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Volume 6, Number 14 | May 15, 2014

Prime time Naomi Pulver was one of ﬁve soloists to take the stage at the Jazz Aspen Snowmass Band Battle during Dandelion Days on May 10. The winners were: Big Dog & the Midnite Badgers (best garage band), Carbondale Flex Band (best middle school band) and Izzy Mata (best singer/songwriter). In related news, JAS announced its 2014 Outstanding Students awards and the honorees are: Zack Ritchie (RFHS), Liam Laird (CMS), Joel Suarez (BHS), Kaylin Williams (BMS), Trevor Lovell (GSHS), Isaac Williams (GSMS), Mary Wells (AMS) and Nina Vitari (AHS). Mark Gray, band director at CMS and RFHS, was named Outstanding Instructor. “I have been fortunate to work with supportive administrators, staff and parents,” Gray said. “Chris Bank and JAS have been there almost the whole way with us.” A former owner of Glenwood Music, Inc. Gray had no previous educational training prior to taking the position in Carbondale 13 years ago. He hadn’t even played in his high school band. “Back then I would have been voted least likely to become a band director.” Photo by Lynn Burton

CARBONDALE’S FAVORITE GAS, CAR WASH & CONVENIENCE STORE! What you need, when you need it.

LOYALTY PAYS!

Plus, a little bit more.

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Carbondale Commentary The views and opinions expressed on the Commentary page do not necessarily reflect those of The Sopris Sun. The Sopris Sun invites all members of the community to submit letters to the editor or guest columns. For more information, e-mail editor Lynn Burton at news@soprissun.com, or call 510-3003.

Bike tips: summer safety and etiquette With the temperatures warming up, Bonedale Bike Week in its big ring sprinting to the ﬁnish, and the ofﬁcial summer season approaching quickly, it’s time for all of us to get outside to enjoy our beautiful valley. Whether you walk, run, rock climb, ride horses, bicycle, enjoy our rivers and golf courses or other endeavor, get out there and get active! That said, it’s important that we become more aware and respectful of one another on the roads and trails. Here are a few reminders to promote peaceful coexistence this season.

Motorists Please share the road. Per Colorado State Law, bicyclists have the right to use the road. Provide a minimum of three feet when passing. Watch for dedicated bike lanes and “sharrows” painted in the roadways that designate bicycle friendly streets and corridors. Please respect crosswalk markings. Be courteous and stop before painted markings. Proceed through only after checking for presence of pedestrians and bicyclists. When in doubt, yield. Use your turn signals, especially when pedestrians or bicyclists are present or nearby. When approaching a bicyclist(s) from behind on the road, please be courteous and don’t blow your horn to announce your presence. This may startle the bicyclist and cause him/her/them to veer off the road or worse into your vehicle. It’s best to slow down and pass safely when conditions per-

mit. If you must announce with your horn a light tap is sufﬁcient.

Bicyclists When using or sharing the road please, obey the traffic laws. You are the same as a motor vehicle. Be respectful of vehicles and ride safely along the right side of the roadway. If riding two abreast, ensure you are not inhibiting or blocking the flow of traffic. Be predictable when riding and do NOT ride against flow of traffic. Use arm signals to indicate turning and stopping intentions. Do NOT ride on the sidewalks, especially within the downtown core. It is unsafe to do so and endangers both the pedestrian and bicyclist. Local codes typically prohibit it. Obey stop signs and traffic signals and slow down and acknowledge yield signs. When cycling at night, use a headlight and tail light that can be visible for up to 500 feet. Reflectors visible from the side are also strongly encouraged. Whenever possible, wear highly reflective clothing to improve visibility. When riding on the trail, please respect other users. Bicyclists should slow down and yield to equestrians and pedestrians. Always be prepared to stop and/or dismount if necessary. When passing or approaching from behind, slow down and use an audible signal to announce your presence. Remember the Rio Grande Trail and

Crystal Valley Trail are multi-use trails with a wide range of user types and ages. If you feel the urge to race or go excessively fast, please ride in the road, which has been engineered for higher speeds.

Please use designated crosswalks or implied crosswalks at intersections to safely cross the street. Do not jaywalk. When using the trail (Rio Grande, Crystal Valley and others), stay to the right whenever possible to allow other users to safely approach and pass when necessary. Be predictable. Try to avoid sudden movements or changes in direction that may catch other users off-guard. Be aware of your surroundings and look around to verify location of other users, particularly those that may be approaching from behind. When walking and running with pets, keep them under control in accordance with the local code and prohibit them from wandering into the path of approaching or adjacent users. We hope these are helpful tips that will allow everyone to have a fun, safe and healthy summer no matter which one of these passions you choose to indulge in. Remember that CDOT will be doing a major makeover to Highway 133 this summer so exercise patience and tolerance when using this corridor. We look forward to seeing you out and about and enjoying the beauty that is Carbondale and our valley. — The Carbondale Bicycle, Pedestrian and Trails Committee

The Sopris Sun welcomes your letters, limited to no more than 400 words. Letters exceeding that length may be edited or returned for revisions. Include your name and residence (for publication) and a contact email and phone number. Submit letters via email to news@soprissun.com or via snail mail to P.O. Box 399, Carbondale, CO 81623. The deadline to submit letters to the editor is noon on Monday.

Dear Editor: Dandelion Day is my favorite day of the year. Actually this year it was plural, as Friday activities were added to the schedule. At the Crystal Theater, the eco-ﬁlm “Bringing It Home” about industrial hemp was well attended. It was inspiring to see so many people gather to receive this important and potentially world-changing information. The festival on Saturday was bigger and better than ever. Despite gloom and drizzle, cheerful faces were everywhere. Friends and neighbors chatted happily and children frolicked, while beautiful music rang out from the Sopris Park bandstand. It was a wonderful party. And what’s even better is how our community embraces the overall message of sustainability. To quote a friend, “It’s a party with a purpose.” I want to thank the community and all of the volunteers for their participation, but most of all I want to express my gratitude to the dynamic people who make up the Dandelion Day Planning Committee. It’s a pleasure to work with you and to call you my friends. I

look forward to next year’s 17th annual Dandelion Day(s) and many more to come. Sue Gray Carbondale

“Sewing the future” Dear Editor: As we all know, the construction of the round-about at Main and Highway 133 is starting soon and a major component of its design is the installation of a dynamic 20-foot sculpture by the internationally renowned artist James Surls. When I ﬁrst saw the image for the sculpture I thought “Whoa, that is BIG, and what are all those things at the top?” But then after hearing Surls speak to the imagery and philosophy behind each element I came to understand and embrace it: the vase represents the living vessel giving forth the thread of life in all ways; the jewel represents crystal, the purest element of earth; the ﬂower and tree, elements of nature which humans could not live without. And at the highest point, three needles and a tangle of thread as life for all of us is tangled at times, but we can each man-

2 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • May 15, 2014

The Sopris Sun keeps you informed all week long with special content on the web; including breaking news, photo galleries, calendar events and much more.

