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Week of August 4, 2022
JEFFERSON COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 14 | LIFE: PAGE 16 | CALENDAR: PAGE 19 | SPORTS: PAGE 24
VOLUME 18 | ISSUE 7
City Council declares August Historic 2022 Arvada Historical Society Month contract for Jeffco Public Schools Large starting pay increase and more job security top list of gains BY BOB WOOLEY BWOOLEY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
“(Lindstrom) could really rally the troops,” Miller said. “(In the early days) I think it was a very committed large group of individuals that were energized by creating this new thing. And under Lois’ leadership they just rolled up their sleeves and got to work and created this organization.” Lindstrom moved to incorporate the society on Aug. 24, 1972; exactly 68 years — to the day — after the incorporation of the City of Arvada. At the time, Arvada was at a crossroads between the farming community of yore and the budding city it would become. “It was a small town, and life centered around the Olde Town area and old Arvada. those people grew up when there was one high school,”
Custodians, bus drivers, food service workers and other support staff — people who do the often overlooked work that helps keep the district running — have won a hard-fought contract victory in their latest union negotiations with Jefferson County Public Schools. The Jeffco Board of Education ratified a new labor agreement with the Jeffco Education Support Professionals Association July 26. The newly-ratified agreement boosts starting pay for union members by 44%. The new contract calls for an $18/hour starting wage by September 2023, increased job security, reduced turnover, more sick leave rights, healthier food for students and increased parent engagement about school nutrition. Library paraprofessional and JESPA President Lara Center called the agreement a historic moment for Jeffco Public Schools support staff. “This is the second year that we’ve fought for and achieved well-deserved and substantial pay increases for our members,” Center said. “We’d like to acknowledge the members of the Board of Education for keeping their promise to work with us.” Last October, Coloradans for the Common Good, which JESPA is a member of, held a school board candidate forum asking all six candidates to commit to increasing wages by $3/hour over the next two years in an effort to
SEE HISTORY, P4
SEE HISTORY, P5
Representatives from the Arvada Historical Society — including Lois Lindstrom (center) — are given a proclamation from Arvada COURTESY OF THE ARVADA HISTORICAL SOCIETY Mayor Lawrence McGinley in 1972; the year of the club’s inception.
300-member Arvada Historical Society celebrates 50th Anniversary BY RYLEE DUNN RDUNN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
In August 1972, a group of Arvadans led by local teacher, historian and author Lois Lindstrom Kennedy began the expansive undertaking of uncovering and preserving Arvada’s history. Fifty years later, the Arvada City Council recognized the Arvada Historical Society with a proclamation declaring August 2022 as Arvada Historical Society Month. The proclamation — conferred by Arvada Mayor Marc Williams, a member of the society — praised
the Society’s accomplishments over the past five decades, which include establishing the Arvada History Museum, getting the Arvada Flour Mill recognized by the National Register of Historic Places, aiding in the city’s establishment of the Olde Town Historic District and spearheading the dedication of Gold Strike Park. Lindstrom herself contributed to a number of those initiatives coming to fruition. Her work as a researcher was documented in her reference books including “First Gold: Lewis Ralston and Arvada,” “The Old Mill: Arvada Flour Mills,” “Waters of Gold,” and “Ralston’s Gold.” Historical Society President Karen Miller called Lindstrom a “heck of a leader” and praised her passion for the area’s history and preservation efforts.