Volume 16 • Edition 12
June 21, 2023
Delivering to over 17,500 homes & businesses including all of Morgan County.
“Truth will ultimately prevail where there is pains taken to bring it to light” George Washington “If we are to guard against ignorance and remain free, it is the responsibility of every American to be informed” Thomas Jefferson
What’s Working: Colorado’s Summer Jobs Are Disappearing
Fewer teenagers are part of Colorado’s labor force than past decades. Employers are focusing on retention and hiring longer-term workers. by Tamara Chuang, Colorado Sun It’s one of the more traditional summer jobs for students: Greeting fast-food customers, taking burger orders and working for or near minimum wage. That’s how Leo Agoi, who’s 15, is spending his summer — or at least 16 hours a week of it — as an employee at the McDonald’s on West Alameda Avenue in Lakewood. He loves it.
Crew members Alex Chernov, 17, and Leo Agoi, 15, prepare food orders at a McDonald’s June 8, 2023, in Lakewood. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)
“I love my coworkers here. It’s like a good, I guess, social network. And I see a lot of my friends because a lot of people come to McDonald’s,” said Agoi, who worked at the same restaurant last summer. He got a raise this summer, too. He liked the job so much, he recommended it to his friends. Many found jobs elsewhere. But others told him it has been difficult to get hired this summer and companies “they’d applied to haven’t gotten back to them,” Agoi said. “That’s what they’ve been saying.” For the record, McDonald’s owner and operator Jessi Bucar is still hiring. Employees get free meals during their shifts. For those who stick around past summer, there’s health insurance, tuition assistance and more. But for the summer especially, she needs people who can work nights and weekends. And even for a summer gig, there are expectations: Show up on time, wear the (free) uniform, be courteous. Those who do well get a 10- to 15-cent hourly raise after 30 days. Too much to ask? Maybe. “It’s really hard with kids these days because they always want to be on their phone. They always want to have their AirPods in their ears and in the food-service industry, hospitality is huge,” Bucar said. “When we tell them some of those things, they’re like, ‘No, I don’t want to work here.’”
History of Fourth of July
by History.com The Fourth of July—also known as Independence Day or July 4th—has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution. On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later delegates from the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson. From 1776 to the present day, July 4th has been celebrated as the birth of American independence, with festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues. The Fourth of July 2023 is on Tuesday, July 4. History of Independence Day When the initial battles in the Revolutionary War broke out in April 1775, few colonists desired complete independence from Great Britain, and those who did were considered radical. By the middle of the following year, however, many more colonists had come to favor independence, thanks to growing hostility against Britain and the spread of revolutionary sentiments such as those expressed in the bestselling pamphlet “Common Sense,” published by Thomas Paine in early 1776. On June 7, when the Continental Congress met at the Pennsylvania State House (later Independence Hall) in Philadelphia, the Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee introduced a motion calling for the colonies’ independence. Amid heated debate, Congress postponed the vote on Lee’s resolution, but appointed a five-man committee—including Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, John Adams of Massachusetts, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and Robert R. Livingston of New York—to draft a formal statement justifying the break with Great Britain. Did you know? John Adams believed that July 2nd was the correct date on which to celebrate the birth of American independence, and would reportedly turn down invitations to appear at July 4th events in protest. Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died on July 4, 1826—the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Colonists didn’t just take up arms against the British out of the blue. A series of events escalated tensions that culminated in America’s war for independence. On July 2nd, the Continental Congress voted in favor of Lee’s resolution for independence in a near-unanimous vote (the New York delegation abstained, but later voted affirmatively). On that day, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail that July 2 “will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival” and that the celebration should include “Pomp and Parade…Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other.” On July 4th, the Continental Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence, which had been written largely by Jefferson. Though the vote for actual independence took place on July 2nd, from then on the 4th became the day that was celebrated as the birth of American independence. Early Fourth of July Celebrations and Traditions In the pre-Revolutionary years, colonists had held annual celebrations of the king’s birthday, which traditionally included the ringing of bells, bonfires, processions and speechmaking. By contrast, during the summer of 1776 some colonists celebrated the birth of independence by holding mock funerals for King George III as a way of History of Fourth of July continued on page 10...
WHAT’S IN THIS ISSUE
Jessi Bucar, owner of McDonald’s in Lakewood, poses for a portrait June 8, 2023. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)
The summer job has evolved. There is still summer-heavy demand for gigs like lifeguards, rafting guides and camp counselors. But expectations of workers and employers have shifted in the past two years. Both can be pickier. Workers were able to What’s Working: Colorado’s Summer Jobs Are Disappearing continued on page 6...
Page 2: Way of the World Page 3: Steve Laffey Running for President Page 3: Representative Richard Holtorf Water Bill Signing Page 5: Wiggins School District Newsletter Page 7: DACA Update Article Page 11: Colorado GOP Leader Goes after a Republican Congressman Page 13: Republicans Do Not Have a Candidate for CD 8, Yet Page 16: BobStock Free Music Event in Fort Morgan July 7 & 8