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age in our own way to “thread the needle” and pull the threads toward an understanding of life, reaching a personal epiphany. The three needles represent the deepest parts of life: art, science and philosophy. Pubic art, while all pieces might not be embraced by all, is an important strengthening thread in community place making. If you like it, you stop and gaze admiringly at it, thus enhancing your day. If you don’t appreciate or understand it, you stop to further investigate and perhaps engage in discussion with others, thus again, enhancing your day. Both encounters result in engagement and increase your connection to community. The sculpture is valued at $500,000 but will be our community hallmark for only $200,000 to cover the hard cost of materials. Contributions to date are impressive: CDOT incorporated it into the roundabout design, the town of Carbondale and our trustees are contributing the landscaping, construction of pedestal and securing apparatus, installation and lighting, and the artist is donating his genius, inspiration and construction of the sculpture. It is up to the community to contribute the LETTERS page 15

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To inform, inspire and build community. Donations accepted online or by mail. For information call 510-3003 Editor/Reporter: Lynn Burton • 970-510-3003 news@soprissun.com Advertising: Bob Albright • 970-927-2175 bob@soprissun.com Paula Valenti • 970-319-5270 paula@soprissun.com Photographer: Jane Bachrach Ad/Page Production: Terri Ritchie CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS board@soprissun.com Debbie Bruell, President Barbara Dills, Vice President Colin Laird, Treasurer • Frank Zlogar Sue Gray • Denise Barkhurst Honorary Board Members David L. Johnson • Jeannie Perry Trina Ortega • Laura McCormick Founding Board Members Allyn Harvey • Becky Young • Colin Laird Barbara New • Elizabeth Phillips Peggy DeVilbiss • Russ Criswell

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Town’s busiest intersection moving one block north trafﬁc will be shifted to the west of SH 133 between Dolores Way and Colorado Avenue so the contractor can reconstruct the east side of SH 133. While this is going on the contractor will also be constructing the western portion of the roundabout. Trafﬁc will be allowed through the SH 133/Main Street intersection, but west Main Street will be closed. During this phase vehicles will be able to access west Main via alternate routes such as Hendrick Road. East Main can be accessed at this point via the signal at Colorado Avenue if heading south, or via the east half of the roundabout if heading north. After this phase the roundabout will be fully operational and other various closures will occur such as when improvements are made to Colorado Avenue and other access points in the project limits (City Market, Carbondale Plaza, etc.)

During Highway 133 construction By Lynn Burton Sopris Sun Staff Writer Carbondale’s busiest intersection will move one block to the north when Highway 133 construction begins and CDOT installs a temporary traffic light at Colorado Avenue to replace the Main Street traffic signal. Construction on the 1.9 mile, $9.4 million project is scheduled to start on May 27 and conclude in November, according to CDOT officials, and will bring the following improvements: • A round-about at the intersection of Highway 133 and Main Street; • A wider highway and reconfigured lanes, beginning at the Highway 82 intersection; • Additional sidewalks and trails; • Extensive landscaping up and down the entire stretch, including the roundabout itself. “When finished, the plan … will allow traffic to flow more efficiently, increase pedestrian and motorist safety, and enhance the aesthetics on this … highway,” said a CDOT press release. The Colorado Department of Transportation and town have also agreed to place a sculpture by noted sculptor and Missouri Heights resident James Surls in the center of the round-about. The contractor for the project is the Grand Junction based United Companies. In an e-mail Q&A with The Sopris Sun,

Colorado Avenue (shown here in the foreground) is a key component in CDOT’s Highway 133 traffic flow plan. A temporary traffic signal will be placed there in late May or early June, and the existing traffic signals on Main Street will be taken down. Photo by Lynn Burton CDOT Project Engineer Adam Cornely, provided the following construction-related information. Sun: How will the temporary traffic light at Colorado avenue work? Cornely: As soon as the contractor gets the temporary traffic signal set up at Colorado Avenue, the signal at Main Street will be shut down and removed. Traffic will be shifted to the east on SH 133 between Dolores Way and Colorado Avenue so the con-

tractor can reconstruct the west side of SH 133. While this is going on the contractor will also be constructing the eastern portion of the roundabout. Trafﬁc will be allowed through the SH 133/Main Street intersection, but east Main Street will be closed. During this phase vehicles will be able to access east Main via the signal at Colorado Avenue. West Main and areas south of Main Street can be accessed via SH 133. During the next phase of construction,

Q: So, round-about construction will take place at the same time as the rest of the project? a: Yes, you are correct. Q: How will River Valley Ranch residents proceed north through the Highway 133/Main Street intersection? a: At this point it is anticipated that north/south trafﬁc will be permitted through the intersection through the entire project. It is very early in the project to predict with accuracy how things will be occurring several weeks from now. I believe once the project gets moving, just after Memorial Day, we will have a much better idea HIGHWAY 133 page 4

The Village Smithy silver-leaf cottonwood stood up better to Sunday night’s heavy snow than some nearby elms, whose branches snapped like toothpicks. Around town on Monday morning, red and pink crab-apple blossoms peeked out from under blankets of snow and motorists turned on their headlights to help pierce their way through the fog. By early afternoon, the snow had melted away, and most trees and shrubs returned to their upright, locked positions. Photo by Lynn Burton THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • May 15, 2014 • 3

Town Briefs

Cop Shop

Sculptures coming down; others going up

The following events are drawn from incident reports of the C’dale Police Dept.

Sopris Sun Staff Report If you have not yet had your picture taken with the pink rabbit sculpture at Eighth and Main Street, you’d better grab your camera and get over there. The current batch of the Carbondale Public Art Commission aRT Around Town sculptures will be taken down on May 19-23, according to town manager Jay Harrington’s weekly report. The new batch of public art will be placed later in May or early June. In other paraphrased news from Har-

TUESDay May 6 at 11:51 a.m. an ofﬁcer contacted a transient who was panhandling at Highway 133 and Main Street, gave him a warning and told him to move on.

rington’s report: • The Carbondale Public Arts Commission has asked staff to provide the Planning Commission and Board of Trustees with a proposed ordinance that would amend Section 18.53 of the town zoning code to permit “up-lighting” of public art. • R&A Enterprises has submitted a plan to convert an additional 32 high-pressure sodium streetlights with energy-efﬁcient LED lights. “This will reduce our energy consumption by 11,213 kWh

equating to an energy savings of $1,123 per year,” Harrington’s memo said. The project is part of Carbondale’s 2014 Energy Efﬁciency Program. • The street crew was busy the week of May 5-9 performing several repairs on streets prior to chip and seal. One area on Oak Run must be further excavated to analyze soil characteristics. “We may have another hydro-compactive clay area,” the report states. The chip seal project should commence the week of May 19.

Highway 133 om page 3 how things will play out. That said I believe the basic concepts described above should give you a pretty good idea of how things will be progressing over the next few months.

work Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (the town can grant longer hours on Saturday and some working hours on Sunday if requested by the contractor).

Q: Will there be any weekend construction? a: Very likely. At this point the contractor would like to try to utilize a Monday through Friday operation, but as the project progresses weekends could come into play.

•••

Q: Will there be any construction during rush hours? a: The contractor will be allowed to

What to Expect with Healthcare for next year? Please RSVP to Sarah Kos at 3034333375.

