OBITUARIES How would you spend money if you were the governor of Colorado?

If creating a budget involves making choices, then it should follow that the choices made in that budget should benefit everyone involved. A budget with expenditures made for the entire state of Colorado ought to benefit all citizens of our state if not directly, then at least indirectly.

It should be remembered that conservatives are not against government expenditures per se. What we are against are waste and poorly considered spending.

If I were the governor of Colorado, I would submit a budget with these two large expenditures for approval by our legislature to benefit all citizens of Colorado.

1. A second medical school. The CU-Anschutz Medical Center accomplishes a great deal for our state. In my opinion, a second allelopathic medical school is needed to serve our expanding population. That proposed medical school should have clinics spread out around the state to serve our rural residents in their own communities. Done properly, this school would complement CU-Anschutz. A second medical school would bring employment opportunities with good-paying jobs directly wherever its main campus would be located as well as to the satellite campuses within our state’s rural areas. Additional jobs would be created through a multiplier effect as a result of the jobs created directly by the proposed medical school.

Construction of such a school could be financed through bonds and ultimately if this school is planned correctly, it would add revenue to the state budget rather than subtract revenue. Finally, it should be noted that other states than Colorado support two publicly funded medical schools.

2. Strengthen the power grid. Our basic ability to function in today’s society is regulated by the power grid that supplies electricity around our state. Imagine all of the conveniences that we enjoy in life from the internet to HVAC including running water. Now imagine them gone.

That is what would happen if the power grid were to fail whether through sabotage or by an accident of nature like a solar flare. Everyone in our state has a stake in the power grid continuing to function.

When I had the consequences described to me by an activist, I asked what things would be like if the power grid failed. I used the TV show “Jericho” which ran from 2006-08 as a benchmark.

The activist told me that the situation in Colorado would be worse than that of the show “Jericho.” The premise behind “Jericho” was life in the United States after a post-nuclear attack. That illustration should explain how serious and important maintaining and strengthening the power grid is to our state.

CDOT maintains our highways regularly to the consternation of many commuters. But what the department does is essential for Colorado. The power grid is much like our highways and in some respects even more essential than highways. I will focus on the power grid in a future opinion piece.

I hope that my two choices for the budget have made you, dear reader, think about what should be in a budget for our state. Let me pose a question: How would you spend money if you were the governor or a legislator?

Joe Webb is the former chairman of the Jeffco Republican party.

Juanita passed away at the age of 91 in Arvada, CO.

She met John (Jack) Harvey and was married on September 24, 1950 in Arvada, CO. ey made their home in Golden, CO.

Juanita is preceded in death by her parents, Louis and Mildred Graves, her husband, Jack Harvey, and sister Agnes Haug. She is survived by her children, Kathy (Doug) Kelly and Gary (Nancy) Harvey; granddaughters Meredith (Kevin) Mosher and Emily (Scott) Hunvald, as well nieces and nephew.

A graveside service will tentatively be held on June 30, 2023 at 9:30am at the Golden Cemetery. A reception will follow at First United Methodist Church of Golden. Visit https://aspenmortuaries.com/ for the full obituary.

In lieu of owers, donations can be made to the Golden Fire Department 911 10th St., Golden Community Center (Front Porch) 1470 10th St., or the Dementia Society of America https://www.dementiasociety.org/ donate.

Ruby Louise Meyer of Golden, Colorado, passed away on June 2, 2023, at the age of 85. She was born in Greeley on October 29, 1937, to Dwight and Cora King. On September 11, 1960, she married George Dean Meyer in Greeley, Colorado.

Ruby worked as a checker at Safeway. She also dedicated over 20 years to the kitchen at Welchester Elementary School.

Ruby’s heart belonged to nature, and she found immense joy in the mountains and the beach. She volunteered building trails for the Colorado Mountain Club, and in the summers and loved to hike. Ruby was an ardent sports fan and rarely missed a Colorado Rockies game. She loved reading, and doodling was a favorite pastime.

Ruby frequently traveled to Southern California to spend time with her twin sister and grandkids. She would often take leisurely strolls along the beaches. As someone who grew up on a farm, Ruby cherished her visits to Indiana to see her daughter Kathy and engage in the delightful task of feeding chickens. George Strait’s music and the captivating TV series Yellowstone held a special place in her heart.

Ruby leaves behind a loving family who will forever hold her memory dear. She is survived by her daughter, Kathy Hachlica (Dave), of Rensselaer, Indiana, and her son, David (Stephanie), of Seal Beach, CA. She is also survived by her three grandchildren, Cal, Duke, and Jack. Additionally, she is survived by her sisters, Pat Bruce of Brighton and Janet (Jim) Kiefer of Brighton.

In accordance with her wishes, a small family service will be held to honor Ruby’s life. We miss you, Mom.

February 24, 1935 - June 13, 2023

Patrick Swenson, 88, died at home in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, on June 13, 2023, from emphysema. He was born February 24, 1935 to Agnes and Kaler Swenson in Turner, Montana. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 61 years, Billie Swenson (Jones), parents, and brothers Martin and Lester. Patrick is survived by his children Peter (Maria) Swenson and Suzi (Randy) Mishmash, grandsons Nicholas and Jacob Swenson, granddaughters Elise and Paige Mishmash, sister, Rosemary Swenson (Todd), sister-in-law Sylvia Swenson, special niece, Deborah Greene, and nephew Adam Greene. Upon graduation from high school in Marsh eld, Missouri, Pat joined the Air Force. On a trip home he encountered the love of his life, Billie Jones, at the soda fountain, and they were married August 17, 1958.

