All the News About Denver’s Best Residential Community Since 1961 • Volume 56, Issue No. 4 • April 2017
Inside This Issue
Park Hill Character | Jack Farrar
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Alive & Well In Park Hill
We Can’t Afford To Be Silent On Climate Change
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Kicking Off The Summer With Ice Cream and Music
Meet J.R. Ewing: Master Mason, Drive-By Storyteller
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All of us have people in our lives who we think of as characters, individuals who are memorable because they approach life from a quirky, eccentric point of view. One of my favorite characters in Park Hill is J.R. Ewing, a master mason whose expertly assembled patios, walls, chimneys, fireplaces, planters and sidewalks can be seen in dozens of homes and commercial properties in the area. My wife, Pam, and I first got to know him when we launched the Park Hill Alley Art Contest about 10 years ago. J.R. was one of the winners, with an installation on his back fence that showcases his masonry acumen and sense of humor. The presentation features several bas relief of the Kokopelli fertility deity, auto parts, drill bits, window-framed movie posters, and a large flagstone montage that defies gravity. The moment Pam and I saw that installation, we knew that we would like the creator. We got to know J.R. better over the years, and eventually hired him to do a few masonry projects at our house, including tuck pointing and a tricky granite and stone sidewalk treatment at the foot of our porch. All of them were done expertly, on time, and with the bonus of J.R.’s colorful commentary. J.R. lives in a modest bungalow on Hudson Street, with his son, Trapper, and daughter Jasmine. The home was originally occupied by his grandparents. We talked on his porch, where he can often be found. The porch is packed with an astonishing range of items,
Faith In Action: Kindness Begets Kindness
PREFERRED ALTERNATIVE
SEPTEMBER 2015
ELM DISTRICT AT FAIRFAX STREET
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Colfax BID Seeks $7 Million For Improvements
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Playing, Dancing & Laughing At The Library
Next GPHC Meeting is on
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Photo by Cara DeGette
Community Announcements
Thursday, April 6 at 6:30 p.m., 2823 Fairfax St., Denver All are welcome to attend
Setting A Welcome Table Adrian Miller To Lead Palm Sunday Justice Breakfast
VelRey Alaniz Lozano, wearing her brain hat. Look for many of these hats on parade, during the March For Science on April 22.
Ear th D ay 2017
Scientists, Supporters Issue Call To Protect Planet Earth April 22 Marches Planned In Denver, Across The Globe On April 22, scientists and their supporters will take to the streets in Denver, in Washington D.C. and 400 other cities across the globe. Doctors, biologists, botanists, medical researchers, environmental scientists, zoologists, soil scientists, engineers, chemists, psychologists, hydrologists, ecologists, and
supporters of all sciences, are planning to march arm in arm as a clarion call both to support scientific endeavors and to protect Planet Earth. From the organizers: “The March for Science is an international movement ... This continued on page 5
Adrian Miller – food writer, attorney, certified barbecue judge and the executive director of the Colorado Council of Churches – will be the guest speaker at Montview Boulevard Presbyterian’s annual Palm Sunday Justice Breakfast on April 9. Miller will speak on “Setting a Welcome Table” during the program, which begins at 9:15 a.m. at the church, at 1980 Dahlia St. The discussion is expected to touch on ways to create safe and sacred spaces where people of faith can listen to other perspectives, build and maintain relationships, and work together on vital social justice issues. Miller is the first African American and the first layperson to hold the position leading the Colorado Council of Churches. He previously served as a White House special assistant to President Bill Clinton Adrian Miller, executive director of the Colorado Council of Churches. and a senior policy analyst for Colorado governor Bill Ritter Jr. Fed Our First Families, from the WashingMiller’s Soul Food: The Surprising Story of tons to the Obamas, was published earlier an American Cuisine, One Plate at a Time this year. won the James Beard Foundation Award Everyone is welcome at the breakfast. for Scholarship and Reference in 2014. His More information is available at the Montbook, The President’s Kitchen Cabinet: The view Boulevard Presbyterian website, Story of the African Americans Who Have montviewchurch.org.