Life On Capitol Hill 0421

Life On LifeOnCapHill.com

APRIL 2021

Founded in 1975

CAPITOL HILL

EXPRESSION, CONNECTION AND TRANSFORMATION

Art from Ashes provides youth a safe, brave space

‘THIS IS OUR EARTH’ Youth Sustainability Board dreams big for future change

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FOCUSING ON MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING Denver Chapter of The Links, Inc. to offer virtual events

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POISED TO THRIVE Women business owners relate their stories of COVID-19 resiliency

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2 Life On Capitol Hill

April 2021

Business Matters Christy Steadman | csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com Business Matters is a monthly column featuring business news in the Life on Capitol Hill and Washington Park Profile coverage areas, which is roughly central and central-south Denver.

As businesses continue to weather the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Colorado Community Media urges you to reach out to your favorite local businesses to find out their reopening status, or to check if they are operating differently upon reopening.

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

NEW OPENINGS Denver Beer Co. Denver Beer Co. opened its third taproom mid-March. It is located at 2425 South Downing St. in the Rosedale neighborhood.

The new location joins Denver Beer Co.’s Platte St. Taproom at 1695 Platte St. in Denver’s Highland neighborhood, and the Olde Town Arvada Taproom.

Denver Beer Co. purchased the South Downing Street property in January, and “conducted extensive renovations on the space to create a taproom, outdoor patio and garden” and brewhouse, states a news release. This location also boasts a counterservice restaurant called DBC Eats, overseen by Chef Jeffrey Webb. DBC Eats will offer lunch, dinner and late-night snacks.

The new taproom also “features bike parking, fire pits, a large lawn space with yard games and communal beer garden tables,” states a news release.

Two buildings make up the location — the 2,563-square-foot building will house the taproom and DBC Eats. Nearly 10,000-square-feet of outdoor patio space is located in front of this building, allowing for appropriate social distancing. The adjacent 761-square-foot building will be home to an ice cream shop, also to be headed

by Webb, which is expected to open this summer.

“After weathering COVID for 12 months, finally opening the doors on South Downing feels really meaningful,” said Denver Beer Co.’s co-founder Patrick Crawford in a news release. “I’m also very excited for the addition of DBC Eats. Chef Webb’s culinary art will allow us to provide a consistent and customized food experience to pair perfectly with our craft beers.”

To learn more about Denver Beer Co. and its new taproom, visit https://denver-

beerco.com.

The NOW Massage-Cherry Creek The NOW Massage, a luxury massage parlor, opened its first Colorado location in Cherry Creek on Feb. 27.

The Cherry Creek location, 291 Saint Paul St., is one of 50 new The NOW Massage locations expected to open in the near future across the United States.

“The NOW Massage Cherry Creek will offer a space to escape the daily pressures of life and recharge your energy and spirit through the healing benefits of massage therapy,” states its website.

To learn more, visit https://thenowmassage.com/cherry-creek/.

Forget Me Not Forget Me Not, a new cocktail lounge, opened March 10 in Cherry Creek North at 227 Clayton St. The bar — which takes its name and inspiration from the location’s former long-time tenants, a local flower shop — features hand-crafted cocktails and a menu of small plates and snacks.

Limited indoor seating is available with a reservation for parties of up to four for a 90-minute experience. To make a reservation for parties larger than four, contact Forget Me Not via info@forgetmenotdenver.com to make arrangements. Forget Me Not also offers socially distanced outdoor seating when weather permits.

To learn more or make a reservation, visit https://forgetmenotdenver.com.

CLOSINGS The Corner Beet Cherry Creek Westword reported that The Corner Beet’s Cherry Creek location at 165 St. Paul St. has closed. The location at 1401 N. Ogden St. in Denver’s Capitol Hill neighborhood remains open.

The Corner Beet is a vegetarian restaurant that also offers cold-pressed juices. To learn more, visit https://cornerbeet.com/.

Streets Denver Streets Denver, a live music venue located at 1501 E. Colfax Ave., announced on its Facebook page on March 22 that it would be closing.

“As many of you know, or have surmised, Streets was running on borrowed time,” the Facebook post reads. “It is with heavy hearts we tell you that after this week, Streets will change ownership and no longer continue as we know it.”

The venue hosted many local acts, as well

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as national touring bands, primarily in the punk, hard rock and metal genres.

Westword reported on March 24 that John Elliott bought the venue — then called Streets of London Pub — in 2018.

Elliott “died in November at age 51, during his second battle with COVID-19,” Westword reported.

Reasons for the closure is loss of revenue from COVID-19, and Elliott’s death exacerbated the situation, Westword reported.

According to Westword, Steven Alix, owner of X Bar, which is a nightclub that serves Denver’s LGBTQIA+ community and is located just a short distance away at 629 E. Colfax Ave., is expected to take over Streets Denver. It is unknown what kind of venue it will become following the changeover.

No information on the operations of 3 Guys Pies, a pizza place located inside Streets Denver but owned and managed separately, could be found by press time.

CHANGES Phoenix Tattoo Company Phoenix Tattoo Company has moved from its former location in west Denver to its new location at 1872 S. Broadway in Denver’s Platt Park neighborhood.

The tattoo shop opened its former location at 3680 Morrison Road in February 2019. It celebrated its grand opening at its new location on South Broadway on April 1, but the shop has occupied the space since March 15.

“It has been a dream of mine to have a shop on Broadway, and we are finally doing it,” said Phoenix Tattoo Company’s owner Jillian Johnson. She added that she grew up in the area, and currently has a number of friends who also own small businesses on Broadway.

Phoenix Tattoo Company boasts four experienced tattoo artists and two experienced piercers who love their job, and can cater to any style of art as well as do custom work, Johnson said. All of these artists have made the move with the shop, and there will also be new additions to the team, Johnson said.

“When you walk into our shop, you will feel at home with artists who want to listen to your ideas and make them happen,” Johnson said. “We are looking forward to working with our regular customers in the new space, and the opportunity to work with new clients. We are so excited to be part of South Broadway.”

To learn more about Phoenix Tattoo Company, visit https://phoenix-tattoocompany.business.site/ or its Facebook page, or give the shop a call at 720-6167878.

From left, Phil Carpenter, director of operations for Urban Autocare, and Brian Sump, president and owner of Urban Autocare, have their photo taken with Mark and Jacque Olson, former owners of Comprehensive Car Care, at the auto shop at 701 E. Evans Ave. in Denver’s Platt Park neighborhood.

COURTESY PHOTO

Urban Autocare In February, Urban Autocare acquired Comprehensive Car Care at 701 E. Evans Ave. in Denver’s Platt Park neighborhood.

The previous owners, Mark and Jacque Olson, have decided to retire.

Comprehensive Car Care has been a pillar in the community for about 44 years. It got its start by Jim Kelley, who hired Mark Olson to serve as the lead technician. When Kelley retired, he sold the business to Olson.

Urban Autocare values the history of the shop and how Comprehensive Car Care has served the community through the years, said Brian Sump, president and owner of Urban Autocare. Urban Autocare plans on continuing the legacy of the auto shop, and retaining the longterm relationships, he added.

Comprehensive Car Care specialized in Japanese imports, and Urban Autocare will expand services to include all Asianmade imports and domestic vehicles, Sump said.

Including the Platt Park location, Urban Autocare now has four locations in the metro area. The first Urban Autocare opened in June 2014. It is located at 1701 N. High St. in Denver’s City Park West neighborhood. The other locations are in Lakewood and Littleton, and the company also includes Avalon Motorsports in the Montclair neighborhood.

Urban Autocare is local-and-familyowned, all the mechanics are ASE certified technicians and the shop earned the 2018 BBB Torch Award for business ethics.

Many people are let down by auto SEE BUSINESS, P3

Alex Gutierrez, an artist with Phoenix Tattoo Company, tattoos a client in 2019.

COURTESY OF PHOENIX TATTOO COMPANY

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

Life On Capitol Hill 3

April 2021

Denver Restaurant Week shifts to spring Staff report This year’s Denver Restaurant Week has shifted to take place in the spring, VISIT DENVER announced in a news release. The 2021 dates are April 23-May 2.

Traditionally, the 10-day showcase of Denver’s culinary scene takes place in February, which is typically a slow time of the year for the industry. This year, however, because COVID-19 restrictions — such as social distancing guidelines that limit seat-

Business FROM PAGE 2

shops for a variety of reasons, Sump said.

“An uplifting experience is the opposite of being let down,” he added. “Our mission is to provide an uplifting experience and help improve the reputation of an industry that isn’t always looked upon positively.”

MILESTONES Fox Run Café Fox Run Café, 3350 E. Colfax Ave. in Denver’s Congress Park neighborhood, celebrated its one-year anniversary in March.

The restaurant is a concept of Lucien Reichert. It opened on March 18 last year with a limited menu takeout service. The restaurant is now open for breakfast and lunch from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.

The menu boasts a “fresh and simplistic approach to breakfast and lunch,” and all

ing — are still in place, the warmer weather in spring may allow restaurants to maximize patio and outdoor seating.

This year’s spring Denver Restaurant Week also encourages takeout and delivery.

