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THE SOUND OF HOPE First responders play bagpipes amid COVID-19 crisis P14

MAY 7, 2020

JEFFERSON COUNTY, COLORADO

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COMMUNITY FOOD DRIVE Lakewood groups battling COVID-19 related hunger pains P16

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Man with virus symptoms has died in Jeffco jail P3

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Schools, jobs and programs on the line for Jeffco P9

Brunch may be a Mother’s Day tradition, but 66% of Americans will opt for virtual celebrations this year.

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LakewoodSentinel.com

VOLUME 96 | ISSUE 37

2 Lakewood Sentinel

May 7, 2020M

Jeffco optimistic stay-at-home order will not extend past May 8 County public health department working on operating guidelines during the pandemic

BY PAUL ALBANI-BURGIO PALBANIBURGIO@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

With the statewide stay-at-home order that had been in place for the past month set to expire on April 26, Jefferson County Public Health joined agencies in Denver, Adams, Arapahoe and Broomfield counties in keeping their counties under stay-at-home order through May 8.

Christine Billings, the COVID-19 Incident Commander for JCPH, said JCPH made that decision in order to get more time to develop guidance for how various kinds of businesses can most safely reopen and operate in the current COVID-19 climate.

“The county is doing a good job of flattening the curve but we needed a little more time to get good guidance out to these facilities,” Billings said.

JCPH is one of many county and state agencies working to put together such guidance for businesses ranging from restaurants to dog groomers to summer camps. Those resources are

A sign at the Buffalo Rose in Golden advertises the availability of curbside delivery. Jefferson County Public Health’s extension of the stay-at-home order allowed other retail businesses the option of also offering merchandise to customers curbside.

PAUL ALBANI-BURGIO being posted online at www.jeffco. us/4018/Info-for-Public-Health-Partners-Business.

According to Billings, the availability of such guidance for restaurants offering curbside pick-up of food and

the fact that county restaurants had been serving customers curbside successfully was the main reason why the county decided to begin permitting retail stores to begin offering curbside service under the amended stay-athome order.

But while Jefferson County Public Health felt the county did not have the guidance in place for the county to reopen on April 26, Billings said she does think Jefferson County will be in a position to begin to adopt the state’s safer-at-home guidelines, which allow a larger subset of businesses to reopen, once the extension of the stayat-home order expires on May 8.

“As we approach May 8, I see definitely more alignment with the state order but a lot of this resides too on the public listening to and following even what the state is saying with the masking and the social distancing,” Billings said. “A lot of that resides on individual choices and we need people to make that choice or we will see more cases.”

However, Billings also said JCPH will continue to be “as coordinated as possible” with other metro Denver health departments and counties, which is important because of the interconnectedness of those counties and their populations.

“I think you will see nuances (among metro area counties) but I

think we all recognize that we can’t operate in bubbles,” Billings said.

Also working with JCPH to help prepare businesses for reopening are the West Metro Chamber of Commerce and the chambers of commerce in various Jeffco cities.

Business support for health department efforts Pam Bales, the CEO of the West Metro Chamber of Commerce, said that the chamber feels doing so is one of the most important things it can do right now in order to ensure businesses are able to reopen successfully and the economy ultimately recovers from the closures as quickly as possible. But that communication role has also meant sometimes helping businesses understand why orders are in place.

“So, what we’re trying to do is take the public health data translate it into everyday language that people understand and say this is why public health feels like we need to do this in our county,” Bales said. “Because as business chambers, we don’t want to see a rebound and go back to having everything close. We want to be safe about how we do this and I think the vast majority of our businesses want to do the right thing and protect our employees, protect their customers and protect their businesses.”

Jefferson County receives millions for COVID needs from feds $646,000 goes to nonprofits helping with housing, food and other basic needs

BY PAUL ALBANI-BURGIO PALBANIBURGIO@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

On April 27, Jefferson County was granted $101.7 million in federal relief funds to cover expenses related to the Coronavirus. Jefferson County applied for the funds that are available

from the federal government as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).

The CARES Act made $2.2 trillion available to state and local governments, small businesses, and hospitals, in addition to providing stimulus payments and unemployment benefits to individuals. The Board of County Commissioners was scheduled to make a decision on how those funds will be distributed within the county on May 4.

Community Development Funds In addition to the $101.7 million, Jefferson County will also receive

$646,000 in CARES Act funding to assist with the needs of low- and moderate-income citizens in the wake of the COVID-19 epidemic.

The money will go to Jeffco’s Community Development Division, which will disperse it to non-profit agencies in Jefferson County that help residents with immediate needs related to COVID-19’s economic fallout.

“Right now, we are seeing a lot of our nonprofits sort of being overwhelmed with the need for rent assistance, food, and those type of things,” said Emily Sander, Jeffco’s Community Development Manager.

Sander said that while the county

typically holds a request for proposals when it receives Federal community development funds, it will not be doing so in this case.

“In order to get the funds out there as quickly as possible we’ll likely work with our existing nonprofits that we are contracting with right now,” said Sander.

The county is currently going through a required public notification process that must be concluded before the county receives the funds, Sander said. However, she said she hopes the county will have the money and be in a position to begin distributing it to nonprofits “in the next several weeks.”

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Lakewood Sentinel 3

May 7, 2020

County jail inmate with COVID-19-related symptoms dies Man was isolated in a medical unit for drug withdrawal

BY PAUL ALBANI-BURGIO PALBANIBURGIO@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

An inmate in the Jefferson County Jail who had self-reported experiencing COVID-19 symptoms has died after being found unresponsive in his cell.

According to a press release from the Jefferson County Sheriff ’s Office,

deputies found 50-year-old inmate Paul George Abeyta unresponsive in his cell during a routine check at 5:15 a.m. Friday morning.

Lifesaving procedures were undertaken and continued until just after 6 a.m., when Abeyta was pronounced dead the release said.

The sheriff ’s office reports Abeyta was housed Abeyta alone in a medical unit of the jail because of drug withdrawal protocol and reported COVID19-related symptoms.

Abeyta was arrested by Lakewood

police on April 27. During the booking process, he indicated he had been a daily heroin user for the past five years. He also reported he was suffering from symptoms of fever, cough, and shortness of breath that had begun earlier that day.

Abeyta did not have a fever upon arrival nor during any subsequent temperature check, but he was isolated from other inmates due to his reported symptoms. According to the Sheriff ’s Office, Abeyta was routinely checked on by deputies in accordance with withdrawal protocol.

Abeyta was arrested on more than 10 felony or misdemeanor charges,

including a failure to appear for possession of a controlled substance charge associated with a $100,000 bond amount.

The release states that the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office will determine the cause of Abeyta’s death.

The seventh floor of the jail, which had been closed due to budget cutbacks, has been used as an isolation wing for inmates with symptoms or possible exposure to COVID-19.

As of April 16, antibody testing of jail staff found at least a dozen who tested positive, which indicate they either actively had the virus or have had it in the recent past.

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New Listings and Showings Surged Last Week After Governor Eased Showing Restrictions

Sellers who had been holding back during most of April put their homes on the market during the calendar week ending Saturday, May 2nd.

And showings of listings also surged.

Altogether, 1,648 homes within 25 miles of the State Capitol were listed on Denver’s MLS between Sunday, April 26th and Saturday, May 2nd. That’s close to the 1,885 number entered on the MLS during the same 7-day period in 2019, and more than double the 819 homes listed two weeks earlier. (During the week of April 19th to 25th, only 993 homes were entered on the MLS.) Of those 1,648 listings, 29 were withdrawn from the MLS by week’s end for unknown reasons, and 10 were entered as “sold” without ever being active. That still left 1,609 new active listings, 402 of which were already under contract by Monday noon. That’s way above the 281 homes that went under contract by the end of the same 7-day period a year ago.

Not included in the 1,648 number are 176 listings that were entered on the MLS as “coming soon,” a status that didn’t exist until this year. One of those is my $550,000 listing at 2950 Jay St. in Wheat Ridge, featured in last week’s column. It goes “active” this week. (See www.WheatRidgeHome.info.)

So, while we can hardly say life is “back to normal,” the real estate business

is certainly showing renewed signs of life. Frankly, I’m surprised at the surge.

Like most agents, I have many buyers who have given me their search criteria, and the MLS automatically sends them alerts of homes matching those criteria as they are entered on the MLS. In my case, I have nearly a hundred such email alerts in effect. Since Gov. Polis replaced “stay-at-home” with “safer-at-home,” which allows inperson showings to resume, I have seen a spike in the number of buyers clicking on the links for listings sent to them. My listing featured below saw five showings set on May 1st and 2nd alone. With this week’s price reduction, I wouldn’t be surprised if it goes under contract quickly.

At press time mid-day Monday, 108 additional listings have been entered as “active” after Saturday, May 2nd.

Listing agents are expected to take extra precautions to protect the health of both buyers and sellers under the “saferat-home” guidelines. For example, there can be no overlapping showings, and only 3 persons (typically two buyers and their agent) are allowed in the listing at one time. Our showing service, ShowingTime, is facilitating these rules by not allowing overlapping showings to be set.

As a listing agent, it is my responsibility to sanitize a home between showings, which I do by using Clorox wipes on all hard surfaces that visitors might touch,

Price Reduced on Ranch Home Near Green Mtn. This home at 1957 S. Taft Street is a sturdy brick home within a mile of two Green Mountain trailheads and even closer (150 yards) to a trail in Hutchinson Park.

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such as door handles and light switches.

I leave most doors, including closet doors, open or ajar, so that touching them is also minimized. If the home is not vacant, sellers can perform these sanitizing functions themselves.

