as Christmas gift.

Not long afterwards, his parents discovered Swallow Hill.

“And it grew from there,” said Marina Zwerling, Ian’s mom.

“Swallow Hill has been invaluable. My kids have grown up there.”

Now 17, Ian Zwerling continues with his piano instruction, and last year, picked up learning the guitar. His sister Julia Zwerling, 14, started taking piano lessons at Swallow Hill when she was 7, and began voice lessons about two years ago.

For piano, both have been learning from Stef Kull, who has been their instructor since they started at Swallow Hill.

“Swallow Hill’s teachers are amazing,” Marina

the same.”

She does not have a full class load as she did prior to the coronavirus pandemic, but is still providing weekly lessons to her students online.

“We set up our time together, just as we would if we were in the building,” Hays said.

Felix Ayodele said his online lessons are going amazingly well, adding that for now, “we have to embrace this method.”

“The joy of it is still there,” he said of teaching music. Virtual lessons “provide a different perspective of how (the student) learns and gives us a different lens of keeping that fire going in the students.”

Ayodele has been a professional musician in the Denver music scene for about 15 years, and started teaching at Swallow Hill about 11 months ago.

“The arts are mega important, and institutions like Swallow Hill help keep them alive,” Ayodele said. “The joy of learning is a never-ending classroom, whether its virtual or in-person.”

“I can’t think of a better hobby,” Martin Chavira said of learning to play music. “It brings us so much fulfillment.”

Swallow Hill has so much to offer for all ages, Betty Chavira said. And Martin Chavira agreed.

“I almost wish we had more time so we could learn to play more instruments,” he said. “But there is only so much time.”

Zwerling said. “They’re willing to work around whatever their students need. But that’s been consistent since the beginning.”

Ian is a competitive swimmer and Julia has an interest in acting. With school now switching to remote learning until the end of the school year, it’s important for them — as teens, especially — to have music as an outlet, Marina Zwerling said.

“Even if it is for only an hour a week in a virtual setting,” she added.

The virtual lessons are a little more complicated, but they’re still valuable, Marina Zwerling said.

“If we have to do some shuffling, as far as managing online school and virtual music lessons, we will do so,” Marina Zwerling said. “We will hang in there with them (Swallow Hill) during these times.”

8 Life On Capitol Hill

FROM THE EDITOR

Christy Steadman

LOCAL

VOICES A reflection of the times I t is deadline day.

This column is being written as the last thing I write for the May edition not because of procrastination, but because of that thing called writer’s block.

On a side note, I had a college professor once say journalists should never have writer’s block. Under nearly any normal circumstance, I would agree – there are millions of stories to tell.

But April certainly was not normal. Everybody had to do things a little differently, and that goes for print journalists as well. I never would have imagined that someday I would be conducting “socially distanced” newsgathering.

My guess is nearly everyone has experienced at least one dark moment at some point during this COVID-19 pandemic.

So, I would like to share a few positive stories that have lifted my spirits.

First, I am a recipient of a random act of kindness.

My live-in boyfriend is a musician — he plays

gigs during normal times, but his income primarily comes from his “day job” stocking at the Dollar Tree. Sometime in the second week of April, a customer walked in and gave grocery store gift cards to all the employees as a token of gratitude for keeping the shelves stocked and the community supplied with essential needs — toilet paper, hand sanitizer, bandanas to serve as face masks — during this global health crisis.

The second story has to do with pets.

Near the beginning of this pandemic, a friend and I were having casual conversation and she told me our pets are going to help get us through because of their unconditional love. That is certainly true for me. I have two furballs, both Siamese-mix rescue cats. They do silly things to keep my spirits lifted, like sticking their paws under the bedroom door while I’m working in my “home office” all the while meowing as if asking me to come out and give them attention. Don’t they know I’m busy typing?

Of course, they’re irreplaceable in the evening hours when I’m not working. Their purrs are an

The next chapter begins at CCM

W

e’re making a transition in editorial leadership for Colorado Community Media, publisher of your hometown newspapers.

FROM THE After 13 years with these papers, longtime PUBLISHER Managing Editor Chris Rotar is leaving to pursue other directions. Our papers are outstanding journalistic products in great measure because of Chris’ leadership and commitment to the mission of community journalism.

We greatly appreciate Jerry Healey his outstanding work and dedication and wish him well as he tackles his next adventure.

We are excited to introduce Mark Harden, a veteran, award-winning journalist in the Denver area, as the new editor of all our publications — the 18 metro-area weeklies and the two Denver monthlies.

It has been an interesting process, conducting interviews for the position and introducing Mark to the newsroom and staff, during these COVID-19 times. We have been working remotely since mid-March.

Mark, who came on board in April, has had to meet everyone — and learn our produc-

Life On

CAPITOL HILL

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instant relaxant, and remind me without words, “everything is going to be OK.” Other than giving extra pets to my cats, I’ve been spending my time at home doing mostly normal things — reading, listening to music, playing video games, putting together puzzles, watching movies.

SEE STEADMAN, P9

Colorado Sewing Coalition delivers thousands of masks

tion systems — all by videoconferences.

We are thrilled about the extensive print and digital experience and leadership he brings to our newsroom and can’t wait until we’re able to work with him face-to-face.