“Above anything else, we want to ensure we are focusing on advocacy for our restaurant partners, while keeping the health and safety of the community top of mind,” said Richard Scharf, president and CEO of VISIT DENVER, in a news release. “We have an excellent culinary scene that is

having a tough time right now through no fault of its own, so we wanted to build a new spring program that still offers as many togo options as ever, while increasing access to safe dine-in options as well.”

As usual, participating restaurants will create a multi-course dinner based on three price points — $25, $35 or $45. Menus were announced on March 31, and diners are now able to make reservations plan takeout orders early.

To learn more about Denver Restaurant

Week or find a list of participating restaurants and view menus, visit www.DenverRestaurantWeek.com.

“We have done this for 17 consecutive years, but it has never meant more to the restaurants and to the community than it does this year,” Scharf said. “Our nationallyrecognized and award-winning culinary scene is a huge part of Denver’s brand and destination appeal, and these restaurants, as well as their hard-working staffs, need our support more than ever.”

pastries and bread are baked in-house.

To learn more about Fox Run Café, visit https://foxruncafe.com/.

said.

Mia Sorensen Esthetics is a clientcentered business particularly known for Sorensen’s face massage service.

“I give them 100 percent,” Sorensen said of her clients. She added that she particularly enjoys seeing her clients’ progress and helping people relax through the experiential service of facials. “And building those relationships with my clients.”

To learn more about Mia Sorensen Esthetics or to book an appointment, which must be done in advance, visit www. mseskincare.com or call/text Sorensen directly at 303-802-6874.

located in Denver.

To learn more about Bonanno Concepts, visit https://www.bonannoconcepts. com.

Mia Sorensen Esthetics Mia Sorensen Esthetics celebrated its one-year anniversary for opening shop at 1885 S. Pearl St. in Denver’s Platt Park neighborhood.

The skincare studio got its start in 2018 inside a yoga studio, and after the yoga studio relocated, Mia Sorensen, owner of Mia Sorensen Esthetics who is a licensed esthetician, opened shop at her current location in Platt Park.

Sorensen opened the studio for two weeks in March 2020, then had to close until June because of COVID-19.

Luckily, she already had a client base, Sorensen said, and she became what she described as the “Uber eats of skincare,” meaning she was conducting consultations virtually and delivering her clients’ skincare products to their home.

“I’m looking forward to additional opportunities that I can engage with the community as a small business owner as we emerge from the pandemic,” Sorensen

Mizuna Mizuna, the flagship and first restaurant of the Bonanno Concepts restaurants, celebrated its 20-year anniversary in March, Westword reported.

The chef and restaurateur behind Bonanno Concepts is Frank Bonanno, who is also a cookbook author and host of PBS’ “Chef Driven.”

Mizuna, 225 E. Seventh Ave., which is near Governor’s Park, is one of 10 Bonanno Concepts restaurants — all

RoseBud Ice Cream RoseBud Ice Cream has reached a milestone with its recent release of its 10th stock-keeping unit (SKU) — the ChocoChill ice cream.

“When I started RoseBud, I had a vision of improving people’s days with our ice cream,” said RoseBud’s founder Sam Rose in a news release. “Choco-Chill may come in a small package, but it has a big impact.”

Like RoseBud’s other single-serve flavors, the Choco-Chill is dairy free. It comes in 5-ounce cups and is infused with 30 mg of CBD. RoseBud Ice Cream launched in Denver in November 2019, and its products can now be found in a variety of local and chain retailers, and are available on DoorDash.

To learn more about RoseBud Ice Cream, visit https://rosebudicecream. com/.

We’ve got a shot to reunite as families.

GET THE COVID-19 VACCINE. If we all get vaccinated, we can soon return to the life we love. We’ve got a shot—if you get one. When you can, get the COVID-19 vaccine.

For more information, visit centura.org/vaccine.

Centura Health does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age, sex, religion, creed, ancestry, sexual orientation, and marital status in admission, treatment, or participation in its programs, services and activities, or in employment. For further information about this policy contact Centura Health’s Office of the General Counsel at 1-303-673-8166 (TTY: 711). Copyright © Centura Health, 2021. ATENCIÓN: Si habla español, tiene a su disposición servicios gratuitos de asistencia lingüística. Llame al 1-719-776-5370 (TTY: 711). CHÚ Ý: Nếu bạn nói Tiếng Việt, có các dịch vụ hỗ trợ ngôn ngữ miễn phí dành cho bạn. Gọi số 1-719-776-5370 (TTY: 711).

4 Life On Capitol Hill

April 2021

Young people

‘are at the heart

of everything we do’

Lyrical Rodriguez, who was 11 at the time the photo was taken in 2016, reads one of her poems during a performance at Art from Ashes.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ART FROM ASHES

Art from Ashes empowers youth through creative expression

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By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH

hen Daniella Riggio first got involved with Art National from Ashes about five ago, she was a homeless Poetry Month takes teen struggling with mental health issues. place in April, and Art from Ashes Today, the 22-year-old serves as a youth amis celebrating with its online Poetry Prowl bassador for Art from Ashes. event.

It is fashioned as a virtual scavenger hunt.

Art from Ashes “provides a super-strong foundation Participants will choose from a list of provided prompts where youth can express their emotions in a healthy and activities that will be the inspiration to “hunt” with a way,” Riggio said. “I can organize the chaos in my camera or phone camera and paper and pen. head on paper, and it helps me to not feel so stressed Registration is open now until April 25. However, the hunt out.” begins on April 17 — which is when Art from Ashes will send Riggio is a single mom who is raising a registrants the list of prompts — and concludes with a Zoom party 10-month-old son. She recently relocated from at 3 p.m. on April 25.

Denver to another undisclosed Colorado city to Poetry Prowl is free for youth age 24 and younger, but donations raise her son in a safe location. Riggio has always are accepted. All donations will go toward Art from Ashes’ youth enjoyed creative writing, she said. But Art from empowerment programs.

Ashes helped her realize that she was “really good at To learn more about Art from Ashes visit www.artfromashes. it,” and that being able to express herself through the org.

To register for the Poetry Prowl event, select `events’ written word has helped her clear her head, Riggio from the homepage, scroll to Poetry Prowl and click on it. said.

This will take you to the event’s page on the Art from Art from Ashes is a “nonprofit that encourages creAshes website, which has additional details ative empowerment through artistic expression for strugon the event and links to the event’s gling youth age 9 to 24,” states its website. It is located at webpage for registration.

1310 W. 10th Ave. in Denver’s Lincoln Park neighborhood but serves youth across the metro-area. With its programs currently taking place virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic, youth from anywhere are welcome to participate. curred on April 20, 1999.

Focusing on three core values — expression, connection “Art from Ashes provides not only a safe space, but a and transformation — Art from Ashes accomplishes its brave space,” said O’Neill Thorn, who serves as the organimission through two main youth empowerment programs. zation’s executive director. “It has been our experience that The programs are Phoenix Rising, which uses poetry and young people often want to tell their stories. Stories of hope spoken word to re-imagine an inner narrative; and Drawand pain, of despair and of dreams. There are so few adults ing on Air, which uses a non-verbal outlet for expression. willing to listen with all our hearts — and listen without Another program, called Casting Shadows, which will use judgement, without interruption, but with compassion and creative play and theater, is still in development. understanding.”

Art from Ashes’ youth programs are focused on youth One takeaway about Art from Ashes is that it is not who feel they’ve fallen through the cracks of society — therapy nor a writing/drawing class, Long said. Rather, she whether it be education or social services, for example — but any youth is welcome, said Adriel Long, the organiza- added, the purpose is to empower youth through creative expression and personal transformation. tion’s board president.

“Now more than ever, my hope is that people remember All youth programs are free, and each workshop features how important youth are,” Long said. “Especially in these an adult community member as a guest artist who is a prodistant times, youth still need to feel connected. Their words fessional public speaker, poet or writer. have power and they mean something.”

Phoenix Rising is a nationally known program for youth Youth today are “constantly being judged, graded and that got its start by Catherine O’Neill Thorn in 2003. O’Neill told what to do and where to be,” said Sarah Lanzarotta, Thorn had a strong background with using poetry and Art from Ashes’ director of programs. Art from Ashes is a spoken word to help struggling youth, including those place where youth don’t have to feel the pressures of doing in juvenile detention facilities and treatment centers, and things “the right way,” or worried about following rules and held post-trauma workshops for Columbine High School guidelines to get a good grade, Lanzarotta added. students following the school shooting tragedy on that oc-

A group of youth write during a Phoenix Rising workshop in a previous year. Art from Ashes is conducting its workshops virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic, but plans to return to in-person once it’s safe to do so.

“Because there isn’t a right or wrong way to creatively express yourself. It’s really freeing for them,” she said of the youth participants. “They have a lot to say and sometimes don’t even realize it until they get to write creatively.”

Jessica Jarrard has been involved with Art from Ashes for about six years. She participates in the organization’s adult workshops and is the organization’s former director of operations. She now serves as the grant writer for Art from Ashes.

“When young people speak their truths and connect with others, transformation can happen on both sides,” Jarrard said. “Young people recognize their value, and adults are reminded of the wisdom and courage of youth.”

