Pueblo Star Journal - April 2023

Restaurant renaissance

By Rory Harbert

Established in 1881, Pueblo’s steel mill and its workers were central to the effort towards the expansion of the U.S. rail system. In the following century, Colorado Fuel & Iron Company workers, making up one-tenth of the Colorado workforce by 1910, provided their time and labor to build up the American West over the next century.

Nathan Stern, the director of development, and his realty team named their company Fuel & Iron. The name honors the commitment that Pueblo’s workforce made towards Colorado and doubles down on it by giving back.

“Fuel & Iron really has two overarching goals,” Stern said. “The first of which is for students, young people who are growing up in Southern Colorado who want to be involved in the food and beverage industry, that they have the tools and the vision for how to build a rewarding career within the industry without leaving the region. And the second is that Pueblo becomes known as the best place in Colorado to launch a food business.”

Stern is a self-professed Pueblo evangelist, spending his time spreading the gospel of Pueblo. His first job was working for a state employee union, the office residing within the same block as Fuel & Iron’s flagship project, the new Food Hall. From 2011-15, he drove a coffee truck around Denver for Solar Roast, a company that is as much of a morning staple as it is a Pueblo staple.

Fuel & Iron’s mission to support pueb-

lo starts with the food industry: Fuel & Iron Food Hall. By providing an incubator site for new restaurants, Stern and his team are bringing the upfront cost of starting a new business down for local chefs and speedrunning Pueblo’s path to being a frontrunner of food statewide.

The Fuel & Iron Food Hall’s grand opening ceremony is at 11 a.m. April 28 at 400 S. Union Ave. This is the first of many projects Fuel & Iron Realty plan on unveiling to the Pueblo community.

Fuel & Iron: Food Hall, Fuel Kitchens, Fuel Farm

According to Stern, for each of these specialties there is an incubator site that is meant to allow “entrepreneurs to practice there” and “get their first brickand-mortar taste of business.” The Food Hall promotes restaurant ownership, the Fuel Kitchens promote food manufacturing and the Fuel Farm promotes agricultural practices.

The Food Hall is the first phase of the Fuel & Iron initiative that will be open. It is housed on the first floor of the historic Holmes Hardware Building at 400 S. Union Ave.

The Holmes building was built in 1911, burnt down and rebuilt in 1915. The building survived the 1921 flood six years later. The hardware company was purchased by Alva B. Adams, a threeterm Colorado governor during the turn of the 20th century, and his family, in 1948. The building has been empty for several decades - until now. Fuel & Iron

FUEL & IRON continued on page 6

Here is just a taste of the menu items from the finalized restuarants at Fuel & Iron Food Hall. (Clockwise, from top left: Santa Fonda, Diavolo, The Hungry Buffalo, Steel Crescent Kitchen, Mosh Ramen) Photos by Fuel & Iron et al./Facebook.

Food Hall set to open later this month, setting off a series of food industry revitalizations

Investing in children, Pueblo specialists share how economies thrive with quallity childcare

Guest Column

Currently, the average family spends about 18 percent of its income on childcare.

The pandemic brought about a renewed interested in childcare and highlighted the issues that were causing a reduction in quality childcare even prior to the pandemic. Due to lack of childcare women, four times the rate of men, have dropped out of the workforce. Research states that if quality childcare is affordable, 21% more parents, particularly mothers, would choose to work. The employment effects are the greatest for the lowest-income parents which would increase by a whopping 18% for the poorest mothers. An increase in the labor supply, supports the broader economy, increasing the economy’s productive capacity and growth.

Colorado Shines is a quality rating and improvement system for Colorado’s licensed early care and learning programs. They say safety, and quality are the most important factors about a child care program. They also state that “the early years of life are very important for all areas of children’s learning and development. That’s because the human brain develops faster during the first five years than at any other time in a person’s life! High-quality child care and preschool programs support children during a

sensitive and important time of life. Research shows that quality child care and preschool programs help children prepare for kindergarten and success in school”. So, what is quality? According to professionals in Pueblo County, they agree quality should be safe, healthy, engaging, happy, and positive.

The high cost of child care can be a financial hardship for many families to have access to quality child care. The Colorado Child Care Assistance Program (CCCAP) assists eligible families that are homeless, working, searching for employment, attending school, and enrolled in the Colorado Works Program. Families can apply for CCCAP on-line at Colorado Peak, visit the Pueblo County Depart-

ment of Human Services at 405 West 9th Street, or 320 West 10th Street to pick up an application, or can call 719-253-7929 to request an application be mailed.

Investing in early childcare has a duel return on investment. Improving the early childhood experiences of our youngest citizens has long term ripple effects, raising the next generation up the economic ladder. Research demonstrates the impact of high-quality early childhood experiences, as increases in education, health, full-time employment and reduced incidence of anti-social behavior or crime. The findings have been proven time after time and should provide communities with the confidence to use investments in quality early childhood development as an effective tool to improve the economies and health and wellness of a community.

When a community makes big, bold investments in childcare and early education, it reaps significant benefits for children, their families, businesses, and the whole economy of the community.

Further reading can be found at these sites:

www.earlylearningnation.com

www.heckanequation.org

www.Nwlc.org

Board of Directors: Gregory Howell, Kennedy Pugh, Chantal Woodyard, Leslie Nazario

Advisory Board: Nicki Hart, Susan Wolf, Caroline Trani, Jayson Peters

News content, sports & podcast manager: Ben Cason Arts & News editor: Rory Harbert

Contributors: Rebecca Bellavia, Patsy Kate Booth, Beth Bricker Davis, Kristin Skye Hoffmann and performing arts review squad, Rachel Kutskill, Justin Morenz, Ida Rhodes, Karen Wallace

Special thanks to: Blo Back Gallery, Fuel & Iron, Pueblo Chieftain Printing, Pueblo Department of Health & Environment, Gary Markstein, Southern Colorado Small Business Development Center, Pueblo Community College, Creative Consortium of Pueblo, Senior Resource Development Agency, Supporters of Horticultural Education, Pueblo County Master Garderners, Surelock Locksmith, Photography by Lyss, Pueblo Economic Development Corp

Rational Media Ltd. dba The Pueblo Star Journal is fiscally sponsored by Positive Content. As a fiscal sponsor, Positive Content acts as an umbrella organization for our missionfocused work, and accepts and administers funds on our behalf. Positive Content is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization which makes all donations to us tax deductible. Send donation checks to:

Positive Content, c/o Pueblo Star Journal Fund

301 N. Main St, Suite 101, Pueblo, CO 81003

or donate online: PuebloStarJournal.org/Donate

Illustration by Gary Markstein.

Rebecca Bellavia Children First

Ida Rhodes Catholic Charities of Southern Colorado

Young historians,storytellers

By Rory Harbert

Colorado State University Pueblo hosted Southeastern Colorado’s regional History Day competition in which students present research projects on history topics of their choice on April 1. The theme this year was “Frontiers in History: People, Places, Ideas.” The competition had 158 students, from five different schools, sign up this year to participate. Grade levels range from sixth to 12th grade. Thirty-six judges volunteered to engage with students on history, rank projects and choose who moves onto the state competition. Judges also provided feedback, vetted sources and interviewed students on their research.

Students must provide extensive research, utilize primary sources and adhere to a strict word count among other rules to meet submission qualifications. Students have the option to present their research through papers, exhibits, performances, documentaries or websites.

The Pueblo Star Journal, supporting all ages who “dig deeper,” offered two “Storytelling” awards to History Day participants. With this award, students received a $50 prize, a certificate with our iconic shovel logo, indicating the hard work done to dig up a story, and a chance to be published in the paper. Volunteer judges nominated projects that they deemed to have the “most compelling presentation of history.” These students are not the only ones to move onto state competition, but stood out on their own accord.

Connect student Jennifer Hijar entered her project in the individual junior exhibits category. Her project was titled “The Cotton Gin: Frontiering America's Cash Crop.” In 1794, inventor Eli Whitney patented the cotton gin, a machine that streamlined the process of harvesting cotton.

“I chose this topic because I really like inventions, and I like hearing like the background stories of how it all started,” Hijar said. “And then I like seeing how it improves and how it impacts us as it continues.”

For Hijar, history is like following a trail.

“I think history is important because it just shows different points of views of people: who invent things and people who are impacted by it,” she said. “I think that it shows that anything is possible, that you can do whatever you put your mind to. It just takes some time, and you just need to follow through.”

Hijar said that history is an important subject for young leaders.

“I think it's important for people my age because it gives people my age almost a clear vision of what to do in the future and how people’s lives back then impact us now,” Hijar said.

Hijar is excited to move onto the state competition.

Connect students Hayven Romero and Bryson Martin entered their Junior documentary project called “The Tuskegee Airmen: Frontiersmen in the Military.” The Tuskegee Airmen were the first African American aviators to serve in the U.S. Army Air Corps, now known as the U.S. Air Force. The men trained at the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama and flew in World War II.

“We figured it was very significant to history because it ties into civil rights,” Romero said.

This is the first time the two have participated in History Day.

For Martin, history is about “significant turning points and things that can

History Day participants win PSJ award for narrative-crafting skills

change the world, things that people want and need to learn about.”

The pair said they believe History Day is important for students at their grade-level.

“History Day can help people our age learn about significant people and things that have happened,” Romero said.

They are excited to participate in the state-level competition.

The State competition is on April 29 at the University of Colorado in Denver. Students will have a chance to revise and polish their projects before competing again. For those interesed in volunteering at the state-level this year or at the regional event next year or having a new, eligible school participate, contact Dawn Carver, the regional History Day coordinator, at dawncarver4@gmail.com.

Pueblo Star Journal “Storytelling” award winners, Jennifer Hijar, Hayven Romero and Bryson Martin, pose with regional coordinator Dawn Carver.Photo by Rory Harbert.

Photo by Rory Harbert

Photo by Rory Harbert

This year’s theme for History Day is “Frontiers.” Students argue how their topic fits the theme within the project.

Mentorship means showing up

By Ben Cason

April is the National Month of the Young Child, and since 2012, United Way of Pueblo County has made an impact with their middle school mentoring program. The program focuses on engaging middle school students by connecting them with an in-person mentor.

The vision of the program is for all Pueblo middle school students to have access to nurturing mentors who help them develop into confident, responsible and positive members of the community. Mentors are connected with students at the beginning of the fall semester and meet for one hour per week during the year. Ideally, mentors would stay with the students through all three years of their middle school careers.