Mark worked at the Denver Post from 1993-2007 in various positions, as city editor of a 35-reporter desk; online news, state/regional and national/foreign news editor; and music critic. He launched online breaking news coverage at the Post and expanded it at the Denver Business Journal, where he worked from 2007-2018 as reporter, new media editor and news director. He then spent a year and a half as managing editor of Colorado Politics, a weekly magazine and digital outlet of the Colorado Springs Gazette.

Before joining the Post, he was a reporter and editor at daily newspapers in San Francisco and the Seattle area, covering politics, science/environment, business/ development and local government. He has been freelance reporting and editing since October. He has won many national and regional awards for his work over his career.

Mark and his wife have lived in Centennial for 22 years; his two children attended Cherry Creek schools. He is passionate about the importance of local news to a community and delivering the best journalSEE HEALEY, P9

May 2020

I

want to use this column to applaud our Denver community for coming together during a historic crisis and highlight the work folks in our city are doing to help each GUEST other. Let me share my deep gratitude COLUMN to all of you reading this for those small acts of kindness that accumulate into tremendous impact.

By staying home, wearing a mask, looking out for your neighbors, calling a friend, organizing a Councilmember Zoom birthday and many other acts, you Deborah Ortega have made a world of difference.

These efforts are not unnoticed and will carry our city through this pandemic. We all owe a huge “thank you” to front-line service workers, city employees and medical workers. Without their sacrifice and courage, disruption to our everyday lives would have been catastrophic. They truly keep our society running and deserve our continued appreciation and support for commensurate wages and respect — long after this crisis subsides.

To share some of what I have been

working on in addition to my regular duties on city council, I’d like to tell you about the Colorado Sewing Coalition.

This is a project I started with Slavica Park toward the end of March to provide PPE cloth face masks to workers to help stop the spread of COVID-19. We started working out of Highland United Methodist Church in North Denver and obtained loaned/donated sewing machines, donated cotton fabric, minimal funding for personnel, and identified volunteers and sewers to produce face masks locally and distribute them to front-line service workers who are required to go to work but may not have adequate protection available in their work space or offered by their employer.

The project employs unemployed women who have lost employment due to the pandemic and are not able to access unemployment or stimulus benefits. Soon after we began this project, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis announced the public health recommendation that everyone wear masks in public places. Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock also recently announced that masks are required in public places in Denver. We have ramped up production to meet the tremendous demand and received orders for more than 18,000 masks.

SEE ORTEGA, P9

JERRY HEALEY President

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Columnist opinions are not necessarily those of Life in Cap Hill.

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Life On Capitol Hill 9

May 2020

A hearty hello from the new guy

S

ince you’re reading this, I don’t need to tell you what an important role this publication plays in keeping Denver communities informed.

That’s why I couldn’t be prouder to be stepping in as editor of Colorado Community Media.

This locally owned FROM THE publisher of Life on Capitol Hill and the EDITOR Washington Park Profile, along with 18 weekly newspapers and websites, serves Adams, Arapahoe, Denver, Douglas, Elbert and Jefferson counties.

CCM’s dedicated news team includes some of the most talented Mark Harden journalists working in Colorado today, watchdogging local governments and school districts, spotlighting businesses and community groups, and portraying the character and color of life in our cities and towns.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, CCM newspapers have performed a crucial ser-

Steadman FROM PAGE 8

And listening to the 8 p.m. howling.

Which is the third story.

A few kids in my neighborhood — I assume they’re youths, as I’ve never actually seen them — started howling well before it became a thing. The stay-at-home order had just been announced, so for the first few nights, I thought it was just teens, walking

Ortega FROM PAGE 8

To date 8,000 masks have been delivered.

Special thanks to Highland UMC, ARC Thrift, Denver Public Library, Pastor Brad Laurvick, Mile High Behavioral Health, Sheetmetal Workers Union and Denver Tent for mobilizing resources and making

Healey

vice in keeping readers abreast of its impact in the communities they serve and how this global catastrophe affects lives, families, schools and businesses, proving the value of locally focused reporting. Like many of our readers, CCM reporters and editors have been working from home during the crisis, in some cases covering their beats while looking after their kids. I salute their commitment to telling these crucial stories under trying circumstances.

CCM journalists also compellingly conveyed the pain and anguish of the STEM School Highlands Ranch shooting last May, delivering award-winning coverage of this close-to-home tragedy. And in 2018, our staff teamed up to present “Time to Talk,” a powerful series probing the challenges of mental health and how to spur discussion of the issue into everyday life.

Through it all, CCM has stayed true to its main goal: Keep it local. We are inundated with news and commentary about state, national and international developments.

Where CCM fills a vital role is in keeping the spotlight on the many distinctive metro-Denver communities where hundreds of thousands of people live, work and go to school, telling stories in ways that no along the busy street that my condo faces, “howling” for trouble. Then the TV news started broadcasting it as a way for people to thank the health-care professionals and first responders. Eventually, a Facebook group formed in which people from across the U.S. post the reason, or for whom, they howl each night.

I live on the third floor of my condo complex, so it has become routine to go out on my balcony, just after the sun sets every night, to listen.

And reflect on the times.

this project possible.

To learn more, order a mask or support the project with cotton fabric or a donation, visit https://www.coloradosewingcoalition.com.

Be safe and stay strong Denver!

Deborah Ortega is a councilmember at-large on the Denver City Council. At-large council members represent the city as a whole. She can be reached at ortegaatlarge@denvergov. org.

for you to get to know him— as he helps us move forward with the next chapter at Colorado Community Media.