Writing has always been a healthy coping method for 15-year-old Pandora Trevino of Denver, she said.

“Even if you can’t say it out loud,” Trevino said, “just putting it down on paper and closing the notebook, or even throwing the paper away, is much better than keeping it bottled up inside.”

Art from Ashes is an “amazing safe space where people actually listen to you,” Trevino said. She added that she has been involved with Art from Ashes for about eight months, and said she is thankful to be involved with the organization. So much so that she became a youth ambassador soon after she attended her first Phoenix Rising workshop.

“Phoenix Rising … means that out of the ashes of despair comes healing and magic,” O’Neill Thorn said. “I’ve seen it happen for tens of thousands of youth. And while the community is richer for their voices and their wisdom, the young people themselves are the reason (for Art from Ashes). They are at the heart of everything we do.”

Life On Capitol Hill 5

April 2021

The society hostess we love to hate Local historian insists Louise Sneed Hill wasn’t all that bad

By Kirsten Dahl Collins Special to Colorado Community Media

D

enver lore is studded with unflattering anecdotes about Gilded Age society hostess Louise Sneed Hill, who lived from 18621955.

She is described as a scheming gold digger, a confirmed snob and the arch enemy of Titanic heroine Margaret “Molly” Brown. Even more damning are claims that Hill drove her unfaithful lover to suicide. Supposedly consumed with remorse, Hill then retired to a suite at the Brown Palace in downtown Denver, and lived out the remainder of her life as a recluse.

It does make a great story. One problem, though — most of it isn’t true, according to Denver historian Shelby Carr, who is the author of a new biography, “The Queen of Denver, Louise Sneed Hill and the Emergence of Modern High Society.”

Carr, a trained dancer who has performed around the world, never expected to become a professional historian. She entered University of Colorado-Denver as a dance major but grew discouraged by her injuries. Casting around for a new pursuit, Carr recalled her childhood fascination with a collection of stone houses from the 1600s in a historic Dutch settlement near her grandmother’s home in Hurley, New York.

She switched her major to history and went on to do graduate work on prominent women of the Gilded Age. Outraged by the way Hill was vilified, she decided to write a Master’s thesis that would set the record straight.

Carr’s book began as her graduate school thesis, which she completed in 2018. She had

always envisioned it as a book, however, and submitted it for publication a year later. In 2020, “Queen of Denver” was published

by The History Press.

Mark Twain coined the term “Gilded Age” as an unflattering description of an era that glittered only on the surface. Loosely defined as 1870-1900, the Gilded Age began in the decades after the Civil War, when huge American fortunes were made and flaunted.

Edith Wharton’s novels about the era made it poignantly clear that women had few options except to marry well.

Like the orphaned, 29-year-old Lily Bart in Wharton’s “The House of Mirth,” who was desperate to find a wealthy husband, the orphaned, 30-ish Louise Bethel Sneed must have known her time was running out. Carr’s book recounts that Louise was widely hailed in Memphis as a vivacious Southern belle “known for her kindness,” who would try to help out the shyer girls at dances. But she was still single, perhaps because the Civil War had decimated the supply of eligible young men.

Sneed arrived in Denver from Memphis in the summer of 1893.

Two years later, Louise fulfilled her wealthy family’s expectations and married Crawford Hill, a member of Denver’s “Old Guard,” and heir to a vast smelting fortune. But according to Carr’s book, Hill was not known for his sparkling personality. Perhaps that explains his wife’s open affair with the couple’s close friend, Bulkeley Wells, a Telluride mining magnate. Wells was married with a family of his own, but he was also 10 years younger, handsome and charismatic. Apparently he swept both Hills off their feet.

After Crawford Hill died in 1922, Bulkeley Wells jilted Louise Hill for a much younger woman.

Eight years later, a bankrupt Wells put a bullet through his head.

But Carr doubts that Louise Hill drove him to it. In the years leading up to his suicide, Wells lost $15 million for a major investor, developed a gambling habit and

BUY THE BOOK Shelby Carr’s book, “The Queen of Denver, Louise Sneed Hill and the Emergence of Modern High Society,” can be purchased online and major retailers such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble, for example. Carr can be reached at shelbyncarr@ gmail.com for those interested in purchasing an autographed copy from her directly. demonstrated that he was perfectly capable of ruining himself.

Nor did Carr find any convincing evidence of bad blood between Hill and social upstart, Margaret Brown. Brown was excluded from The Sacred Thirty-Six — but then, so was most of Denver.

“Just because they lived at the same time, doesn’t mean they had to be friends,” Carr observes. She notes that Brown had a wide social circle of her own.

While Hill’s social climbing is less sympathetic than Brown’s social activism, Carr’s book makes it clear that the two women had something in common — both were forceful, outspoken and refused to let outdated notions of female propriety stand in their way.

In 1906, Denver’s society queen acquired a fitting palace — a 17,000 square foot French Renaissance revival mansion on 10th Avenue and Sherman Street.

Designed by Theodore Boal, who studied architecture at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, the pale limestone-clad building resembles a large rectangular cake elegantly piped with whipped cream.

There, Louise Hill took the reins of Denver society and staged parties for a curated group of wealthy friends known as “the Sacred Thirty-Six.” Victorians of an earlier generation would have frowned on Hill’s imaginative fêtes, which often included card games, cocktails, roller skating and such scandalous ragtime-era dances as The Turkey Trot. A witty combination of Charleston steps with a fillip of

Louise Sneed Hill reached the apex of her society career in the early 1900s, when she became the first Denver resident ever presented at the Court of St. James in London. Her red velvet train, heavily brocaded with gold, is now part of the collection at History COURTESY OF HISTORY COLORADO ACCESSION #90.314.28 Colorado.

barnyard mating dance, The Turkey Trot was widely banned and denounced by President Woodrow Wilson.

But Louise Hill was determined to move Denver society into the modern era, with a strong emphasis on the pursuit of fun.

Hill’s larger goal, Carr’s book suggests, was to put Denver on the map, socially speaking. And to the amazement of her dusty Western hometown, she succeeded. In 1907, her years of adept social

networking and self-promotion paid off. Hill became the first Denver resident ever presented at the Court of St. James, London.

Today, these goals may seem snobbish and irrelevant. And yet, like the whipped cream piping on her mansion, Hill’s frothy career has its delectable side. Despite the tight lacing on Gilded Age women, Hill managed to do pretty much whatever she wanted. And watching her do it turns out to be great fun.

Crawford Hill Mansion listed for $7.25 million

By Kirsten Dahl Collins Special to Colorado Community Media

Gilded Age socialites Louise and Crawford Hill once entertained in their 1906 French Renaissance revival mansion at 150 E. 10th Ave. in Denver. A National Historic landmark, the mansion was restored and converted to offices in 1990. Listed in late 2019, the mansion is now on the market for $7.25 million.

COURTESY OF MONICA WILEY AND JEFF WOOD/CBRE

The Crawford Hill Mansion, a National Historic landmark located at 150 E. 10th Ave. in Denver’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, is on the market for $7.25 million.

Listed in late 2019, the three-story French Renaissance revival mansion encompasses 17,000 square feet, with 23 rooms and nine fireplaces.

Architect Theodore Boal designed the home in 1906 for the prominent Denver couple, Louise and Crawford Hill and their two young children.

In 1990, The Colorado Historical Society honored the Denver law firm Haddon Morgan & Foreman for the mansion’s “sensitive rehabilitation” as office space. The law firm has occupied the building for the past 30 years.

According to CBRE brokers Monica Wiley and Jeff Wood, the firm plans to remain in the mansion for the rest of 2021, and may extend their stay by leasing the space after a buyer is found.

6 Life On Capitol Hill

April 2021

‘Smart and sophisticated business owners’ Women-owned businesses in Cherry Creek North prove resiliency through pandemic

By Christy Steadman

T

csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

he 16 blocks that make up the Cherry Creek North shopping area consists of about 150 small businesses.

Nick LeMasters, president and CEO of the Cherry Creek North Business Improvement District (BID), said he is “quite proud of all of Cherry Creek North for its resiliency through the pandemic.”

About half of Cherry Creek North’s small businesses are owned or co-owned by women. While all of the small businesses in the district stepped up to survive the pandemic, the women business owners especially shined, LeMasters said.

They advanced their outreach with technology and ad campaigns; they were creative, especially in terms of catering to their customers’ needs; and they embraced

DID YOU KNOW? Cherry Creek North consists of 16 walkable blocks for shopping, dining and relaxing visits, as well as residential spaces. About 260 commercial retail businesses make up Cherry Creek North, and about 150 of those are small and/or locally-owned businesses. The 16 blocks are roughly First Avenue to Third Avenue, and from University Boulevard to Steele Street. To learn more about Cherry Creek North, visit https://cherrycreeknorth.com. all COVID-19 regulations such as wearing masks, ensuring social distancing for their employees and customers and made hand sanitizer readily available.

“These are smart and sophisticated business owners,” LeMasters said.