Melody Schuette, the youth success coordinator at United Way, said, “Our big thing with mentors is that you don’t have to be perfect, you just have to be there. People get in their head and think they can’t positively impact youth and that’s not the case. I think every adult has something they can bring

United Way’s program lifts up Pueblo middle school students

to the table to impact our youth in Pueblo.”

“Our focus for our program is ‘bubble kids,’ the kids right in the middle,” Schuette said. “The high-achieving honor-roll kids seem to have those systems already in place. Also, the kids with behavioral challenges have support systems built in. We target those kids because they may be one direction from being that behavioral child or one direction from being the honor roll child.”

Mentees are enrolled in participating middle schools in Pueblo school districts 60 and 70. They are referred to the program by school staff who collaborate with United Way to make compatible mentor and mentee matches.

“It’s a chance to have another positive adult in their life,” Schuette said. “In my opinion, you cannot have too many positive people surrounding you. At that age, you may not want to talk to your parents about things, having another adult you can trust and talk to can be a huge thing.”

A success story from United Way is a mentor whose goal has become beating his mentee at Uno. Schuette said, “It’s a story of a mentor not trying to change their mentee, but just being there has made an impact.”

Sarah Mize, a volunteer mentor with the program, said, “I love Pueblo, my home, and giving back to my community has become more and more important to me as the years have gone by. I am hopeful that through mentoring, I can improve my mentee’s life experience in even the smallest of ways, and it’s also a lot of fun to color and chat with Izzy every week.”

“Mentoring impacts everyone,” Schuette said. “Almost everyone I talk to has a mentor in their life they

can point to. Part of our goal of our mentoring program is to provide opportunities to build relationships with nurturing adults who empower and encourage our middle schoolers. The benefit of having someone to walk alongside you and positively impact your life makes a huge difference.”

United Way is a part of the Pueblo Mentoring Collaborative and works with over 60 nonprofit organizations through grants and collaborations in Pueblo. The Pueblo Mentoring Collaborative is a group of organizations who work together in order to impact the city of Pueblo.

“We’re there to support each other,” Schuette said. “One of the great things is that you can mention an event going on, and you have volunteers for that event, or a chance for someone’s program to go to that event and share what they’re doing. It’s a great opportunity to get a foot in the door with that collaboration piece.”

United Way is accepting applications for mentors stepping in for the 2023-24 school year. You can find the application at pueblounitedway.org/mentor.

Photo courtesy of United Way

United Way of Pueblo County puts the spolight on mentor Haley Sue Robinson, check out the post on Facebook. Photo courtesy of United Way.

United Way of Pueblo County puts the spolight on mentor Daniel Minich, check out the post on the group’s Facebook. Photo Courtesy of United Way.

Photo courtesy of United Way

Our big thing with mentors is that you don’t have to be perfect, you just have to be there.”

-Melody Schuette

Fuel & Iron

continued from page 1

Realty bought the building in May 2021. Construction on the food hall began in July 2021, and has met several delays as it was originally meant to be completed by last summer.

What we’ve found out with construction is that it never goes according to plan,” Stern said.

Because the Holmes building was only used as a retail store or a warehouse, the interior of the building was a blank slate for Fuel & Iron. If not for that, historic preservation societies would have likely made the company keep the original configuration of the rooms which would have been difficult to achieve what they wanted with this building.

According to Stern, the first level was perfect for what the company needed for the Food Hall as there was an easy back-of-house that they could use for storage or deliveries.

The Food Hall holds the liquor license and acts as the bar for the establishment. Fuel & Iron covers the front-of-house team and dishwashing team, which helps to mitigate costs for new restaurant entrepreneurs. The Food Hall operates with a base rent and a percentage fee.

There are five restaurants set up for the opening:

• Diavolo Hot Chicken, by the owners of Bingo Burger, is a take on the fried chicken sandwich with Pueblo chiles.

• Santa Fonda, by José Avila, who owns Denver’s La Diabla, described as an “authentic pozole y mezcal” experience, which will blend authentic Mexican food with Pueblo ingredients.

• Mosh Ramen offers pan-Asian-inspired street food.

• The Hungry Buffalo, which is a food truck primarily that specializes in bison-themed menu items, will be included in the lineup of restaurants in the Food Hall. Chefs Charles McKay and Sue Ray started operations in 2021.

• Steel Crescent Kitchen is bringing a Cajun-meets-Pueblo fusion spin.

The five-business system means that these restaurants will eventually have to rotate. Stern said one exception is the Solar Roast Coffee and Ice Cream establishment, which is not on a staggered lease.

To be selected for a spot in the Food Hall, the idea for the restaurant must be unique and the applicant must intend to expand into brick-and-mortar.

To allow for another stream of

revenue and opportunity for education, Fuel & Iron is opening Fuel Kitchens, a commissary kitchen that allows chefs to prep packaged food products. It is located on the East Side of Pueblo. There will be 16 member spaces available. Membership comes with a fee that covers a certain amount of storage space and kitchen time. There will be additional space, food truck storage, etc,. available for members as well.

Avila and Fuel & Iron through Fuel Kitchens are hoping to start a tortilla production line from Rocky Mountain Farmers Union, which could be sold in grocery stores at some point.

“Hopefully, we’ll be connected with a farmer in Pueblo to work on producing a specific variety of heirloom corn,” Stern said. “José then could grow the corn locally in Pueblo, produce the tortillas here at commissary kitchen and then serve the tortillas at the Food

“So we’re essentially taking the role of the educational institution, but what’s cool is with apprenticeship is we can also be the employer.”

-Mo Montgomery

Renovations on the Holmes Building are nearing completion. The Food Hall’s ribbon cutting ceremony is at 11 a.m. April 28. (Photo/Fuel & Iron Facebook).

Photo courtesy of Fuel & Iron

Hall in addition to his other restaurants.”

Chefs Charles McKay and Sue Ray of The Hungry Buffalo want to use the commissary kitchen to produce buffalo jerky.

In addition to allowing food prep and packaging, there is a fenced space to allow several food trucks to park. Stern said this will be beneficial in the off-season because chefs can pivot to packaged goods.

Fuel Farm, located beside the Food Hall, will act as a space to promote agricultural learning paths.

“It’s not really going to be a revenue-generating enterprise,” Stern said. “We’re organizing it as a nonprofit... And so, for that, you won’t actually be able to launch a business at the urban farm. But you’ll hopefully gain the skills that you need to purchase or lease a small plot of land and launch your own farm.”

The Fuel Farm will be USDA organic. According to Montgomery, Fuel Farm will act as an urban farm within the quarter-acre space but “it will have the production of an 8-acre farm.” Fuel Farm will have wheelchair-accessible beds, a 70-foot by 30-foot greenhouse and an aquaponic system.

Industry breakdown

But what does the food industry look like in Pueblo?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2021, the annual wage for restaurant cooks in Pueblo County was above the national average by $890. And while chefs and head cooks made $1,880 under the national average, institutional and cafeteria cooks made only $400 below their national average. For any worker in the food industry field from dishwasher to chef, Pueblo’s average annual income, at $31,530, is over $2,000 above the national average.

According to the Colorado Restaurant Association, in 2023, Colorado restaurants employ 8% of the state’s workforce, making up 10% prior to the pandemic. From entry level to owner, four in five restaurant owners said they started in an entry-level position. Nearly 70% of restaurants in Colorado are independently owned.

Though, according to the Colorado Restaurant Association, operational costs are at a four-decade record high and eight out of 10 restaurants are struggling to hire staff.

According to the Colorado Restaurant Association’s survey of 174 operators in 2022, in an effort to keep and gain talent, “more than 92% of restaurants have changed business practices or wage rates to increase hiring and retention, with one in four restaurants offering retention and hiring bonuses.”

All this in mind, Pueblo did lose a prominent program in the field.

Culinary program

Pueblo Community College, for 35 years, was the most prominent culinary arts program in Pueblo. In 2005, The American Culinary Federation awarded the program its “seven-year accreditation,” which was typically reserved for four-year culinary institutions.

From 2017-22, the program saw enrollment drop by half, according to The Pueblo Chieftain, which covered the program’s closure in June 2022. In January, The Chieftain covered further complications PCC has been facing with producing employable graduates, explaining that the culinary program was given one year to reinvent the program to raise enrollment but could not. The program closed.

Mo Montgomery, the culinary director for the Fuel & Iron project and former director of hospitality and culinary arts at PCC, is spearheading the apprenticeship program.

“We are going to have a really robust apprenticeship program,” she said. “All three of our apprenticeships have a goal of bringing the apprentice to entrepreneurship in a pathway. Overall, we’re looking at career pathways from high school on. But we will accept folk of any age in the apprenticeship program. We’re trying to make it as accessible as possible, and we’re particularly focusing on rural high schools.”

Montgomery has been speaking to schools across the districts, through a partnership with the nonprofit organization Generation Schools Network, to figure out how to deliver this programming to high schools.

The first apprenticeship is set to begin this summer with a focus on the culinary arts. The next apprenticeship to be offered will open in 2023 through the Fuel Farm. It is a “one-of-a-kind agriculture” program, according to Montgomery. The third will have a focus on consumer packaging and food manufacturing.

“Eventually, when they’re ready, they’ll be

able to launch a restaurant on the Food Hall, launch a packaged product business at the commissary kitchen, or go and eventually open their own farm,” Stern said.

Montgomery wants to lead the apprenticeship programs “with a foundation on cultural appreciation of the unique foodways of Pueblo.”

“I think that the foodways here are really undervalued, both by locals and abroad,” Montgomery said. “So, by building that understanding and the historical and cultural context of our different food items, our traditions, the things we hand down through our families, appreciating that for the gem that it is.”

The culinary apprenticeship will be a three-year program accredited through the ACF. According to Montgomery, apprenticeship has two components: related instruction and on-the-job learning, designated by the Department of Labor. Fuel & Iron acts as the sponsor. The sponsor means, according to Montgomery, that “we’re in charge of finding instructors and employing them, maintaining the curriculum and doing all the reporting to the Department of Labor.”

“So we’re essentially taking the role of the educational institution, but what’s cool is with apprenticeship is we can also be the employer,” Montgomery said.