Although traffic-flow details for the Highway 133 construction project are not finalized, no less than three media relation specialists will work to spread updates to the business community and public between now and November. Those specialists are: Tracy Trulove (CDOT Region 3 communications manager), LaSheita Sayer (public information

A end a Q&A session with a Cer fied Health Coverage Guide with Connect for Health Colorado at the Carbondale Recrea on Center on May 20, 2014

at 5 p.m. to help answer

those ques ons that you may have regarding what to expect next year with Health Insurance requirements.

4 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • May 15, 2014

manager for United Companies) and Kate Collins (of Write Brain West). Carbondale Chamber of Commerce Director Andrea Stewart said the chamber allocated $5,000 from its 2014 town grant to contract with Collins for marketing and public relations services. “This will allow us the opportunity to be a communications channel for the Carbondale business community and visitors,” Stewart told The Sopris Sun. Collins is also posting updates provided to her at carbondale133.com. Sayer is in charge of the project hotline at 970-688-4988 and SH133publicinfoteam.com. Trulove can be reached at 384-3371.

TUESDay May 6 at 5:54 p.m. an officer responded to a call from a resident who said unknown persons had been leaving large items such as TVs and furniture in her driveway while she was at work. She requested an extra patrol in her neighborhood. THURSDay May 8 at 3:46 p.m., police received a report of a disturbance at a store. An officer learned that a customer left his wallet on the counter after paying for merchandise, and the following customer took off with it. Customer #1 chased customer #2, retrieved the wallet, then returned to the store and accused them of aiding the theft. When the officer arrived customer #1 had left the store. FRIDay May 9 at 10:28 a.m., an officer helped a man locate his lost bank card and ID. SaTURDay May 10 at 12:14 a.m. police responded to a bar concerning an intoxicated male who would not leave the premises. Upon the officers’ arrival, the man left without incident.

Former corporate pilot buys Sopris Liquor & Wine Wife takes over Mi Casita John Colson Sopris Sun Correspondent Local businessman Federico Peña, who has forged the beginnings of a small commercial empire in Carbondale, set his sights on becoming an aircraft pilot early in his life. But once he’d accomplished that goal, he said in a recent interview with The Sopris Sun, he realized he had other ambitions in life that had nothing to do with ferrying bankers around in private jets, which was what he was doing for several years after earning his wings. Peña, 37, (known around town as “Kiko”) is the new owner of Sopris Liquor and Wine at 1026 Highway 133, which bills itself as one of the largest liquor stores in the Roaring Fork Valley. He also, until recently, was the owner of Mi Casita restaurant, 580 Main St., which currently is owned by his wife, Graciela. The Peñas have lived in Carbondale since buying the restaurant in 2006. They have two children, Kiko, Jr. , 6, and Alexa Grace, 3. Originally from Laredo, Texas, Kiko attended college at St. Edwards University in Austin on a three-year basketball scholarship before heading to Vero Beach, Florida, to fulfill his ambition to become a pilot. Graduating from the Flight Safety International school in 1999, he returned to Texas to take a job with a regional banking company for the next eight years, occasionally taking time off for ski trips in Aspen, which convinced him he might want to come to the Roaring Fork Valley to live. “I loved flying, but I didn’t like the hours,” he said, explaining that his schedule was irregular, at best, and it kept him away from his family for periods of time. “Being away from home so much was hard on the marriage,” he continued, so when he learned that Mi Casita was for sale, “I said, let’s go try this.” Graciela, who had been working as a kindergarten teacher in Texas, switched to restaurant management and the couple settled down to the task of raising their kids and working together non-stop. “So, we went from never seeing each other to being with each other all the time,” Kiko said with a chuckle. “I got to really know who I was married to.” After eight years of restaurant work, Kiko said, “I knew I was going to have to do something else,” at first thinking he would buy or open up another restaurant. But by then he had become friends with another Carbondale businessman, Terry Kirk, owner of the shopping complex that houses Sopris Liquors and Wine, and had taken a couple of trips to Mexico with Kirk to check out the tequila industry there. “We became really good friends,” he said, and in 2013 the two of them came up with the plan for Kiko to buy the business from Kirk after an earlier owner went bankrupt and Kirk could find no one to take it over.

Federico “Kiko” Peña and his wife, Graciela, bought Mi Casita in 2006 after skiing in Aspen for several years. He recently sold Graciela the restaurant after buying Sopris Liquor and Wine. Photo by Bryan Welker

“I just really do love Carbondale … . I believe in the town.” Federico “Kiko” Peña In the meantime, Kirk, who ran the liquor store himself for a while, had begun having regular wine tastings with his sommelier, Johnny Ivansco. “He did a really good job,” Kiko said of the wine tastings, noting that the store had become “a wine destination for the valley. That’s why I bought it.” The new enterprise meant that Kiko went from being at the restaurant practically all the time to operating a store with a hard-working staff (who stayed on after the transfer of the business) and an established clientele. Though he knew something of the liquor industry from his contact with salesman visiting the restaurant, he knew little about the business. “It was kind of a thrown-into-the-ﬁre kind of thing,” he said with a grin. But his staff — general manager Joe Marshall, beer manager Brock Tillotson and Ivansco — was there to

The God Virus with Reverend Stephan Papa

Join us Sunday, May 18, 2014, 10:00 am

Two Rivers Unitarian Universalist (TRUU) @ Third Street Center

www.tworiversuu.org Inspirational, Contemporary Music by Jimmy Byrne

Two Rivers Unitarian Universalist

Heather Rydell, Youth Program Minister Childcare Provided

“show me the ropes” and things have gone well, he said. He has 13 employees, mostly full time, and he already is looking forward to making a few changes. “This year it’s going to be something different,” he said. “We’re going to have cocktail tastings.” The staff will choose a theme for the tastings, make up batches for customers to taste, and then teach the customers how to make the same drinks for themselves. He mentioned mint juleps (made with bourbon) and mai tais (made with rum) as examples of the kinds of drinks he plans to specialize in for the tastings, and noted that he is open to other ways of “getting creative” to expand the business. “I’m relying a lot on my team,” he said. “We have meetings to talk about the next step.” He emphasized that he is very happy with the move to buy the store, explaining, “I’m more of a public relations businessman than a chef. I’m more of a Carbondale person than a restaurant person or a liquor person. I just really do love Carbondale. I’m in the Carbondale business. I believe in the town.” And he’s open to other options, other choices in the future. “I don’t know how long it’ll be ‘til the next business venture hits you in the face when you’re not looking,” he declared.

Town T own o off Carbond Carbondale ale

PUBLIC PUBLIC MEETING MEETING May May 29th 29th 7:00 7:00 p pm m Carbondale Carbondale Town Town Hall Hall 51 511 1C Colorado olorado Ave. Ave. Join us for for the the presentation presentation and and provide provide your your input input of the the Carbondale Carbondale UD UDC C ((updated updated zo zoning ning and and land land use code). Learn Learn more an and d pro provide vide y your our fee feedback dback at www www.carbondaleudc.com. .carbondaleudc.com. THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • May 15, 2014 • 5

Scuttlebutt

Send your scuttlebutt to news@SoprisSun.com.