The BID also did what it could to support them, LeMasters added. For restaurants, there was a signage program to remind people they were open for curbside pickup and takeout, in addition to a gift card program to prompt a return visit. The BID made PPE — personal protection equipment — available to any store or business owner that needed it, and the BID promoted COVID-safe special events, such as the Winter Wanderland and Holiday Market. The annual sidewalk sale is also expected to take place this July.

“We recognize that the pandemic has not disappeared from our lives,” LeMasters said. But “Cherry

Creek North is poised to emerge from the pandemic.

When we return (completely), it will be robust.”

As difficult as it has been, he said, LeMasters was happy to report that there have been very few permanent closures in Cherry Creek North during the past year of the pandemic. And additionally, LeMasters said, there have been a number of new openings or announcements to open.

Cherry Creek North’s outdoor environment probably contributes to people feeling safe and comfortable enough to experience Cherry Creek North — whether it be for shopping, dining, exercising in a gym, relaxing at a spa or staying in a hotel.

“Cherry Creek has long been ranked as one of the top tourist attractions in Colorado, and Denver,” LeMasters said. “You want to see a neighborhood like this thrive, not just survive.”

Caring for our Community by

Using Sustainable Printing Practices.

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What you may not know is a reverse mortgage loan from AAG may help you get even more out of your retirement.

A reverse mortgage is simply a way for you to convert some of your built-up home equity into cash for your retirement — cash to pay off large bills or high-interest credit card debt, make home improvements, cover medical expenses, build a bigger rainy-day fund, or simply get out and enjoy more of the Mile High City.

If you choose, you can wait to repay your loan when you permanently leave your home. Although a reverse mortgage requires no monthly mortgage payments, you are still responsible for paying for the maintenance of your home, property taxes, homeowners insurance, and, if required, HOA fees.

“Working with Jarred Talmadge and AAG was a very nice experience,” said AAG customer Angela Pendergraft. “No pressure or feelings of anxiety. He answered all our questions and concerns leaving us feeling comfortable with our decision to do a reverse mortgage.”

If you want to learn how a reverse mortgage can specifically improve your retirement, AAG Market Sales Manager Jarred Talmadge, NMLS# 1842043, and his team are ready to assist you.

Jarred can also address all your questions and concerns by calling (303) 957-3652 today.

To qualify for a reverse mortgage, you must: Be 62 or older Own your own home Live in it as your primary residence Have sufficient home equity (no mortgage or low mortgage balance) ACT NOW FOR A FREE INFO KIT

(303) 957-3652

*https://www.nrmlaonline.org/about/press-releases/senior-housingwealth-reaches-record-7-70-trillion NMLS# 9392 (www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org). American Advisors Group (AAG) is headquartered at 18200 Von Karman Ave., Suite 300, Irvine, CA 92612. AAG conducts business in CO (Regulated by the Division of Real Estate; to check the license status of your mortgage loan originator, visit http://www.dora.state.co.us/real-estate/index.htm). These materials are not from HUD or FHA and were not approved by HUD or a government agency. For full legaldisclosure, please visit: www.americanadvisorsgroup.com/disclosure

Life On Capitol Hill 7

April 2021 VIVE Float Studio+ 250 Steele St. Suite 110 303-377-VIVE (8483) https://vivefloatstudio.com/ After a couple of trips to Israel and experiencing the healing powers of the Dead Sea, Andi Sigler decided to leave her career in corporate America.

“What it came to,” Sigler said, “is I didn’t want to do life so fast.”

And she realized what she wanted to do was create a space for people that had a “profound impact on both body and mind,” Sigler said. “Both are equally valuable.”

In 2015, she opened her first VIVE Float Studio in Colorado’s community of Frisco. In January 2018, she expanded her business to its Cherry Creek North location, and in March that year, a third VIVE Float Studio opened in Chicago.

VIVE Float Studio is a rest and recovery wellness center that provides mental and physical restoration through its various therapies. The therapies offered at Cherry Creek North are: float; cryotherapy; infrared sauna; VibroAcoustic Sound Therapy (VAT); and halotherapy, also known as dry salt therapy.

Therapy “can look different than one-on-one counsel-

ing or being privately anxious,” Sigler said. “People have found this as a viable resource for mental wellness.”

Others, she said, have found it complementary to their one-on-one counseling.

VIVE in Cherry Creek closed at the end of March because of the coronavirus pandemic, and reopened at the end of May. The studio already had all of its cleaning protocols in place well before COVID-19, Sigler said, but has had to adapt its operations in other ways for a phased re-opening. For example, appointments have been cut to ensure no overlap, and its open hours are fewer than prior to the pandemic. Eventually, the studio will add more days of operation, additional hours and more staff, Sigler said.

An additional struggle, Sigler said, came after reopening — it has been difficult finding employees willing to come to an in-person job.

“We’re still impacted” by the virus, Sigler said.

COVID-19 has brought on a lot of stress for people, Sigler said, and many people are suffering from “mental exhaustion.”

“We are built for this moment,” Sigler said. “We’re here to help with the mental and physical alignment.”

Andi Sigler, founder/owner of VIVE Float Studio+, 250 Steele St. Suite 110 PHOTOS BY CHRISTY STEADMAN

Consuelo Diaz, owner of Adornments, 2826 E. Third Ave.

Adornments 2826 E. Third Ave. 303-321-7992 www.adornmentsdenver.com Spring has arrived and summer is just around the corner.

One thing that Adornments — a women’s fashion boutique in Cherry Creek North — has always been known for is color.

“We’re about being specialized,” said Adornments owner Consuelo Diaz. “This store has a niche for the women it reaches out to.”

Adornments opened in Cherry Creek North 24 years ago, and Diaz has been running it for the entire time.

In October 2019, she bought the store from it former owner, who retired and moved out of state to be near family. Adornments carries a variety of unique and classic clothing, jewelry and accessories including scarves, hair accessories, handbags and masks.

The shop still has many of the same customers that it did from “the day it opened,” Diaz said.

“They’ve stayed with us,” she said, adding that one of the hardest parts she’s faced as a small business owner during the pandemic has been “not being able to see the regulars who are unable to come in.”

Diaz has a passion for women’s fashion, and hopes that following the pandemic — even though people are

adapting to more of a stay-home lifestyle — fashion will still be important to people, she said.

Adornments closed from March 20 to May 9 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time, Adornments focused on online sales — sending emails to the shop’s loyal customers and posting new items on its website and social media. Diaz and her small staff came into the shop about three or four times a week to rotate window displays for people who were taking advantage of Cherry Creek North’s outdoors setting and window shopping, and to mail customer’s items.

“It worked for us. It kept us alive,” Diaz said. But “everybody had to re-invent themselves and get creative.”

COVID-19 restrictions are easing up, but Diaz and her staff are committed to continuing to cater to whatever customers need. For example, store employees are willing to open early or stay late to offer a customer a private appointment shopping experience.

Still, Diaz is looking forward to being able to travel again to visit fashion markets in places such as Los Angeles and New York, and to be able to host in-store events and trunk shows.

“And seeing all the familiar faces come back,” Diaz said of her regular customers. “They’re like old friends.

I miss them.”

for the business owner.

Ku Cha House of Tea closed about mid-March because of COVID-19 and reopened on May 8. The shop already had a website, and online orders were shipped from Ku Cha’s warehouse in Boulder. A feature that did cease, however, was the shop’s daily tea tasting and other inperson events. Pan hopes these will return, but for now, the tea shop has begun to host virtual tea tasting events.

Another challenge, Pan said, was balancing running the business and home-life responsibilities. For example, the couple is raising two boys, who are 8 and 10. Liu was able to take on the parent responsibilities — including the children’s online/virtual learning — while Pan handled the business.

“A supportive spouse made a huge difference,” Pan said.

Before the pandemic, there was a lot of focus on brining attention to the store and its gaining of popularity, Pan said. After re-opening, once it was safe to do so, it has been all about safety, Pan said. She added she feels lucky that none of Ku Cha’s 22 employees got COVID-19, and that all of her customers in Cherry Creek have been respectful of following COVID-19 safety protocols, including wearing a mask and social distancing.

“There is a light at the end of the tunnel, I know that,” Pan said. “As long as our store is safe for customers and employees, there will be better days ahead.”

Rong Pan, co-owner of Ku Cha House of Tea, 2445 E. Third Ave. #1

Ku Cha House of Tea 2445 E. Third Ave. Suite #1 303-322-0183 www.kuchatea.com Rong Pan and her husband Qin Liu, co-owners of Ku Cha House of Tea, got the idea to open a tea shop while Pan was working toward her Master of Business Administration from the University of Colorado-Boulder.

“Tea is part of our everyday life,” Pan said, adding that all sorts of discussions — ranging from business to casual — typically take place while enjoying a cup of tea.

“It’s our together time.”

Additionally, in general, tea consumption can be considered part of the current trend toward health and wellness, Pan said. She added that in the past number of years, Ku Cha has seen more sales of green tea for its antioxidants.

Pan and Liu opened the first Ku Cha House of Tea in Boulder in December 2005. Their Fort Collins location opened in 2015, and the Cherry Creek North location opened in May 2019. The tea shop carries 170 varieties of tea which includes house blends and imports.