FROM PAGE 8

istic products we can.

We are excited to work with Mark — and

Jerry Healey is the president and publisher of Colorado Community Media. He can be reached at jhealey@coloradocommunitymedia.com

ENVIRONMENT WITH EAN The May Denver Botanic Gardens and Environment with Ean columns are available online.

Visit https://lifeoncaphill.com to read them.

Local Focus. More News.

ColoradoCommunityMedia ColoradoCommunityMedia.com

one else does.

I come to this position after years as an editor and reporter at The Denver Post, Denver Business Journal and Colorado Politics magazine. I’m a 27-year resident of metro Denver. And I was reared in community journalism; when I was a boy I would hang out after school at the twice-weekly South San Francisco Enterprise-Journal, where my mother, Ellen Harden, was a proofreader.

I’m grateful to CCM owners Jerry and Ann Healey for entrusting me with this position. And I want to give a shout-out to my predecessor, Chris Rotar, who has led this staff with exceptional skill and passion for many years and has been patiently helping me get up to speed at CCM. He will be a tough act to follow, and I wish him well in his future endeavors.

I look forward to hearing from and meeting many of you in the days to come. And I’m delighted to be working with Christy Steadman, editor of Life on Capitol Hill

and the Washington Park Profile. She’s your go-to contact for news about these vibrant Denver communities.

Thank you for reading us, supporting us, subscribing to us and advertising with us. In an era when news organizations big and small face extraordinary challenges that threaten their ability to bring you the truth — challenges greatly aggravated by the health crisis our world is now going through and its economic impact — we need the support of people like you more than ever. News is not cheap, and our ability to keep bringing it to you depends on community support.

So allow me to say hello, and to wish you, your family and your friends good health.

I’m looking forward to working with our stellar team to bring you the news and information you need in the days ahead.

Mark Harden can be reached at mharden@ coloradocommunitymedia.com and on Twitter at @MarkHardenCCM.

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10 Life On Capitol Hill

May 2020

‘Every single sale means the world to us’ Small business owners talk COVID-19 hardships

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

T

hroughout Colorado’s stay-at-home order, Dr. Martha Lucas kept her fingers crossed that her small business in Capitol Hill would survive the novel coronavirus pandemic.

“Chinese medicine is effective at treating peoples’ anxiety. It helps your spirit be more balanced,” Lucas said. “But how am I going to be able to be there for my patients?”

Lucas Acupuncture and Natural Therapies

Dr. Martha Lucas gives her daughter an acupuncture treatment. Lucas, a self-employed acupuncturist, has been providing some of her services via telemedicine and hopes to reopen her small business come May 8.

COURTESY PHOTO

The CBD Suite

www.thecbdsuitedenver.com Jessica Kiley and Samantha Bowers were ecstatic to finally open the doors of their small business in January.

“South Gaylord Street has such a great community,” Bowers said. “We really miss our block.”

The two women own The CBD Suite, a boutique-style retail business modeled to allow customers to test and explore CBD products at sampling stations where people could taste or apply the products on-site.

Upon opening, Kiley and Bowers had big plans to host various events at the shop, including visiting brand reps and education, mindfulness and health-and-wellness events.

The CBD Suite, 1078 S. Gaylord St., hosted its grand opening on Feb. 29, and just a few weeks later, the women had to close their doors because of COVID-19.

“We were just starting to gain a repeat customer base,” Bowers said. “But for us as a brand, it was more important to keep our community safe.”

To stay in operation during the closure, Bowers and Kiley rushed to launched The CBD Suite’s online store much earlier than originally anticipated, and offered curbside pickup, free shipping and free delivery.

“But so much of (the shop’s experience) was education-based and being able to provide people with the opportunity to interact with us and the products,” Bowers said.

In attempt to enhance the online shopping experience, Bowers and Kiley offered phone

www.AcupunctureWoman.com Lucas is a self-employed practitioner of Chinese medicine/acupuncture. Her local business has three arms — a private practice, Lucas Acupuncture, which she opened about 18 years ago; teaching Chinese medicine through seminars; and a natural skin care line called My Zen Skin Care, which Lucas launched about three years ago.

She also provides acupuncture treatments twice a week at a Western medicine facility in Littleton.

However, Chinese medicine was not considered an essential business under the Stay-AtHome, Lucas said.

“First thing to go was the face-to-face seminars. Big hit to income,” Lucas said. “Next, (the) private practice and medical practices closed.

Second big hit to income.”

Lucas kept her skin care line open for online orders and offered free shipping, but it was “slow going” and is the smallest arm of her business, she said.

Following Denver and Arapahoe counties’ health department mandates, Lucas hopes to be

and email consultations on product education — spotlighting items to help people manage the health crisis, such as sleep aids and products that help with anxiety, focus and mental clarity.

Additionally, The CBD Suite gave out goodie bags and offered discounts to healthcare workers/medical professionals and first responders.

Bowers and Kiley expect to reopen their shop as soon as it’s safe to do so, according to the health department’s mandates, Bowers said.

“We’re going to get back at it,” she said.

“Every day is a little different (but) we’re choosing to stay positive.”

Samantha Bowers and Jessica Kiley organize one of The CBD Suite’s testing tables, which contains topicals such as lotions, balms and pain cream. The shop’s other testing table includes consumable products, such as tinctures and gummies.

