Westminster Window 0402

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Thornton teen earns Gold Award By Ashley Reimers

WHAT IS GROWING HOME?

areimers@colorado communitymedia.com Nelly Grantham’s Girl Scout vest is covered with badges, symbolizing achievements and work done since the first grade. Her accomplishments don’t end at badges though. The Horizon High School senior’s most recent accomplishment is earning her Gold Award, the highest honor for a Girl Scout. The Gold Award is not mandatory and this year just 50 Girls Scouts earned the honor. Girls who choose to earn their Gold Award must: identify an issue, investigate it thoroughly, get help and build a team, create a plan and present a plan, gather feedback, take action, and finally, educate and inspire others. The project takes at least 80 hours to complete. Grantham, 18, began her journey in August 2013. Since then she’s been collecting personal hygiene items for homeless families and those in crisis at Growing Home, a Westminster nonprofit organization. Grantham is mentally and physically disabled, but that didn’t stop her from collecting over 6,000 items And her work won’t end after she graduates from high school and ends her Girl Scout career. “For the Gold Award you have to have a project that is sustainable,” she said. “So I was able to present my project to churches and different organizations who will continue to donate personal hygiene items for

Growing Home is a Westminster nonprofit organization dedicated to helping struggling families succeed and meet their dreams. The organization works closely with families to transform parents and children’s lives in a positive way. For more information, visit www. growinghome.org.

a long time.” Grantham admits she was initially scared to walk into businesses and ask for donations. But she quickly gained confidence and felt at ease sharing her project and educating people about Growing Home, a place she’s been volunteering at with her family for many years. “I was just astounded that Nelly was so confident to go into totally new places, like a dentist’s office, with very little reservation,” said Valerie Grantham, Nelly’s mom. “I definitely saw growth in her confidence. It was impressive. She had confidence in what she was doing and that was just inspiring.” By earning the Gold Award, Nelly said she realizes that even though she’s mentally and physically disabled, she’s able to plan and complete a large project that in the end, really helps others in need. She also learned life skills like organization, persistence and speaking in front of large groups. But overall the best part of the project Grantham says was spending time at Growing Home.

Nelly Grantham from Thornton sorts through a bin of personal hygiene products. The Horizon High School senior recently earned her Gold Award, which is the highest honor for a Girl Scout. For her Gold Award project, she gathered 6,000 personal hygiene items that were donated to Westminster nonprofit Growing Home. Photo by Ashley Reimers “Hanging out at Growing Home was great,” she said. “I actually became a Growing Home Ambassador because I took different groups to Growing home to have them learn about them. I got a plaque for that.” AnneMarie Harper, public relations director for Girl Scouts of America, said Grantham’s passion for Growing Home was easy to see. And with a project that can take up to two years to complete, passion is an

important key to Gold Award success. “What makes this award so special is that the girls learn to take something they really care about, come up with an idea to share it with others, while making a difference,” Harper said. “Nelly is an inspiration to all of us. She showed that you can still do great things despite certain obstacles in your life. She is an incredible young woman and we’re very proud of her.”

NEW COLORADO LAWS

POSTAL ADDRESS

Gov. John Hickenlooper has signed 78 bills into law as of Monday, March 30. There is about four 1/2 weeks left in the 2015 legislative session. For a complete list of Hickenlooper’s 2015 legislation decisions, visit www.colorado.gov/governor. Some of the bills that have been signed into law include:

HB 15-1062

Westminster Center Park, also known as Peter Pan Park, was recently listed as one of the top 50 playgrounds in the county by Early Childhood Education Zone, a website focused on early childhood education. The playground is based on Neverland with a pirate’s cove and ship-themed play equipment, a Neverwood Forest with tunnels and slides built into the artificial logs and boulders, and an interpretation of the Darling House. Photo by Ashley Reimers

WESTMINSTER WINDOW

(ISSN 1072-1576) (USPS 455-250) OFFICE: 8703 Yates Dr., Ste. 210 Westminster, CO 80031 PHONE: 303-566-4100 A legal newspaper of general circulation in Adams County, Colorado, the Westminster Window is published weekly on Thursday by MetroNorth Newspapers, 8703 Yates Dr., Ste. 210, Westminster, CO 80031. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT WESTMINSTER, COLORADO and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address change to: 8703 Yates Dr., Ste. 210 Westminster, CO 80031 DEADLINES: Display: Fri. 11 a.m. Legal: Fri. 11 a.m. | Classified: Mon. 5 p.m. GE T SO CI AL WITH US

P LE AS E R ECYC L E T H I S C OPY

Westminster park among top playgrounds Site is only Colorado venue named to list By Ashley Reimers

areimers@coloradocommunitymedia.com With more than 60 parks to choose from, Neena Draker’s destination for a fun afternoon is easily Westminster Center Park. She’s been visiting the park regularly for the past four years with her daughter, and plans on returning with future children. “This park is so much fun. Not just for my daughter but also for me,” she said. “I love all the space and the amphitheater. I know when I have more kids down the road, we’ll be coming here.” Westminster Center Park, at 4801 W. 92nd Ave., is also known to residents as the Peter Pan Park. According to the city website, the playground is based on Neverland, the world created in the classic “Peter Pan” story, with a pirates’ cove and ship-themed play equipment, a Neverwood Forest with tunnels and slides built into the artificial logs and boulders, and an interpretation of the Darling House.

The park was recently listed as one of the top 50 playgrounds in the country by Early Childhood Education Zone, a website focused on early childhood education information. Westminster Center Park placed 29th and was the only Colorado site to make the list. “Parks are an important part of the quality of life in Westminster,” said Jessica Stauffer, marketing supervisor for the Parks, Recreation and Libraries Department. “The Peter Pan Park is incredibly popular in our community and we feel great to have this honor.” The park, located across the street from city hall, covers 10 acres and features a walking trail, plaza, amphitheater, water features, picnic tables and grassy area. It was built in 2009. Stauffer said it’s one of the most popular parks in the city, with many families spending the entire day at the park enjoying the water feature and the grassy area. “Parks provide an opportunity for the community to come together,” she said. “They are social avenues. People rally around parks in their neighborhood because it provides a sense of ownership.”

Concerning Increasing the Penalties for Persons who Engage in Animal Fighting Co-sponsored by Rep. Steve Lebsock, D-Thornton Under current law, animal fighting is a class 5 felony with an additional potential fine. The bill makes these additional fines mandatory in the amount of: At least $1,000; or for a person who commits a second or subsequent offense, at least $5,000.

HB 15-1078

Reporting Missing Youth in State’s Legal Custody Co-sponsored by Sen. Cheri Jahn , D-Wheat Ridge and Sen. Laura Woods, R-Arvada The bill requires the state Department of Human Services or a county Department of Human or Social Services that has legal custody of a child or youth to report the child’s or youth’s disappearance to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and to law enforcement immediately, or no later than 24 hours after learning of the disappearance, for entry into the National Crime Information Center database.

HB 15-1122

Parole Application and Revocation Rep. Rhonda Fields, D-Aurora The bill clarifies that: If an inmate applying for parole was convicted of any Class 3 sexual offense, a habitual criminal offense, or any offense requiring the inmate’s designation as a sex offender, the board need only reconsider granting parole to such inmate once every 3 years; and if an inmate applying for parole was convicted of a Class 1 or Class 2 felony that constitutes a crime of violence, the board need only reconsider granting parole to such inmate once every 5 years.


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