Buyers and their clients are asked to wear face masks and gloves and to wear booties, which they’re asked to take with them when they leave. By following these guidelines, agents and their clients can feel safer than, say, at a supermarket.

If you’re like me (or your neighbors), you like to know when homes in your neighbohood are listed, when they go under contract and what they sell for.

Golden Real Estate offers a free “Neighborhood Alert” that gets you that information in real time.

What we do is send you the same MLS alerts that buyers get for free, but we are able to target your own neighborhood or subdivision. This is the best way — better than Zillow “zestimates” — to know how the value of your own home may be changing from year to year.

If the idea of getting this information appeals to you, join the 50 or more other readers who are getting Neighborhood Alerts from Golden Real Estate. It

doesn’t matter where in Jefferson County your home is. Just tell us the boundaries of the area you’re interested in monitoring, and we’ll set it up for you.

And it doesn’t have to be your own neighborhood. If you an interest in any other metro Denver neighborhood, we can help you keep abreast of the listing activity there, too!

Send your request to me, Jim Smith, at Jim@GoldenRealEstate.com. I’ll set it up for you and send you your first neighborhood alert within a day or two.

Thereafter, you’ll get an email alert whenever there is a new or changed listing matching your search criteria — just like buyers get when a home for sale matches their search criteria!

We Can Help You Track Home Prices in Your Area

If Home Prices Fall by July 1, It Will Lower Taxes

We’re all looking for silver linings, so here’s one you probably haven’t thought of.

In Colorado, property taxes are based on what your home might have sold for on June 30th of every even numbered year. County assessors are required by the state constitution to estimate what your home could have sold for on that date based on what comparable homes sold for during the 24 months leading up to that date. Using computer programs, their software “ages” each sale to come up with a value as of June 30, 2020.

Thus, if a home comparable to yours sold for, say, $500,000 on December 31,

2019, the computer figures out how home prices in your area, on average, changed from Dec. 31st to June 30th in order to come up with an “aged” value to use in valuing your home on that date.

Therefore, if, as some experts suggest, home prices drop in May and June of this year, that $500,000 comp may have a valuation for assessment purposes of less than that on June 30, 2020.

In conclusion, if we have a dip in home values by the end of June, but the values recover in 2021 and 2022, as the same experts suggest, your property tax bill may be lower for the next two years as the result of that temporary dip.

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4 Lakewood Sentinel

May 7, 2020M

Lakewood grant program could help nonprofit organizations City council approved the program on first reading April 27

BY JOSEPH RIOS JRIOS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

The city of Lakewood is one step away from creating a one-time emergency grant program that would assist nonprofit organizations serving Lakewood residents.

The program, known as the COVID-19 Impact Grant Program, was approved by Lakewood City Council on first reading at a virtual April 27 meeting. If passed on second reading, which is set for May 11, Lakewood will allocate $100,000 from its reserves to the program.

The COVID-19 Impact Grant Program will target nonprofit organizations who are working to respond to COVID-19 related impacts affecting the Lakewood community, if passed on second reading.

“These are taxpayer dollars. It’s the community’s money, and I think we should put the community’s money to work for the community during these times as quickly as we can,” said Lakewood City Councilmember Dana Gutwein.

To be eligible for the grant, Lakewood nonprofits must have a principal place of business in Jefferson

County, be registered as a nonprofit with the Colorado Secretary of State, have been in operation continuously for at least three years and must be able to spend any funds granted within two years.

Grants from the program will only be considered for the purchase of goods and supplies or to assist with provision of services, Lakewood documents read.

Services and purchases of goods must be used for relief for Lakewood residents. Nonprofits who apply for the grant will be judged on if they have clear goals and impact measures and can show that Lakewood residents will receive services or goods through the grant funds.

“This is the kind of money that can bring some immediate relief that may not come very quickly with a bureaucratic state or bureaucratic federal government that is taking a while to get money to some of these resources,” said Lakewood City Councilmember Jacob LaBure.

Nonprofits teaming up It was only two months ago when the Gold Crown Foundation’s facility was filled with children who took part in the nonprofit’s free after-school learning programs.

At that same time, the sound of basketballs being dribbled up and down Gold Crown’s basketball courts could be heard loud and clear in its Lakewood headquarters.

MORE INFO More about the Gold Crown Foundation and its partnership with local food service providers at: www.goldcrownfoundation.com/ But since COVID-19 changed life at Gold Crown, a different sound has taken over the nonprofit’s basketball courts — the sound of residents packing food.

Gold Crown, which offers youth sports and education focused programs, has teamed up with Jeffco Eats, a Lakewood based organization that provides free food to children in Lakewood, Wheat Ridge, Edgewater and Arvada.

Gold Crown’s fieldhouse is being used as a storage and distribution center for Jeffco Eats where bags of food are being packed weekly and given to families in need.

“I guess a way to put it is it starts with our philosophy of what more can we do,” said Bill Hanzlik, co-founder of Gold Crown.

Hanzlik said the two nonprofits pack around 1,200 to 1,300 bags of food a week. That food is then distributed through effco Public Schools to children for the weekend and to seniors who live in Section 8 Housing. Children 18 years and younger can pick up breakfast and lunch from those hubs for free.

Barb Moore, executive director of Jeffco Eats, said the partnership with

Gold Crown was a godsend and has allowed for her volunteers to stay six feet apart from each other when packing food.

“We hope to continue this collaboration because there is a community impact side. (Gold Crown has) community partners, we have community partners, and the more community partners collaborate, the more we can lessen suffering,” said Moore.

Hanzlik was appointed as a Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army in 2019, so he has been able to arrange for 15 to 20 soldiers to help pack up food with Jeffco Eats. “(The soldiers) are fantastic. The army is not only big about serving our country, but they want to give back,” he said.

On Tuesdays, Gold Crown provides perishable food like milk, yogurt and eggs to familie. The nonprofit also provides $50 King Soopers gift cards to families weekly.

“We are in the food distribution business now,” said Hanzlik.

Gold Crown revenue has been hurt by the pandemic, but Hanzlik says the nonprofit has applied for grants, and it can currently stay in business for a year.

“We don’t have the revenue that we had coming in off our sports programs. We’re still paying salaries (to Gold Crown employees), but we have been smart,” said Hanzlik. “We operate as a business, we’re not going to be hand to mouth.”

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Lakewood Sentinel 5

May 7, 2020

Grammy’s goodies serves up 2,000 sandwiches to first responders Wheat Ridge restaurant had been saving tips to pay for the sandwiches

BY PAUL ALBANI-BURGIO PALBANIBURGIO@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the owners of the pizza and baked goods spot Grammy’s Italian rGoodies in Wheat Ridge, were overcome with fear.

“When all the (government) orders came down we were afraid to go under,” said Vickie Corder, who owns the business with her husband. “We were just terrified because we weren’t going to have anybody in the restaurant and all of the outdoor events were going to be canceled and we are pretty active with those.”

But Vickie said something wonderful began to happen when she drove into work the day after Gov. Jared Polis announced that he was putting an eight-week halt to dine-in eating.

“A miracle happened and the phone started ringing and the community has kept us very much afloat,” said Corder. “All of my help is here and they are all making their full wages and getting all of their hours and providing for their family and then the cherry on top is the tips have been

A Wheat Ridge police officer poses with two staff members at Lutheran Medical Center after delivering boxes of Italian sausage and pepper sandwiches from Grammy’s Italian Goodies to them at the hospital in Wheat Ridge.

COURTESY PHOTO phenomenal.”

Vickie and her staff were so thankful for the unexpected outpouring of support that they decided that rather than keep the tip money, they would use it to pay for Italian sausage and pepper sandwiches and chips to give

to first to first-responders.

But Vickie soon realized, however, that she had perhaps bitten off more than she could chew and had no idea how she would actually go about distributing the sandwiches to those responders.

“So I did what everybody does when they are trouble,” said Vickie. “I called the cops.”

Denver Police, Wheat Ridge Police and 12 other departments ultimately agreed to not only deliver the meals to their stations but also deliver them to other groups of first responders, including hospitals and ambulance services.

On Sunday, May 3, officers from those agencies rolled up to Grammy’s restaurant and bakery in Wheat Ridge to pick up boxes containing the sandwiches and chips.

“I had some heavily-armed delivery men,” Vickie said. “It was pretty cool.”

In total, Grammy’s staff cooked up 600 pounds of sausage and peppers to make the 2000 sandwiches that were delivered.

“All of their cars lined up and they were all happy,” said Vickie. “I think it was kind of nice for them to be honored and they sure did me a favor delivering everything.”

The Wheat Ridge Police department was one of many local police departments to express their gratitude on Facebook. Their post read: “Chief Murtha and days and swing shift officers sure enjoyed the sandwiches today from Grammy’s Italian Goodies. Lutheran Medical Center got a delivery from Grammy’s from our WRPD chief as well. It was a pretty delicious day. Thanks again owner Vickie Corder and family!”

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6 Lakewood Sentinel

May 7, 2020M

Jeffco Hispanics hit harder by COVID-19

BY JOSEPH RIOS JRIOS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

During the week of April 20, 48-year-old Arvada resident Shannon Bonilla began to exhibit symptoms of COVID-19: shortness of breath when she talked, a cough and nonstop congestion.

She didn’t think anything of her symptoms until her children expressed their concerns about her health, prompting her to call her doctor. On the morning of April 25, Bonilla was tested for the virus. The next day, her doctor called to confirm that she has tested positive.

“God, I started to cry,” said Bonilla.

“I take care of my mom who is 70. My three-year-old nephew was here. My daughter lives with me, and her boyfriend was here. My cousin was here.

Everyone was pretty much exposed, and right now, there is a ton of fear. I feel really guilty.”