According to Montgomery, culinary arts apprentices will do a rotation at the restaurants in the Food Hall or work special events if those restaurants can-

“I think that the foodways here are really undervalued, both by locals and abroad.”

-Mo Montgomery

not provide that experience. With the option of providing special events, the restaurants do not need to adjust their practices or menu to accommodate student experience and long-distance apprentices can meet the instructional requirement online and attend special events. Montgomery said local apprentices can gain college credit through the Emily Griffith Technical College. Apprentices will receive five certifications relevant to their industry with the highest certification earned being “certified sous chef” from the ACF.

Apprenticeship programs, according to Montgomery, are required to provide minimum wage with incremental raises. While it is calculated based on the living wage, Fuel & Iron estimates the wages to start at $16 an hour with 50-cent raise, which would lead to a $17.50 hourly wage by the third year.

While the first year requires apprentices to work at the Food Hall, years two and three can be out in the industry.

Affordable housing

In finding the property that would fit their initial vision of the Food Hall, according to Stern, they never envisioned getting a multistory building. The Holmes Hardware Building won them over, and with the two extra floors that were not needed for the Food Hall to operate, they could do something more than they had first thought. Stern said they “kind of became accidental housing developers” because of that.

In order to make our numbers work, we had to figure out a way to generate revenue from the second and third floors. The company looked towards the housing shortage as a solution.

Pics from the past

“Philosophically, our belief about downtowns is you can’t have a fully vibrant downtown if nobody lives there,” Stern said.

Fuel & Iron was able to utilize the space afforded by the open layout of the Holmes building to fit 20 apartment units on the upper floors.

Bringing affordable housing was always a part of the initial plan, but it jumped quickly up in the prioritization queue as opportunities to fold it in revealed themselves.

“We knew that the Food Hall was phase one when we were initially planning,” Stern said. “We just had, vaguely, everything else as phase two. We also didn’t have the space for the commissary kitchen, we knew we wanted to have one, eventually. (We were) really thinking, ‘Okay, that maybe is phase three.’ But then we found what we think is the perfect building for it. And so, phase three became phase two.”

The group also has another half-acre to the east of the Main Street Bridge, which was included in the purchased the Holmes Hardware Building, where Fuel & Iron Realty hopes to build an additional 24-unit multifamily housing complex, but that would be “like phase 17.”

The project would be through indieDwell, a housing company that aims to “deliver multifamily solutions to developers of affordable housing” via modular building. The indieDwell website states that its mission is to “revolutionize the building industry by producing dwellings that better occupant health and well-being, improve the health of the environment and empower community.”

The housing offered is through CHFA: Colorado Housing and Finance Authority, which manages affordable housing. One-bedroom units are $925 per month to rent; two-bedroom units are $1,100 per month. Utilities are included in rent. Applicant’s salary cannot exceed $34,000 annually. To inquire about renting a unit, email property manager at paula.white@hapueblo.org.

Holmes Hardware Building

After a fire destroyed the original building in 1915, it was immediately rebuilt with the same façade. But, instead of replacing the wood, the contractors opted to rebuild with concrete making it not only fireproof but strong enough to withstand the flood of 1921. In 1948, Alva B. Adams, a prominent Colorado politician during the turn of the century, and his family bought the building. Now it’s being reused for the Fuel & Iron Food Hall which opens April 28th.

Photos courtesy of the Fuel & Iron.

“Philosophically, our belief about downtowns is you can’t have a fully vibrant downtown if nobody lives there.”

-Nathan Stern

We speak for the bees

By Rory Harbert

The Pueblo County Beekeepers Association is going into its eighth year, and is one of the fastest growing clubs in the state, according to Dru Spinuzzi, the PCBA president who also serves as the advisor to the Colorado Beekeepers Association board. She has kept bees for 10 years now. She has two hives, the city’s limit, in her backyard and numerous others positioned on farms throughout the county. February and March are the most detrimental months in Colorado for bees with the weather unpredictable and winter food stores low compounded by pollen counts only just rising. This leaves bees susceptible for invasive pests and disease.

“We have to doctor our bees,” she said. “People think they can do it naturally or not doing anything at all, but you can’t do that. This is livestock and you have to take care them.”

The Pueblo Beekeepers Association offers two-day program, called the Bee Curious School, which costs about $80 to attend. Beekeeping requires a nuanced understanding of the many needs the colonies have to survive and thrive. According to Spinuzzi, the association has “one of the top-notch bee schools in Colorado” in providing clarity on beehive management.

“It goes through every single thing you need to know about beekeeping,” Spinuzzi said. “So from beginning to end, as far as what equipment you need, diseases, how to treat for mites, how to split, everything you need to know as a beginning beekeeper.”

For Spinuzzi, the club serves a critical role in sustainability.

“I think that our club really, really focuses on the mentorship, getting people involved, where you can get bees—you know, helping people out to be good beekeepers,” she said. “Because first of all, bees are not cheap. Equipment is not cheap. We don’t want somebody going down and just buying bees and letting them die. That’s not what we’re here for. We need to save the bees and they’re very essential. If we didn’t have bees… They provide pollination for 70% of our food. That’s a lot. So, if you take the bees out, then we’re in trouble.”

The Bee Curious! Speaker Event was coordinated by Spinuzzi who invited four keynote speakers who spoke on topics like the use of bees to pollinate almonds or mite treatment. Spinuzzi said she tries to choose speakers that can actually attest to raising bees in Colorado’s unpredictable environment. Spinuzzi said “we have to raise bees different because of our weather,” so every speaker was chosen because they had lived in Colorado at some point.

“That’s what we’re here for: to educate the public and new beekeepers to be sustainable,” she said.

This was the third year the event was held, excluding the interruption the pandemic caused. Spinuzzi said she hopes to have a honey expert speak next year.

The speaker event and vendor market help to raise funds for the scholarship PCBA offers for children and youth to start beekeeping and join the association. There have been at least four applications for the scholarship. According to Spinuzzi, “getting the word out has been challenging.”

Mentorship is a large part of what the association offers to beekeepers. Spinuzzi said that she has mentored, herself, 40-50 people over the past decade.

“I like mentoring kids because they listen,” Spinuzzi said, jokingly. “They do

local club recruits beekeepers of all ages, info on protocol for swarm season

what they’re told for the most part. Adults are a bit different!”

Beekeeping often is associated with those of retirement age, but two of the youngest beekeepers that have been in the club for a few years now, are in high school.

John Harbert (full disclosure: reporter’s brother), 17, has been beekeeping since 2021. He is taking classes in computer science, but has always had a strong interest in the environment. In addition to bees, he also has taken up keeping chickens.

“John is really smart, he does a lot of his own research,” Spinuzzi said.

Harbert explained how the bees seal themselves in their hives using propolis, a sticky compound the bees make from their saliva and wax to keep out intruders.

“One time… this beekeeper had hives and the volcano erupted and spewed like ashes and lava and rocks everywhere, and most of the hives actually survived because they sealed themselves inside with propolis,” he said.

For him, though he originally started beekeeping because of the environment, he is mainly motivated by how rewarding it is. According to Harbert, the environ-

Dru Spinuzzi holds up a frame from a hive that has been absconded, or left behind by the colony in search of a new space.

Photo by Rory Harbert

“That’s what we’re here for: to educate the public and new beekeepers to be sustainable.”

-Dru Spinuzzi

mental impact of beekeeping is more nuanced as it depends on the climate and its number of native bees to really determine the positive or negative effects of bringing in honey bees.

“It does encourage people to plant native flowers, and native flowers are good for both honeybees and native bees,” he said. “And if you’re in an area with quite a lot of native bees but not many honeybees, it’s probably better for the native bees... Native bees are actually much more efficient at pollinating plants than honeybees. However, they’re in such low amount most people who put honeybees on farms, only put honeybees because there are so few native bees.”

James Rothbaum, 15, started beekeeping around the same time. He said he has always been interested biology - specifically microscopy, which is the study of objects that cannot be seen with the naked eye. He has been taking engineering courses, though, so now he is torn between going into the fields of biology or computer science. Rothbaum has always had an

interest in insects and the study of them. Though, he never expected to start beekeeping at any age. He said it was “completely out of pocket, to be honest, but I (do not) regret that decision.”

Spinuzzi is a family friend and Rothbaum was helping her out with some hives during the pandemic, when he was approached with the idea of beekeeping himself.

“I thought that would be a cool idea,” Rothbaum said. “And then, like, I knew a thing or two about insects, so... The next thing I know, I’m doing some research about it. We got some hives ordered, and thanks to her help, now we have two hives in our backyard.”

She speaks highly of Rothbaum as well, sharing a story about how she was shocked at how diligent he was at maintaining his hives.

“He texted me, ‘Dru, I did my mite count, I’m at 6%. What do you think I should do?’ I’m like what do you think you should do?” she said. Varroa mite counts are done by manually counting the number of mites found on a number of bees and then extrapolating out to a percentage overall. Different methods, from alcohol soaks to powdered sugar to extract mites from the bees for counting, can change accuracy. The mites are treatable, but can lead to total colony collapse.

Rothbaum said he was able to harvest and sell 30 eightounce jars of honey. He said he went into beekeeping with no specific intention in mind, but now he is more informed about the environmental impact bees and pollinators have.

“So, I just thought it would be cool and now I am interested in the environment,” he said. “I’ve learned a lot about, you know, bees dying off from pesticides, industrialization and stuff. So yeah, I have gotten interested in that.”

When Harbert and Rothbaum learned of the average beekeeping age being 55 years old, they were shocked.

“I thought there would be quite a lot of people who are young, who would be interested in beekeeping for the purpose of the environment,” Harbert said.

Rothbaum said that the average was “a lot higher than what I would have expected.”

Harbert said he does not personally know anyone his age that keeps bees, but he said “I’d relate to them more and they might have the same questions as me.” Though, starting a group outside the all-ages association is not necessary for Harbert, as he said the information would be the same “regardless of if you’re old or young.”

PCBA membership includes field days where they demonstrate how to do different tasks like performing a split, which is where you divide a group of bees that have become overpopulated and need to be separated and placed into an additional hive.

The group has at least 100 members, but this time of year is when memberships are up for renewal. Last year, according to Spinuzzi, the group had 165 members and she said they are likely to exceed that number.

Rothbaum said the mentorship program is beneficial for those interested in beekeeping.

