May 14, 2015 VOLU M E 9 1 | I S SUE 39
LakewoodSentinel.com J E F F E R S O N C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O
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SLICE OF LIFE
The view from the stage
Karla Gomez and her son, Hector, with the Honda CRV they received from Hands of The Carpenter. She’s working toward her GED while working to provide for her son. Photo by Clarke Reader
By Clarke Reader
creader@colorado communitymedia.com
5 women receive vehicles
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STORY AND PHOTO BY CLARKE READER creader@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Selecting the recipients: The women were nominated by nonprofits who work with them and know they are doing the best they can to better the lives of themselves and their family. Nominating groups include the Jefferson County Prosperity Project and James Resource Network.
Five women: The recipients of the cars are Karla Gomez, Amber Diecidue, Megan Corey, Cindy Carlson and Bethany Paget. In addition to receiving the keys and title to the vehicles, the women also received a safety/emergency kit, full tank of gas and a full year of maintenance on the car.
Moments of gratitude: “I am so thankful for this program, because there are so many women like us who need this,” Diecidue said. “I was getting to a place where I was starting to feel hopeless. This has restored my faith in humanity,” Paget said.
Ray Betts
Service manager at Hands Automotive By Clarke Reader
creader@coloradocommunitymedia.com About his background: “I’ve been working on cars for 32 years. I have five brothers and we’re all mechanics. It’s a good business — 80 percent of the car work we do is for the public, and all the proceeds go to the community work we do.” About his faith: Betts became a Christian about six or seven years ago, and now attends a church in Northglenn. He became involved with Hands of the Carpenter charity work through a meeting with founder Dan Georgopulos. Hobbies and other interests: Betts collects Betts Hot Wheels cars. In his own words: “You can’t imagine how it makes me feel to get a chance to meet and help the women we work with here.” “Numbers in your back account don’t mean anything compared to being able to help women and children in the community.”
Charity helps 150 widows and single mothers annually
In honor of Mother’s Day, Hands of The Carpenter gave vehicles to five women in need on May 9. “These vehicles were given to us three weeks to four months ago, and they were all repaired by Hands Automotive,” said Dan Georgopulos, founder and CEO of Hands of The Carpenter. “It’s the greatest and freest gift to be able to pass something on to those in need.”
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About Hands of The Carpenter: The faith-based organization provides an average of 250 automobile repairs or services to more than 150 single mothers and widows annually, according to provided information. In addition to operating its own repair facility, Hands partners with independent automobile repair facilities, dealerships and parts suppliers to provide the highest quality care for women in need throughout our community who need assistance. Visit www.ehands.org for more information
About Hands Automotive: The auto repair shop is owned by Hands of The Carpenter. It is a Napa AutoCare Center and staffed by ASE certified technicians.
Under a gray sky and surrounded by concrete and metal fences, the faded-purple bows on the cars really stand out. In most regular circumstances, the bows and the cars would be the main pull on a visitor’s eye, especially with the cars looking so clean and new. But at the current moment, all eyes are on the makeshift stage in the Hands Automotive parking lot, where something both normal and not is on display. The family on the stage is normal — it’s the reason for the stage that is unusual. Megan Corey stands with her four children, and they’re all a bit more bundled-up than one would expect for a mid-May day. The same could be said for the small crowd listening as Dan Georgopulos, CEO and founder of Hands of The Carpenter, talks about the challenges Corey has faced in her life. For Corey and the crowd, the cool and the damp hardly registers — the day is one to be grateful for. It’s a day before Mother’s Day, and Corey is getting a gift she never could have imagined — her freedom, in the form of a Nissan Quest minivan. “It’s been really hard being a single mom of four kids,” she said through tears. “There’s been no one to help me.” The tears aren’t hers alone. As she speaks, and the emotions continue to threaten to overwhelm her, it becomes clear she’s not the only one. Corey’s tears are reflected back at her from the audible sniffles from the audience. Later on in the day’s event, Georgopulos will say the event is a reminder to clients of Hands of the Carpenter that they have not been forgotten. Standing in front of a group of people gathered to support her, for a moment for Corey, this fact is very clear.
City’s first sustainability plan gets green light Plan covers range of environmental subjects By Clarke Reader
creader@colorado communitymedia.com City council approved Lakewood’s first sustainability plan by a vote of 8 to 2 (the no votes were Ward 1 councilwoman Ramey Johnson and Ward 4 councilman David Wiechman. Ward 5 councilwoman Karen Harrison was not in attendance) during the May 11 meeting. “Tonight has potential to be a milestone evening,” said Mayor Bob Murphy before discussion on the plan began. “The results of all the work that have gone into this plan are incredible, and very meaningful
SECTIONS OF THE SUSTAINABILITY PLAN • Climate change and adaptation • Energy, water and the built environment • Sustainable economy • Zero waste • Community cohesion and public health • Natural systems • Transportation
for the city.” The sustainability plan is a kind of guide for the city’s sustainability efforts, described Jonathan Wachtel, sustainability coordinator for the city. It is complementary to the new comprehensive plan, which was passed during the April 27 regu-
lar meeting, and builds upon goals and set forth in the comprehensive plan. “The sustainability plan has goals and targets, so we have numerical ways to measure the work the city is doing on these topics,” he said. “We have three types of implementation strategies detailed in the document: primary implementation, cross-cutting and supporting strategies.” The city will get the suggested changes going in the city through community engagement, prioritized implementation, leveraging opportunities to work with partners, and a pledge to update council on progress and changes that need
Plan continues on Page 18