Business owners face daily challenges — decisionmaking, how to accumulate a customer base and creating brand recognition, to name a few, Pan said. But being a small business owner is rewarding, she added, because not only do local businesses provide jobs for others, the day-to-day challenges present a sense of achievement

Editor’s note: VIVE Float Studio+, Adornments and Ku Cha House of Tea follow all COVID-19 safety measures, including wearing masks. Each owner’s mask was removed only briefly for the photograph, which was taken from a six-foot distance.

8 Life On Capitol Hill

April 2021

LOCAL

VOICES

Parkinson’s patients are not alone

M

FROM THE EDITOR

Christy Steadman

y dad’s birthday is in April, which is also Parkinson’s Awareness Month — an interesting coincidence considering my dad was diagnosed with Parkinson’s roughly 10 or 12 years ago.

A little about the disease: It is a progressive and degenerative brain disorder that affects a person’s muscle movement.

The disease is not necessarily fatal, but complications can be serious and it can greatly diminish quality of life — among many non-motor symptoms, Parkinson’s patients can develop mood disorders, such as depression, anxiety, apathy and irritability. What scares me most is that it will likely lead to some degree of dementia, as cognitive changes are common.

“About half of people with Parkinson’s will be affected by mild cognitive impairment: changes in memory and thinking that are noticeable, but not enough to affect daily activities. As Parkinson’s progresses, people living with the disease can develop more significant or severe memory and thinking problems,” states the Parkinson’s Foundation.

My dad is so smart and methodical — traits I inherited, I am so much like my dad — so it pains me to even think that one day, he may not be the clear-headed, responsible man who raised me.

There is no cure for Parkinson’s, though medication can help with symptoms. Additionally, there are no absolute answers on what causes Parkinson’s.

According to the Parkinson’s Foundation’s website, “scientists believe a combination of genetic and

A role model to Native women GUEST COLUMN

Shannon Ward

A

s a Native American woman in the business world, role models who looked like me, and could talk about my kind of life experiences, have been rare.

But they’ve been powerful.

One of the most famous women of power from Indian Country in the modern era, Eloise Cobell, made her name fighting for a $3.4 billion settlement for Indians against the U.S. Department of the Interior.

That settlement was a monumental sign that Native Americans were taking back control of their rights. For decades, the Department of the Interior withheld royalty payments for oil, gas, timber and other rights, legally set aside for Native Americans and tribes. Cobell was treasurer of her Montana Blackfeet Nation tribe when she discovered the foul play. She’d already won a “genius grant” for launching the first U.S.

reservation bank owned by a tribe, and she used the grant money to help push suits against the Interior’s royalty theft.

Cobell’s Blackfeet National Bank sought to expand its model of assisting financial progress in Native American communities by inviting national tribal investors. Native American Bank was formed and moved to Denver, now owned by 32 tribes and tribal corporations.

Today, one of my other role models, Congresswoman Deb Haaland of New Mexico, has made her name as the choice to lead the Department of the Interior.

I met the congresswoman in Albuquerque once, and I was struck by her fierce protectiveness of Indian lands and her frank warmth about her personal life. She’s proud of her law degree, but is quick to note she

Councildog Porthos with District 10 Representative Chris Hinds

H

appy spring, Denverites! Spring is always one of my favorite seasons. The weather is getting warmer and the days are getting longer, which means more walks with my dad — who you know as your city council District 10 representative, Chris Hinds.

Unfortunately, when we get a big snowstorm like the one we saw in late March, it can be difficult for Dad and I to navigate around our neighborhood because of unshoveled, or poorly shoveled, sidewalks, ADA ramps and pedestrian crossings. You can help keep our sidewalks accessible to everyone by following the below rules and guidance: • If you own a residential property: Residential property owners have 24 hours after the snow stops falling to clear an accessible path.

Life On

CAPITOL HILL

A publication of

Mailing Address: 750 W. Hampden Ave., Suite 225 Englewood, CO 80110 Phone: 303-566-4100 To subscribe call 303-566-4100 or visit www.lifeoncaphill.com/subscribe

SEE EDITOR, P9

A place for everyone in the effort

H

• If you own a commercial property: Commercial property owners need to start clearing snow as soon as it stops falling.

• If you are a residential renter: Check with your property management company to ensure they know the rules.

• If you see un-shoveled or inaccessible sidewalks or curb ramps: Report it online to pocketgov.org or call 3-1-1. Make sure you have an associated address and if possible, take a picture to share with inspectors.

April marks the start of two annual Denver Department of Transportation & Infrastructure (DOTI) work programs that make city streets safer and cleaner for all modes of travel. They are street sweeping and paving.

appy Earth Day birthday to all those who, like me, are celebrating birthdays.

As our globe reckons with the fall out and recovery from COVID-19, we have immense opportunity and responsibility to work toward the values of the constituENVIRONMENT tion that is the bedrock of our democratic society. Our values call for us to seek a just and WITH EAN equitable society.

This Earth Day, I invite everyone to join the movement. Together we are the power. We can be the seventh generation that ensures decisions onenergy, water and natural resources are sustainable for at least seven years into the future. And we can guide us through the growing pains of shedding our extractive practices that have damaged less affluent communities and the world as a whole.

Ean Thomas Tafoya We need a period of regeneration, a renaissance that draws from all walks of life to slow down the climate crisis that, day-by-day, draws more people into the frontlines via ecological collapse and natural disaster. Recent air quality days and reports about the impaired quality of the South Platte River speak for themselves for our trajectory.

We have been here before with the hole in the ozone, and humanity showed up despite procrastination. We cannot wait anymore. In our fight for climate justice, we need more people to participate than ever before.

We have many facets to environmental policy to consider. We have space for everyone in this effort. We can do this, and this month, we have great options to become involved.

In April, the Colorado Legislature will provide hearings for bills that define environmental justice, monitor air polluters, restore soil and put climate metrics into law. There are others, but still, we need more and stronger bills. That is only possible through increased advocacy. Visit https://leg.colorado.gov/. Put your topics in the key words search bar and see what you find.

The state has created a webpage to bring information together for the ease of the community. There are air-and-water quality community engagement opportunities related to Suncor this month. Stand for climate justice and tell leaders that we want a society that regulates polluters, and that we value people — and their health — above everything else. Virtual testimony has made participation more accessible. Testify at a public hearing related to the health of residents in north Denver and across the region: https://cdphe.colorado.gov/ cc-nd.

SEE PORTHOS, P9

SEE ENVIRONMENT, P9

SEE WARD, P9

Spring into a new perspective with Porthos GUEST COLUMN

environmental factors” are to blame.

But my dad’s diagnosis remains a mystery. As far as I know, his family has no history of Parkinson’s.

Environmental factors could be a cause — he grew up in somewhat rural, oil-country in the Texas panhandle. Or perhaps his career as an electronics technician could be a factor. Symptoms of Parkinson’s include tremors/shaking, so how he was able to work with tiny, little wires for a number of years after his diagnosis and symptoms began, is beyond me.

I’ve reported a few news stories through the years with some sort of Parkinson’s angle. I interviewed a Golden resident who embarked on a duathlon

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Life On Capitol Hill 9

April 2021

Explore Colorado nature as a pathway to health

W

hile the colder winter months and a global pandemic have increased the amount of time Coloradans are spending at home and caused a heightened state of GUEST anxiety for so many, COLUMN reaping the health Happy Haynes benefits of being outside is more important than ever.

It has been proven time and again that there is a positive connection between being outdoors in nature and improved physical and psychological well-being.

According to a July 2020 article published by the Centers for Disease Control

Ward FROM PAGE 8

was a single mom still paying off law school debts while running for Congress.

These are facts to cheer for, from a mom like me trying to promote Indian opportunity as a community development bank executive, while also managing my kids’ remote schooling.

Haaland has a sharp focus on environmental justice, and now she’s going to be the first Native American to lead the Department of the Interior. For most people in Indian Country, that’s a full circle.

She exemplifies the idea of Native Americans as stewards of the land.

There’s a sense of justice. The Department of the Interior oversees 507 million acres of land, or about one-fifth of the surface area of the United States. All of that land was once inhabited or controlled by Native Americans long before any national government was set up to

Editor FROM PAGE 8

on the Colorado Trail to raise awareness and fundraise for two nonprofits focused on improving the quality of life for people living with Parkinson’s. I wrote about a physical therapist who taught an exercise class in Edgewater for Parkinson’s patients and the patients who attended the class. A Highlands Ranch woman shared her experience of living with Parkinson’s, and she was the first to inform me about the esteemed (in my opinion) Dr. David VanSickle, a neurosurgeon at Littleton Adventist Hospital who performs Deep Brain Stimulation surgery, known as DBS. At the time of our interview, which was 2014 I believe, VanSickle, was one of only a small number who performed the DBS surgery. He was so generous with his time for our interview, I think in part because he was enthusiastic about getting the word out about the then fairly new DBS procedure. But he also was sympathetic to this reporter who wanted to learn everything she could about Parkinson’s and DBS so she could pass all the information along to her mom and dad.

and Prevention, any exposure to green space — even in a limited setting like an urban residential city street — is just as beneficial for health as visiting a natural setting or large public park. This is further supported by research that shows that spending even 20 minutes in a park can make people happier, reduce stress and boost social connections. So, regardless of the outdoor venue, anytime spent outside — whether exercising or not — can provide some benefit to emotional, physical and mental health.