“It’s not too difficult if you... have someone you can ask questions like I did,” he said. “Because Dru was kind of a mentor. If I had a question, she would know how to answer it. She’d even come over to my house, check out the hives, see what’s going on, see what I have to do.”

Vic Boley, of Boley’s Bee Haven, has been a beekeeper since he retired from his work at the sheriff’s office 10 years ago. His wife was a biology teacher who

Dru Spinuzzi removes an old banana peel as she opens up her hive for the first time since the start of winter. The peel served as an extra source of sugar for the bees during the cold season, as their is no pollen available to eat. The bees spend the winter clustered around the queen for warmth.

Photo by Rory Harbert

“It’s not too difficult if you... have someone you can ask questions like I did.”

-James Rothbaum

always did a section on honeybees for her D60 class, and after he completed the Colorado State University Extension’s “master gardener” program, he was inspired to get a hive for his garden. Now they have dozens of hives.

“Boy, time flies when you’re having fun, and beekeeping is fun!” Boley said. “I enjoy it.”

“My thought is: it’s better to have 1,000 beekeepers with one colony each spread across our communities with the pollinators and such, than just have one commercial beekeeper with 1,000 colonies,” Boley said. “It’s really a ‘give back to nature’ hobby.”

Boley is an active PCBA member who teaches at the Buell Children’s Museum, where he brings in “dead-outs” or hives that did not survive the winter to share how the hive works during the cold season. The “What’s the Buzz? The Life of the Honeybee” programs ends May 13.

The PCBA offers three tiers of memberships: individual, family and corporate. Memberships cost from $35-$80 and can be prorated if joining partway through the year. Membership includes affiliation with the group, voting privileges during officer and organizational elections, a free mentor for up to two years and spots on the swarm list to claim free bees reported to the swarm commander.

“You will see a big ball of bees, and they could be on a tree limb, they could be in a bush, they could be on the ground, they could be on the side of your vehicle,” Spinuzzi said.

Swarms, which are a collection of workers bees and a queen bee that are in search of a new place to start a hive, need to be reported to Spinuzzi, the swarm commander, at 719-250-3441, or the assistant swarm commander, Taylor Spinuzzi, at 719-664-9662. Callers need to be prepared to describe the swarm’s appearance and location.

The PCBA meets every third Thursday. The next meeting is 6:30 p.m. April 20 at the Lamb Branch Library, in the basement-level conference room. Virtual attendance is an option via a Zoom link on the group’s website at pueblocountybeekeepersassociation.com.

Bees swarm because the worker bees determined that their old hive is unfit. It is a natural process. Professional beekeepers, like Dru Spinuzzi, are equipped to rehome them in a new hive. Photo courtesy of Spinuzzi.

Photo courtesy of Dru Spinuzzi

THRIVE! with Rachel

By Rachel Kutskill

The interconnected network of matter that lies under the earth’s outermost layers of the crust, the only area that we are capable of making direct contact with, is full of life-sustaining minerals and organic compounds. We dig our hands into this layer each year, as the ground thaws and the warm sun brings movement and life, inspiring a joyful and hopeful time of year. Spring.

This is a time when gardens, teeming with life, transform. As trees, flowers, birds, bees and butterflies become excited once again with the buzz of this rhythmic transition—the season of beginnings. It is quite inexplicable, the smells and feelings associated with spring, but every person has that distinct moment when the senses determine this fresh season is upon us. Moods lighten, smiles appear for no reason at all, eyes close as deep breathes take in the surrounding smells and sounds, each footstep seems to be lighter—springy—and the vitality of the community perks back up.

Pueblo, itself, has the mechanisms to thrive. With a milder winter climate than our northern neighbor, over 250 days of sunshine annually, a confluence of two, extensive water systems, plentiful farms, the sheer grit of those who have lived here for genera-

The Pueblo Star Journal (PSJ) Happiness Index will rate our suggestions in terms of:

Social support- Does this help connect us as a community and is it inclusive?

Healthy life expectancy- Does this potentially prolong life to a high standard of living and without harm or risk? Freedoms making life choices - Is this free from imposition on others or ourselves?

Generosity - How cost effective is this for others and ourselves?

tions, and a sense of this energetic unknown, all binds its people and community together. As you walk through various parts of town, the togetherness that can be felt by neighbors who have relied on each other to succeed, from businesses, to central hubs, to residential communities, have understood the vitality of our town is a result of this connection. This web-like bond is resilient.

The diversity of our community can be valued as one of the strengths to how our community succeeds, just as soil biodiversity is important for plants and microorganisms to thrive. At the “Sun, soil, water” Ag Summit put on by the Pueblo Food Project last month, experts spoke on various topics that intertwined to form the network of sustainability that Pueblo has to offer in regards to our food and water components. Mary Dixon, a Ph.D student in the horticulture department at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, spoke on backyard

Photography by Lyss Natural light photographer in Pueblo Colorado & surrounding areas.

soil reclamation and how to support the ecosystem that is underfoot.

According to Dixon, there are principles for sustaining soil health in order for the plant population to thrive. Pueblo is known for its clay soils with high PH levels. But with a few amendments to the dirt we have just outside our doors, we too can have a thriving, biodiverse, plant ecosystem in our own yards. Dixon added that by using organic compounds such as pea gravel, perlite or types of matter that are fibrous, long and straw-like, we can create a soil environment that will absorb water and nutrients, thus creating a diverse population of microorganisms, all needed for a healthy garden and yard.

Another point Dixon addressed, that seemed quite valuable, is the reduction of soil disturbance. So hold onto your tillers a moment, this may change your mind. The mycorrhizal network is a valuable connection of plant roots and an entire fungal system located underground. This system is one of the driving forces of how plants can thrive in imperfect growing environments by transferring nutrients and minerals from one species to another. The precarious network is held together and bonded in a web-like community, and disturbance to the mycorrhiza can be detrimental to the entire population. An abundance of tilling and soil turning will break apart these webbed communities causing surrounding stress and increased time to rebuild. Dixon recommended adding mulch amendments to an established soil system such as hay, pine needles and grass clippings to reduce evaporation, feed the soil and reduce soil disruption. Mulch is added to the top soil ,so there is low to no tilling required. Over long periods of time, with little disturbance to the soil, the aerated environment becomes saturated with nutrients and minerals, providing the support network for a thriving plant population. With this aeration comes a softer soil—a diverse soil—a richer, darker soil—a springy

‘Earthing’: how connecting with rich, healthy soil can improve wellbeing

soil.

When our bodies connect and align with the natural rhythms of the 24-hour earth cycle, referred to as circadian rhythm, the human body is positively affected and has shown to benefit in overall health. Furthermore, when we physically connect with the ground, placing our feet and hands in the soil, this is known as “Earthing.” There have been noticeable changes in becoming more aligned with the circadian rhythm when taking the time to stand, without interference, on the beautiful soil we have nurtured. In a nutshell, these early studies are showing decreased inflammation, longer and deeper sleep cycles, overall feelings of being well rested, decreased blood pressure and an improvement in blood sugar levels.

While there have not been decades of peer-reviewed studies on the long term health benefits, people do tend to feel better after connecting with the earth for any duration of time. So with this information, it’s the perfect time to be in your garden or yard, nurturing a biodiverse ecosystem, and reaping the benefits and fruits of your labor from a healthy, thriving network of life-sustaining soil.

THRIVE TIP: Place your bare feet or hands upon the soil or soft grass for 5 minutes, avoid any other distractions and focus on being in the moment.

April’s thrive tip can be done standing, seated on the ground or in a chair and/or laying on the ground. You can participate for longer than 5 minutes. A great modification would be to sit in a chair and place your hands in the dirt of a planter box, or place your feet on the grass or soil.

PSJ Happiness Index: 3.9/4

• Social Support - 4/4 Anyone is able to participate, anywhere in the world.

• Health - 4/4 Being mindful during activities can produce higher levels of success.

• Freedom - 3.75/4 While rare, there are certain

occurrences where we cannot physically be in the outdoors, such as being confined to a hospital setting. Even then, houseplants can be used for earthing practices.

• Generosity - 4/4 FREE for anyone to try.

References:

• Nor Amira Syahira Mohd Azmi, Norsham Juliana, Sahar Azmani,Nadia Mohd Effendy, Izuddin Fahmy Abu, Nur Islami Mohd Fahmi Teng, and Srijit Das.“Cortisol on Circadian Rhythm and Its Effect on Cardiovascular System”. Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 Jan; 18(2): 676. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7830980/

• Gaétan Chevalier, Stephen T. Sinatra, James L. Oschman, Karol Sokal, and Pawel Sokal. “Earthing: Health Implications of Reconnecting the Human Body to the Earth’s Surface Electrons”. J Environ Public Health, 2012 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/ PMC3265077/#:~:text=Earthing%20(or%20 grounding)%20refers%20to,the%20ground%20 into%20the%20body.

• McNear, David H. Jr. “The RhizosphereRoots, Soil and Everything In Between”. Nature Education, 2013,https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/the-rhizosphere-rootssoil-and-67500617/

The rhiizosphere is the plant-soil interface inhabited by microorganisms, (Photo/nature.com).

Photo courtesy of nature.com

First Friday Art Walk GUIDE

Rory Harbert: “Having been there in the beginning when the murals were first popping up, and then now where we’re revitalizing the project, how does that feel for you? How does that emotionally connect?”

Cynthia Ramu: “Well there’s a lot of emotions in there. For the wall to go down as an entity, I didn’t know about it until the last second. I really worked hard for years to get it to be connected, and the last thing I ever thought was the destruction of all the art on the wall. There are pieces where no one knows who did them, or people just renovated off of something someone else did. Luckily, I was trying to document and there were people who documented. I have a whole archive that I’ve transferred to Rawlings library digitally and with KTSC in 1995 we did a documentary on the project.

Now it’s different, but it’s new because everything changes. This energy with the artists now, most of them weren’t even alive when I first started. A lot of them get to make their work happen on the wall. I’m just excited that I’m around to help that happen. I want to help create a legacy from the old to the new and let it grow, find new leaders and find new people to help support this vision. In the beginning when I got started, I was like what’s the name of this? ‘Well levee?’ Hmm we should have a name for it. It’s something that’s growing and morphing all the time, I’ve got artists in La Veta, Denver, Albuquerque, Colorado Springs we just had someone enter a call for artists (we’ve done seven so far) who’s in Ontario. I’m trying to reach out to people beyond us and right now we’re trying to break the US record, I have to do a lot of math every day to keep track of how much footage we’ve done and how far we have to go. I want to keep people inspired to be part of our team to make that happen for the US and the world record because we kept it for 23 years which is amazing. We only lost it because the wall went down.”