“I’m stuck in my room, and I just have a lonely feeling. You start to think about what could happen if it were to get worse,” she added. “You’re only going to be alone, and I see things about people dying alone. People think this is fake, but it’s not. It’s really scary.”

Bonilla is one of 257 Hispanics in Jefferson County who has had COVID-19. Hispanics make up only 15.5% of the county’s population — but according to data from Jeffco Public Health, the ethnic group accounts for 21.2% of the 1,394 “closed cases” of COVID-19 in Jeffco as of May 4.

Closed cases mean that either a Jeffco Public Health case investigator has been able to contact the resident who had the virus and interview them, multiple attempts were made without contact, or cases were identified through long-term care outbreaks which do not require direct follow-up, according to Ashley Sever, a spokesperson for Jeffco Public Health.

Closed cases were used for this story rather than all cases as the health department is still investigating, or cases where ethnicity was not listed.

There have been 1,518 total cases of COVID-19 in Jefferson County as of May 4.

There is also a slight disparity

COUNTY CASES For more on the latest number of cases, locations, and deaths due to COVID-19, go to www.jeffco.us/4007/COVID-19-CaseSummary to consider a good diet. In food deserts, there are a lot of places that people are not accustomed to eating fresh food and things that they ought to be eating,” said Castillo. “They eat what is there. That’s a function of poverty, and poverty leads to all these other issues.”

“Poor people in general have poor diets because they haven’t had opportunities to reach the American Dream, and therefore, that translates to racism and economics all coming together. They have a higher rate of the virus because of these destructive forces,” he added.

COVID-19 cases by ethnicity in Jefferson County. Numbers show a disparity between the percentage of population and percentage of cases among Jefferson County Hispanics.

COURTESY OF JEFFCO PUBLIC HEALTH in percentage of population and percentage of cases among Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in Jefferson County. Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders make up 0.2% of Jefferson County’s population but account for 0.4% of the county’s COVID-19 cases.

State data also paints an image of disparity between the Hispanic population and percentage of Hispanic COVID-19 cases. Hispanics account for 28.1% of COVID-19 cases in Colorado.

But 2018 U.S. Census Bureau data says Hispanics make up 21.7% of Colorado’s population.

Dr. Ramon Del Castillo, who served as chair of Metropolitan State University of Denver’s Chicana/o Studies Department for 12 years, pointed to preexisting conditions that have historically affected some Hispanic communities like high blood pressure and diabetes as reasons for why the ethnic group is seeing a high number of COVID-19 cases.

Data from Jeffco Public Health shows that between 20 to 30% of His-

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panics in the county have high blood pressure while 7% of Hispanics age 18 years and older in the county suffer from diabetes — the highest of any ethnic group in Jefferson County.

Early findings suggest that elderly residents who suffer from high blood pressure have a greater risk of getting the virus, according to the American Heart Association. Residents who have high blood pressure, regardless of age, could experience severe complications from COVID-19, the American Heart Association says.

Residents who have diabetes are not more likely to get COVID-19 than the general population, according to the American Diabetes Association — but those who do have diabetes have a higher chance of experiencing serious complications from the virus.

“Preexisting conditions have been part of our history here in society.

What the pandemic did was highlight what we have been infected with,” said Castillo. “There are a lot of things happening right now with the virus that are specific and more impactful to people of colored communities, and in particular, Latinos.”

Castillo pointed to food deserts as another reason for high COVID-19 cases in Hispanics while Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said at an April 13 news conference that diet could be relevant to the disparity between the percentage of population and percentage of virus cases in minorities.

Food deserts are areas where access to affordable and nutritious food is limited because of a lack of grocery stores in a suitable traveling distance.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that in all but very dense urban areas, the higher the percentage of minority population, the more likely the area is to be a food desert.

“That predisposes you to any virus that is present — the idea of your body not being able to absorb nutrients and all the things that are healthy

Providing a helping hand Patty Grado said she knows several people who have serious health conditions and don’t get help because they have been rejected due to financial reasons or because they are undocumented immigrants.

“People who don’t have documents and have serious health cases are afraid to expose their case, because they don’t know what consequences that exposure will have on their private lives or health. They live in a constant state of stress because they don’t have a way to get resources or help for those severe illnesses,” she said.

Grado works as a navigator for Adelante Jeffco, a network of community members and organizations that includes Jeffco Public Health. The organization works to identify opportunities and strategies to make services for Latinos and Hispanics more effective and culturally relevant. Adelante Jeffco also plays a role in connecting Latino and Hispanic families to health services — particularly for those who don’t speak English.

Since April 9, Adelante Jeffco has received more than 400 calls from residents who are looking to be connected to organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Paulina Erices, co-coordinator for the organization.

“People are calling us because they trust us, and that is a huge factor in being successful,” she said.

Erices said there is more to serving Latino and Hispanic communities than just providing language interpreters. She said it is important for those who are providing services to understand the cultural aspects of the people they are serving.

Erices said that many Latinos may not have an informed way to make a decision on health. She noted that many people in the Latino community work full time, are paid hourly and are not getting benefits like health care.

“In terms of systems, there is a lot of oppression against people who may work low income jobs. The system itself has so many inequities,” said Erices. “There are historic gaps, even with information. The pandemic is really just elevating or helping to find the impact of (inequity).”

May 7, 2020

Lakewood Sentinel 7

8 Lakewood Sentinel

May 7, 2020M

Hell of a pandemic — COVID-19 affects School of Mines School has not yet made a decision about when students will return to campus

BY PAUL ALBANI-BURGIO PALBANIBURGIO@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

For Colorado School of Mines freshman Paul Slayback, the week before Spring Break was an unexpected whirlwind.

On Tuesday, March 9, he was sitting in class, where a professor told students classes would likely continue as usual through Spring Break, before Mines might have to make alternative arrangements for classes due to COVID-19. But the very next night, Slayback was eating dinner when he received an email that all classes would be moving online.

The next day brought even more news as Slayback was notified all students who could leave campus should do so. Finally, that Friday, the school informed its students that the suggestion to leave campus, had turned into an order.

“It was all very fast,” said Slayback.

“That Monday we were questioning if Mines would actually shut down and by Friday it had.”

Now, Slayback does not yet know when he will return to campus as the school, which has also announced its first session of summer classes will take place online, has not yet made a decision about when students will return to campus.

What is becoming clearer, however, is that Slayback and his fellow students will be returning to a university where many aspects of campus life will have been significantly altered

by COVID-19 and its fallout.

Joy Brandt

Preparing for impact on enrollment Peter Han, the Chief of Staff in the President’s Office at Mines, has also been serving as the leader of the school’s COVID-19 emergency response. He said that while COVID-19 is affecting everything from the school’s finances to its athletic teams, one of the major impacts the school

Where the School of Mines “M” is usually seen, a heart made of red lights shines each night from Lookout Mountain in Golden. The heart illuminates in support of medical professionals during the COVID19 pandemic.

SHANNA MAXCY is currently monitoring is the one it could have on next year’s enrollment.

So far, commitments for the 2020 freshman class had been on track to be where the school wanted them to be, which was down slightly from 2019’s larger-than-expected freshman class. However, the deadline to notify the school of a commitment to enroll is not until May 1, and the school has extended that deadline in the wake of the virus.

“We know that a lot of families even if they made a deposit, their decision may hinge upon what happens in the fall (with COVID-19),” said Han. “And so regardless of what plans are being made now, we know that there could be an impact on enrollment depending on what happens with the COVID-19 situation.”

Han said the school is trying not to make the decision about whether students will return to campus in the fall “until we have to.” However, staff are already evaluating the best way to proceed based on a variety of possible situations and has developed 10 contingency plans for the fall based on them. Those plans range from

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A runner runs on an otherwise empty Colorado School of Mines campus.

PAUL ALBANI-BURGIO

holding classes as normal, which he said is “probably unrealistic,” to looking at ways to lessen the density of classes, such as offering additional classes on weekends or dividing the semester into blocks with students spending time in classrooms during one block and hands-on lab activities in another.

“We’re trying to get really as creative as possible about how we could teach students on campus,” he said. “But obviously we also have to be prepared for remote learning to continue in the fall and so we’ll be spending a lot of time this summer trying to improve what we do with remote learning.”

Closed dorms means a $3 million budget hit But just as the school’s staff is having to prepare for how to hold classes in an uncertain environment, they are also starting to grapple with the impact COVID-19 could have on the school’s budget.

Han said the school has already experienced several losses of revenue from COVID-19, including a “significant” one of about $3 million when it made the decision to refund students for the unused portions of their hous-

ing and dining contracts. Being unable to host events and other activities has also cost the school revenue.

But the move to online learning has also saved the school money in reduced operating costs and other expenses and so far the school has been able to cut enough expenses to balance its budget.

However, the situation will ultimately depend on what happens with next year’s enrollment and the school is making plans for potential impacts, as well as the potential cuts to the school’s state funding that become likely whenever the state falls on hard times.

While the total effect of COVID-19 on Mines won’t become evident until at least the fall and probably well beyond that, the situation is already having a major impact on students who are missing out on not only time on campus, but also opportunities for internships and even employment.

That’s been the case in the school’s Petroleum Engineering department as some students have seen internship offers rescinded though others are still proceeding, offer with the internship to now be conducted virtually. Some seniors have also seen job offers rescinded as the oil industry has taken a tumble, although Department Head Jennifer L. Miskimins said there has been less of that than she might have expected given the situation.

But despite the challenging times the oil industry is experiencing, Miskimins said she remains optimistic about her student’s futures and is encouraging them to be the same.

