Westminster 8-29-2013
August 29, 2013
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A Colorado Community Media Publication Adams County and Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 68, Issue 45
ourwestminsternews.com
Board denies effort to change decision ‘The Bluest Eye’ retained for class By Ashley Reimers
areimers@ourcoloradonews.com
From left, Larry and Dino Valente, owners of Valente’s Deli Bakery and Italian Market in Westminster, are celebrating 60 years of business Sept. 5-14, with sales for customers and the opportunity to purchase commemorative pint glasses. Photos by Ashley Reimers
Valente’s celebrate 60 years of business father and son owners Larry and Dino Valente who consider service to their customers as their top priority. “The number one thing is the friendliness to the customers and the relationships we have with the customers,” Larry said. “The guys and girls who work here know many customers by their names and people love that, and they come back.” Before it was Valente’s Deli Bakery and Italian Market, it was the Rodeo Super-
market, opened by Fred and Irene Valente, Larry’s parents, in 1953 as the first superareimers@ourcoloradonews.com market in Westminster. At age 12, Larry began working in the suFor 60 years, Valente’s Deli Bakery and permarket, and years later took over ownItalian Market has been a staple in the ership, working alongside his sisters and Westminster community. Known for its children. homemade Italian sausage and cannolis, In 1990, due to the economy, Larry, his Valente’s isn’t a place where customers are wife Elaine and children Dino and Gina, rushing in and out — it’s a place where peochose to close the Rodeo Supermarket for ple are greeted by a friendly staff, including a short time, although business never fully ended. Fortunately, just a couple of months later the family opened Valente’s Deli Bakery and Italian Market, offering authentic and imported Italian pastas, sauces, olive oils and foodstuffs, as well as homemade Italian foods like sausage, lasagna and spaghetti sauce. Now, 60 years later the same goal of providing quality food and service still stands. “You are only as good as the last impression you make on a person, and it’s really a two-way-street,” Dino said. “You have to offer a good quality products and competitive prices, and people have to feel like they are getting value for their purchase. You give people good service, and they continue to come back, and they tell their friends and neighbors about it. That’s how you last 60 years.” To thank their loyal customers for 60 years of business, Larry and Dino are offering a variety of sales and drawings for gift giveaways Sept. 5-14, as well as commemorative pint glasses filled with candy for $10 each. The glasses will feature the logos of both Valente’s and the Rodeo Supermarket. For 60 years Valente’s Deli Bakery and Italian Market in Westminster has provided quality service and food to the All of the proceeds from the glasses are gocommunity. To celebrate the 60th anniversary, customers can enjoy sales and purchase commemorative pint glass ing to the Mother Cabrini Shrine in GoldSept. 5-14. en, in memory of Fred and Irene Valente, Larry’s parents and founders of the Rodeo POSTAL ADDRESS Supermarket. “I want to remember my folks, they were Printed on recycled good to me, so I chose the Mother Cabrini newsprint. Please Shrine for the proceeds,” Larry said. “It’s recycle this copy. really neat. I already have people asking about the glasses.” Valente’s, at 7250 Meade St, in Westminster, is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturdays. For more information, visit www.valentesdeli.com.
By Ashley Reimers
During this first meeting of the new school year, the Adams 12 Five Star school board voted in favor of superintendent Chris Gdowski’s summer decision to keep a controversial book in the school district as an AP English teaching tool. The board agreed that Gdowski’s decision to allow “The Bluest Eye” to be taught in one section of AP English at Legacy High School was reasonable based on the evidence and was not arbitrary or capricious. “This is not a book review. We are here to determine whether the superintendent’s decision was justified,” said board member Frederick Schaefer. “Our role is to figure out whether or not the process was followed and as far as I can tell, the process was followed. The issue concerning the “The Bluest Eye” was raised by a group of parents this summer who asked the district to take it out of the curriculum because they argue the books is “developmentally inappropriate” for teenagers. Along with limited use of the book in the classroom at Legacy, the two other sections of AP English will not use the book in the curriculum. Gdowski also requires teachers who teach “The Bluest Eye” have signed permission slips from parents allowing their student to read the book. “My firm belief is that public education needs to be a welcoming and inclusive environment for all people from all different backgrounds and perspectives,” Gdowski said. “It is our job to be inclusive and that is really what drove the decision in this case.” The crowd at the meeting was split pretty 50-50 among parents and educators for the book and parents and educators against the use of the book in the district. As for the school board, each member expressed their distaste for the book personally, but continued to support Gdowski’s decision. Board president Mark Clark said the book would be a great tool in college, but believes for students in Adams 12, they need to be taught “more morality, caring and building people up.” Board member Rico Figueroa said the board needs to take a look at the current policies surrounding how books are chosen for the curriculum. “I believe the superintendent made a reasonable decision taking into account what the students were getting and what they were not getting and made a decision based on the current policies,” he said. “But I think our policies are inadequate, and we need to take a serious look at them.”