He retired after 20 years of traveling the world, seeing combat in Vietnam, and generally enjoying speeding around the skies in F100s. He regaled friends with stories of buzzing control towers and being reprimanded for “sneaking” his wife into Italy by dying her very blond hair jet black in hopes she wouldn’t be recognized. After retiring, Pat moved his family to Golden, Colorado, where he pursued various business interests and honed his golf game. He and Billie traveled the world together and Pat played golf courses from Scotland to Costa Rica, frequently accompanied by his crazy brother-in-law Rich. Settling up after the game was always the best part of the day. His grandchildren were the apple of his eye and Pat was lucky to spend many hours with them in Golden. Pat and Billie loved visiting Salida to see their granddaughters, spending many anksgivings eating too much and watching the parade of lights.

In 2017 he moved from Golden to Windcrest Retirement Community in Highlands Ranch where he cared with much love for his wife as her health declined. Pat found comradery with his breakfast club where conversations usually included a lot of good-natured teasing and talk about airplanes.

A private interment will be held June 29th at Fort Logan Cemetery. A funeral mass and reception for the family and friends of Pat will be at Windcrest Retirement Community Towne Center in Highlands Ranch at 2:00 p.m.

BY LUKE ZARZECKI LZARZECKI@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

The brain is overrated, according to Kadam Lucy James at the Kadampa Meditation Center.

“Have you ever felt peaceful in your head?” she asked.

She put her hands over her heart and said that’s where the mind is, adding that while the brain has conceptual reality, the mind exists in the heart, where we feel peace, love, joy and wisdom.

“If we can get into our heart, we automatically start to feel more peaceful,” she said.

James is temporarily living in Arvada and teaches meditation at the Kadampa Meditation Center. She started practicing about 41 years ago after she saw a “very peaceful person” in college.

“He was a student meditating on the end of his bed and I asked him what he was doing, because this was back in 1981, and meditation, no one had heard of back then,” she said.

Ever since, she’s been practicing and has taught all around the world, including England, San Francisco, New York City and now Denver. She hopes to one day achieve enlightenment, or in nite happiness and peace.

It takes a lot of hard work, but she said it’s the only thing where the more she does it, the happier she is.

It’s because, with meditation, the mind becomes naturally peaceful. Each person has a natural source of peace and happiness inside them, she said, and instead of seeking it elsewhere — relationships, ful lling jobs or material things — it’s already inside the body waiting to be found. e evidence lies in the random moments of peace and happiness everyone feels. It could be a torrential downpour and the mind is peaceful, settled and calm. e rst step to unlocking that potential and happiness is to breathe.

“What those moments show is that our mind is ne. And then what unsettles the mind is actually all our uncontrolled thinking,” she said.

Coming from the teachings of the Buddha, she compared the mind to a vast ocean. e waves are turbulent while below them is a vast, in nite, calm place. Waves of anxiety and negative emotions distort the brain but below those waves rests an incredible sanity.

“When our mind is settled, when we can let go of our troubled thoughts, and our turbulent thoughts, uncontrolled thoughts, then we naturally feel good. We naturally feel peaceful and we start to get a sense of our potential and who we really are, which is this person who has limitless potential, limitless happiness,” James said.

Focus on the nostrils

Carol O’Dowd, a Trauma and Transition Psychotherapist and Spiritual Counselor assists her clients by meeting them where they are and o ering them acceptance through breathing.

“If you focus on your breath, you cannot simultaneously focus on all your internal dialogue. It cannot be done. e human brain is not wired that way,” O’Dowd said.

It creates a space between the thoughts. e stress and anxiety stored in the body don’t go away, but the practice of noticing the emotions and putting them on pause to breathe helps calm the body down.

Breathing is a function of the body that automatically happens all the time. Focusing on that breath, O’Dowd compared it to a spectrum. What happens when the body stops breathing — death — is one end and the other is when the body pays attention to the breath — peace.

“It can be as simple as just experiencing that ow of air, and in and out of your nostrils. If you can place your attention there, that’s giving yourself a mini vacation,” she said.

O’Dowd encourages her clients to practice treating uncontrolled thoughts like a salesperson trying to sell them. Instead of buying, make them sit in the corner and return to them in 20 minutes after taking time to check in with the body.

It can also let go of stress. Pain, like what the ngers feel after working at a computer all day, can be a physical manifestation of stress. Holding on to that stress can lead to other health conditions.

“It’s not rocket science,” she said.

Escape to reality

James said achieving enlightenment is extremely di cult, and while the teachings she studied laid out di erent steps and pathways, she simpli ed it down to three. e rst is focusing on the breath to relax. e second is identifying delusions.

A delusion can be jealousy, greed, competitiveness or other unpleasant thoughts. Most of the time, those thoughts aren’t controlled by the mind and enter the brain randomly. It’s the root