Mountain Fair announces music lineup

away free copies Bruce Machartâ€™s award-winning novel â€œThe Wake of Forgiveness.â€? Machart, who also has a shortstory collection titled â€œMen in the Makingâ€? to his credit, is the Aspen Writersâ€™ Foundationâ€™s current writer-in-residence. The free books are made possible through AWFâ€™s Catch and Release program, according to a press release. On related notes, Machart will visit two English classes at Roaring Fork High School on May 15 and give a free reading at the Woody Creek Community Center at 6 p.m. on May 27.

Once again, Carbondale Mountain Fair will take folks around the world and back to Sopris Park, with a music lineup that includes the New Orleans-based Iguanas, reggae-infused and African inspired Radio La Chusma, Hit and Run Bluegrass, and Lunar Fire Collective. Local bands include the band formerly known as Hannibal Brown, Shea Freedom, Let Them Roar, and Big Dog and the Midnight Badgers. Getting back to the nationally touring part of the lineup, bands include: Dirty Bourbon River Show, The Appleseed Collective, Todo Mundo and Muskateer Gripweed. The 43rd annual Mountain Fair takes place July 25-27 in Sopris Park.

Potter lands in jail House, that is. The potter is Michelle Zinanti, owner of Harvest Pottery, and she has turned the old Carbondale jail at the Mt. Sopris Historical Society Museum on Weant Boulevard into a studio/gallery. Harvest Pottery will be shown at the Aspen Red Brick show â€œSet the Tableâ€? in June. In the meantime, check out Zinantiâ€™s line at harvestpottery.com and stay tuned for her open house.

School notes Roaring Fork High School counselor Andrea Caruso was selected as the Colorado Educational Services and Development Associationâ€™s 2013-2014 High School Counselor of the Year. The association focuses on supporting ďŹ rst generation college students. At Carbondale Middle School recently, Vailâ€™s Zach Korbel gave a presentation on self advocacy and self determination. Korbel is an avid skier who uses a wheelchair to get around because he has cerebral palsy.

Ross scores 100 Ross Montessori School third grade students are 100 percent proďŹ cient or advanced in reading, according to

Independence Pass opens soon? CDOT sent out a press release last week saying it expects to open Highway 82 over Independence Pass at 2 p.m. on May 22. Of course, the press release was issued a few days before this weekâ€™s heavy snowstorm. If you want to be heading over the 12,095-foot Independence Pass after 2 p.m. on May 22, you might check out the website cotrip.org for statewide road conditions.

The Carbondale Board of Trustees recognized its Students of the Month on May 13. From left to right are: Enrique Lopez and Scarlett Carney. Not shown are: Delia Argueta, Juan Hernandez, Jaciel Carrillo and Natalie Marner. Photo by Lynn Burton

Rotary awards scholarships The Rotary Club of Carbondale (Wednesdays at 6:50 a.m. at the Carbondale ďŹ re house) announced this yearâ€™s scholarship recipients are: at Roaring Fork High School, Alexa Maes, Jane (Toni) Gross, Zack Ritchie, Yaritza Zarate and Kimberly Vega Terrazas; at Bridges High School, William Kelly; at Basalt High School, Ivano Del Piccolo, Kade Cheatham, Hunter Ash, Berta Rivera and Shion Reily. On a related Rotary note, the clubâ€™s annual Happening is June 14 at the Orchard. Tickets are $125 and proceeds go for community grants and scholarships. For details, go to rotarycarbondale.org.

TCAP results released by the school last week. That ďŹ gure includes special education and ELL students.

This just in Linda Romero Criswell was doing some Dandelion Days research the other day and read a newspaper announcement from Aug. 28, 1889 that said a Dr. Camp on Sopris Avenue grew a huge variety of plants in his garden including â€œwatermelons, muskmelons, peas, beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, hemp, and garden truck of all kinds.â€? Hemp! Can you dig it â€Ś or maybe the question is â€œwhy did Dr. Camp dig it?â€? Criswell said she is looking into why someone in 1889 would grow hemp in their garden.

They say itâ€™s your birthday. Folks celebrating their birthday this week include: Greg Masse (May 15); Cynthia ButterďŹ eld (May16); Terrie Geddes (May 17); Peter Frey (May 19) and Jenny Garcia (May 20).

Blend offers Machart books While supplies last: The Blend on Highway 133 is giving

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THE HUMMERS ARE HERE

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Next to City Market in El Jebel, 400 E Valley Rd. Ste I/J 963.1700 Open M-F 10-6:30pm | Sat/Sun 11-5pm

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6 â€˘ THE SOPRIS SUN â€˘ www.SoprisSun.com â€˘ May 15, 2014

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Donate online at www.soprissun.com Send a check made out to the Sopris Sun LLC, P.O. Box 399, Carbondale, 81623 or Take out an ad for your business by contacting: Bob Albright (Câ€™dale to Aspen) â€˘ 970-927-2175 â€˘ bob@soprissun.com Paula Valenti (Glenwood Area) â€˘ 970-319-5270 â€˘ paula@soprissun.com

Sarah Legg keeps the growing going at CRMS By Barbara Dills Sopris Sun Correspondent When Linda Halloran retired in January after 15 years as the Director of the Garden Program at CRMS, she did so feeling conﬁdent that the program was in good hands. CRMS conducted an extended search that included advertising the position both locally and nationally. In the end, it was through a website, GoodFoodJobs.com that 2013 University of Wyoming graduate Sarah Legg heard about the opening and was hired. A native of Laramie, Sarah got into gardening in high school when she started volunteering at A.C.R.E.S, the University’s student farm. For her, gardening represented the perfect merger of environmental sustainability, frugality, and the DIY (“do-it-yourself”) approach, which had always attracted her. In college, she was studying molecular biology when she had the opportunity to take a twoweek trip to Kenya to study small-scale subsistence farming. Her experiences in Africa convinced her she wanted to make agriculture—and particularly food production—her focus. She changed her major and graduated with a degree in agroecology. By the time Sarah saw the listing for her current position, CRMS was not the only one who’d been searching. She wanted to stay in the intermountain west and since graduating had been looking for a job in the Rockies that combined agriculture and education, a tall order for someone just out of school. She was thrilled to come across the posting and considers this her dream job. After just four months in her new position, she’s settled into her routine and life in Carbondale. And judging from how full the greenhouse is, she’s done an admirable job following in Linda’s footsteps.

a busy time May is an especially busy time of year for the garden program. Sarah leads student work crews four afternoons a week for two hours each day, even as she is getting ready for the garden’s biggest public event of the year, the annual plant sale on May 17-18. She says she couldn’t pull the plant sale off without her student helpers. In addition to

starting, tending and transplanting the dozens of varieties that will be for sale, the students help outside the greenhouse with weeding, soil preparation, spreading compost, building garden beds, and harvesting any cool weather crops that are ready. “For me, my number one priority is the students,” says Sarah. “That’s why I’m here.” She would like to ﬁnd ways to engage all the students, not just those who sign up for her work crews. “Every student does interact with the garden indirectly, because they all eat at the Bar Fork [the CRMS student dining hall]. I’m looking for ways to help them see it as an essential thing, and even a hip place to spend their time.” To that end, Sarah and Whitney Will, a Carbondale native working as the 2014 Garden Assistant, have set up an Instagram feed where Whitney is posting garden and work crew photos. Readers are invited to follow on Instagram @crms_gardens.

