Kingham elected, Terranova keeps seat in AFPD Board election

BY RYLEE DUNN RDUNN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Ted Terranova was reelected to the Arvada Fire Protection District Board and Joel Kingham was elected to ll the seat vacated by the departure of longtime board member Mark McGo , who did not seek reelection to pursue a project with the Colorado Historical Society. Terranova and Kingham will both serve four-year terms.

Voter turnout was considerably lower compared to last year’s board election — only 2,500 votes were cast this year, while over 4,000 were cast last year. Kingham paced the ve candidates with 925 votes, while Terranova earned 718 votes.

Kingham was a volunteer reghter at AFPD in the 1990s and decided to run because he wanted his voice to be heard.

BY RYLEE DUNN RDUNN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

When Christi and Randy Michaelis moved to Arvada in 2010, they simply wanted to help people. e at-the-time recently retired couple had just moved from Michigan and stopped by the Apex Center for the volunteer fair.

Before long, the Michaelis’ next chapter began to take shape.

“We didn’t know a soul, not one single person (when we moved to town),” Christi said. “And so, we went to a volunteer fair to try to gure out how we could plug in at Apex. And I’m like ‘Let’s sign up here, let’s sign up here.’”

“I look back and I’m seeing Christi putting her name down on every volunteer list all the way up and down,” Randy said. “And I was like, ‘I’m going to be painting ngernails.’” irteen years and many thousands of volunteer hours later, Randy and Christi have been named the 2022 Arvada Man and Woman of the Year by the Arvada Chamber of Commerce for their invaluable service to the community. e Michaelis’ philanthropic resume could likely ll the Press’ pages, but highlights include work with Community Table to serve the Elevado Estates Mobile Home Park, working with Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), volunteering with Whiz Kids and helping out at multiple programs at their church;

Arvada Vineyard Church.

While the couple usually serves the community together, they also pursue their own special interests as well. Christi is a volunteer with the local Optimists Club, and Randy has given his time to Apex as a tennis pro and to residents of a local apartment complex who faced eviction.

“By recognizing the unsung heroes in our community through the Man and Woman of the Year award, we celebrate the often-overlooked individuals who make a signi cant di erence in the lives of others,” Kami Welch, President & CEO of the Arvada Chamber of Commerce said. “Christi and Randy Michaelis are the epitome of this award.

“It is through their sel essness and dedication that our community thrives and grows, and it is an honor to recognize them for their

“All of the nonsense that’s going on in the world today, politically, within our society, and the normal average person has their one vote every couple of years — I was dissatis ed with not being able to have a voice and be able to enact some change,” Kingham said.

Kingham said that his priorities are better communication between the board and Arvada residents, the merge with Fairmount Fire District, building the new Station 1 and addressing egress concerns of residents of Leyden Rock.

Lynn Emrick — who notably ran as the Republican candidate in last November’s House District 27 election, placed third, earning 581 votes. Madison Stelley and Roman Bodnar placed fourth and fth, respectively.

Terranova could not be reached for comment by press time.

McGo — a former city councilmember — said that he will serve on the advisory committee to the state commission for the Colorado Historical Society’s celebration of the Centennial State’s 150 years of

SEE ELECTED, P4 invaluable contributions,” Welch continued.

The Michaelis didn’t quite believe it at first.

“It’s still really humbling,” Christi said of the award. “We really are quite surprised.

Community Table’s CEO Sandy Martin said that the Michaelis headed up the program with Elevado, which has grown to include a mobile food pantry, free bicycles and lessons, and an annual summer sports and activities camp.

“They’re an incredible couple that just have such a big heart and such a love for this community to help those folks that find themselves in a tough position,” Martin said. “With us, they’re very involved in a mobile food panty at the Elevado Trailer Home community. We order special foods that are culturally appropriate for those families; (the Michaelis) come in with other volunteer members and pack boxes and distribute them.

“They’re very involved with that community in terms of what they do,” Martin said. “Really, truly, wonderful folks.”

Christi said that when the couple started volunteering at

Elevado, many of the trailers had been condemned, and the community was in a state of disrepair. In addition, the locals were skeptical of volunteers.

“When we first started going there, the kids would come out, and you’d see the parents and grandparents like peeking through the windows, like who are these people?” Christi said.

“And now, we’re like the go-to people.

Christi added that about half of the families that lived at Elevado 13 years ago are still there, pointing to the stability of the community.

“Around 10 years ago I was blessed with the presence of Christi and Randy and their dedication to helping the community,” Veronica Dominguez, a resident of Elevado, said. “The help always came in various forms such as bringing the food bank to distribute food, the summer activities that they would plan out months ahead, or the constant reminder that they were always available to help.”

Randy said that one of his proudest moments working at Elevado has been to watch a young girl named Alejandra rise above her circumstances and become one of the first youngsters from the community to go to college.