December 22, 2022 Vol. 22, No. 5 Serving Manitou Springs, Old Colorado City and Lower Ute Pass
Happy Holidays!
Photo by Rhonda Van Pelt
The Front Porch Singers serenade downtown shoppers on Saturday, Dec. 17. From left: Sue Graham, Nancy Fortuin and Jane Turnis. Member Ann Rodgers could not attend.
CITY COUNCIL ONLINE Since this issue went to press one day early, City Council coverage can be found on our website, www. pikespeakbulletin.com. Just click on the link in the “ticker” running across the top of the homepage. We apologize for any inconvenience. As of Tuesday morning, the online agenda included a presentation and discussion of the Creek Walk Trail
construction contract, approval of a new member of the City Planning Commission, first reading of the Land Use and Development Code, review of the city’s employee handbook and executive sessions regarding annual evaluations of the city clerk and police chief. City Council is not scheduled to meet again until Tuesday, Jan. 3.
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Fatherly love was writer’s most enduring Christmas gift By William J. Dagendesh As a boy, the holiday season was reserved for sipping hot chocolate, listening to my parents’ worn 1960s Christmas albums and feasting on mouthwatering, oven-roasted turkey. Laughter from my siblings and me filled the air as we ice skated on the Black River yards from our Lacrosse, Wis., home, while Mom basted the Butterball bird to crispy, golden-brown perfection. However, it wasn’t until 1990 that Christmas took on a more profound meaning for Dad and me. In August that year, the world learned that Iraqi troops had invaded the tiny nation of Kuwait. The invasion resulted in United Nations Security Council members enacting economic sanctions against Iraq and President George H.W. Bush deploying U.S. troops to Saudi Arabia. In November, I was serving as assistant editor of Flightline, the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas-based newspaper, when I received orders to U.S. Central Command headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as part of Operation Desert Shield. My job was to write about the military’s involvement and assist national media with covering the war. I was scheduled to depart the United States on Thanksgiving Day. I worried how my parents would take the news. I called home and Dad See CHRISTMAS/page 2
INSIDE DONATE, AND RECEIVE PARKING DISCOUNT................... PAGE 3 ART ON AVENUE AWARD WINNERS REVEALED................ PAGE 6 ARTIST CREATES STORIES TO SHARE WITH OTHERS..... PAGE 7