Harbert: “Is it inspiring if bittersweet to know the previous muralists who were a part of that artwork are infusing their influence and expertise into these younger artists and being able to keep the spirit up with the mural project?”

Ramu: “The vision was started back in 1978, the Tee Hee artists were mostly CSU students or USC students because they had an eye on that wall for a long time because it was illegal, it meant jail or fines to go out there. They were calculating and going out at night in their socks. They actually got a Safeway cart and chopped it off to lower paint down and they had people in the river with flashlights and they had whistle signals. In the beginning it was just a fish on the wall. The police heard and they came, and the artists scurried. The police found the vehicle with the design imprinted on the front seat, impounded it and thought it was finished. Then it would become legal to paint on the wall with a per!it. The Tee Hee artists made history just thinking big. That fish became a fish in a bathtub and slowly but surely there’s a faucet, waterspouts and all of this abstract art stemming from it.”

To listen to this episode, go to:

voicesofpueblo.podbean.com Available on all platforms!

The following is an excerpt from our first episode of 45 Degrees, the Pueblo Star Journal’s podcast focusing on the Pueblo Levee Mural Project.

Cynthia Ramu, one of the original artists on the levee and now one of the main voices for the Pueblo Levee Mural Project, is pushing the record again with fresh artists.

Photo courtesy of Pueblo Levee Project

ART EVENTS

INKWELL: Analogue’s Creative Writing

Open Mic

7-9 p.m., second Thursdays, Analogue Books & Records, 216 N. Main St.

Kids Story Time

10-11 a.m. Fridays, Analogue Books & Records, 216 N. Main St.

Bridging Gaps: A Crafting Social Support Group

2:30-4 p.m. Saturdays through April 26, Senior Resource Development Agency, 230 N. Union Ave. Info: 719-583-6611

MUSIC EVENTS

Line Dancing

EZ 4 p.m., Country/Classic 6-7 p.m. Wednesdays, Eagleridge Event Center, 805 Eagleridge Blvd., Suite 170 Info: facebook.com/PuebloDanceCompany

Cocktail Hour with Live Music

7-9 p.m. Wednesdays, Analogue Bar, 222 N. Main St.

Info: facebook.com/AnalogueSolar

Open Mic at Blue Cactus

6-9 p.m. Thursdays, El Nopal’s Blue Cactus Room, 1435 E. Evans Ave.

Info: 719-564-9784

Live Music Fridays

7-9 p.m. Fridays, Analogue Bar, 222 N. Main St.

Karaoke Night at The Fallout with KJ Mikey

D.

9-11:30 p.m. Fridays, 1227 S. Prairie Ave. Info: facebook.com/PuebloFallout

Alt Night at Analogue

7-9 p.m. last Saturdays at Analogue Books & Records, 216 N. Main St.

APRIL ART EVENTS

April 7 - Friday

First Friday Art Walk: Matte Refic/SCAPE & Kevin Malella

6-9 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

Artists in Bloom Show

5-8 p.m., Steel City Art Works, 216 S. Union Ave.

April 8 - Saturday

Spring in Japan: A Celebration of the Season & the Yumiko Kato Collection

2-4 p.m., Pueblo Star Journal, 3rd & Main, 301 N. Main St. Info: pueblostarjournal.org/events

April 13 - Thursday

Live drawing

6-9 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

April 14 - Friday

Selena the Show

7:30 p.m., Memorial Hall, 1 City Hall Place

Info: $28, pueblomemorialhall.com

April 20 - Thursday

Open Mic

6-9 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

April 22 - Saturday

Live Music by Morgan Cox and Friends

6-9 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

April 28 - Friday

Pueblo History and Art Walk Kickoff

9 a.m.-6 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St. Food trucks 10 a.m.-3 p.m., guided tours 10 a.m.-noon and 2-4 p.m.

April 29 - Saturday

Jewelry Making Workshop

1:30-3 p.m., Project: Inspire Cooperative, 129 S. Union Ave. Info: theprojectinspire.com

High school baseball preview

By Ben Cason

South Central League high school baseball games are back in Pueblo. The high school baseball teams are finishing up their out-ofleague games and now move back for league games. The schedule is set where Centennial, Central, County, East, Pueblo West and South will face each other twice over the next month.

Let’s check in on each of the six SCL teams.

Centennial Bulldogs

The Bulldogs struggled mightily last season in league play, finishing 1-9 in the SCL with a 6-17 overall record. However, in 2023’s non-league games, Centennial has impressed. The Bulldogs are 6-4 with statement wins over Mesa Ridge, Fountain-Fort Carson and Widefield on their resume.

Centennial’s offense was a strength last season, and they are firing on all cylinders early: scoring 8.9 runs per game. The Bulldogs are returning many of their starters from last year and the early results are showing a step in development.

The team is led by three seniors who are all hitting above .500 through 10 games.

Joey Cardinal hit .444 in 2022, leading the team in extra base hits, and he’s improved to a .500 batting average and a team leading .639 on base percentage.

Jordon West leads the team with a .533 batting average and 12 RBI. Bryant Armijo-Martin is also hitting .500 and has 5 extra base hits.

In 2022, the pitching struggled for the Bulldogs. They had a team ERA of 10.59 and rotated through ten different pitchers. The 2023 staff was showing improvement, but struggled in their two most recent games against La Junta and D’Evelyn, surrendering 32 combined runs in those games.

For Centennial to compete with the class of the SCL, they will need improvement on the mound.

Making sense of a crowded South Central League

One area to improve on is team defense. In 2022, Centennial committed 80 team errors, which is nearly four per game. In 2023, the team has improved to just 1.8 errors per game. Centennial has the offense to keep up, if the pitching can lock-in. Centennial will surprise some people and make noise in the SCL.

Central Wildcats

2022 was a breakout year for the Wildcats, finishing 18-6 with a 6-4 SCL record. They established themselves as the third best team in Pueblo with an incredibly young roster. Only one starter from the 2023 team graduated.

Central is off to a 5-5 start, but they have been playing a tough out-of-league schedule. The Wildcats have faced teams from Arizona and Idaho, plus solid Colorado Springs schools.

Colton Calderon hit .458 in

2022 as a freshman, now as a sophomore he leads the team with his .519 batting average. He also leads the team in RBI and extra base hits. Ethan Ayala has been a key contributor, hitting .444 and scoring a team leading 14 runs.

Hugo Sanchez and Anthony Trujillo have stepped up early as the workhorses on the mound for the wildcats. They have combined to pitch 35 of Central’s 61 innings played. Sanchez has a 5.35 ERA in 6 appearances, and Trujillo has a 1.17 ERA. Trujillo had a 2.45 ERA last season as a freshman.

This is still a young group of players. If Zach Mehess can get going near his .466 2022 batting average and the pitching can lock-in, this team will make a ton of noise in the SCL. Last year against County and Pueblo West, Central went 0-4 losing 45-10 combined. To be the top dog you have to beat the top dogs. Those games will be key, if Central is going to win the SCL.

County Hornets

Pueblo County put together their fifth consecutive season above .500 in 2022 with one of their finest teams. County went 17-7 with a shining 9-1 SCL record. The only blemish was the split with Pueblo West at the top. Jace Barger and Derick Domenico graduated, but County returns many key players from the 2022 team looking to avenge their

playoff loss to Severance.

2023 has started brilliantly for County as they sit 8-1 entering league games. Overpowering pitching was the key for County’s success in 2022, and so far they seem to have taken another step forward. The team ERA is just 3.65, with the team combining for 89 strikeouts in just nine games. Senior Braxton Vail is emerging as the ace of the staff with a 1.40 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 15 innings pitched.

The offense has a new look in 2023, but early on the results have been very promising. Junior Parker Hankins won a starting job after having just four varsity at bats in 2022. He’s hitting .591 and getting on base at a ridiculous .690 clip.

County has five different hitters hitting above .450, and the team has 39 extra base hits in just nine games played. Braxton Vail, Dax Davis and Johnathan Gonzales each have double-digit RBI totals early in the season.

County may be the favorite to win the SCL. They have dynamite pitching and a strong lineup. My major question entering the season was centered on the lineup, but the early returns say there’s nothing to be worried about. If County can continue to pitch well and hit the way they have so far, I have a tough time seeing anyone in Pueblo stopping them.

East Eagles

2022 was a season of ups and downs for the East Eagles. Nine times in 2022, East won by nine or more runs, and they did not lose a game that way all year. They finished 13-11 with a 4-6 SCL record. East finished looking squarely up at Central, County and Pueblo West going 0-6 against them.

Thus far in 2023 the story has been the Casillas brothers. Freshman Diego Casillas is hitting .556 with a ridiculous .750 on base percentage. Junior Matt Casillas has a 2.10 ERA over 13.1 IP and a .515 batting average. Matt leads the team with his 12 RBI. Senior Michael Casillas led the SCL with his .541 average last year, this year he’s hitting .385 and leads the team with 21.1 innings pitched at a 2.30 ERA.

East has a ton of speed on the basepaths with 42 team stolen bases so far. The Eagles have a deep lineup, hitting .419 as a team through 10 games. East is 6-4 to start their season in out-of-league play. The offense is clicking and the team has some incredible individual performers, but to avoid the same story as last year, more pitchers need to step up. If you take out Matt and Michael Casillas’s innings, East has allowed 32 earned runs in 16 innings pitched between six pitchers. This team, no doubt, can threaten the best teams in the SCL and has some of the most talented individuals in Pueblo.

Pueblo West Cyclones

Under Dan Sanchez, Pueblo West has become the class of Pueblo high school baseball over the last decade. Pueblo West is facing a season of change as the last players from the 2019 championship team graduate. The Cyclones went 17-7 last year with a 9-1 league record. They split their series with County, that being their only blemish in league play.

This team is full of new faces, they only returned two offensive starters from their team last year. Pueblo West is 4-5, but they have played very tough competition. Andrew Plutt and Gage Martinez are key players this year. Plutt hit .446 last year but has struggled to a .286 average over the first nine games. Martinez is hitting .379.