CHRISTY STEADMAN

back in business May 8. In the meantime, she has been providing webinars to continue with her seminar teachings, and has been offering telemedicine appointments for acupressure, herbs and supplements and distant Reiki sessions.

Because the COVID-19 pandemic has brought on additional amounts of stress to people, Lucas and one of her colleagues, Rebecah Ziegler, started a video series called Your At-home Medicine Bowl. Each one contains a healing practice that anybody can use at home to help with calming, Lucas said.

“Stress doesn’t treat our immune systems well,” Lucas said, “so that’s another issue and partly why I started the Your At-home Medicine Bowl.

Just trying to help people stay healthy during the most stressful of times.”

As for the future, Lucas believes there will be a need for Chinese medicine practices following the pandemic.

“I feel that our practices will shine because many people will be traumatized. They’ll have PTSD from this, insomnia, anxiety, depression — all things that Chinese medicine absolutely shines at treating,” Lucas said. “It’s just hard to see that future now.”

Rosy Rings

www.rosyrings.com About 25 years ago, Rosy Rings founder Shannon Cumberland started the small fragrance company in her Denver home’s kitchen.

On Oct. 24, 2019, Rosy Rings opened its brick-and-mortar location at 2940 E. Sixth Ave. in Cherry Creek North.

“We hit the ground running,” said Allie Liebgott who has been with the company for eight years and joined as a partner in September last year. “But it all came to a screeching halt when we realized we wouldn’t be able to stay open.”

Liebgott manages the Cherry Creek North boutique, which offers home fragrance retail and hosted candle-making classes twice a week. She has four employees that she hopes to bring back following the pandemic, Liebgott said.

Rosy Rings already had an online store, but during the shop’s closure, it ramped up its email blasts, newsletters and social media presence, Liebgott said. She would video chat with shoppers and provide them with a virtual walkthrough of the store, Liebgott said.

A popular item during the stay-at-home order was the DIY candle kits, which people had delivered or picked up curbside, Liebgott said.

“They’re a nice distraction,” she said.

“It’s one of those crafts that anyone can do and enjoy.”

Because the candle-making classes

The candle-making classes at Rosy Rings were a popular feature at the store.

COURTESY PHOTO

were so well received at the shop, Liebgott began offering them via Zoom in the early days of Colorado’s stay-at-home order. She has since hosted virtual candle-making parties for a variety of groups — couples on a date night, Girl Scouts and birthday parties.

Small businesses have been hit hard by the pandemic, but Liebgott is thrilled to see that the local community has been doing what it can to supporting its small businesses and local restaurants, she said. As a token of appreciation, Liebgott started setting out satchels of bath salts, little vases of fresh flowers and other “pretty things that make your day brighter” outside of the storefront that people could take home.

“The small businesses in Denver are what make this city so great,” Liebgott said, extending a thank you to everyone who supported local businesses during the COVID-19 closures. “Every single sale means the world to us right now.”

Life On Capitol Hill 11

May 2020

DPS keeps students fed during remote learning Buses deliver breakfast, lunch around city while schools are closed

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Though students aren’t physically going to school right now, Denver Public Schools’ yellow buses can still be seen serving young people around town.

But the buses aren’t filled with kids — they’re filled with food.

To help fill a need of providing food to children and families while schools have shifted to online learning because of COVID-19, DPS launched delivery of breakfast and lunch in early April. The service will continue until the end of the school year.

The district’s bus drivers take volunteers — who normally serve DPS as school lunch staffers — out for a few hours every Monday through Friday to all quadrants of Denver. In total, split among various routes, the school buses make about 35 stops, and stay at each one for about 20 or 30 minutes.

Meals change every day, but generally include a variety of healthy foods, such as milk, fruit, sandwiches, juice, bagels and vegetables. On Fridays, families are able to pick up breakfasts and lunches for the weekends.

This delivery service is in addition to DPS’ grab-and-go distribution, which includes 25 sites across the school district.

Three volunteers from McMeen Elementary School, 1000 S. Holly St., packed about 200 meals for Denver Public Schools’ breakfast and lunch delivery service on April 14. That day, the school bus made three stops to deliver the meals to students and their families.

DENVER PUBLIC SCHOOLS FOOD DISTRIBUTION

Greg Morris, a school bus driver with Denver Public Schools, provides sacked breakfast-and-lunch meals to a student on April 14. The school district launched the program to be able to provide meals to students and families during school closure because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

PHOTOS BY CHRISTY STEADMAN

The Denver South High School Food Pantry is operating out of a temporary location, disclosed to South High School families, during the COVID-19 school closures.

The space is small, and to adhere to social distancing measures, additional volunteers are not needed at this time.

However, the need for food and personal hygiene product donations is constant, and change on a weekly basis.

To inquire about what donations are currently needed, contact co-founder Jaclyn Yelich directly at jyelich2@ msn.com.

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12 Life On Capitol Hill

May 2020

Writing around it Lighthouse programs help authors channel anxiety into narrative

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Andrea Dupree believes having a rich creative life allows a person to have a richer life in general.

“Creative writing,” said Dupree, who is the program director at Lighthouse Writers Workshop, “is one of the most accessible of all the creative arts.”

And in times like these, creative writing can be especially valuable, Dupree added.

“We’re going through an unprecedented time,” she said. “There are a lot of reasons stress can take over right now. Putting it into narrative can help you gain control.

The minute people just start writing it down, their anxiety tends to remit.”