Perhaps one silver lining from the COVID-19 era is that more Denver residents will continue to take advantage of the outdoors, given the limitations put on so many

mark the boundaries.

A key section of the $20 billiona-year department is the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) — one of the most important, and for a long time, one of the most despised institutions in the life of Indian Country.

There’s so much bad history with the “old” BIA — from outright theft of Indian lands to notoriously cruel family separations, boarding schools to corrupt agents, and to promotion of culture-destroying alcohol, to name a few.

By the time I worked for BIA in 2009, it had transformed for the better. I had the honor of working with talented and driven people who shared the goal of protecting tribes’ hard-won, nation-to-nation relationship with the federal government.

My childhood home is just outside the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming where my Northern Arapaho family lives. I wish I could say I grew up knowing all about Cobell, other leaders like her and every challenge that was overcome to arrive at this moment. But that

other activities and the increased stress the pandemic has caused. People need an outlet, and what better or easier way to accomplish this than to spend time outdoors.

It not only brings vast health benefits, but it also supports a connection to others and to nature. These benefits and the connections we make are particularly important as we meet the challenges of our new normal in a post-pandemic world.

Denver residents can take advantage of the sunny days and the many welcoming, diverse outdoor spaces in our community to get a mental and physical health boost from being outdoors. Denver and the surrounding areas have a plethora of public parks, walking trails, green spaces and

mountain parks to enjoy. Visit your local park or explore outdoor spaces beyond your community to get outside for a walk, play catch, ride your bike, visit a playground or spend time with family or friends.

Even if you just go outside your door to look at the trees, walk around the block or take time to sit on a bench, remember that being outside might just put a smile on your face.

Porthos

10 office still has plenty of yard and window signs available — featuring yours truly — to remind people to “Drive Like Your Dog Lives Here.” To collect your free sign, email district10@ denvergov.org.

Speaking of the 5280 Trail, the Downtown Denver Partnership recently launched phase three, the Trailblazing Effort of the visionary project. This phase is the first step toward identifying the 5280 Trail route as a neighborhood asset, creating placemaking features that are unique to each of the neighborhoods and locations on the route, and marking the route for active travel. For more information about this 5.280-mile trail proposed around Denver’s urban core, visit 5280trail.com.

During the past year, I’ve missed seeing my friends and meeting new people at city council meetings, neighborhood block parties and District 10 coffee and happy hours. I hope I’ll get to see more of you this year while Dad and I are out and about in our perfect district.

Until then, stay perfect.

kind of pride and learning from elders came later for me.

With the worthy elevation of people like Haaland, young Native American girls won’t have to wait to discover role models that look, sound and think like them. The importance of moments like this is for Native American children to have role models that make any racial stereotypes they’ve grown up with a little less powerful, a little less hurtful.

A cabinet-level appointment like this for a Native American is validation of tribal sovereignty, and assures representation of Indian Country at the highest levels of U.S. government.

It lifts the spirits of all of Indian Country.

Shannon Ward of Littleton is a member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe and serves as vice president and chief lending officer for Native American Bank, which is a national, tribal-owned community development bank headquartered at 201 Broadway in Denver.

MORE INFORMATION To learn more about Parkinson’s disease, visit www.parkinson.org.

Local resources can also be found by visiting the Parkinson Association of the Rockies’ website at https://parkinsonrockies.org.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the DBS surgery for Parkinson’s disease in 2002. The surgery alleviates the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s — tremor, rigidity, slowness. It does not stop the disease from progressing, and some symptoms, such as sense of smell or balance, still need medication to be controlled.

Two devices make this surgery work. An electrode is implanted in the patient’s brain and a neurostimulator, a device similar to a pacemaker, is implanted in the chest near the collarbone. The two devices are connected and “impulses from the neurostimulator interfere with, and block, the electrical signals that trigger motion disorders,” according to Littleton Adventist Hospital’s DBS webpage. Disclosure — different wording may now be available on the website, as I pulled this quote from one of my old stories, so it is a little dated. But I think it gets idea across.

On May 4, 2017, my dad underwent the Deep Brain Stimulation surgery, performed by VanSickle. I remember sitting with my mom in

the waiting room, both of us just a big pile of nerves. When we were able to see him, my dad was speaking normally and cohesively as if he had not just had brain surgery.

Last month, my dad had a surgery to get his generators — or perhaps it was the batteries, not quite sure the correct term — in his neurostimulator replaced.

After some recovery time, he will go back so the doctors can adjust the programming. All this is normal, and my dad is healing just fine.

An estimated 1 million people in the U.S. have Parkinson’s, so many of their loved ones are helping to bring awareness to the disease.

Caring doctors and others in the healthcare field work relentlessly to improve the quality of life for Parkinson’s patients. Experts and dedicated scientists and researchers continue to work hard to find answers to the cause of the disease and, hopefully, someday, a cure.

So even though it’s not easy accepting that my dad has Parkinson’s disease, what brings me comfort is the knowledge that my family and I are not alone.

Happy Haynes is the executive director of Denver Parks and Recreation. To find a nearby neighborhood park, visit https://tinyurl. com/yxw68xxf. This shortened link takes you to the interactive Find A Park feature on Denver Parks and Recreation’s website.

FROM PAGE 8

Street sweeping takes place from April to November, and serves a critical role in removing pollutants from our city air and waterways that can impact our physical and environmental health. Did you know that in 2020, Denver street sweeping crews swept 163,385 lane miles and collected 57,479 cubic yards of dirt and debris? That’s a lot of material that would otherwise be floating in the air we breathe or flowing into our water supply. To maximize the sweepers’ ability to collect debris, it is essential that people who park their cars on the street relocate their vehicle on or before the designated sweeping day. The city offers opt-in service reminders that can be customized for your specific street so you can avoid those doggone tickets and help improve our air and water quality! Find relevant street sweeping schedules on pocketgov.org.

After being cooped up for more than a year, dogs and people alike are ready to walk, bike and roll outdoors — whether in a park, on a shared street or along the future route of the 5280 Trail. Luckily, the District

Environment FROM PAGE 8

Join a board or commission and help shape government from the inside. We need people who will ensure that the current rally cries about environmental justice at all levels become laws. These boards and commissions hold a lot of power — and many admittedly have failed to protect the most vulnerable in our society, and want to grow and diversify in order to make better health-based democratic decisions. If they don’t want to transform to better serve the people, then they need your voice even more. This holds true at both the state and local level. Visit these pages to look for opportunities to serve: https://denvergov.org/Government/Departments/MayorsOffice/About/Boards-and-Commissions https://www.colorado.gov/gov-

Porthos is Denver City Councilmember Chris Hinds’ service dog. Hinds represents District 10.

He can be reached at district10@ denvergov.org. ernor/boards-and-commissionsdirectory Get involved with climate and conservation ballot efforts.

Consider Waste No More, a waste ballot title; People’s Climate Campaign, an energy tax that makes the polluters pay; and Yes for Open Space, a land conservation effort.

I encourage everyone to give the initiatives a look, and if you agree, join in. Many hands make light work, and we need more people trained on this critical peoplepower process of citizen ballot initiatives. Our elected leaders influenced by profits-over-people have continually come up short with meeting the desires of the people for policy that lives up to our values of a just and equitable society — not half measures that continue to leave people out to dry.

Ean Thomas Tafoya is a climate and government activist. He can be reached at @BelieveEan on Twitter.

10 Life On Capitol Hill

April 2021

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Life On Capitol Hill 11

April 2021

Ensuring a livable space in the future Denver students with Youth Sustainability Board join teens across the U.S. for Earth Day tree planting

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

T

hose involved with the Youth Sustainability Board believe that “when you’re fighting for the Earth, you’re fighting for all the people

on it.”

These are the words of Dakota Gelman, a junior at the Denver School of the Arts who, along with Felicia Winfrey, serves as the Youth Sustainability Board’s co-president.

“This is our Earth,” added Winfrey, a senior at Denver South High School. “It’s really important that we work to make it a livable space. And it’s important for youth to recognize that we can make changes.”

The Youth Sustainability Board (YSB) is a student-run nonprofit that offers middleand-high schoolers across Colorado “a platform to pioneer sustainability initiatives in their schools and greater communities,” states its website.

YSB got its start roughly two years ago

by Maddy Gawler, who, at the time, was working toward her undergraduate degree at the University of Denver; and two thenhigh schoolers who are now both in college — Hailey Hayes, a graduate of South High School, and Sam Anderson, an East High School graduate.

Gawler, 24, completed her master’s degree in international development with a certificate in global corporate social responsibility in June, and now volunteers as YSB’s executive director.

“The youth have so much power and voice,” Gawler said. “High schoolers have the passion, and they need the opportunity to engage.”

In the past couple of years since its beginning, YSB has grown from partnering with five schools to now working with environmental/sustainability clubs at 18 schools located as far north as Fort Collins.