“Our industry is a cyclical industry and I try to make sure our students that it’s a great career but there’s going to be some ups and downs,” she said. “But the other thing is Mines is a phenomenally good school with a good reputation and so while it might take a little longer to get a job in the industry right now you will get one if you want to.”

Lakewood Sentinel 9

May 7, 2020

What $60 milllion in budget cuts Have a talk with your teen about mental could mean for Jeffco students health.

District employees talk effects, solutions to budget crisis

BY CASEY VAN DIVIER CVANDIVIER@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Less than four months from next school year, Jeffco has begun brainstorming ways learning might change to protect staff and students from a second wave of the coronavirus. While exact changes are still up in the air, Superintendent Jason Glass said in an April 23 Facebook Live video that the district is looking at a blend of remote and in-person learning next semester.

Necessary safety measures like this are bound to require more staff, teachers believe, only adding to widespread uncertainty in a time when the district has not only announced that the creation of new positions is unlikely, but pay cuts or layoffs could be necessary to balance next year’s budget.

“Trying to increase a class size just doesn’t make sense for social distancing or their mental health,” said Jon Cefkin, first-grade teacher at Lukas Elementary in Westminster. “It doesn’t mesh with cutting budgets.”

The same is true of support professionals, said Lara Center, president of support professionals’ union JESPA. Depending on what social distancing and cleaning measures are put in place, the district may need to hire more support staff including bus drivers and custodians, she said.

“We’re going to need more support staff, not less,” Center said. “And our bones are picked clean; almost all of the ESP (education support professionals) groups are running negative.

There’s nowhere else to cut.”

Cuts on the horizon Jeffco has been finding itself in a grimmer and grimmer budget reality.

In early April, the financial team expected the district would need to make just about $2 million in cuts. As of the April 29 school board study session, chief financial officer Kathleen Askelson said based on reports from the state, the financial team is planning to build a budget factoring in over $60 million in cuts, which the board will discuss for the first time on May 7.

The budget must be adopted by the end of June and for now, the board plans to hold a meeting to adopt the budget June 4. The $60 million number is highly subject to change before then, as the state won’t finalize its budget until the end of May. For now, the district is asking the community to weigh in on upcoming cuts, with options including pay cuts, layoffs, district and school programming cuts, furlough days, school closures and using a possible $20 million from the district’s reserves.

For Ernest Garibay, a math teacher at Standley Lake High School, one worry is that many of these op-

tions “will mostly affect our highest impacted students first” including minority, low-income, special education and English language learning students, he said.

In the case of layoffs, “the first thing that jumps to my mind is larger class sizes. It’s going to be much harder to get students individualized attention,” Garibay said. Further, “case loads for counselors, ESL specialists and special ed (teachers) are really high.

They’re already trying to keep their head above water.”

He believes cuts that reduce the number of elective opportunities would also have a noticeable negative impact.

“There are definitely students who only come because they can go to music, they can go to art class, they can go to drama,” he said.

For teachers like Garibay and Jefferson Jr/Sr High teacher Rhiannon Wenning, the idea of pay cuts is also a concern.

“We’re still suffering from the 2008 recession; I was here during that and I’m still hurting,” Wenning said. “I can barely make it now as a 20-year veteran teacher with two master’s degrees, so I can imagine how are probationary teachers are doing.”

Possible priorities With the district’s deadline to approve the budget getting closer, teachers’ union JCEA and JESPA have been working closely together to discuss with the district what they would like to see in the weeks ahead.

While the groups aim to stay realistic about how much the district can do, they also plan to ask that “cuts are kept as far away from our classrooms as possible,” said Brooke Williams, recently elected JCEA president who will officially begin serving this summer.

The groups are also pushing for more extensive surveying of the community on budget values and additional meetings between the district and stakeholders.

“I’d like to see a budget presentation with all of the employee associations to go through (the budget) line by line and then look back at that survey,” Williams said.

As of April 29, the district had planned several methods to gather input, including an upcoming community survey, teacher advisory committee and student town hall.

Meanwhile, when it comes to the associations’ specific priorities, Center said that while union members need more information before outlining what they’d like to see, one idea could be to get rid of the least necessary positions while transitional those employees into other unfilled positions, saving money and preventing job loss.

Cefkin added that for many JCEA members, many options may be painful but more preferable than a districtwide pay cut.

SEE STUDENTS, P11

Mental health is a state of wellbeing in our thoughts, emotions and behaviors. All of us have good days and bad days, and adults can let the youth in their lives know they are there for them.

Ask your teen open-ended questions, like, “How can I be there for you?,” or “What do you wish I understood about you?” Then listen openly to what they say.

The best way to show your teen you care?

Be there.

Jefferson County Communities That Care

10 Lakewood Sentinel

May 7, 2020M

Masks made mandatory among multiple municipalities Wheat Ridge, Boulder, Denver among places you now must wear a mask in a ‘community setting’

MASK MANDATES Communities with face mask orders: Denver Wheat Ridge Larimer County Routt County Boulder Aspen Glenwood Springs

BY PAUL ALBANI-BURGIO PALBANIBURGIO@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Communities considering orders: Lone Tree Longmont

Although public health officials once declared face masks unnecessary for healthy people during the COVID-19 epidemic, the messaging has strongly changed course in recent weeks with the CDC now recommending people wear a cloth face covering whenever they are in a “community setting.”

Now, Denver-area communities are increasingly taking things a step further than that guidance by implementing orders requiring that any customers entering certain businesses wear a mask in a bid to protect both customers and employees from disease.

talking about how people can count on folks in Wheat Ridge to keep them safe,” Scheck said.

Customers in masks shop at a King Soopers in Wheat Ridge. restaurants offering “take-out.”

“We realize this is more restrictive than any state-issued stay at home order or other public health order; however, the intent is to continue to control the spread of COVID-19 as we begin to reopen businesses,” Patrick Goff, Wheat Ridge’s City Manager, said in a press release.

That order, which took effect on April 27, stipulated that those who violated the order could be prosecuted for a misdemeanor. But then, during

Wheat Ridge requiring masks in essential businesses Wheat Ridge became the first city in the metro area to do so on April 22 when city manager Patrick Goff issued a new order requiring anyone entering an essential business as defined by the state’s current public health order wear a face mask. Those businesses include grocery stores, pharmacies, convenience stores and

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its April 27 meeting, the Wheat Ridge city council unanimously passed a resolution that removed the possibility of prosecution, replacing it with language urging residents to voluntarily cooperate with the order.

That move came after Wheat Ridge Police Chief Chris Murtha told the council Wheat Ridge police had been inundated with calls related to the order and explained that his department had previously found success enforcing other orders related to COVID-19, such as the state stay-at-home order, through education rather than enforcement.

He suggested a similar approach could be effective with the mask order, with officers still being able to issue citations for trespassing to those not wearing masks at the discretion of business owners similar to how police can be called to enforce “no shirt, no service” requirements at businesses under trespassing laws.

“If a business doesn’t want you to be in there because they feel its unsafe for their employees we will certainly come and advise you,” Murtha said.

“We will seek voluntary compliance; we will ask you to come back when you have a mask. We have already done that with several times with complete compliance.”

The council also discussed concerns expressed by business owners who felt the order was leading to a decrease in business because shoppers coming from outside of Wheat Ridge might not know about the order to wear a mask or simply be discouraged by the need to do so. To address that issue, Goff said the city was in the process of acquiring masks that would be given to local businesses for customers to use.

Allison Scheck, the city’s Administrative Services Director, also argued that the ordinance could also have the effect of attracting customers to Wheat Ridge from outside the community and that the city should promote the mask requirement as a positive.

“I’ve certainly heard from people who have said `I am shopping in Wheat Ridge now’ so I think there is something to be said about really

Other communities following suit Now other Front Range communities appear to be following Wheat Ridge’s lead, with the city of Boulder passing its own order requiring face masks be worn in any portion of a business where the public is served just one day after Wheat Ridge passed its revised order.

In the days that followed, members of the Lone Tree and Longmont city councils also discussed requiring face masks to be worn in cities. On May 1, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock also announced a public health order requiring people to wear face coverings while inside of or waiting to enter certain locations, including retail or commercial business, bus stops and facilities offering health care services.

“When we’re at the grocery store, work or any other business, my face covering protects you and your face covering protects me,” Mayor Hancock said. “The virus isn’t going away any time soon. By wearing a face covering, you’re doing your part to reduce the spread of infections and keep everyone safer.”

On May 4, Denver International Airport announced that, in accordance with the mayor’s order, all DIA visitors. employees and passengers will be required to wear face coverings while at the airport until further notice.

However, not all government officials are viewing mask requirements as a good fit for their communities. Christine Billings, the incident commander for Jefferson County’s COVID-19 response, told Colorado Community Media is strongly encouraging that anyone over two wear a mask when they go out (masks are considered unsafe for children under 2) said she did not think Jefferson County Public Health would consider a public health order.

“A public health order means that there is an enforcement piece with that,” Billings said. “I don’t think there would be anything coming requiring a mask for everybody.”

For now, the decision of whether to require residents will likely remain up to municipalities and counties as the state does not have any mask order in place.

However, Gov. Jared Polis did issue an executive order requiring all essential workers to wear masks on April 17 and has repeatedly encouraged Coloradoans to wear masks whenever they leave the house in press briefings.

Lakewood Sentinel 11

May 7, 2020

Testing expanded for health workers, first responders State health department, Kaiser team up to increase capacity STAFF REPORT

COVID-19 testing of symptomatic health care workers and first responders has been increased through a partnership with Kaiser Permanente and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

According to a news release, Kaiser is testing both members and nonmembers who have been deemed essential to public welfare who have been referred by the state health department.