Additionally, the end result doesn’t have to be a masterpiece, Dupree said.

“Anybody can write,” she said. “There are benefits to telling your story and hearing others’ stories. It helps you feel connected and realize you’re not alone.”

Lighthouse Writers Workshop is a nonprofit literary center established in 1997. Serving about 25,000 writers a year between its main location in Denver, 1515 Race St., and satellite location in Louisville — and now online — Lighthouse exists to support and elevate the literary arts through various outreach and youth programs, along with a wide variety of inhouse writing workshops.

Lighthouse has always offered limited online options, but now with the coronavirus pandemic, all of its programming has been moved temporarily to a virtual setting.

However, people have embraced the online workshops, and Lighthouse may add to those offerings, in addition to its regular in-person workshops, from now on, Dupree said. The biggest benefit to that, she said, is being able to offer the workshops to people who have limitations that prevent them from attending classes in person.

Cela Buckner is one of them.

The 12-year-old lives in Los Angeles and dreams of becoming a novelist someday.

She has attended in-person workshops in her local area in the past, but none of them seemed to provide much advancement to her skills, Cela Buckner’s mother Gayley said. For example, Gayley Buckner said, Lighthouse offers detail-specific classes versus general writing courses.

“She’s inspired to work on new and different things,” Gayley Buckner said. “Part of it is probably just pure fun for her, and part of it is the feeling that she’s accomplishing something during this time. The days are becoming monotonous, and her (Lighthouse) workshops are something she looks forward to.”

Writing is personal, but it also builds a connection with people, said Joy Roulier Sawyer, a published poet with a background as a trained writing therapist who has been teaching at Lighthouse for about 10 years.

“For some, it’s a way of self-expression,” Sawyer said. “To work hard on a craft when we’re in a time of such crisis provides a sense of accomplishment and focus.”

Sawyer mentions the Hard Times workshops — a free course for people who have recently experienced or are currently

Helen McDonald gives a reading at a past Lit Fest. This year, Lighthouse Writers Workshop’s 15th annual Lit Fest will take place virtually throughout the month of June.

COURTESY OF AMANDA TIPTON

LIT FEST 2020 Lit Fest is an annual event put on Lighthouse Writers Workshop that celebrates the literary arts.

This year’s Lit Fest — the 15th annual — will take place virtually throughout the month of June.

It will still feature workshops, seminars, agent consultations, digital porch parties and book readings by visiting authors, including a “world-class lineup of poets, novelists, memoirists, TV/playwrights and nonfiction writers,” states its website.

Tickets to Lit Fest events can be purchased á la carte or festival passes are available.

A full list of Lit Fest events can be found online: www.lighthousewriters. org/events/lit-fest-2020. Registration can be done on that site.

Contact Lighthouse Writers Workshop with additional questions: info@lighthousewriters.org or 303-297-1185. experiencing poverty, addiction, homelessness or other difficult situations — and free workshops for essential workers “designed to help nurture personal insight and emotional grounding,” states the website.

“Writing is therapeutic — or it can be,” said Steve Knopper, editor-at-large for Billboard magazine who has been teaching at Lighthouse for about 2 1/2 years.

He describes his students as “creative and committed.”

“One way the students inspire me is the way they’re willing to write about everything in their lives,” Knopper said.

“It’s super interesting working with the students.”

Knopper has been in journalism since the 1980s, he said, and has been a full-time freelancer since the late 1990s. He noted how difficult it is to get published but added that he encourages his students to do so.

“What I love is when the students bring their own experiences of getting published,” Knopper said.

Writing is a means of expression for Lindsay Hayes, who has been taking classes at Lighthouse since last fall. She always enjoyed writing as a child, she said, and as an adult did some travel blogging.

For her, the Thursday evening class she is currently enrolled in is a “two-hour respite” from the current state of the world.

“There’s just something about writing.

It’s cathartic,” Hayes said. “I am grateful to Lighthouse because it’s good to have something other than the pandemic to focus on.”

Atticus White-Lindstrom checks out the reading material offered at Pop Culture Classroom, a nonprofit in Denver’s Valverde neighborhood. During the coronavirus, the facility is not opened, but the organization is offering a variety of educational resources for free on its website.

For Pop Culture Classroom’s 2018 Denver Pop Culture Con, Atticus White-Lindstrom, now 12, created an Asian-themed fantasy character.

The 2020 event has been postponed from July to the end of November because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

COURTESY PHOTOS

Telling stories through comics

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Though his character didn’t have a name, Atticus White-Lindstrom put quite a lot of detail into creating the rest of it.

“I’m a sucker for fantasy,” White-Lindstrom said. But “there were a lot of fun things about this character.”

The end result was an Asian-themed character with influences of steampunk, complete with wooden shoes and a kimono. White-Lindstrom envisioned it as a fantasy character based on something the graphic novelist Kazuhiro “Kazu” Kibuishi, who is known for the “AMULET” series, would create.

“It was a blast creating that character,” WhiteLindstrom said.

But the best part, the now 12-year-old said, was getting to show it off at Pop Culture Classroom’s 2018 Denver Pop Culture Con. Pop Culture Classroom, 2760 W. 5th Ave., is a nonprofit organization that uses pop culture to inspire a love of learning by providing a platform for creativity, building new relationships and promoting the educational potential of pop culture.