Each club is part of one of three YSB councils — Denver Public Schools, Boulder/ Longmont and Fort Collins. In total, about 500 students are now involved with YSB, and their efforts range from renewable energy to waste management to eco-friendly transportation. This includes leading a variety of volunteer efforts — such as river cleanups and trail restoration projects — and even working on nonpartisan policy development.

For example, students in the Denver Public Schools Council are drafting a resolution to enact sustainable change, such as recycling and composting programs, at schools throughout the district. The youth are hoping to present it to the school board in the near future.

“YSB is proactively working toward change for the future, rather than just realizing what’s wrong in the present or complaining about the past,” Gawler said.

“They (the youths) are coming together and creating the positive change they want to see.”

Currently, the YSB youth are joining teens across the United States in organizing an Earth Day tree planting event to take place on April 24. The eight local schools participating are Denver School of the Arts, D’Evelyn Jr-Sr High School, East High School, Peak to Peak Charter School, Poudre High School, South High School, St. Mary’s Academy and Thomas Jefferson High School; and youth with the Colorado Young Leaders organization are participating on behalf of Cherry Creek High School.

The event is the brainchild of Tree-Plenish, which is a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization based in the U.S. east coast area.

Tree-Plenish got its start in 2018 as a high school project by Lizzy Elsner and Sethu Odayappan, and now with both founders in college, Tree-Plenish has expanded to work with high schoolers across the U.S. College students volunteer to run the organization and mentor the high schoolers.

“It’s been inspiring to see all these youth sharing our mission and vision on sustainability,” Elsner said. “The idea is for high schoolers to be able to walk away feeling empowered and that they can make a global difference.”

Tree-Plenish estimates that about 15,000 trees will be planted for the Earth Day tree planting event. The goal of the event is to offset the individual schools’ average paper usage by planting trees in community members’ yards. When deciding on a goal for the number trees to be planted, the students took into consideration the size of their school — a smaller school uses less paper, on average — and because remote learning took place during much of the 2019-2020 school year, some students used their school’s 2018-2019 paper usage data.

For example, in Denver, East High School has a goal to plant 250 trees, South’s goal is 200 trees and Denver School of the Arts has a goal of 150 trees.

The high schoolers took tree requests from community members through March 24, or, approximately one month prior to the tree planting event. The small fee that community members paid covered the cost of the tree itself, which comes as a bare root sapling to ensure the best possible survival rate.

The local students get the trees from Tree-Plenish, which works with a variety of tree vendors and nurseries. Because high schools across the U.S. are participating in the event, Tree-Plenish works with the high schoolers so that the trees planted in each community are native to the area.

On April 24 in Denver, the local students will set up a community location from where volunteers in small groups will depart to the tree planting destinations. All volunteer tree planters will receive basic tree planting training, as well as a briefing on the protocols the students are implementing to ensure the event takes place in a COVID-safe manner. Community members may also pick up their pre-ordered trees on April 24 if they prefer to plant them themselves.

Many of the events the YSB youths had planned in 2020 had to be canceled because of COVID-19, so they are especially looking forward to being able to bring the community together — metaphorically — in a COVID-safe way.

“All humans can connect to trees in some way,” Gelman said, adding that each tree planted during the one-day tree planting will benefit the community for many years to come. “It’s the tangible things that make change empowering.”

As for YSB, the youth are dreaming big, Winfrey said. She added that maybe in another five or 10 years, it will become a national organization.

“YSB is a great outlet for teens to lead and create sustainable change,” said Kendall Ogin, a senior at East High School who is involved with YSB and serves as president of East’s sustainability club. “Teens are going to be leading the world someday. Not only do we care about this, it’s kind of our duty to make the world a better place.”

Four members of East High School’s sustainability club participate in a trash pickup at COURTESY PHOTO City Park in Denver in October 2020.

LEARN MORE To learn more about the Youth Sustainability Board, visit www.youthsustainabilityboard.org.

To learn more about Tree-Plenish, visit www.tree-plenish.org.

As of the date of this publication, it is too late for community members to order a tree to be planted in their yard, but the

students are welcoming anybody in the community who would like to volunteer to plant trees on April 24. To inquire about volunteering, visit the Tree-Plenish website above, and select `find an event.’ Then select Colorado, and choose the local high school that you would like to volunteer with for the event.

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12 Life On Capitol Hill

April 2021

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April 2021

Something to scream about

By Christy Steadman

csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Denver Film and Scream Screen are presenting Welcome to Amityville! as a four-day virtual program this April.

It begins at 7 p.m. April 22 and runs through 11:45 p.m. April 25.

The program is being hosted and curated

by Theresa Mercado, who will select four spooky films from the AMITYVILLE franchise and livestream the presentation from the haunted Black Monarch Hotel in Victor, Colorado.

“The Amityville story is perhaps the most well-known haunted house franchise with more than 20 films spanning 40 years,” said Mercado in a news release. “I’m excited to surprise this year’s audiences with a selection of four of the weirdest films of the lot. … There will be lots of terrifying surprises in store, all from the safety and comfort of your own personal haunted house and couch.”

Program tickets cost $15 for Denver Film Members and $20 non-Members. Ticketholders will have the opportunity to submit their guesses for which four films will be

shown, and the correct answers will be entered to win prizes from The Black Monarch, Denver Film, Cult Legacy, Bierstadt Lagerhaus and more, states a news release.

Scream Screen is a quarterly horror film series founded in 2015 that is programmed out of the Sie FilmCenter. It typically features “live music, special guests and outlandish cosplay before screenings of underseen and classic genre films,” states its website. Scream Screen is being offered as a virtual program during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Sie FilmCenter, 2510 E. Colfax Ave.,

Life On Capitol Hill 13

which border’s Denver’s City Park and Congress Park neighborhoods, is the permanent home of Denver Film, which is a membership-based nonprofit cultural institution founded in 1978.

Tickets to Welcome to Amityville! can be purchased on Denver Film’s website, which is www.denverfilm.org. The program will be accessible on Denver Film’s Virtual Cinema — available on its website or by downloading the Denver Film app for Roku TV or Apple TV. To learn more about Scream Screen, visit https://scream-screen.com/.

Women+Film Festival celebrates talents

By Clarke Reader Special to Colorado Community Media

One of the few good news stories to come out of Hollywood in 2020 is the continuing recognition of the contributions women make to the film industry.

There’s still a lot of work to do to achieve equity, but for the first time, two women have been nominated in the best director category. Hopefully, it’s a sign that things will keep moving in the right direction.

But anyone who has participated in the last 11 years of Denver Film’s Women+Film Festival already knows that stories told by and about women have a breadth and depth more than equal to their male peers.

“It’s so important to support women behind the camera,” said Barbara Bridges, founder of the festival. “In the last 50 years, women have only accounted for 30% of

speaking roles, so it’s important to see women on the screen as well. Any kind of work women are doing is important.”

The 12th annual Women+Film Festival will take place April 13-18. Like the Denver Film Festival in October, the films will be streaming on Denver Film’s virtual platform.

The platform allows for viewers to stream their selected films on Roku, AppleTV or their computer or mobile device.

The 2020 iteration of the festival looked vastly different than ever before due to COVID-19-related uncertainties and emerging rules. In the end, it became a severalmonth summer series virtually highlighting some of the participating films for audiences.

Getting this year’s festival running was a bit easier now that the organization has experience with its virtual platform — but deciding which films to showcase took a lot of work.

“Selecting films for the festival is an extensive process Barb and I collaborate on,” said

Matt Campbell, Denver Film’s artistic director. “It’s really about having a diverse mix of offerings in the program. We have a great balance of types of films, as well as a lot of international films, and stories from different cultures and minority representation.”

The year’s line-up — which includes narrative and documentary, feature-length and short films — highlights a variety of subjects and stories on characters that audiences might be familiar with and those to learn about.

The opening night selection is Mariem Pérez Riera’s documentary, “Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It.” The film follows the legendary entertainer through her roles on the stage, television and silver screen, and gives audiences a personal look at one of the most dynamic performers around as she remembers the racism and sexism she faced on her way to success. The film is only available on the 13th.

“The way we approach the festival remains the same, no matter what platform or medium we’re using,” Bridges said. “I still hear from people who are excited to take part in the festival — they’re planning watch parties. These are films that can be enjoyed by anyone.”

As is often the case, there will be several conversations with filmmakers and local connections, providing the viewer with both a more personal and larger-scale connection to the works. This adds another layer to the aim of the festival in the first place — to celebrate the power of women both behind and in front of the camera.

“The most interesting films being made are directed by women, and the most interesting stories are coming from women,” Campbell said. “We want to follow what’s current and interesting in the film industry, and we think women-centered stories and female filmmakers are where it’s at.”

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14 Life On Capitol Hill

April 2021

Community conversations about the impacts of COVID Denver Chapter of The Links, Inc. offers upcoming programs

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

People have been feeling the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic for more than a year.

These impacts include — but are not limited to — feelings of disconnection and isolation.

It is important to remember “we’re not alone in this experience,” said Jada Dixon, president of the Denver Chapter of The Links, Inc. With this in mind, the Denver Chapter of The Links is targeting much of its 2021 programming to mental health and well-being with emphasis on the needs of the Black community.