Plutt is the team’s leading pitcher with 18.2 IP with a 2.62 ERA; he has 33 strikeouts in those innings. Ryan Stark and Jaiven Baca are stepping into the second and third starter roles early in the year.

Pueblo West has dealt with great players leaving many times and Dan Sanchez seems to have a knack for developing more. Freshman Logan King has been a huge surprise early in the year, hitting .474. The team is hitting .299, after hitting .390 last year. For West to hold off County and Central, they will need the offense to wake up and new contributors to step up. Pueblo West will still be a major factor in the SCL.

South Colts

2022 was a disappointing season overall for the Colts, finishing 8-14 with a 1-9 SCL record. 2022 was the second consecutive season with a 1-9 league record. There are major reasons for optimism with South entering league play in 2023. South is 6-3 in their league schedule, with a few impressive wins under their belts.

This team is very senior-heavy in 2023, with nine of their twelve major offensive contributors being in their last season. Senior Roman Mora returns for the Colts; he hit .462 and stole 24 bases last year. Kaleb Ortiz is hitting .417, leading the team in RBI and extra base hits.

Keller Ausbun and Anthony Martinez have stepped up as the key starting pitchers for South. Ausbun has a 4.55 ERA and 35 strikeouts in just 20 innings. Martinez has a 3.50 ERA in three starts. Justin Arellano has emerged as the teams best reliever, pitching to a 2.27 ERA in six relief appearances. South’s team ERA was an unsightly 6.80 in 2022. In 2023, that number was halved, and now sits at 3.78. The pitching is the key for South, this team gave up ten or more runs in 7 of 10 league games last year. This veteran team is playing well early, and if the pitching can keep up their early improvement, South could make some noise in a crowded SCL.

Peer navigator shares story

By Rory Harbert

Erica Otero, born and raised in Pueblo, has two kids and has been sober for four years. She is also a peer navigator at the Southern Colorado Harm Reduction Association.

“I’m 35 years old, and I started using drugs when I was 15,” Otero said. “I got really bad onto pills. And then when I turned 20, I was introduced to heroin. So, I spent, I would say, about a good ten years of my life just addicted to heroin and meth.”

When she was 15, a family member introduced her to crack. From there, she said she experimented with “literally everything.”

“I think about it now and I’m like ‘wow,’ we were just these young kids experimenting with crack, cocaine and hardcore stuff,” she said.

But what she said caused her to be addicted was not the drugs she used with her high school friends, but her prescription for Oxycontin. In 2006, she had surgery on her ankle at 18 years old. She said her prescription was high dose and seemingly endlessly refilled. She said she had friends suggest snorting it and other methods of administration. She said when the pills ran out, she turned to the streets and when the pills were not being sold, she turned to heroin.

Otero spent three years in a halfway house. “That’s kind of what changed me,” Otero said. “I had got pregnant, and I still suffered from addiction during that pregnancy. And during that pregnancy, I didn’t have any help from any medical doctors. I didn’t have any support.”

At 22 years old, she had a daughter. She said she was ‘in-and-out ‘ of jail. Otero said that when she was using, she did not know of any programs or peer counseling.

“I continued to use dirty needles,” she said. “I would reuse my own needle, and by the grace of God, I do not have any major diseases from that.”

At that time, she lost the rights to her daughter, who was taken in by her mother. Otero was going to school for a nursing degree.

“I lost everything I had worked for,” Otero said. “I lost my nursing degree, my cars, my house. I had just watched everything crumble in front of me and it was just a constant battle. I went through countless rehabs, countless detoxes, and spent so many days on the streets just wandering around. I mean, I would smoke so much meth, just so I could stay up and not have to worry about sleeping.”

Eight years later, Otero found herself pregnant again. A boy. “When I was pregnant, I had him in county jail,” Otero said. “They literally ripped him

Harm reduction service staff’s lived experience promotes connection

away from me. Like I had him, and they took him that way, and they took me this way... back to the jail. And I just remember how painful that was. Just a painful experience. I went back to the jail, I had to do three months, away from my newborn.”

Otero said she suffered severe postpartum depression, compounded by recovering from C-section without pain medication. For Otero, that was her “ultimate wake-up call.”

“I got out of jail and got reunited with my family,” Otero said. “And I relapsed again. There was no support, being a new mom, I just relapsed. That was the worse relapse of my life. And finally, I was getting ready to sign rights over to my children and I had this spiritual awakening where I was like, ‘This is not what I want to do with my life; I can’t do this.’”

Her dream, before she was exposed to drugs, was to be a registered nurse. When she found herself as a a patient, months after giving birth, she was treated poorly by the nurses she could have called her peers.

“I remember walking into the ER, and I had an abscess in my arm, ready to lose my arm, and they were pointing and laughing at me,” Otero said. “All the nurses made me feel really bad and I just that’s when I knew like people should not be treated like this and I knew I had to get out and help and make a difference, so that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Otero said that this happened at Parkview Medical Center, almost five years ago. “It took everything I had and needed not walk out and go get high,” she said. “But instead, I went through and I, you know, let them take care of me and stuff.”

Otero was there to start her treatment by first taking care of her abscess. This was not her first brush with degrading experiences as she paved her way to sobriety. “I remember just always going to different treatment centers and providers and they made like feel like this” as Otero makes a pinching gesture.

Otero said that she remembers “feeling like no one should ever feel like this.”

Otero eventually became sober via “cold turkey” by withdrawing on her mother’s couch for three days before approaching Front Range Clinic for MAT treatment, or medication-assisted treatment.

She has been sober since those three days.

“I’ve been using suboxone for four years now today, and it saved my life,” Otero said. “I’m a productive member of society, I’m a mom, and that’s what brought me to this line of work.”

MAT treatment helps to manage systems of opi-

oid addiction. These treatments utilize methadone, buprenorphine (brand name: Suboxone) and naltrexone brand name: Vivitrol). According to Denver Health’s website, methadone and buprenorphine “stop the effects of withdrawal, decrease the cravings for opioids, block the effects of opioid misuse and reduce relapse,” while naltrexone “binds to and effectively blocks opioid receptors” to reduce cravings.

“I educate all my clients on the importance of how great that treatment is and what it does for people,” Otero said.

Otero shares her story and how MAT treatment helped her personally for clients that are considering or seeking treatment. She said she wants her clients to know that it is possible that these people care for you. She said Front Range Clinic was the first place that took a chance on her, showed her respect and treated her like a person.

She was sober and employed for three years before she was hired on as a peer staff at SCHRA. Otero said she felt the need to give back to her community and was told to check out SCHRA. She started volunteering during her free time. When she was seeking employment, Solano monitored how Otero interacted with clients before offering a position as a peer navigator.

Otero said, having this job, completes a chapter and a goal in her life. She said that while she recognizes that “when you’re a little kid, not everybody says ‘I want to be a peer counselor’ because, obviously, in order to be a peer, you have to have the lived experience.”

She feels that she was “put here on Earth to do this kind of work.”

“Anything I can do to help somebody get one step closer to being successful in their sobriety, to keep them with their children—those are my ultimate goals in life,” she said.

Otero reflected on what SCHRA would have meant for her, if it had been open when she first was exposed to drugs.

“I just wish in my addiction that there would have been this harm reduction,” she said. “If I could have had one wish, it would have been this place would have existed because I know I wouldn’t have made it that far in my addiction.”

Peer Navigator Erica Otero.

“I’m a productive member of society, I’m a mom, and that’s what brought me to this line of work.”

-Erica Otero

Question of harm reduction

By Rory Harbert

In February, the Board of County Commissioners released a statement following a work session presentation by The Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment concerning county-specific substance use data. The commissioners took the opportunity to address their concerns with a “snorting kit” from Access Point, a statewide syringe-exchange program hosted by the Colorado Health Network.The kit includes pre-cut straws and a bare-bones infographic on safe administration. With the PDPHE unable to speak for the syringe exchange programs, the commissioner board released a statement in opposition of the programs’ kits.

Commissioner Eppie Griego has taken a firm stance against this tactic of harm reduction being used to address Pueblo’s substance use epidemic, saying that this “crosses the line between harm reduction and drug promotion.”

Aligning with Griego’s views on the issue, the press release states, “The Board of Commissioners condemns the materials and vows to take steps to license and monitor the nonprofits who provide needle exchange programs.”

Additionally, the press release states that the board will be “taking steps to ensure that any non-profit promoting needle exchanges will not receive county money.” The press release explains that there are only two organizations that provide syringe access services, and neither currently receives money from Pueblo County.

While Griego has made his views clear, other board members were not quoted directly in the press release.

Upon reviewing the recording of the county commissioner afternoon work session in which the PDPHE presented to the board, much of what is included in the release was verbatim in the work session, but not by Griego. Commissioner Garrison Ortiz took a strong stance on regulating syringe exchanges.

“I truly believe you need more permitting to run a coffee shop than you do a needle exchange,” Ortiz said.

Ortiz said he needed to see an exchange rate that reflected a 1:1 ratio, or close to it. His concern was where the “spillover” needles, or the needles that are given out but not returned, went. Ortiz said that “I know people know what they see, in our parks, in our community, in our neighborhoods,” suggesting that not all the needles get returned.

Griego, quoted in the press release, said “the large assumption in our community is that these needles are exchanged and not left in public areas.” According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, people who inject drugs in areas with syringe service programs were shown to be “more likely” to dispose of syringes safely.

These services work within the treatment philosophy of “harm reduction.” The National Harm Reduction Coalition defines harm reduction as “incorporating a spectrum of strategies including safer techniques, managed use, and abstinence to promote the dignity and wellbeing of people who use drugs.”

Jude Solano, the cofounder and CEO of Southern Colorado Harm Reduction Association, wanted to address these concerns and provide some clarification on what role the needle exchange programs play in the Pueblo community.

“We want people in treatment,” Solano said. “That’s part of the misinformation, people not realizing that we are trying to get people in treatment; we provide it on site. We are very successful. It’s hard to definitively say, but I know for SCHRA—we’ve gotten hundreds of people in treatment. Hundreds. Now whether they stay in treatment or not, that’s on them. But when they come back, they’ve relapsed, we get them back in.”

The association does not provide only needle syringe exchange. They also pro-

vide:

Working LEAF, or the Life Empowerment and Fulfillment project for underserved youth and re-entering citizen; CRAFT, or the Community Reinforcement and Family Training, support; WAGEES, or Work and Gain Education and Employment Skills program, in partnership with CDOC and LCCL; RE-Entry post-incarceration support; and The MOM grant provides services to pregnant people for a “healthy pregnancy.”