“We want to find a way to empower students,” said Adam Kullberg, Pop Culture Classroom’s director of education who is also serving as the organization’s interim executive director, “so they can become creators (and) create the things they love so much.”

Pop Culture Classroom puts on a variety of programming — workshops, outreach, summer camps, resources for parents and teachers, for example — and its annual Denver Pop Culture Con, which is the nonprofit’s largest fundraiser event. Originally slated to take place in early July, the 2020 Denver Pop Culture Con has been postponed to Nov. 27-29.

White-Lindstrom has participated in a number of Pop Culture Classroom’s programs and workshops, including a weeklong summer camp during which he created the above-mentioned character.

“The teachers have actual passion for what they’re teaching,” said White-Lindstrom’s mother Kathy White. “They way they teach would help any kid better engage in reading and writing tasks because they (Pop Culture Classroom teachers) teach through avenues kids already engage with.”

With social distancing measures in place because of the coronavirus pandemic, Pop Culture

POP CULTURE CLASSROOM ONLINE To learn more about Pop Culture Classroom, a nonprofit located at 2760 W. 5th Ave., visit popcultureclassroom.org/. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, all of the organization’s in-person programming has been canceled. However, Pop Culture Classroom recently launched its Pop Culture Distance Learning page which offers a variety of free, online programming including video workshops, educational comics, curriculum and other resources for students, parents and educators. Learn more at classroom.popcultureclassroom.org/distance-learning/.

Classroom is offering a selection of its workshops for free live-streaming.

The workshops “serve as an opportunity to highlight the artistry and artistic components that go into the creation of pop culture mediums,” states a news release, and focus on drawing and storytelling.

It’s not just watching the stream, it’s about all the activities that can be done afterwards, said Terra Necessary, a literacy educator and artist with Pop Culture Classroom.

“A lot of them (youths) are bursting with creativity, but don’t have a starting point,” Necessary said. Pop Culture Classroom offers the opportunity to “hone those creative skills and write stories about what’s going on.”

Necessary has been with the organization for about four years, and has read some great student-created comics, ranging from “moving, emotional stories to silly, hilarious ones.”

Anybody with a piece of paper and a No. 2 pencil can create beautiful comics, Necessary added.

“And the stories that come out of it are so amazing,” she said.

The free streaming workshops are geared for youths, about age 8 and older, but adults would likely enjoy them as well, Kullberg said.

People have been missing that person-toperson interaction, he said, and the live-stream workshops offer an opportunity to express creativity.

“Creative expression tends to break down the barriers within ourselves,” Kullberg said. “A great creation comes from a place of rich emotional experience.”

Life On Capitol Hill 13

May 2020

As your community newspaper, we are committed to delivering the latest and most accurate COVID-19 news and local updates in print and online every day. We also remain dedicated to serving our local advertisers, as they struggle to overcome unprecedented economic challenges resulting from the pandemic.

In uncertain and troubled times like today, the importance of local news and community connection is more evident than ever. You can help support businesses in our community by purchasing gift cards for later use, frequenting restaurants that are open for takeout, leaving positive online reviews, spreading the word on social media or checking to see if your favorite businesses have opened online stores. You can also support the future of local news and reporting by becoming a subscriber or making a donation today.

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14 Life On Capitol Hill

May 2020

‘An entirely new way of doing school’

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Out of everything teachers love about their job as educators, the majority say they miss their students the most during this time of remote learning.

“Seeing their little faces on my computer screen is what has gotten me through this pandemic,” said Suzette Smith, a kindergarten teacher at Lincoln Elementary School. “I’m cheering all the students on by computer because they’re doing such a good job.”

By April, approximately, schools across the nation closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Denver Public Schools announced on April 3 that it would move to remote learn-

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“Our schools are a central part of Denver and our closing our doors to our students, our teachers, our staff and everybody involved in our school buildings was not an easy choice to make,” said Dr. Carrie Olson, president of the Denver Public Schools Board of Education during a live-streamed press conference on April 3. “It is my sincere belief that through the challenges we face together, we will make it to the other side of this stronger, more connected and fully supporting each other.”

DPS educators and staff engaged in trainings and preparation prior to remote learning, which began on April 7.

“We anticipate there will be a lot of learning for everyone,” said school board member Rev. Bradley Laurvick during a virtual town hall on April 2. “We know there will be a lot of learning, and we’re asking that people be patient and extend grace to everyone as we kick off an entirely new way of doing school.”

In Smith’s virtual classroom, her students are continuing to work on core curriculum such as reading and math.

“We’re doing this as thoughtfully as we can,” said Smith, who has been teaching for 16 years.

Science lessons include family activities such as sprouting beans, and a writing lesson might include the student sending a picture of handwritten words to Smith to ensure the letters in the words are formed correctly.

“We’re making the best of the situation,” said Jackie Falcon, a ninth-and-10th-grade English teacher at Denver South High School. But “I would not want this to be the norm.”

Falcon added she doesn’t feel like virtual

Donna Smith, a seventh-grade language arts teacher at Merrill Middle School, says teachers miss their students tremendously as they’re all instructing their classes from home during the school closures because of the COVID-19 pandemic. COURTESY PHOTO learning provides her with the full “teacher experience.” She specifically mentioned the inclass discussions that allow students to “take off ” with the concepts they’re learning.

“There’s so much missing,” Falcon said, who has been teaching for 29 years. “It’s weird not going to school and seeing their faces every day.”

