December 24, 2020
FREE
DOUGLAS COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
LoneTreeVoice.net
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 10 | LIFE: PAGE 14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 16 | SPORTS: PAGE 17
VOLUME 19 | ISSUE 46
Panel puts focus on mental health Programs available to help with student engagement in schools BY JESSICA GIBBS JGIBBS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Carol Knight receives the first shot of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine Dec. 16 at Sky Ridge Medical Center. Knight, a clinical nurse PHOTOS BY NICK PUCKETT coordinator, has worked at Sky Ridge for 17 years of her 30-year career.
‘It’s time to start 2021 right’ Frontline workers take first of two doses Dec. 16 BY NICK PUCKETT NPUCKETT@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Dozens of frontline medical workers stood in line down a Sky Ridge Medical Center corridor Dec. 16, waiting to receive their first injections of the COVID-19 vaccine. Sky Ridge received 195 vials of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine Dec. 15 and began inoculating hospital staff. Those working closely with SEE VACCINE, P9
Sky Ridge Pharmacy Director Valerie Davis, left, and pharmacy technician Karen Fetter prepare the COVID-19 vaccine for inoculation Dec. 16. The vaccine must thaw for three hours before it is mixed with saline solution and drawn from a syringe.
KNEAD TO KNOW
Learn what it takes to bake perfect bread at high altitude P14
Douglas County School District parents are stressing the effect of remote education and COVID-19’s turmoil on their children’s mental health. At a Dec. 10 school board meeting, one woman became emotional sharing how her 14-year-old child was hospitalized and now requires medication to manage depression during the crisis. Another woman described watching “our children become sadder and sadder by the day” during remote education and feared depressed children might turn to selfharm amid pandemic pressures and isolation. Both hoped for a return to in-person learning. Later in the meeting, the district announced a phased approach to bringing students back in the second semester. While elementary students are planned to start full in-person learning on Jan. 5, middle and high school students would not return to hybrid learning until late January and February respectively, if all goes well. SEE HEALTH, P4