Plant sale Much like in prior years, this year’s selection of organically grown plants is extensive, and all varieties have been chosen for their suitability to the local climate. Offerings in the fruit and vegetable department include: more than 36 short-season tomato varieties including 15 heirlooms (over 1,000 tomato plants in all!); 21 types of peppers, both hot and sweet; artichokes; arugula; cucumbers; lettuces; squashes; melons; raspberries; sorrel; and much more. Pie makers will ﬁnd rhubarb and Italian alpine strawberries. For folks with limited space, there will be a great selection of vegetable varieties bred for container growing. Herbs include 26 different culinary varieties and 10 types of basil. Annual ﬂowers, onion plants and seed potatoes will also be available. The perennial section will feature native and adapted plants, all of which do well in our arid mountain climate. The full list of varieties can be found online at www.crms.org/plantsale. The sale runs Saturday, May 17 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday, May 18 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Boxes for transporting plants will be available, but shoppers that have their own trays and boxes are encouraged to bring them.

Colorado Rocky Mountain School Garden Program Director Sarah Legg brings a degree in agroecology to her position. She hooked up with CRMS through GoodFoodJobs.com. Photo by Barbara Dills

New CMC educator looks beyond degree programs By Denise Barkhurst Sopris Sun Correspondent Recently, Colorado Mountain College announced that Jim Green has accepted the position of Continuing Education Coordinator for the Roaring Fork Campus (Glenwood, Spring Valley, Carbondale) and Glenwood Center Director. The announcement from the college states that Green “has consulted for the Equity Assistance Center at the Metropolitan State University of Denver. He previously served as Continuing Education Coordinator for the BUENO Equity Assistance Center based at the University of Colorado-Boulder. In both positions, he provided training and outreach to a multi-state region dedicated to assisting states and schools close the achievement gap and promote high standards for all students. He also worked with the University of Alaska in Anchorage to design Continuing Education and Core Curriculum courses for rural and Alaska Native paraprofessionals in K-12 schools.” Green told The Sopris Sun that his motivation for accepting the CMC job is “the enticement of getting out of research-based projects and looking at learning from a different perspective of continuing education beyond degree programs.” In his interview with The Sun, Green

enthusiastically addressed as Continuing Education the idea of lifelong learning Coordinator leading him to as having intrinsic value. He learn each community’s discussed that “The percepown distinctive aspects. tion of continuing educa“The college can act in tantion is easy to stereotype as dem to each community’s either GED classes or extraidentity” when looking at curricular activities. We class interests. For Carbonhave to get past the notion dale, a community with a of continuing education as large volunteer and nonsomehow less important or profit base, Green believes less serious than degree that, “The college can coincourses. Classes not within cide with that sense of servJim Green a degree discipline have ice to community.” their own special place and importance.” However, drawing students in is a key In other words, Green believes that these factor for success. According to CMC’s classes should instead be viewed as having public information officer, Debra Crawinherent educational value that “improves ford, “The number of noncredit classes one’s quality of life.” He expands on the scheduled at Colorado Mountain College concept by stating, “Whether a person al- in Glenwood Springs and Carbondale ready has a higher education degree or varies widely, depending on the time of not, society is changing enough that con- year, community demand and other factinual learning is required. Continuing Ed- tors. At the two locations combined, anyucation can give us confidence that will where from 80 to 175 classes per semester transfer to the workforce and in society. are typically scheduled, and the number of There is more than just survival involved; classes that actually run depend on enough continuing education contributes to our students registering for each.” More stuquality of life.” This was an idea he reiter- dent interest correlates to more classes and more diversity in class offerings. ated throughout the interview. Diversity is a familiar theme in Jim Though his office will be located in CMC’s Glenwood Center, he sees his role Green’s life. When asked about what in-

spired him to become immersed in Native American and rural Alaskan communities, Green explains his life path. “I grew up in northern Minnesota and headed to Alaska after college. I was playing hockey at the time, so Alaska wasn’t a stretch. I became impressed with how Alaska Natives found a balance between work and play. They approached work with a sense of creativity. After I received my Master’s in Education, I took a job on the Pine Ridge Reservation teaching high school. Again, I was impressed by how important creativity is in Native societies. People ﬁnd a balance in their daily lives and integrate play into work so that work becomes more than just a method for survival.” Language has played an interesting role in Green’s value for communication. Among Green’s list of talents is his ability to speak Lakota and Dakota. He learned to speak Native American dialects in order to communicate with his friends and colleagues at Pine Ridge and Sisseton more effectively. When questioned whether any particular concepts in these languages surprised him, he explained that “the words ‘Wolakota’ and ‘Wodakota’ actually mean ‘to be peaceful’ or ‘peacefulness.’ In tribal terms, a real Lakota is deﬁned as ‘someGREEN page 9

THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • May 15, 2014 • 7

Community Briefs

Please submit your community briefs to news@soprissun.com by noon on Monday.

aVLT seeks sheepy coordinator The Aspen Valley Land Trust is looking for a volunteer coordinator to manage ticket sales and parking for the 2014 National Sheepdog Trials at Strang Ranch on Sept. 9-14. The non-proﬁt AVLT is the recipient of ticket sales. “This is a great competition and a fun spectator sport,” said an AVLT spokeswoman. “Help us make this event a success.” For detail, call Melissa at 963-8440 or e-mail Melissa@avlt.org.

CORE offering solar systems CORE and GRID Alternatives will provide solar systems for 10 local homeowners, according to a press release. A workshop on how to apply for the program will be held at the Third Street Center from 5 to 6:30 p.m. on May 15. For details, call 925-9775.

art camp registration under way Registration is under way fro CCAH summer art camps, including print making, storytelling, sewing, mixed media, ukulele and more. For details, go to carbondalearts.com.

Pee Wee football needs coaches Carbondale’s third-fourth and ﬁfth-sixth grade Pee Wee football is looking for a town representative and coaches, while the seventh-eight grade/middle school program needs help with coaching. Pee Wee player registration is also under way. For details, call Tory Jensen at 948-8208.

BBC hosts business workshop Bonedale Business Cooperative hosts a business strategies workshop at the Third Street Center from 9 a.m. to noon on May 16. Presented by Intentional Solutions and JVA Consulting, the event will target entrepreneurs and nonproﬁts, focusing on tactics to maximize organizational performance and leverage the team effort, according to a

Before Monday morning’s snows came Sunday afternoon’s rains on May 11. There’s a car in there somewhere; can’t tell if it’s towing a water skier. Photo by Julie Albrecht press release. The workshop is free to BBC members and $49 for non-members. To become a BBC member, go to Facebook.com. The workshop’s title sponsors are Roaring Fork Leadership, the Roaring Fork Business Resource Center and Carbondale Chamber of Commerce.