While the safe-snorting kit came from Access Point, SCHRA provides similar kits during the exchange hours. Solano said that the information is not meant to teach how to use but rather follow the principle of harm reduction: encouraging safer techniques. As the National Harm Reduction Coalition states, “we recognize that using drugs introduces risk – but there are ways to make it safer.” The National Harm Reduction Coalition explains that IV injection is “the riskiest method to use in terms of overdose (as compared to sniffing, smoking, or oral administration) because the entire dose enters the body all at once and very quickly.”

“People know how to use,” Solano said. “We want people to transition from injection to smoking. It’s safer. It cuts down on endocarditis, which can be a life-threatening cardiac illness. It cuts down on wound issues and tissue damage and all the illnesses and acute healthcare emergencies that occur with IV drug use. We provide the supplies for people to transition.”

Solano explained that sharing of straws can lead to communicable diseases, which is also one of the reasons why the syringe exchange program was implemented.

“What we do is we give them extra supplies, so they don’t share equipment,” Solano said. “You can get Hep-C from sharing a straw. If somebody is infected, and you come in contact with their nasal secretions, you can get it.... this is a public health service, and it’s related to decreasing those communicable diseases.“

According to the National Harm Reduction Coalition, “there are numerous and potentially very serious health complications associated with injecting illicit drugs, from injection-related injuries like tracking and bruising, to bacterial and fungal infections, from communicable diseases, to drug overdoses and other medical emergencies.” These complications come from “drug-related, technique-related, and hygiene- related mishaps,” but, as these are “black-market, unregulated drugs,” people can take steps to improve technique and hygiene.

According to the CDC, syringe service programs are “associated with an estimated 50% reduction in HIV and HCV incidence.” The CDC, building on this statistic, states that when combined with medication-assisted treatment, “HCV and HIV transmission is reduced by over two-third.” Medication-assisted treatment, or MAT, utilizes the Federal Drug Administration-approved medications buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone along with therapy and counseling to treat opioid use disorders. SCHRA partners with Front Range Clinic, which provides MAT services on Wednesdays.

Griego stated, in the press release, that he spoke with local law enforcement officials and said “there is long-standing concern with the practice involving the needle exchange programs in our community” and “should these activities spill

Pueblo government, health officials debate syringe exchange services

“What we do is we give them extra supplies, so they don’t share equipment.”

-Jude Solano

“I truly believe you need more permitting to run a coffee shop than you do a needle exchange.”

-Garrison Ortiz

over into the criminal realm, they will be investigated and prosecuted as appropriate.”

Southern Colorado Harm Reduction Association reported a 91% average weekly-return rate in 2021. Which led to over 270,000 used needles exchanged in the program to be properly disposed of, which is counted by weighing the tubs of needles they take in rather than counting each syringe, as that would pose a health risk to the staff. SCHRA is only open for the syringe exchange for one day during the week, for four hours at a time. At this time, this is the only service provided. Additionally, the CDC cites two studies, performed in Baltimore and New York City in 2000 and 2001 respectively, finding that there was neither an increase nor a decrease in crime rates between areas with or without syringe service programs. A 2013 study, cited by the CDC, showed that syringe service programs, after referring clients to medication-assisted programs, that “new users of SSPs are five times more likely to enter drug treatment and three times more likely to stop using drugs than those who don’t use the programs.”

“We are not encouraging drug use, drug use is happening,” Solano said. “We want people to be safe and we want them to have an environment where they know we are going to provide direct access to healthcare and treatment when they ask for it.”

According to the release, “Griego believes both needle-exchange organizations need more oversight.” Griego aims to achieve this by starting a “pilot program to hold Pueblo’s two nonprofits accountable if their needles are found in public spaces.” This would mean needles from those organizations would be marked, and if they are found within the county, “law enforcement and regulators can take action to hold these organizations accountable.”

The Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment conducted a presentation on the substance data collected for Pueblo County for the commissioner work session on Feb. 14. The presentation included data breakdown information such as the working population, or the age group that makes up the bulk of the workforce, is most affected by fentanyl overdoses in the county.

Within the presentation, the PDPHE said their website includes, beyond the data dashboard, a peer-support database and opioid use awareness and education. The PDPHE also shared its efforts to reduce stigma via the “Empower to Recover” campaign, which the department called “Your Words Have Power.”

The health department website states that PDPHE “believes that using words to empower rather than stigmatize and provide our community with resources is how we can reach those goals.”

Anne Hill, public health epidemi-

ologist representing PDPHE, said “prevention is critical” in reply to the board’s concerns about stopping drug use to begin with.

“We are collecting some of that data that’s related to root causes,” Hill said. “What is truly fostering some of these issues? Is it housing, education? We know, you know. Inherently, you know… We need to start thinking through those pieces too. So, we are totally in agreement related to prevention.”

Not wanting to speak for harm reduction organizations, Hill wanted to emphasize that the PDPHE looks at numbers, but the syringe exchanges would provide more information that the board was looking for in the comments and questions period post-presentation.

Hill said “there is so much new science related to addiction and to substance abuse” that would indicate that this is “like a chronic health issue” and believes that Dr. Michael Nerenberg, vice president of the Pueblo Board of Health, would agree.

“(So) to get them out of that takes so much will power,” Hill said. “It is really, really hard. So, we need to focus on making sure we have the healthiest possible community for these individuals.”

Both Ortiz and fellow commission member Zach Swearingen were contacted for further comment. Ortiz was contacted by email and phone, but did not reply by the publishing of this article. Swearingen was approached in person but did not provide commentary beyond what was provided in the press release.

The snorting kit in question comes with: precut straws and small flyer on nasal administration. Photo courtesy of Pueblo County.

Photo courtesy of Pueblo County

“We are collecting some of that data that’s related to root causes... We need to start thinking through those pieces too. So, we are totally in agreement related to prevention.”

Anne Hill

Renovated Rawlings complete

By Rory Harbert

With a cut of a ribbon, Pueblo-City County Library District marked the end of a two-year-long project updating the 110,000-square-foot facility.

On March 22, PCCLD and nearly 200 ceremony attendees celebrated the successful completion of the $12.5 million renovation project for the Robert Hoag Rawlings Public Library. The event was held on the fourth floor in the Ryals Grand Event Space.

The event began with an informational video which informed viewers of the impact the Rawlings library has had on the Pueblo community and then explained what improvements were made during the renovation. According to the video, the Rawlings Library has hosted more than 4,000,000 visitors in its 20 years of operation and checked out nearly 9,000,000 items from its collections. More information on what these renovations entail can be found on the PSJ website or the March issue.

Jane Rawlings, the daughter of Robert Hoag Rawlings, the Pueblo Chieftain publisher at the turn of the century and the library’s namesake, shared how the award-winning facility came to be. Jane Rawlings is the president of the Rawlings Foundation, which donated “$500,000 or greater” towards the renovation and were one of three thanked within that category in the promotional brochure given to attendees. Jane humorously spoke on how her father was approached with supporting the library’s first major and over-budget architect plan.

“[the board behind the 2003 architectural project] convinced him that libraries on one hand and newspapers on the other hand were a perfect match for literacy, for historical preservation of the written word, of communication... and that it made sense for Mr. Rawlings, my dad, to add some money to that pot,” Jane said. “It was a lot of money.”

Jane Rawlings said that, at the time, the InfoZone Museum was an important part, for her father, in representing this unity between libraries and newspapers, as it was initially focused on journalism and its history. Jane Rawlings shared her enthusiasm for the refreshed interpretation of the InfoZone, now moved from the fourth floor to the main floor for easier access, as she encouraged listeners to give it a visit after the ceremony. She credited retired exec director Jon Walker with the idea of revitalizing the museum to reflect the current changes in communication.

“The history from communication from all the way back to petroglyphs and cave drawings.... through newspapers as it was from my dad and his grandfather... through radio, TV and, of course, the internet,” Jane Rawlings said. “And now, I can’t wait to see how people are going to figure out AI. Because what is the truth anymore? What is fact? And, yet, we have to be able to figure that out.”

The PCCLD executive director Sherri Baca said that “we collectively have the vision of the public library as a community hub, not just books anymore” which “fits perfectly with the new design.”

Baca referred to the history of Pueblo’s public library system, which dates

Ribbon cutting ceremony marks the start of new era

back to the first McClelland Library in 1903. Former Colorado Governor Alva B. Adams dedicated the first free-standing library in Pueblo. Baca quoting Adams, said, “Cities like people have periods of infancy, youth and maturity. Pueblo has passed the pioneer stage... the building of this library marks the dawn of the new era of intellectual culture and education.”

Baca honored Robert Hoag Rawlings and other “visionaries” who first renovated the award-winning library in 2003.

“It is because of Mr. Rawlings’ generosity and the Pueblo County citizens’ investments in this museum-quality building that we have such a remarkable place to gather and learn and play.”

County commissioner chairman Garrison Ortiz also shared his remarks on the grand opening and how the library was a major part of his childhood.

“From the time I could walk, my mother would walk me to the Lamb Branch Library where I lived. To not only read books, but actually volunteer, and that was a second home after school to me.”

Between speakers, Director of Community Relations Nick Potter shared “fun facts” about the various programs that the Rawlings provides such as the seed library where patrons can “check out” seeds where “returned” seeds are what was harvested.

Colorado senator John Hickenlooper provided a video of his congratulations. Doreen Martinez spoke on behalf of PCCLD Board of Trustees representative Frederick Quintana. The event concluded with a lunch catered by PJ’s Coffee. All libraries had closed until 1 p.m. so staff could attend the ceremony.

County commissioner Garrison Ortiz, Rawlings Foundation President Jane Rawlings and honored guests were invited to cut the official ribbon, marking the completion of the Rawlings Renovations. Photo by Rory Harbert.

Photo by Rory Harbert

“We collectively have the vision of the public library as a community hub, not just books anymore.”

-Sherri Baca

Talking history, hypnosis

An excerpt from the Voices of Pueblo: Search for Bridey Murphy podcast episode.