Kaiser has provided testing at eight tent site locations across the Front Range for non-member health care workers and first responders since March 27. It recently announced the ability to increase testing capacity at each location for non-members.

Testing is available by appointment

only and is intended for symptomatic individuals.

Testing locations can be found at the Kaiser Permanente Loveland, Rock Creek (in Lafayette), Westminster, Lakewood, Aurora Centrepoint, Lone Tree, Parkside (in Colorado Springs), and Acero (in Pueblo) medical offices in Colorado.

Hours of operation for the eight tents are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Rock Creek, Westminster, and Acero tents are not open on weekends.

Health care workers and first responders from any part of the state who are not members of Kaiser Permanente must contact the state health department at 303-692-2700 for initial screening. The department will coordinate appointments for individuals who meet testing criteria.

All samples will be processed by the department state lab, and results will be reported directly to each individual.

Kaiser Permanente members experiencing COVID-19 symptoms can kp.org/coronavirus or call our 24/7 advice line at 303-338-4545 or 1-800-2181059 (TTY 711).

Miners Alley Playhouse launches on-demand shows Audiences can virtually watch children’s theater production of ‘The Frog Prince’ STAFF REPORT

The stay-at-home order and safer-athome guidelines have shuttered Miners Alley Playhouse, but the theater has been working behind the scenes to bring audiences performances.

Miners Alley Playhouse launched its on-demand performances April 24

STUDENTS FROM PAGE 9

“Things are still on the table, but I think pay cuts are a more difficult thing to sell that maybe a furlough day,” he said.

Another option might be to absorb some of the cuts through central administration pay cuts, Wenning proposed. At the April 29 study session, Glass said the pay for those positions account for around $7.5 million in total.

with last summer’s Miners Alley Children’s Theatre production of “The Frog Prince.” The video is courtesy of Ray Bailey TV. The performance can be accessed by registering at https://minersalley. com/shows/on-demand-performances.

Once registered, patrons will receive a link and password to view the video on Vimeo. The link will be valid through May 31.

The video link is provided at no cost to those who register. However, donations are welcome. To donate to the theater without registering for the virtual performance, go to https:// ci.ovationtix.com/35098/store/donations.

Even larger-scale solutions are also on teachers’ minds, with Wenning and Garibay encouraging residents to help get Initiative 271 on the 2020 ballot.

The initiative would lower taxes for an estimated 95% of taxpayers but raise taxes for residents with the highest income, generating new money for education.

In the meantime, with cuts inevitable next year, “teachers will rise to the occasion to do everything they can to support our students going forward,” Garibay said. “We know what our kids’ needs are, and we are always that frontline for students.”

Activity book for students to focus on financial literacy STAFF REPORT

Economic Literacy Colorado has partnered with Bellco Credit Union to create an activity book for elementary students so they can further the conversation about financial literacy with their parents and family members.

National Financial Literacy Month was recognized in April to focus on the importance of financial literacy and to teach Americans and children how to establish and maintain healthy budgets.

The booklet, titled “FUNancial $marts,” is available online, and it will also be distributed through Bellco Credit Union locations and though its community partners.

The book’s collaborative lessons of counting money, budgeting and creating a business are intended

to encourage Colorado youths to go down the right path to making educated financial choices.

To access the booklet, visit www. bellco.org/funancialsmarts.

To further support teachers and families who are seeking financial literacy tools, Economic Literacy Colorado has compiled a wide variety of resources on its website.

Educators who are teaching remotely will find resources that include webinars, lessons, articles, and recommendations for online engagement systems and presentation tools. For kindergarten to 12th-grade students and their parents, Economic Literacy Colorado offers age-appropriate financial literacy program resources to support at-home learning about personal financial responsibility.

PUBLIC NOTICE The Army National Guard Invites Your Comments on the Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis for the Camp George West – Priority 1 Area Neighborhoods, Jefferson County, Colorado As part of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Military Munitions Response Program (MMRP), the United States Army National Guard invites the public to review and comment on the Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis (EE/CA) for the Non Time-Critical Removal Action (NTCRA) at the Non-Department of Defense (DoD), Non-Operational Defense Sites (NDNODS) Camp George West – Priority 1 Area Neighborhoods located in Jefferson County, Colorado. The Priority 1 Area Neighborhoods include approximately 25.5 acres within the Green Mountain Estates in Lakewood and 17.63 acres within the Mesa View Estates in Golden. The ARNG is the lead agency responsible for environmental investigations and cleanup activities of this site under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is a supporting agency in the decision-making process.

The EE/CA recommends the removal of munitions and explosives of concern (MEC) and/or material potentially presenting an explosive hazard (MPPEH), should any be present, from the Priority 1 Area Neighborhoods to provide effective, long-term protection of human health and the environment. CDPHE concurs with the recommendation.

We invite your questions and comments on the EE/CA during the public comment period from 3 May 2020 – 2 June 2020. The EE/CA is available online at: www.Lakewood.org/meetings or www.Colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/camp-george-west-green-mountain. Questions and/or comments for the Camp George West EE/CA should be directed to the contact names below no later than 2 June 2020. Please use the same contacts if you are interested in a public meeting for the Camp George West – Priority 1 Area Neighborhoods.

Telephone or Email:

Letter:

John B. Haines, PG Contractor CSU-CEMML 703-314-6135 john.b.haines.ctr@mail.mil

Weston Solutions, Inc. Attn: Tim Trego 1435 Garrison St. Ste 100 Lakewood, Co 80215

12 Lakewood Sentinel

LOCAL

May 7, 2020M

VOICES

Our constraints open new possibilities ALCHEMY

Andrea Doray

A

re you familiar with Oulipo? I wasn’t, until I joined an online Oulipo poetry class. Oulipo, in French, (pronounced oo-LEE-poe) stands for Ouvroir de littérature potentielle, which roughly translates into workshop of potential literature.

Founded in 1960 by French mathematician Francois de Lionnais and writer Raymond Queneau, Oulipo investigates the possibilities of verse written under a system of structural constraints. Think using only one vowel throughout an entire poem, one that might start like: “We see here, be there / where we feel well.” Okay, no prize winner,

but you get the idea.

Or perhaps you revise a poem you’ve already written, starting with the last line first and moving through to the first line … you would be surprised – I was – by what happens. Or you could revise (or write) a poem by putting all the lines in alphabetical order.

This month, I am completing my book-length poetry manuscript for final draft reading.

Some of the foundational poems are more than 40 years old, and some others are newly minted last month. After the first critique in January, I identified places where I needed new, or seriously revised, material. So I decided to go

Oulipo, to apply the movement’s mathematical procedures, constraints, to my writing.

So far, these attempts have opened that potential, opened up the possibilities. Additionally, when I do lift my head from my manuscript, I realize that, in fact, we are actually living in a world of constraints … constraints that open new possibilities, new potential.

I’ve written in this space about videoconferencing for work, and Zooming or Facetiming with sorely missed friends and loved ones.

Outside, neighbors are meeting neighbors – SEE DORAY, P13

Suggestions on how we get back to normal gracefully

Y

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Emerging emergency?

What is a State of Emergency? I have searched the Colorado State Constitution and cannot find any criteria or guidelines. Seems it is at the discretion of the Governor.

What, you may ask was the exact “State of Emergency” to prompt Governor Polis to declare one in Colorado on 3/10/20? Fifteen cases of COVID. Reflect on that a few moments.

Some will say, Governor Polis did it solely to tap into emergency funds. However, declaring a State of Emergency also gives him the power to: order the isolation or quarantine of people or property; suspend state laws; commandeer private property; suspend or limit the sale of alcohol, firearms and explosives; and call out the state’s military, to name a few.

Within15 days of declaring the emergency, Governor Polis shut down schools, closed ski resorts,

A publication of

Call first: 14143 Denver West Pkwy., Suite 100, Golden 80401, 303-566-4100 Mailing Address: 750 W. Hampden Ave., Suite 225 Englewood, CO 80110 Phone: 303-566-4100 Web: LakewoodSentinel.com To subscribe call 303-566-4100

banned restaurants and bars from in-service dining, ordered Coloradans to stay-at-home and shuttered (government determined) “nonessential” businesses for at least a month.

All of these “orders” are mandatory laws. If violated, a person can be fined $1,000, in addition to 1 year in jail. To date, Colorado has seen at least two arrests: Three unrelated men gathering in an apartment and a man playing in a park with his daughter.

The Governor has stripped us of our basic human rights for a virus that causes life threatening symptoms in 5% of those infected. This is a very dangerous precedent. That should scare the heck out of Coloradans, not COVID. Deb Eigenbrod, Littleton SEE LETTERS, P17

ou want to know how desperate Americans are for “normal?” Some 55 million of us watched the NFL draft last weekend, including me. Watching an HITTING event that had no HOME sport—no ball, no referee, no whistle, no scoreboard. There was drama, to be sure, and, thanks to the brilliant production staff at ESPN, ABC, and the NFL network, there were plenty of highlights of actual sporting events.

Michael Alcorn But there was not an actual sporting event. In fact, more people watched this non-sporting event than watched the 2019 NBA Championships, the Stanley Cup Finals, and the World Series. Combined.

Man, I get it. The desire for things to start to be normal is overwhelming. I want to go out for a drink on Friday night, come home to watch the Rockies lose, go to church on Sunday and make music with my students on Monday morning. I want to watch my son make a brilliant pass to a teammate for a critical soccer goal, and get together with my friends for band practice on Thursday night.