RSVP offers handyman service RSVP’s Helping Hands for Seniors Program assists seniors and disabled individuals with simple home repairs and maintenance tasks that help them to live independently in their homes, according to a press release. Volunteers can help with simple plumbing and electrical problems, some

disability access improvements and minor carpentry, and one-time yard maintenance such as leaf raking. For information on the program, call 384-8746.

Mental health forum slated YouthZone, the Aspen Hope Center and others present a community forum on mental health at Roaring Fork High School from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on May 28. Speakers include: Kim Nuzzo (Jaywalker), Margaret Bender (Valley Life for All), Kerry Chaney (YouthZone), and Jason Hodges (Aspen OUT). For details, call 925-5858 or go to aspenhopecenter.org.

Carbondale trustees like Facebook; hate idling vehicles John Colson Sopris Sun Correspondent Town staff and members of the Carbondale Board of Trustees will have to be a little more careful about their use of Facebook and other social media to connect with constituents, and town employees will have to shut their vehicle engines off more diligently than they may be used to, under two new policies adopted by the trustees at a meeting on Tuesday. The board on Tuesday adopted speciﬁc policies this week on the idling of town-owned vehicles, and the use of social media by town ofﬁcials and employees to get the word out to the citizenry, at their regular meeting. There was no decision, however, concerning the most fervently discussed item on Tuesday’s agenda — selection of a new tenant for the vacant Gordon Cooper Library building at Fourth and Main streets. Further discussion of the four proposals — by the Carbondale Chamber of Commerce, the Carbondale Council on Arts and Humanities, organizers of a non-traditional cafe and gathering place, and proponents of a low-cost hostel for visitors to the area — will continue on June 10.

Social media “We’ve been slow to embrace this,” said Town Manager Jay Harrington about the new social media policy, explaining that many other communities already have such policies in effect. And the town is doing it now, he said, “because the public’s asked for it. It’s in response to folks saying we need better information about the town.” The new policy, which is not an ordinance, lays out in

some detail what the town’s official position is regarding the use of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social media as a way of communicating with residents. The eight-page policy identifies several town staffers who will be in charge of managing the flow of the information, and cautions the trustees to not write too much or express opinions that might run counter to state laws governing open records, open meetings and other transparency guidelines. Harrington predicted that the town would rely increasingly on the social media as a tool to spread word of emergencies, changes to such things as bus-stop locations caused by town construction activities, updates regarding the ongoing Highway 133 redevelopment project, and other matters requiring “real-time” announcements. But, he added, “The more general, press-release-type stuff will still go on the town’s website (www.carbondalegov.org).” That will include meeting agendas, meeting minutes, public service announcements and other official communications. “This has been a hot topic for municipalities for years,” Harrington said, noting, for example, that Carbondale Police Chief Gene Schilling has been eager to use social media for law-enforcement-related announcements and has “been after me to get the policy written.” The use of social media is necessary, Harrington said, because more and more people turn to Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for information of all kinds, and “rarely go to websites any more.” He used his 12-year-old son as an example. But, he emphasized, those unfamiliar or uncomfortable with using social media should not worry that they will be missing out due to a shift in the town’s interaction with its

8 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • May 15, 2014

constituents. “I don’t see this as a shift,” he said. “We’re looking at parallel universes,” using both the new technology and more established methods of communicating with residents at the same time. “The whole intent is to make it easier and more transparent,” he concluded.

Reduced idling The new policy restricting engine-idling of town-owned vehicles was brought to the trustees by Garfield County Environmental Health Specialist Morgan Hill, who has been working on the policy with town staff “for a while,” according to Harrington. “We’ve got very good buy-in from the staff,” Harrington told the trustees on Tuesday. “I’m glad we’re finally abiding by our own law,” chimed in Mayor Stacey Bernot, referring to the town’s existing ordinance against idling vehicles in general. That ordinance declares that “idling of vehicles wastes fuel, creates pollution and causes premature engine wear and produces harmful effects to the environment,” and prohibits idling of vehicles longer than for 10 minutes “after a cold start.” There are numerous exemptions listed in the code, such as for vehicles that must remain running while being loaded, unloaded or for refrigeration of perishable contents in a truck’s trailer. But in many cases where idling may seem to be simply a normal consequence of driving a vehicle, such as waiting in stalled traffic or the line at a drive-up window, the code TOWN COUNCIL page 9

Town council om page 8 requires that the vehicle be turned off. In adopting the ordinance, Hill told the trustees, they are creating a situation where town employees “are serving as a model to your community. It raises community awareness.” She said Garﬁeld County created the idling policy, and series of presentations aimed at adoption of the policy by towns within the county, using a $5,000 grant in 2012 from the Colorado Department of Transportation. Another grant of the same amount came through this year, she said, and is to be used for continuing education and outreach activities around the county. While discussing the policy, several trustees suggested different ways of educating the public, such as special bumper stickers, notiﬁcation of banks and other businesses where idling vehicles often line up, e-mail “blasts” to citizens of neighborhoods where idling has been known to be a problem, and reminders enclosed in city water bills sent to town residents.

In other action, the trustees:

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• Approved Carbondale’s participation in a letter to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, which contains “scoping comments” urging the agency to void or cancel oil and gas leases in the Thompson Divide region near Carbondale. • Approved special-event liquor licenses for a Bonedale Bike Week closing party, from 4:30-9:30 p.m. on May 16 at the town recreation center on Colorado Avenue; and for a fund-raiser for the Thunder River Theater on May 17, to be held from 6-10 p.m., at The Orchard church on Snowmass Drive. • Renewed the medical marijuana dispensary and cultivation license for The Center, 60 N. Third St.

Green om page 7 one who peacefully takes care of him or herself.’ In contrast, American society has seen these people primarily as warriors.” Green believes these cross-cultural experiences have universal value. Taking his familiarity with diverse cultures into Colorado mountain communities, Green addresses the need for greater Latino immersion. He believes that CMC has to look at where it is already interacting and use that as an invitation to keep people engaged in learning. “It needs to be implicit in all of our classes that there are many opportunities to continue to learn new things. A chain of spreading the word within the communities can then be created. Simple strategies, such as marketing and streamlining registration can make the process easier to engage in.” However, when it comes to closing achievement gaps, Green admits that, “There’s no easy ﬁx. It has to be a qualitative assessment while looking at what needs have been met and how we can be more efﬁcient in the future.” His education philosophy draws on his unique experiences and demonstrates an alternative way to understand learning. “The relationship between teaching and learning is different in different cultures. We have goodwill in our efforts as teachers, and ideally, we have one on one relationships with our students. If a student fails, we assume one or the other [the teacher or student] has to work harder. However, there are other cultures where the student relates to what he or she is learning, not the teacher. Teachers are subordinate to the actual learning. “ Green’s biggest challenge? “Trusting my experience in how change happens and so controlling my desire to ‘make’ things happen.” He is anxious to work with others in CMC’s approach to continuing education. His infectious attitude shows when he asks, “How do we make it a non-typical educational experience? It has to be a different type of educational experience than the conventional concept of how we learn. Students know more than they can tell. Learning to tell what they know leads to quality of life.”