Taylor Blanchard: “The story is really really interesting. The subject of hypnosis at large, while it is sort of a taboo subject, is present in our everyday lives in strange and mysterious ways. Primarily, if you’ve ever bought a chicken sandwich because it looked really juicy and good on the television advertisement that you saw yesterday. You have been a recipient of an effective suggestion, you don’t have to be entranced for that to happen. You just have to passively accept it, and then act on it. So now in the 21st century we are constantly bombarded by Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, television, anything but print. And it has come to us at a breakneck speed, so that our conscious mind can’t keep up, but our subconscious mind accepts everything. Your subconscious mind knows every word in every book you’ve ever read line for line in order and can recall that, at least that’s what’s speculated.

PSJ Podcast features reporter on the case of Bridey Murphy

So, to learn about this story is to understand that studying hypnosis, looking at it from that same skeptical place that Morey did, is a great tool for building up ones mental resiliency. Then being able to see those advertisements or those triggers or that suggestion or that sales tactic out in the real world, consciously see it, and then say I do not accept this. To be able to control what passes that filter into the subconscious mind. That I think is the best takeaway, but there is going to be so much more to explore in the coming months in the Star Journal. We’ve got a couple articles slated now and access to all of Morey Bernstein’s personal records and files, we’re talking everything. The reel to reel of all six hours of that conversation, all of his notes from every hypnotic trance that he performed whether that’s at the hospital or otherwise in his own personal experiments. His letters after the fact to Virginia Tighe, to Doubleday publishing and everyone involved in the media. All to try and clear his own name, to try and get the scandal resolved, but it was just a bear.

I’m hoping to gain some insight in that search, my own search. That’s the other takeaway, we, when encountering this story by the author, are encouraged to look for ourselves. To look in and to ask not only the questions about all that crazy taboo fringe stuff, but also about how much control we have over our own mind. And what this means in the grand scheme of things. I’m really looking forward to inviting that sort of dialogue, as well as sending those who are minded alike to go and really dig deeper into what records we have on the story at large, and see if there’s not something we can’t surface that hasn’t been seen or addressed yet.”

Continue the search for Bridey Murphy with the Pueblo Star Journal, by listening to last month’s Voices of Pueblo podcast episode with Taylor Blanchard. Graphic by Rory Harbert. Photos courtesy of Pueblo County Historical Society.

ARTS

INKWELL: Analogue’s Creative Writing

Open Mic

7-9 p.m., second Thursdays, Analogue Books & Records, 216 N. Main St.

Kids Story Time

10-11 a.m. Fridays, Analogue Books & Records, 216 N. Main St.

Bridging Gaps: A Crafting Social Support Group

2:30-4 p.m. Saturdays through April 26, Senior Resource Development Agency, 230 N. Union Ave.

Info: 719-583-6611

HISTORY

“You Should Have Seen It: Pueblo’s Mineral Palace”

10 a.m.-4 p.m daily through April 1, 2024, El Pueblo History Museum, 301 N. Union Ave.

Info: historycolorado.org

War Memorial Ghost Tours

7-9 p.m. first Saturday of each month, Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum, 31001 Magnuson Ave.Info: pwam.org

Celebrating All Things Slovene

April 29-July 31, Pueblo Heritage Museum, 201 W. B St.

FAITH

Transformation Oracle Weekend Intensive Workshop with Sonya Shannon

10 a.m.-5 p.m. May 19-20, Karmic Konnection, 125 E. Abriendo Ave.

Interfaith meditation and service

10-11:30 a.m. Sundays, Center for Inner Peace, 740 W. 15th St.

Info: 719-543-2274

FAMILY EVENTS

Pueblo Rocks in the Park

Noon-2 p.m. Fridays, Ray Aguilera Park, 840 W. Northern Ave.

What’s the Buzz? The Life of the Honeybee

Through May 13, Buell Children’s Museum

210 N Santa Fe Ave.

Info: sdc-arts.org

GAMES

Chaos Games & More

4065 Club Manor Drive

Info: chaosgamesandmore.com

Pokemon, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, Warhammer 40K, board game nights and more.

Weekly game schedule available on website.

Game Knight Games

1839 S. Pueblo Blvd.

Info: gameknightgamesllc.com

Pokemon, Dungeovns & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, Keyforge, My Hero Academia, board game league and more. Weekly game schedule available on website.

MUSIC

Line Dancing

EZ 4 p.m., Country/Classic 6-7 p.m. Wednesdays, Eagleridge Event Center, 805 Eagleridge Blvd., Suite 170

Info: facebook.com/PuebloDanceCompany

Cocktail Hour with Live Music

7-9 p.m. Wednesdays, Analogue Bar,

Check out PSJ’s First Friday Art Walk Guide on page 15 for events specific to Pueblo’s art scene.

PUEBLO COUNTY BEEKEEPERS ASSOCIATION

Photo by Rory Harbert

222 N. Main St. Info: facebook.com/ AnalogueSolar

Open Mic at Blue Cactus

6-9 p.m. Thursdays, El Nopal’s Blue Cactus Room, 1435 E. Evans Ave. Info: 719-564-9784

Live Music Fridays

7-9 p.m. Fridays, Analogue Bar, 222 N. Main St.

Karaoke Night at The Fallout with KJ Mikey

D.

9-11:30 p.m. Fridays, 1227 S. Prairie Ave. Info: facebook.com/PuebloFallout

Alt Night at Analogue

7-9 p.m. last Saturdays at Analogue Books & Records, 216 N. Main St.

WELLNESS

Seniors: Riverwalk Walking Group

Meets 10 a.m. Mondays in front of Senior Resource Development Agency (SRDA), 230 N. Union Ave. Info: 719-553-3446 or richmond@srda.org

Yoga and Cocktail Night

5:30 p.m. second Tuesdays

Ren Yoga Flow, 110 W. Fifth St. Analogue Books & Records, 216 N. Main St. Info: renyogaflow.com

Wellbriety Support Meeting

9-10:30 a.m. Wednesdays, Center for Inner Peace, 740 W. 15th St. Info: 719-543-2274

Prenatal Workshop and Support Group

6-7 p.m. last Wednesday of each month, Phoenix Massage, 105 W. Fifth St. Info: socodoulaco@gmail.com

Yoga: Hun Yuan Qi Gong

10 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at Anahata

Healing Yoga Studio, 3942 Ivywood Lane

$5/class; Wednesdays and Thursdays on Zoom (no charge); Sundays at City Park Ballroom, George L. Williams Pavilion, 801 Goodnight Ave.

Ladies Night Out Self-Defense Training

6-8 p.m. first Friday of the month, Rocky Mountain Empowerment Center, 330 Lake Ave. Info: $39. 800-748-2074

APRIL

April 7 - Friday

First Friday Art Walk: Matte Refic/SCAPE & Kevin Malella

6-9 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

Artists in Bloom Show

5-8 p.m., Steel City Art Works, 216 S. Union Ave.

April 8 - Saturday

Spring in Japan: A Celebration of the Season & the Yumiko Kato Collection

2-4 p.m., Pueblo Star Journal, 3rd & Main, 301 N. Main St. Info: pueblostarjournal.org/events

April 13 - Thursday

Books Again Book Club: “Neither Wolf Nor Dog”

9 a.m., Books Again, 622 S. Union Ave. Info: booksagain-pueblo.com/events.html or 719553-0340

Live drawing

6-9 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

April 14 - Friday

Selena the Show

7:30 p.m., Memorial Hall, 1 City Hall Place Info: $28, pueblomemorialhall.com

April 15 - Saturday

Steel City Sporting Clay Tournament

8:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Republic Shooting Range, Avondale Info: health.solutions/events/scsc

Wings and Wheels Car Show and Fly-In

9 a.m.-3 p.m. Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum, 31001 Magnuson Ave.

Info: pwam.org

Author Meet-and-Greet: Ann Payton Williams

1 p.m. followed by 2 p.m. signing, Books Again, 622 S. Union Ave.

Info: booksagain-pueblo.com/events.html or 719-553-0340

Steven Curtis Chapman

7 p.m., Memorial Hall, 1 City Hall Place

Info: pueblomemorialhall.com

April 20 - Thursday

Open Mic

6-9 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

April 22 - Saturday

Live Music by Morgan Cox and Friends

6-9 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

April 23 - Sunday

Broadway Theatre League: “Anastasia”

7 p.m., Memorial Hall, 1 City Hall Place

Info: $42-$90, pueblomemorialhall.com

April 28 - Friday

Pueblo History and Art Walk Kickoff

9 a.m.-6 p.m., Blo Back Gallery, 131 Spring St.

Food trucks 10 a.m.-3 p.m., guided tours 10 a.m.-noon and 2-4 p.m.

April 29 - Saturday

Info: 719-545-3601

Jewelry Making Workshop

1:30-3 p.m., Project: Inspire Cooperative, 129 S. Union Ave.

Info: theprojectinspire.com

Brew at the Zoo

2-6 p.m., Pueblo Zoo, 3455 Nuckolls Ave. Info: pueblozoo.org/brew

April 30 - Sunday

Out Loud Colorado Springs Men’s Chorus Spring Concert

2-4 p.m., First Congregation Church, 228 W. Evans Ave.

Info: www.outloudcsmc.com

MAY

May 4 - Thursday

Books by the Bag Sale (for Friends of the Library members)

10 a.m.-4 p.m., Books Again, 622 S. Union Ave. Info: booksagain-pueblo.com

May 5-6- Friday & Saturday

Books by the Bag Sale (for public)

May 5-6, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Books Again, 622 S.

Info: booksagain-pueblo.com

Crossword Answers: Holmes Hardware

Sonya Shannon book signing

1-3 p.m., Karmic Konnection, 125 E. Abriendo Ave.

May 13 - Saturday

Walk A Mile & (em)POWER 5K

2-4 p.m., Historic Arkansas Riverwalk of Pueblo, 101 N. Union Ave.

Info: WAM2023.eventbrite.com

SUBMIT YOUR EVENTS ONLINE - FREE

All submissions must be a specific event with a start time and date. We do not include regular business listings. If you have a question about whether or not your listing qualifies, just ask. We’re glad to help.

Please do not submit the same event more than once. Check first to see if it's already posted, or ask us. If someone beat you to it and there are issues you'd like to correct, let us know.

Event listings are free. We will also offer paid display advertising in print and online that may suit your events better. If you have specific needs, let us know how we can work with you.

All events are screened before they appear online and in print. We reserve the right to refuse to publish any event, for any reason.

PUEBLOSTARJOURNAL.ORG/EVENTS/SUBMIT