“We wanted to make a difference,” said Gaye Woods, vice president of programming for the Denver Chapter of The Links.

“That’s the focus of our existence — the service.”

The Links, Inc. is a women’s volunteer service organization “committed to enriching, sustaining and ensuring the culture and economic survival of African Americans and other persons of African ancestry,” which is stated on its website. It was founded in 1946, and numbers “16,000 professional women of African descent in 292 chapters located in 41 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Bahamas and the United Kingdom.”

The Denver chapter, established in 1952,

LEARN MORE To learn more about the Denver Chapter of The Links, Inc., or to register for any of its upcoming programs, www.denverlinksinc.org. is one of two in Colorado locations, and has 45 active members.

With a focus on service, friendship, community involvement and philanthropy, The Links, Inc. have five facets. They are: Services to Youth, The Arts, National Trends and Services, International Trends and Services, and Health and Human Services.

Salon Series The Salon Series: Linking Communities in Conversation is a new program this year for the Denver Chapter of The Links, and may become part of its regular programming.

Taking place virtually for now, the Salon Series includes five curated educational sessions led by subject matter experts, community stakeholders and industry innovators.

Upcoming on April 10 is the session titled “The POWER of the ARTS to Reflect our Joys & Challenges.” Professional artists and students from the Denver School of the Arts will lead the discussion. On May 8, Nurturing Your Child’s EQ: Everyday Tools for Parent-Child Social-Emotional Wellbeing will be presented.

All sessions of the Salon Series are free and open to the public.

Girl Fierce The Denver Chapter of The Links will virtually host its second Girl Fierce event on April 24. The first one, which had a focus on human trafficking, was presented in

A youth works on a creative project during the 2019 Girl Fierce event. The 2021 event COURTESY OF DENVER CHAPTER OF THE LINKS will take place virtually on April 24.

April 2019, and its success led to The Links scheduling another program. However, Girl Fierce had to be canceled in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, and the 2021 Girl has been reworked to take place virtually.

The theme this year is Being Mindfully Free. All five of The Links’ facets will be featured with a focus on mental health. The event is oriented toward young girls of color, roughly in grades five through eight.

Social media and race and disparities, in addition to isolation brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, are some of the aspects in a girl’s life that can effect them, Woods said.

Girl Fierce will feature a variety of speakers who will take a “mind, body, spirit”

approach for overall well being, Woods said. Participants will also get a toolkit with resources for exercise, nutrition, arts and creativity and other valuable wellness practices.

“Girls today need things to help them feel good and strengthen their self-awareness,” Woods said.

Women in The Links are influencers, both professionally and within their communities, Woods said. Such role models can pass on knowledge tools and wisdom, she said.

“For aspiring young women, it’s important that we are visible,” Woods said.

Dixon agreed.

“This is a way to put forth our time and talent to empower young African American women,” Dixon added.

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Life On Capitol Hill 15

April 2021

Streamlined from college to profession Emily Griffith Technical College and Denver Health announce new partnership

By Christy Steadman csteadman@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Denver Health and Emily Griffith Technical College are a natural fit for a partnership.

In fact, the partnership in some capacity has existed for 38 years. But now, a new component of the partnership makes it even stronger.

The newest component is two-fold. The first entails providing graduates of Emily Griffith’s Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) program the opportunity for employment at Denver Health’s new Outpatient Medical Center (OMC). And the second will provide students and graduates of the college’s Culinary Arts and Culinary Quick Start programs the opportunity to operate the new Denver Health OMC Café Powered by Emily Griffith.

“We are grateful for key partnerships like the one with Emily Griffith that provide us with a pipeline of talent to help us better serve and support the Denver community,” said Robin D. Wittenstein, Denver Health’s CEO, in a news release.

The intent is for it to be a streamlined process, said Randy Johnson, executive director of Emily Griffith Technical College.

“What we’ve seen from the pandemic is that healthcare is an essential service,” Johnson said, adding that all students who enter into the college’s CNA program know they want to enter into a healthcare profession.

“We’re helping Denver Health by providing a skilled workforce, and they’re helping our students find their path.”

Denver Health’s OMC, 660 N. Bannock St., recently opened and was “built to revolutionize the way Denver Health delivers healthcare in an outpatient setting by consolidating the many places a patient may need to get specialty care into one building,”

Denver to launch a preservation project Staff report Denver residents are encouraged to participate in a preservation initiative that will protect and celebrate the city’s Latino/ Chicano history.

The project is that of Denver Community Planning and Development, and is being led by Denver’s Landmark Preservation staff in partnership with the city’s I Am Denver Storytelling Project and the Mayor’s Office of Social Equity and Innovation.

The initiative will help create Denver’s first historic context that focuses on a specific ethnic, racial or cultural group. “Landmark Preservation also intends to develop future historic contexts that focus on other underrepresented communities like Denver’s African American, Indigenous and Asian American communities,” states a news

release.

“The city respects that within the Chicano and Latino communities exists a multidimensional and multifaceted layer of diversity, including deeply rooted connections to Indigenous/First Nations and African cultures.

This first Latino/Chicano Historic Context makes visible the rich history of our Chicano, Afro-Latino and Indigenous/First Nations communities and honors their contributions,” states a news release,” states the news release.

The result of the project will be “a broad overview on the citywide settlement and development patterns of Latino and Chicano communities in Denver up to the 1990s …

The project will identify significant locations and buildings connected to our Chicano and Latino communities in order to preserve and protect those spaces. The project will also

help Denver build a more inclusive list of designated landmarks and historic districts and inform the citywide building survey, Discover Denver,” states the news release.

“I couldn’t be prouder to work on this groundbreaking project to not only recognize the history and contributions of Denver’s Chicano and Latino communities, but to preserve them,” said Rowena Alegría, chief storyteller of Denver. “Our stories matter, as do those of other marginalized communities.

The time is right to bring the power of story — our oral histories — to bear on policies that will help protect the legacy of our communities for future generations.”

Information for the project will be collected by public outreach and traditional historic research. Learn more about this project and ways to participate by visiting www.denvergov.org/landmark.

states a news release.

Emily Griffith Technical College’s main campus is located at 1860 Lincoln St. in Denver.

A key component of the partnership, which will run for two years, is the communication, Johnson said. For example, he said, Denver Health will be able to communicate what training is needed, thus, better prepare Emily Griffith’s students for their post-graduation endeavors.

“Everybody who walks through our doors at Emily Griffith are looking for an opportunity for a profession,” Johnson said.

“This type of partnership speaks to the heart of Emily Griffith — preparing students for a meaningful career.”

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16 Life On Capitol Hill

April 2021

Día del Niño takes place virtually throughout April Staff report

A child participates in an activity at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science during the 2019 Día del Niño celebration. This year, Día del Niño: Celebrating All Children will take place virtually throughout April, and will be part of SFCD Community Free Days on April 25. PHOTO BY CHRIS SCHNEIDER

Throughout April, a number of local cultural institutions will be hosting Día del Niño: Celebrating All Children events.

The events — some virtual, some in-person — are being offered as a partnership between the Mexican Cultural Center and Telemundo Denver.

“We are overjoyed to have the opportunity to once again bring the Children’s Day Celebration to our community this year, as unfortunately, we had to cancel the 2020 celebration due to the pandemic,” said Ericka Hernandez, program director of the Mexican Cultural Center, in a news release. “The Mexican Cultural Center is honored to be able to bring this celebration virtually this year with the colossal support of our cultural partners.

We love the idea of being able to innovate and reinvent ourselves to make sure we continue to celebrate our youth and children.”

Between April 1 and April 30, a variety of free educational videos and activities will be available for children and families.

These videos and activities will be offered by the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, Denver Art Museum, Denver Zoo, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Denver Botanic Gardens, Clyfford Still Museum, Denver Public Library, History Colorado and Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art. They will be accessible through Acceso Total on Telemundo Denver, Telemundo Denver Landing Page and the Mexican Cultural Center’s Facebook Event Page.

To learn about the various activities being offered, visit www.mccdenver.org.

The website has information about some

of the activities being offered, and there is a link to the organization’s Facebook page where people can stay up-to-date on the Día del Niño: Celebrating All Children events.

Día del Niño: Celebrating All Children is also part of the SCFD Community Free Days this year. Free admission will be offered on April 25 at the following cultural institutions: • Denver Museum of Nature and Science: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• Denver Art Museum: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• Denver Zoo: limited timed tickets will be available • Clyfford Still Museum: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• History Colorado: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Some of these cultural institutions will be offering special Día del Niño: Celebrating All Children programming on April 25. To attend any of the museums on the April 25 Día del Niño: Celebrating All Children free day, guests must have a timed ticket. Tickets can be reserved online by visiting the above-mentioned institutions’ websites.

The Mexican Cultural Center will also be collaborating with the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and EDUCA from Denver Public Schools to create a virtual and interactive contest. Children can send pictures of their drawings to the EDUCA Facebook page for the opportunity to win tickets to visit the Denver Museum of Nature and Science on April 25.

For more information about the Virtual Día del Niño celebration, visit Telemundodenver.com/comunidad.

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