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THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • May 15, 2014 • 9

Community Calendar THURSDAY May 15

To list your event, email information to news@soprissun.com. Deadline is noon on Monday. Events take place in Carbondale unless noted. For up-to-the-minute valley-wide event listings, check out the Community Calendar online at soprissun.com. View events online at soprissun.com/calendar.

every Friday night. Info: 963-3304.

SCaVENGER HUNT • Bonedale Bike Week presents a digital scavenger hunt that rolls out from Aloha Mountain Cyclery at 5 p.m., returning by 8 p.m. It’s for teams of two to six people. Helments are required;costumes are encouraged. MLP • The ﬁve-week Mindful Life program course is held at the Third Street Center from 6 to 8 p.m. on May 15, 22, 29 and June 5, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on June 7. The fee is $250. Info: 970-633-0163. LIVE MUSIC • The Glenwood Springs Community Concert series presents The trumpet ensemble Les Tompettes de Lyon at Glenwood Springs High School at 7 p.m. Admission is free with the purchase of a membership for next season. Info: gsconcertassn.org. ROTaRy • The Mt. Sopris Rotary meets at Mi Casita at noon every Thursday.

FRIDAY May 16 MOVIES • The Crystal Theatre presents “The Grand Budapest Hotel” (R) at 7:30 p.m. May 16-23 except on May 18 showings are at 2 p.m. (captioned) and 5 p.m. only. Coming soon “The Lunchbox.” PEDaL PaRaDE • Bonedale Bike Week stages its annual Pedal Parade, rolling out from the Carbondale Recreation Center at 5:30 p.m. (costumes recommended). Back at the recreation center form 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. there’ll be a party, grand rafﬂe, music and refreshments. LIVE MUSIC • Steve’s Guitars in the old part of the Dinkel Building presents live music

LIVE MUSIC • Rivers restaurant in Glenwood Springs presents Missing Link (rock, R&B, country, blues) from 9 p.m. to midnight. No cover.

SAT.-SUN. May 17-18 CRMS PLaNT SaLE • The Colorado Rocky Mountain School plant sale takes place on the campus from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, and 1 to 3 p.m. on Sunday. Boxes for transporting plants will be available but shoppers are encouraged to bring their own trays and boxes. A complete list of plants is posted at crms.org/plantsale/.

SATURDAY May 17 CaSINO NIGHT • Thunder River Theatre Company holds its annual Casino Night fund-raiser at the Orchard on Snowmass Drive at 6 p.m. There’ll be poker, blackjack, roulette and craps, with prizes for those who excel (ﬁrst prize a new iPad). The live auction features such items as a trip to Cabo and works by local artists). Food will be catered by the Hickory House, with desserts from Desert Sky. The Leonard Curry Trio will provide the music. Tickets are $80 per person. TREE PLaNTING • The Carbondale Tree Board holds a tree planting at the Third Street Center at 9 a.m. Memorial or recognition plaques will be afﬁxed to each of the eight trees (discovery elm and snow crab). Donors were: Laura Kirk/DHM, Jay Walker Lodge, Joan Matranga, Gavin Brooke, Katherine Rich, Debbie Bruell, Kim Bock/Prima Plant Services, Mark Taylor, Barbara Dills, Udelle

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10 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • May 15, 2014

Stuckey and Elizabeth Camack. Matching funds come from the Kay Brunnier Tree Fund. The tree board will have a tent and pass out information and brochures. Info: 970-456-6973. CRySTaL WORK • Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers works on a section of Crystal River trail between River Valley Ranch and Hendrick Ranch from 8:30 a.m. 5 p.m. Info: 927-8241 or RFOV.org. FUND-RaISING RaCE • Racing Heroes is a fund-raiser to help fight human trafficking and it takes place at Two Rivers Park in Glenwood Springs starting at 9 a.m. (registration is at 8:30 a.m.) The entry fee for the 5K is $35; 10K is $40. Info: 720-202-6662. MS WaLK • The Colorado-Wyoming Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society holds its annual 5K run in Glenwood Canyon. Info: 303-971-0134. BENEFIT • There will be a benefit for James Philben at El Jebowl from 5 to 11 p.m. Highlights include a silent auction, and music by Bobby Mason, Jimmy Dykann and others.

TUESDAY May 20 TWO-STEP TUESDay • The Roaring Fork Social Dancers present Two-Step Tuesdays from 7:45 to 9:45 p.m. at the Third Street Center. Admission is $7 and partners or experience are not necessary. Info: jaeg1@comcast.net. HEaLTH CaRE INFO • Connect for Health Colorado holds a Q&A session about Health Care at the Carbondale Recreation Center at 5 p.m. RSVP to Sarah Kos at

303-433-3375.

WEDNESDAY May 21 ROTaRy • The Rotary Club of Carbondale presents Sharon Ragglo and Jackie Skramstadt (Mind Springs Health) at the fire station at 6:50 a.m. Coming up on May 28: Dr. Aki (lung cancer facts). For program suggestions, e-mail amy@amybarr.com CULTURE CLUB • The Carbondale Culture Club presents singer/pianist Vid Weatherwax at the Third Street Center at noon. Admission is free. Coming up May 28: Rachel Connor (program director for (co) Studio Education: Connecting the Hand and the Mind). Info: thirdstreetcenter.net. RaM JaM PERFORMS • The Ram Jam Band will present a concert in the band room at 8 p.m. during the Roaring Fork High School art show. The concert will feature the legendary minimalist composer Terry Riley’s “in C.” This rarely performed work is a real test of the players’ stamina and musicianship and celebrates the 50th anniversary of the landmark piece. Riley composed “in C” in 1964. The juxtaposed elements of East Indian, jazz, and western avant-garde music result in a unique form driven by interlocking repetitive patterns. When first released, the work’s impact was to change the course of 20th century music. It has influenced composers such as Steve Reich, Philip Glass and John Adams, and the music of rock groups including The Who, Soft Machine, Tangerine Dream and many others. The piece normally runs about an hour in length. The CALENDAR page 11

Community Calendar audience is encouraged to make themselves comfortable and bring pillows or beanbagtype chairs in to the performance area. LIVE MUSIC â€˘Â Rivers restaurant in Glenwood hosts open mic nights with Dan Rosenthal from 8 to 10 p.m. on Wednesdays.

continued from page 10

Info: 928-8813. TRaNFORMaTION â€˘Â JVA Consulting and HighLife present the workshop â€œTransform Your Organizational Cultureâ€? at the Third Street Center from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Info: 963-9182.

Further Out THURSDAY May 22 OPERa â€˘Â The Carbondale Council on Arts and Humanities presents Opera Colorado Young Artists production of â€œBarber of Sevilleâ€? at the Third Street Center at 8 p.m. This is an hour-long performance in English with piano accompaniment. â€œThe Barber of Sevilleâ€? is often described as the funniest opera ever written. Tickets are available at carbondalearts.com. Info: 963-1680. aRTISTS BEaT â€˘Â CCAH presents an artist panel discussion on gender and the creative process at the Third Street Center at 5:30 p.m. Panelists are Gayle Embrey, Franz Froelicher, Diane Kenney, Leo Johnson, Samuel De La Rosa, Bob Johnson and Annette RobertsGray. Info: 963-1680. LIVE MUSIC â€˘Â The Black Nugget presents Jeremy Steding and the Rebellion. This is an Austin-based honky-tonk band on tour in Texas, New Mexico and Colorado through May 27.