We’ll get there. We will. But, two things first: One, if “normal” means dinners on the fly again with nobody sitting in the same room, count me out. I don’t

want that. If “normal” is bumper to bumper traffic on Ward Road as all of Arvada is trying to get to nowhere important in Lakewood by three minutes ago, then count me out. If normal is kids feeling isolated and alone and unimportant — while in the midst of 2,000 of their peers — then count me out. Or taking nurses for granted, or ignoring the elderly in our population, or deifying athletes and entertainers … count me out.

We, as a society, have done a really good job, so far, of recognizing the hidden blessings in this whole pandemic “season.” We have taken the time and made the effort to emphasize what is important in the community and try to latch on to it and share it. I know we’re all getting a little antsy, but we just have to keep holding on to what matters, and we’ll be fine.

And then, we need to remember what matters and what got us through this time, and celebrate it.

Hold on to it. Carry it forward. Make the community even stronger when we get to the other side.

What can we do to make that happen? Some stray thoughts… High schools should have rolling graduations next Friday, where possible, where graduates do a car parade through their neighborhoods so their incredible achievement can be celebrated. Clancy’s Irish Pub and Malone’s Grill should re-designate July 17 as “St. Patrick’s Day, 2020,”

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Lakewood Sentinel 13

May 7, 2020

This seems like dreams DORAY and weird extremes FROM PAGE 12

D

ickens memorably began “A Tale of Two Cities” with a perfect description of 2020, especially the first twelve words.

It sums up, at least in my lifetime, the current world, where QUIET extraordinarily good DESPERATION people are doing extraordinarily good things, and where extraordinarily bad people are doing extraordinarily bad things.

It seems where there are challenges and tragedies and vulnerabilities, some Craig Marshall of us crawl out from the Grimpen Mire, Smith look around, and seize the opportunity to take advantage of the situation.

I am old enough to know it comes as no surprise.

Ask Sartre.

I am one of the lucky ones. Retired, a safe home to live in, sufficient paper products, and an enviable roommate.

My roommate has no idea what is going on. That helps.

Not much has changed around here.

We just go on fewer car trips.

When was the last time you filled your car’s gas tank?

Half the news is heartwarming and the other half is inconceivable.

Conspiracy theorists blame a U.S. Army reservist and mother of two for starting the pandemic. The false claims about her are spreading like the virus itself.

Lewis Carroll said, “What I tell you three times is true.”

Is there anything worse than being wrongly accused?

I was blamed for things I didn’t do when I was a kid. My sister was an angel and could do no wrong. But if she did, she cruised, because little Craig was seen as an impish lad, more capable of spilling the milk.

Alfred Hitchcock understood the effect false accusations have on some-

one: therefore, his films often featured someone trying to prove his or her innocence.

Best: “North by Northwest,” but also “The 39 Steps,” “The Wrong Man,” “Strangers on a Train,” and “Saboteur.”

I anticipate a 21st-century retelling of “The Grapes of Wrath.” Small business owners who have lost everything and have to find something else to do with their lives.

There will be documentaries and coffee-table books filled with haunting photographs.

And there will be humor. There already has been.

(Some of it, unfortunately, has been unintentional. Take your pick.)

The mystery, of course, is not knowing when it will be safe again to move around and commingle like always.

Some are ready to resume now. Maybe you have noticed the protests and rallies.

A woman in my birth state held up a sign that conjoined the governor’s name with Adolf Hitler’s.

Hand-lettered words beyond comprehension provided the woman with her legacy. No apology accepted.

Television commercials are outdoing themselves with soothing words instead of self-promotions. Nice, isn’t it, not to have someone blasting deep dish car and truck discounts at you?

I look forward to the day when I can go back to doing what I do best: namely, find fault in irrelevancies such as the broken English the newest National Football League millionaires gargled and tweeted when they were drafted.

And Christmas music in November.

And sitting on an airplane next to someone who talks too much. Won’t it feel good to sit on an airplane again?

ESPN and others have been showing replays of football, basketball and baseball games. Stadiums are filled with people. It looks very normal. And it looks very strange.

ALCORN

ing. That means the Arvada Center, the Lakewood Cultural Center, Bear Creek State Park, and the schools are all going to operate “not normal.” It’s even possible that the schools won’t open at all in the fall for in-person instruction. And the roads aren’t getting fixed, either, because the money to fix roads comes from taxes on filling up your car, and that’s not happening much lately. “Normal” is going to be a distinctly relative quality.

But it will happen. It will. Let’s make sure that we get there in a way that we can all be proud of.

FROM PAGE 12

so they can be filled with corned beef and green beer and sociallydistant songs on their biggest day of business of the year. El Tequileno’s and Los Portrancas and Moose Hill Cantina should celebrate “Cinco de Agosto, 2020” to make up their lost festival.

And we should all go there for those celebrations.

But, two, keep your cool, people.

Gotta find ways to be smart, to be flexible, to roll with the punches, because we’re not out of this yet.

Gathering en masse at the Capitol with weapons (Michigan) won’t get us out of this. And even when we are out of this, it’s still not going to be “normal.” The budget cuts are com-

Craig Marshall Smith is an artist, educator and Highlands Ranch resident. He can be reached at craigmarshallsmith@ comcast.net.

Michael Alcorn is a teacher and writer who lives in Arvada with his wife and three children. His new novel, “Charon’s Blade,” is available at Amazon.com, on Kindle, or through MichaelJAlcorn.com.” His opinions are not necessarily those of Colorado Community Media.

or renewing acquaintances – with driveway happy hours, lawn chairs suitably distanced. Yard work has become welcome relief, housecleaning a family pastime.

Out my office window – I am lucky enough to work remotely – I watch moms and dads and kids, together … in the middle of the day. Someone is chipping golf balls, and there’s a household playing rollerblade hockey on the basketball court. Couples stroll by; skateboards, scooters, and bicycles abound.

And dogs. I am the only person in my neighborhood, in all the neighborhoods in all the world, that does not have a dog. At least one dog. I’m almost ashamed to show up for socialbut-distant happy hour without a little black plastic bag or two.

Without our current constraints, I wonder whether so many of us would stop our days and gather to swap stay-

at-home and safer-at-home stories. I wonder if our neighborhood would be so peaceful at night. I wonder if family game night would give way to the endless obligations of lessons and athletics and bowling leagues.

These obligations – which are our choices, really – will be there for us again, although what they’ll actually look like then is anyone’s guess.

But, again, I wonder … can current constraints open up the potential for more of this together time? Would stay-at-home become wanna-be-athome? Will we still gather on Fridays for driveway happy hour?

For myself, I wonder if the Oulipo constraints will open up the potential for my manuscript … and I wonder if there’s time opening up for raising a puppy or adopting a rescue.

Oh, the possibilities!

Andrea Doray is a writer who especially likes the Oulipo constraint that requires each successive line to contradict the one before it. Want to try? Contact Andrea at a.doray@ andreadoray.com.

In Loving Memory Place an Obituary for Your Loved One. Private 303-566-4100 Obituaries@ColoradoCommunityMedia.com

Funeral Homes Visit: www.memoriams.com

14 Lakewood Sentinel

May 7, 2020M

LOCAL

LIFE

Miners Alley brings ‘Frog Prince’ to audiences’ homes

T

Dave Carrigan, of South Metro Fire Rescue, plays his Great Highland Bagpipe every evening as the sun sets in solidarity with pipers around the globe in a movement to spread hope.

IPHOTOS BY NCK PUCKETT

First responders play at dusk amid COVID-19 crisis

BY NICK PUCKETT NPUCKETT@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

A

lone in a field at the edge of the Cottonwood subdivision in Parker, firefighter Dave Carrigan stood tall and stiff has he played his bagpipes.

The sun started to set April 22 at about 7:46 p.m. As sunlight disappeared, Carrigan’s few regular fans gathered to hear him play. A handful of neighbors ventured to the slight overlook at the foot of Carrigan’s driveway. Some driving by on Parker Road across the field to the east pulled off, listening to the notes slice through the droning of passing cars.

Carrigan, a firefighter for South Metro Fire Rescue for 29 years, has marched out to the field bordering his house every evening since March SEE BAGPIPERS, P15

Dave Carrigan has played his bagpipes at dusk every night since the start of the stayat-home orders in Colorado. “It’s to show we’re all in this together and we have each other’s back,” he said.

hrough the month of May, Golden’s Miners Alley Playhouse has embraced the ondemand approach to connect with audiences and its community during the COVID-19 shutdown.

The company launched its new On-Demand Performances series with last summer’s children’s theatre production of “The Frog Prince,” with a video courtesy of Ray Bailey TV. The plan is currently to leave the video available until May 30.

COMING “Our mojo at ATTRACTIONS Miners Alley is completely based on people gathering and having a great experience together as a community,” said Len Matheo, executive/ artistic director at the theater. “This really left us in a Clarke Reader bind. We wanted to start creating content and we had this archived recording of the show to use.”

The performance can be accessed by registering on the Miners’ website at https://minersalley.com/shows/ on-demand-performances/. Once finished registering, viewers will be presented with a link and a password to view the video on Vimeo.

“One of the big challenges we faced was the publishers because it’s really difficult to get the rights to broadcast work online,” Matheo said. “Fortunately, our own Rory Pierce wrote the script, so we were able to make this available.”

The show is free to view, but people are encouraged to donate to keep the theater and its art alive. Miners is working to pay its staff as much as possible and to pay for health insurance, so financial donations and spreading the word about its work are extremely important. Matheo said that as this is Miners’ first foray into this kind of online experience, he’s hoping that it will show publishers that their work can be securely distributed to audiences.

“There are new online resources that show local theaters how to do plays online and deal with things like licenses and public domain,” he added. “We’re working on a lot of different things, but we’re in a holding pattern until we get some kind of guidance on what it looks like for people to gather.”