And that’s not to mention each school’s endof-the-year celebrations, the general activities that mark the closure of the school year and simply “being able say goodbye until next year,” Falcon said.

The decision to close the schools’ doors for the remainder of the school year also came with the cancellation of all athletic events, extracurricular activities and proms.

“Unfortunately, this decision also includes the postponement of in-person graduation ceremonies,” said DPS Superintendent Susana

Cordova in an April 3 letter to families. “We will do everything we can to reschedule these celebrations when health officials allow gatherings again, and we will find ways to honor the v s wonderful Class of 2020.”

Leading up to all that, a lot of characterbuilding occurs during middle school, so not t having the day-to-day, face-to-face interaction s with students has been the hardest to adapt S to, said Andrew Clark, an eighth-grade math b h teacher at Morey Middle School.

“I’ve always believed (teaching) is not only always about academics,” Clark said, who has o f been teaching for nine years.

It’s also about being a positive role model w or simply someone the students can confide i in, he added. Fulfilling those roles is difficult U 1 when school is being done remotely, Clark i said.

Students also miss the interactions of just R being at school — their teachers and their o friends. r “I’m doing the same amount of learning, it’s just the boring parts of school,” said Elise c n Myren, a seventh-grader at Merrill Middle School. “You don’t get to share or collaborate C s with others as much.”

While teachers are missing their students o a tremendously, there is a silver lining to engaging with students in a different way, said $ Donna Smith, a seventh-grade language arts teacher at Merrill Middle School who has been p t with Denver Public Schools for 24 years.

Students today are “digital natives,” she said, c meaning they’ve grown up with technology. s “They have ideas, and hopefully, they’ll teach me some new things, too,” Donna Smith s L said. “It’s always good to learn new ways to a engage with students.”

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Life On Capitol Hill 15

May 2020

Project to house homeless in Capitol Hill moves forward

By Christy Steadman

LEARN MORE

csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

There are many people in the Denver area who are employed, but still struggle to afford any sort of housing.

“It’s even more unaffordable to those earning only minimum wage,” said Blaine Newby, project lead for St. Francis Center. “This will be a big step in helping people get out of homelessness.”

St. Francis Center, a not-for-profit organization that provides refuge for people in the Denver metro area who are experiencing homelessness, is sponsoring a project at the Warren United Methodist Church, 1630 E. 14th Ave., to rehabilitate the building into low-income housing.

The facility, St. Francis-Warren Residences, will serve individuals of any gender who are employed or ready to enter the workforce and are currently experiencing homelessness. According to the St. Francis Center website, the housing will serve “people earning less than 30% of the area median income,” which, according to the website, is “roughly $19,500/year.”

Warren Residences will provide people with what Tom Luehrs, executive director of St. Francis Center, calls “the path out of homelessness.”

“Each day that someone lives in a state of homelessness is a day of erosion of their self-esteem and dignity,” Luehrs said. “Now is the moment for assisting people with the change they

A rendering of one of the common areas that will be inside the St. FrancisWarren Residences, 1630 E. 14th Ave., in Denver’s Cheesman Park neighborhood.

COURTESY OF SHOPWORKS ARCHITECTURE

are longing for. A place to live and a job as they transform their lives.”

The church is a landmarked-preserved building, so the outside will remain nearly the same as it looks today, Newby said. Exterior modifications only include some smaller projects such as landscaping and a new roof, Newby said.

The building is about 17,000 square feet, and has lower, upper and loft levels. It will be converted to include 49 dormitory-style units — about 150 square feet each. Only one person will reside in each unit.

The tenants will share a variety of common areas, including a balcony, dining room, living area, laundry facility, bathrooms and four kitchen pods equipped with stoves, ovens, sinks and refrigerators/freezers.

QUALITY & VA

Residents will be able to engage with each other through programming such as art or cooking classes and recreation, Newby said.

“We feel the interaction between residents can enhance the living experience and overall well-being,” he said.

Warren Residences will be staffed 24/7, which includes a live-in manager who will reside in one of the units, and professionals who can provide support services such as employment help and counseling.

According to the St. Francis Center website, lease terms for every tenant will prohibit weapons, violent behavior toward staff or other residents, illegal drug use, smoking indoors and overnight guests.

Per a recently published Good

To learn more about St. Francis Center, a not-for-profit organization that provides refuge for people in the Denver-metro area who are experiencing homelessness, visit www.sfcdenver.org.

More information about St. Francis-Warren Residences can be found by selecting ‘Housing’ from the website’s Programs & Services’ tab from the homepage.

Neighbor Agreement, registered sex offenders will not be eligible for residency at Warren Residences.

The Good Neighbor Agreement is a document that addresses various concerns such as safety and parking, for example. It is between St. Francis Center; Warren Village, a nearby residential property that provides housing to low-income single parents who are working or going to school; immediate neighbors; and representatives from Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods and Neighbors for Greater Capitol Hill.

CHUN’s board of directors signed it on April 2.

“After a thoughtful, deliberative process, we are hopeful that the initiative, and our neighborhood, move forward in a constructive way,” said

CHUN President Travis Leiker. But, “there is more work to be done and CHUN is eager to convene neighbors to address the most vexing issues of the day. Now is the time to lean in, even if it needs to be done virtually, to shape the future of our neighborhoods.”

The Neighbors for Greater Capitol Hill’s board voted to sign the agreement on April 10.