Looking to the future, Matheo said not only this season’s lineup been affected with cancellations and postponements, but it also has the team rethinking their 2021 season.

SEE READER, P15

Lakewood Sentinel 15

May 7, 2020

BAGPIPERS

“We can’t express our gratitude enough for your cheers, posts, shares and love. When we get through these social distancing steps and back to holding events, we’re looking forward to seeing you all at a big celebration,” the post reads.

West said the Colorado Emerald Society plans on holding a celebration to make up for losing the St. Patrick’s Day parade.

FROM PAGE 14

29, three days after the stay-at-home order began, to play traditional marches and songs until the sun sets.

“It’s to show solidarity not only for everybody who’s fighting the disease, but all our brothers and sisters, firefighters, police officers, paramedics. … They’re kind of taking a beating out there,” Carrigan said. “It’s to show we’re all in this together and we have each other’s back.”

Carrigan is one of many first responders regionwide playing bagpipes at dusk to inspire hope amid the stay-at-home orders and COVID-19 crisis.

First responders throughout Colorado are participating in Pipers for Sundown Solidarity, a movement organized by the Colorado Emerald Society Pipes and Drums Band, a bagpipe band made up of 75 firefighters and police officers throughout the state.

Thousands of pipers play songs from their respective homes at the same time each night as the sun sets in an ongoing effort to encourage strength and resolve in the community.

Jake Auten, firefighter/paramedic, and Lt. Jay Allen of the Castle Rock Fire Department play their bagpipes with the Rock monument in the backdrop.

COURTESY PHOTO

‘Next phases or normalcy’ Mike West, fire chief for Front Range Fire Rescue, is the Pipe Major for the Colorado Emerald Society. He

READER FROM PAGE 14

“We’re looking at smaller plays, which require less licensing,” he said.

“Unlike art centers or galleries that can put their work easily online, what we do is based on interaction. What we’re really doing is testing to see how it works if its an audience that is not live.”

For more information on the production and ways to support the theater, visit www. minersalley.com.

Outdoor activity - visit Standley Lake Park Located in north Arvada/south Westminster, Standley Lake is the metro area’s third-largest reservoir, and the regional park provides buckets of beautiful space for riding, walking,

helped start the pipe band at South Metro Fire in 2002. He resigned from South Metro in June 2019. Front Range Fire covers Johnstown, Milliken, Larimer and Weld counties.

“Our guys and gals are working every day at their police stations and precincts and firehouses dealing with the pandemic face-to-face,” West said.

“It was a great way to wind down from the day spread a little hope to the neighbors and make sure they still know we’re still out there fighting the good fight every day.”

Carrigan does not always deck himself out in his kilt and uniform. He

said he plays because it brings a smile to his neighbor’s faces and connects people when they’re more isolated than ever.

Pipers in the group play every day and play whatever they want, except on Sundays, when the group collectively decides on a single song to play at the same time together.

The Colorado Emerald Society announced on its Facebook page April 24 that members would stop playing bagpipes nightly beginning May 3.

Pipers still play on Sundays “until the state moves to the next phases of normalcy,” the post reads.

fishing and wildlife viewing.

The park is currently open for walkin and drive-in access, and while it’s a popular place for water activities during the hot summer months, those activities are currently prohibited. As someone who lives within a short walk of the park, I can recommend keeping an eye out for raptors (it’s a very popular place for bald eagles), coyotes and foxes, and numerous waterfowl.

Standley Lake is located at 100th Avenue and Simms Street, and there are small parking lots along the south side of West 100th Avenue at Owens Street and at West 86th Parkway and Simms Street. Visit www.cityofwestminster. us/StandleyLakeRegionalPark for details.

Bennington, the 320 Festival is aimed at changing the way people discuss and relate to mental health issues. The event was scheduled to take place in L.A., but with all the closures, organizers decided to take it online.

Held from Friday, May 8 through Sunday, May 10, the event brings together performances from pop artists like Echosmith, Lindsey Stirling and Social House, with educational sessions on topics like cultural perspectives on mental health, mental health in the workplace and much more.

We could all use a little inspiration while we wait for some good news, and this event is sure to provide it. Free participation is available on Facebook Live, YouTube Live, and the KNEKT. TV Network on Roku and Apple TV.

Clarke’s Concert of the Week - 320 Festival Started by Vans Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman and Talinda

Streaming style - ‘Detroiters’ There’s a particular feeling that

‘A droning feeling’ The movement, which started shortly after the stay-at-home order began, is steeped in tradition.

Soldiers began marching to the sound of bagpipes in Scotland in the 1400s. The instrument is used often as a morale booster for the military.

South Metro Fire Rescue and Castle Rock Fire and Rescue Department each have Pipe and Drum bands.

Carrigan has been playing pipes for about 11 years, around the time South Metro Rescue’s pipe and drum band started.

West, who has been playing bagpipes on and off for 30 years, noted the way the vibrations from the drones blaring from the player’s shoulder hits you.

“It runs through you,” West said.

“A lot of people, prior to this, the only time they hear bagpipes is at a funeral, so they associate that droning note with an emotional event. … To me, it’s that kind of droning feeling. It kind of gets down to your soul sometimes.” comes with loving a show that was canceled too soon. A mix of bitterness as the untimely end of the story, warm familiarity when you revisit it, and gratitude that it existed in the first place. Such is the case with one of the most underrated comedies of the last several years — Comedy Central’s “Detroiters.”

Staring Tim Robinson and Sam Richardson (who for my money might be among the top five funniest people in Hollywood) as two young creatives in a struggling ad agency in Detroit.

If you need a hearty laugh (and who doesn’t these days), check out the twoseason show on-demand or on Comedy Central.

Clarke Reader’s column on culture appears on a weekly basis. He can be reached at Clarke.Reader@hotmail. com.

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16 Lakewood Sentinel

May 7, 2020M

Mile Hi Church/Action Center team up The Action Center received at least four pallets of food donations

BY JOSEPH RIOS JRIOS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

At a time when it was trying to restock its grocery shelves, the Action Center received at least four pallets of food donations.

The donations came from community members as the human-services organization partnered with Mile Hi Church in Lakewood to host drive-thru food drives on April 28 and April 30. The food drives occurred at Mile Hi Church.

Tawney Eisenbraun, marketing and communications coordinator for the Action Center, said the food will last the organization several weeks.

If you need food, you can contact the Action Center at 720-215-4850.

Peter Rockwood, a volunteer for the Action Center, loads food up into a van. The Action Center partnered with Mile Hi Church to host food drives on April 28 and April 30.

PHOTOS BY JOSEPH RIOS

Debra Patterson, a volunteer for Mile Hi Church, poses for a photo. The church and the Action Center received at least four pallets of food from the community.

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Amy Shaw, donor relations officer for the Action Center, packs up food. The Action Center says since mid-March it has been serving double the amount of households it typically does.

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Brad Conner hands Monnie Biety a bag of food. The food drive didn’t require residents to get out of their cars, and all volunteers from both entities wore masks, as recommended by the state.

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Sharon Culver converses as she drops off food at Mile Hi Church in Lakewood on April 30. The Action Center said in a release that the food drives occurred during a time when it was working to restock its grocery shelves.

A van packed with food donations. Those who wish to pick up free groceries from the Action Center can call 720-215-4850.

Lakewood Sentinel 17

May 7, 2020

LETTERS FROM PAGE 12

to the U.S.C.G. Thank you, Bravo Zulu, Semper Paratus, and God Bless – U.S. Coast Guard!

Terry Hodson, Golden

Drug smuggling surge During the war with Vietnam, the U.S. Coast Guard was very successful at denying enemy forces a maritime route for getting soldiers, ammunition etc. to communist forces in South Vietnam.

Today’s US Coast Guard is fighting a different kind of smuggler.

Recently, the USCG reported a deployment that, with the aid of the US Navy and other agencies, interdicted ten tons of cocaine in two months! This quantity of cocaine stopped, dwarfs most US law enforcement drug interdictions (No disrespect intended).

Recently, the USCG reported a deployment that interdicted a staggering 9 tons of cocaine that will never arrive on America’s streets.

On 11 July 2019, after a dramatic at sea boarding, the USCGC Munro reported having interdicted 19.5 tons of cocaine, and close to a 1,000 pounds of marijuana!

The list of these huge interdictions could go on for pages…

Yet… Former U.S, Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Paul F. Zukunft reported, though the Coasties have “80 percent awareness” of all illegal operations, “we can only act on about 20 percent of that because of the resource constraints we have. We’re giving 60 percent of what we know, literally, a free pass…”

Let’s pray, the push to increase military spending, includes expansions

What to call it?

What to call the current pandemic is another flashpoint in the tiresome political correctness battles. The “China Virus,” the “Wuhan Virus,” the “Covid-19 Virus,” the “Novel Coronavirus?” Seems the hullabaloo boils down to what’s politically correct and what’s not. But what’s “political correctness?”

Really, all “political correctness” means is that you don’t insult people because of who or what they are — because of their race, color, religion, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, disability, and the like. Who decides what’s insulting?

Society, by and large. Society, however, doesn’t always speak with one voice, thus the recent cacophony on your letters pages about what to call the virus.

A couple of writers say it’s wrong to call the virus the China or Wuhan virus because that leaves innocent Chinese targets for anger and frustration. Others find this remonstration insulting and get rather hysterical, charging that political correctness is a form of corruption, even criminality, and infringes on their First Amendment rights. Look, political correctness is just good manners. If you want to insult people, you can. Neither the government nor media can stop you. But others don’t have to listen to it and are free to criticize you for it. If you’re intimidated by the criticism, that’s your problem. Free speech goes both ways. Frankly, I don’t really care what they call the virus, I just

QUALITY & VA

want it gone.