“Neighbors for Greater Capitol Hill feel that it is reasonable, fair and represents a good compromise between the needs of St. Francis Center, their clients and the immediate neighbors,” said Michael Henry, who serves as the board’s treasurer.

St. Francis Center bought the church in December for $1.25 million.

Currently, St. Francis Center is working with the city on finalizing the project’s plan and architecture.

Interior demolition is scheduled for the end of May or early June, with construction beginning in August and a project finish in March or April in 2021.

“Using a church building for the purposes it was built for — to serve people’s needs, and to provide a respectful space where they can renew their sense of self and other — is a spectacular opportunity,” Luehrs said.

“The building will be used for many, not just a few, and will be a proud legacy for those who constructed it and worshiped in it for many generations.”

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16 Life On Capitol Hill

May 2020

Cultural institutions offer virtual visits Denver Zoo, History Colorado, others offer creative ways to pass the time

By Clarke Reader Special to Colorado Community Media

Have you ever stared at the paint on your walls so long you start to see the works of timeless paintings in the splotches? That’s starting to happen to me — I think there’s a portion of Raphael’s “The School of Athens” in my kitchen and Frida Kahlo’s “Self Portrait in a Velvet Dress,” in my study.

In other words, I could use a little culture in my life.

Thankfully, Visit Denver has launched Virtually Denver, a new resource that allows residents like me to dive into the city’s vibrant arts and cultural institutions from the comforts of our couches, desks and dinner tables. You can check out the options at www. denver.org/blog/post/denver-events-this-weekend.

There are all kinds of options — interactive experiences, videos and reading materials. It gives the opportunity for organizations to share some of their in-depth and behind-the-scenes secrets — like the Denver Art Museum’s Beyond Monet YouTube series — and a chance to highlight some of the gems — take the Denver Zoo’s baby rhino cam and the Kirkland Museum’s Pull Up a Chair exhibit, which features 45 fascinating chairs, from 150 usually on exhibit.

I’ve recommended just a few favorites (with some tips to increase the virtual visiting ambience) in a variety of categories, all with the aim of entertaining and educating. I also heartily encourage you to go to www.ColoradoGives.org to donate to some of these vital organizations.

This 1956 Saarinen Tulip Armchair at the Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art’s Pull Up a Chair Virtual Exhibition.

COURTESY PHOTO Performing arts Socially Distant Culture Club — Ambience advice: Play Animal Collective’s “Merriweather Post Pavilion,” Chance the Rapper’s “Coloring Book” or the Talking Heads’ greatest hits.

Metropolitan State University of Denver’s Center for Visual Arts launched a weekly series called Socially Distant Culture Club, which sends participants a newsletter with artist inspiration, creative guides and recipes. On Wednesdays at about 5 p.m. there will be video tutorial, and people are encouraged to tag their creations on social media. www.msudenver.edu/cva/events/ sociallydistantcultureclub

Argonaut Has It!

Museums Colorado’s Most Significant Artifacts — Ambience advice: Play any albums from The Band or Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.

Organized by History Colorado, this resource gathers a bevy of historic and cultural heritage items, ranging from photographs, documents, manuscripts, audio recordings and much, much more.

You can explore diaries from settlers, see the U.S. flag carried by the 1st Regiment of Colorado Volunteers during the Civil War and oil paintings. www. historycolorado.org/coloradosmost-significant-artifacts DMNS@HOME - Ambience advice: Set up your screen near a window, where you can get some natural light.

The Denver Museum of Nature & Science has put all kinds of resources on this portion of its website. There are videos like one with archaeologist Erin Baxter on infamous murderer and cannibal Alferd Packer. Most thrillingly for dinosaur fans like yours truly, there are all manner of options available — videos, PowerPoints and activities. www.dmns.org/learn/dmnsat-home

Outdoors Gardens Navigator Website — Ambience advice: Start your exploring in your front or back yard, out on your patio or deck; in other words, anywhere you can be comfortably outside.

What better way to see how plants are coming back to life during spring than by digitally exploring the Denver Botanic Gardens?

Visitors can search for specific plants, see which flowers are in bloom and take tours (either created by staff and custom). navigate. botanicgardens.org/ecmweb/ECM_Home.html Zoo to You Virtual Safari — Ambience advice: Play Paul Simon’s “Graceland,” Burna Boy’s “Outside” or Lord Huron’s “Lonesome Dreams.”

See some of the zoo’s most fascinating and adorable animals, including the aforementioned baby rhino, gibbons and even a bear safari. My favorite is the Good Night Zoo audio episode, which brings you along with Disa Skaff, night keeper at the zoo. denverzoo.org/zootoyou

Music Red Rocks live cam — Ambience advice: Play any live album recorded at Red Rocks, from U2 to Dave Matthews and Amos Lee to Stevie Nicks.

There isn’t a whole lot going on in this live cam, but it’s so relaxing to watch, and it brings back so many great memories of concerts, films and graduations. I heartily recommend using this like those fireplace videos around the holidays — put it on to relax. www. redrocksonline.com/ about/livecam Streams with Grit — Ambience advice: Stream this one with a brew or a summery cocktail. Something with citrus or fruit.

Hosted by the Underground Music Showcase (UMS), this daily event goes live on UMS’ Facebook page at about 5 p.m. and features performances from local musicians. Not only will you hear some great tunes, but it’s easy to donate and support the artists. www.facebook. com/undergroundmusicshowcase

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