Peter F Munger, Arvada

Catherine Griffith, Arvada

Keep the claims clear Call it Wuhan virus, CoVid-19, or, the scientific designation SARS-CoV-2; as long as everyone is on the same page as to what one is referring to, not worth spending energy on it.

I find issues, however, with Michael Alcorn’s statement, “In reality, the overall death rate in America is slightly down so far this year from last year...”

Mr. Alcorn fails to identify: 1. What is the source of this claim? Is this government data, mined data, self-reported? 2. How was it determined? Is this total deaths, deaths per million, deaths per month, attributed deaths? 3. What time period are we talking about?

Calendar year comparison? Running 12 month comparison? Extrapolated quarter or month?

The statistical data I’ve seen makes this claim look like wishful thinking. In New York City alone, there has been 6 timethe normal number of deaths in the past 6 weeks according to the New York Times. The 2019 annualized “Crude Death Rate” is reported as 8.8/100000 persons. to date, the same rate for 2020 FOR COVID-19 death ALONE is 19.25.

I call on the editorial staff to apply the standards you set for Letters to the Editor guidance, specifically your third statement:”Include a source for any information that is not common knowledge. We will not publish information that cannot easily be verified.”

Vague claims do not validity make and are a disservice to the public.

Oh, here’s your death panels Statements and actions by politicians and their advisers of late have caused me to reflect on 2010, when the Obama administration passed the Affordable Care Act, which led certain critics to claim, often hysterically, that the legislation would lead to government controlled “death panels” ready to pull the plug on Nana and Poppa. In recent days our president issued an executive order mandating meat processing plants stay open. The CDC issued vague and voluntary disease control guidelines to those plants. OSHA will refuse to enforce violations of health and safety guidelines in those plants.

Workers could be denied state unemployment benefits if they are afraid to return to the virtual petri dishes that are now their workplaces. And finally, business leaders and Republicans are calling for forgiveness of legal liability for those who can’t or won’t protect employees and customers from the spread of the virus. In light of these developments I wish that I could ask the critics of the ACA in 2010 exactly what they meant by “government run death panels dispensing mortality.” If hideous creations like that ever do become official policy it seems that there is now a blueprint to follow thanks to the Trump Administration and its failure to take responsibility to protect Americans from the spread of COVID-19 or to execute a plan to mitigate the effects of the disease.

Paul Barnkow, Arvada

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May 7, 2020M

For grieving parents, ‘everything in life is different’ One year later, Kendrick Castillo’s parents urge community to remember STEM

MORE ONLINE

BY JESSICA GIBBS JGIBBS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

By April 24, John Castillo had begun struggling to sleep. May 7 was approaching — the day he and his wife, Maria, lost their only child. With each passing day, anxiety built up a little more.

“I didn’t know what my emotional realm would be,” he said by Zoom interview that afternoon.

John began thinking about his son, 18-year-old Kendrick, more and more as the one-year mark of Kendrick’s death drew near.

Kendrick was fatally shot May 7, 2019 while he and fellow students Brendan Bialy and Josh Jones rushed a student who is set to face trial for his alleged role in the shooting at STEM School Highlands Ranch last year.

Castillo A second shooter pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing. Eight students were injured in the attack.

Kendrick, Brendan and Josh are credited with saving lives that day.

John and Maria Castillo sit beside the grave of their son, Kendrick, who was shot and killed during the STEM School shooting a year ago. They are reflected on the polished surface of another nearby headstone. JESSICA GIBBS Kendrick is remembered as a hero.

One year later, John and Maria tearfully reflected on a tumultuous 12 months. John hopes his words will help people and keep Kendrick’s memory alive.

As time goes on, he fears people’s memories of his son will fade. Or, that they will think less often of STEM, particularly now as a global pandemic consumes the world’s attention.

That’s why he still tells his story, difficult as it is.

“Everywhere you turn, everything

in life is different after an event like this. Nothing is as easy as it was before,” John said.

‘One of a kind’ On April 30, John and Maria sat in front of Kendrick’s grave, as they do every afternoon. The couple has not missed a day visiting Kendrick since his death. The only exceptions were a couple out-of-state trips for speaking engagements. For those, Maria packed pictures of Kendrick to take along.

When they returned, they drove straight from the airport to see Kendrick, as they put it.

Maria gently tended to the roses by his headstone and straightened little gifts left for him. A small cow, for Kendrick’s favorite, Chick-fil-A, where he loved to eat with friends. A columbine flower left by a survivor of the Columbine High School mass shooting. Tools from technology students Kendrick mentored.

May 7, then one week away, now had John reflecting on the days leading up to the shooting. If he could have known what his son would face that day, maybe he could have helped.

He could have kept him home from school, he thought.

The Castillos quietly looked at Kendrick’s grave as the sun hung over Douglas County’s foothills, shining across Kendrick’s headstone. Birds sang nearby, bringing a lighter mood to the scene. The soothing sound of running water from nearby fountains filtered around them.

Sometimes, deer gather by the cemetery and eye them, John said. The deer enjoy munching on roses they bring Kendrick, particularly in the winter. John and Maria come back to find only stems, he said, chuckling.

The botanical-gardens cemetery in Douglas County where Kendrick rests, Seven Stones, focuses on healing through nature, director of customer care Becky Holm said. She quickly became friends of the Castillos, having seen them nearly every day this past year. The couple brought “a sense of peace to the gardens,” she said.

Sometimes John and Maria see someone they know at the cemetery, which is near Chatfield State Park.

Other times people recognize them

Our special report on the aftermath of the 2019 STEM School Highlands Ranch tragedy continues at coloradocommunitymedia. com: • The school’s year of recovery has been complicated by the coronavirus pandemic.

• STEM Center for Strength, a new facility providing support for the STEM School community, has opened virtually.

• More on the Castillo family and Kendrick Castillo’s legacy.

while visiting. Either way, the Castillos are open with everyone, she said.

“Last week another family lost their son too young to cancer, and they prayed with them after the service,” Holm said. “That’s a very common occurrence, that the Castillos will pray with other families that have just lost their loved ones, and it’s very welcome all around.”

Not far from Kendrick’s grave is the resting place of Zackari Parrish, the Douglas County Sheriff ’s Office deputy fatally shot on Dec. 31, 2017, while trying to assist a mentally ill man from Highlands Ranch. The Castillos’ victim’s advocate was a friend of Parrish, John said, who told them about Seven Stones.

Holm said it did not take the Castillos long to find the perfect spot for Kendrick — right next to a trio of column sculptures made of Colorado basalt. The memorial reminded John and Maria of their family of three.

Being in Kendrick’s presence while surrounded by nature is comforting, John said. The shift to springtime brought an added sense of peace as the world came to life. Plants began to grow. He liked listening to the birds chirp.

When people get too busy, they do not always notice the changing of the seasons, John said. Going to Seven Stones gave him a renewed appreciation for that. Maria thinks Seven Stones is less scary than other cemeteries, John said as she smiled.

John remembers Kendrick as a calming presence in his life.

Kendrick never hated or got angry, he said. If John got upset at a driver on the road, Kendrick was the one to talk him down. When Kendrick was a child, he once put himself in timeout after his parents scolded him.

Kendrick was not afraid to show his faith. He quietly prayed over a Taco Bell meal when eating out, and never did it so people would see him, John said. That was “just his demeanor. He was brave that way.”

Kendrick loved the outdoors, space and robotics. He set goals and worked toward them. When friends fought, he tried to bring them together. He stood SEE CASTILLO, P19

Lakewood Sentinel 19

May 7, 2020

A number of items at Kendrick Castillo’s grave honor things he loved — a small cow to remember his times eating Chick-fil-A with friends, a columbine flower left by a Columbine survivor, tools from technology students he mentored and more. JESSICA GIBBS

FROM PAGE 18

up for what was right, and ultimately died living by that standard, John said.

“He truly was one of a kind,” John said.

Pain persists amid new crisis The family’s grief and anxiety has been compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. John, a diabetic, is at risk for the pneumonia-like disease that is more lethal for people with underlying conditions.

The pandemic also prompted many governments, including Colorado, to ban gatherings and issue a stayat-home order that recently expired in Douglas County, creating more challenges in the Castillos’ grief process.

“The support that we probably normally would have isn’t there right now. That’s been a very difficult thing,” John said when the order was in place. “There is a big distraction.

We know that they’re concerned for their families.”

COVID-19 spurred a painful drawing out of the open case against the older suspect, who pleaded not guilty in January. The suspect’s trial was rescheduled from May to September.

Answers

Solution © 2016 King Features Synd., Inc.

CASTILLO

The second teenager is scheduled to be sentenced in May, but it’s possible the pandemic will delay that hearing as well.

John worries trial jurors will feel uncomfortable serving during the pandemic and won’t focus.

“It’s been difficult. The COVID-19 situation has thrown an interesting twist on a lot of things that we just, I guess, never thought of before,” John said. “From a survivor standpoint, it does play heavy on our minds, what justice will look like going forward with this new twist of a pandemic.”

COVID-19 also ruined original plans to honor Kendrick on May 7.

John wanted to hold a candlelight vigil to speak about his faith and the importance of family values. The pandemic rendered that impossible.

Instead, he and Maria will have a small gathering of friends and family at Seven Stones with a prayer service and bagpipes.

When there, he and Maria read kind notes left at Kendrick’s grave by friends. That uplifts them. They think of his friends around the one-year mark, too.

“It also hurts our hearts that they’re suffering the loss that we are. They are suffering the pain as well,” John said. “We think and wonder about those kids every day and how they are making it through.”

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