WEDNESDAY May 28 MENTaL HEaLTH FORUM â€˘Â YouthZone and others present a community forum on

mental health at from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at Roaring Fork High School. Info: 925-5858.

THURSDAY May 29 UDC UPDaTE â€˘Â The Carbondale Planning Commission will release the results of the unified development code (UDC) annotated outline during a public meeting at 7 p.m. Copies of the outline are available at carbondaleudc.com; paper copies are available at town hall and the Carbondale Branch Library. aRT SaLE â€˘ SAW holds its spring open house and art sale from 5 to 9 p.m. More than 20 SAW artist will open their studios to show new work. SAW is located at 525 Buddy Circle. Info: 274-9058.

FRI.-SAT. May 30-31 GRaDUaTIONS â€˘Â Bridges High School holds its graduation ceremony at the school at 4 p.m. on Friday; Roaring Fork High School holds its graduation ceremony at the school at 1 p.m. on Saturday; Basalt High School holds its graduation at the school at the school at 10 a.m. on Saturday.

Ongoing CCaH SHOW CONTINUES â€˘Â The Bob Johnson retrospective and paperworks by Annette Roberts-Gray continues at the Third Street Center through June 6. The R2 Gallery is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday through Thursday and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Fridays. Info: 963-1680. aSPEN HISTORICaL SOCIETy â€˘Â More than 15 new artifacts have been installed in the Aspen Historical Societyâ€™s award winning exhibit at the Wheeler/Stallard House museum on Bleeker. Items include a parďŹ‚eche bag, moccasins, a tobacco bag and cradleboard. â€œSeasons of the Nuche: Transitions of the Ute Peopleâ€? will be up for the summer season.

Info: Keith Edquist at 928-8428. VaUDEVILLE RETURNS â€˘Â Glenwood Vaudeville Review returns with a spring show on Friday and Saturday nights. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Thereâ€™s a full bar and pub style menu from Juicy Lucyâ€™s, Daily Bread and 19th Street Diner. Tickets are $24 for adults, $22 for seniors and $16 for kids (show only). Reservations at 945-9699 or gvrshow.com. MINDFULNESS GROUP â€˘Â The Mindfulness group holds weekly sessions at 7:30 p.m. next to the Blend on Highway 133. Info: 970-633-0163.

TRE â€˘Â Betsy Bowie offers tension and trauma release exercies at the Third Street Center from 3:30 to 5 p.m. on May 18 and 25. The cost is $10. Info: 379-3486. The session is supported by Davi Nikent.

BRIDGE â€˘Â The Carbondale Bridge Club meets in the Third Street Centerâ€™s Senior Matters room from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. every Wednesday. All duplicate bridge players are welcome but you must bring a partner. Admission is $3. Info: Diane Morgan at 963-0425.

DaVI NIKENT â€˘Â Masterminds 4 Wellness is a six-month program offered through Davi Nikent. Info: 618-9723 or info@davinikent.org.

LIVE MUSIC â€˘ Carbondale Beer Works hosts open mic nights with Patrick Fagan Mondays at 7:30 p.m.

WEEKLy RUNS â€˘Â Indepedence Run & Hike holds runs Thursday night at 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 8 a.m. Info: 704-0909.

LIVE MUSIC â€˘ The Hotel Colorado hosts a Monday night jazz jam in its lobby at 7 p.m. The sessions are open to jazz musicians of all levels Spectators welcome. For more information visit the Monday Night Jazz Facebook page or contact Zack Ritchie at 987-9277.

LINX â€˘Â The Linx Networking group meets each Tuesdays at 7 a.m. in the Aspen-Sothebyâ€™s real estate ofďŹ ce on Midland Avenue in Basalt.

Hold the Presses VSP CELEBRaTES â€˘ Valley Settlement Project recognizes the class of 2013/2014 parent mentors at the Glenwood Springs Library from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 19. Following the awards ceremony, thereâ€™ll be Mexican potluck lunch. RSVP by May 15 at Jackie@manausfund.org.

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THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondaleâ€™s community supported newspaper â€˘ May 15, 2014 â€˘ 11

A bird’s unexpected song helps bond father, daughter (Editor’s note: This is the second of two columns on wilderness to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act). With the instinct of cunning As the fortunate father of four childhood intent she lifted the daughters, I’ve tried to give each of little bird out of its grave, genthem the opportunity to experience tly placing her on the edge of wilderness when they were young. the tank. In my last column I mentioned a All three of us, the friend had few experiences with each child. Now not left yet, backed away to give it’s time to tell my favorite wilderness the wild bird space. story that goes back to 1977. I spend a great deal of time My oldest daughter Duana was outdoors. Some really good bionly six that summer when we hiked ologists have tried to educate the whole San Mateo Mountain Range in central New Mexico. me. But I have yet to learn the We began our journey from the songs, much less the names, of By Bill Kight north end of the mountains. A the birds that sing them. friend dropped us and our packs at the edge of It didn’t matter what kind of bird it was but the wilderness. My old Kelty external frame the music we heard was unbelievable. felt like 100 pounds but probably weighed The song celebrated life. It was a song of only 70. freedom. At least that’s the way I felt, still do. If I had the right Forest Service map I could The bird finished its last notes. For all I know tell you the name of the mountain we started that chorus may have been sung to humans for from, but it doesn’t matter. the first time, perhaps the last time too. We were about to say goodbye to our friend Then it flew away. when something caught my daughter’s eye. All three of us looked at each other. No one It was a small bird too wet to fly and said a word. trapped in a metal stock tank. Range improveI think about that bird at times when I’m ments are allowed in some wilderness areas. stuck in traffic in some city or when things If the agency wildlife biologist and the aren’t going well. The smile on my six-yearrancher had worked together this wouldn’t old’s face is still etched in my heart. have happened. It’s a memory that will stay with me until I You simply construct little wooden gang die. The whole trip rests deep in my soul, those planks hinged to the top edge of the tank. The unhurried four days and 40 miles worth of other end floats at the level of the water inside. time together in the wilderness. Any trapped creature walks the gang plank, Things can happen in the wildernesses that not to their death, but to their salvation. don’t seem humanly possible. A small bird that I didn’t think this little wet bird had much seems close to death flies away. A bond beof a chance. There was no telling how long it tween daughter and dad is forged for life. had been trapped, how much life it had left. Who knows what experiences await you on But there are times a parent can kill hope in the wilderness trail. a child by merely doing nothing. So I did what I had to do. Rather than pick- With more than 35 years of experience in feding up the bird, I told Duana, “Be gentle and eral land management agencies, Bill Kight of go slowly. Sit her up on the lip of the tank and Carbondale shares his stories and concerns ...” before I could finish she worked her magic. with readers every month.

Common Ground

Agility trial dogs like the one shown here made their ﬁrst sanctioned appearance in Carbondale last August and organizers are bringing them back Sept. 25-28 for the Dogs on Course in North America (DOCNA) West Regional Championship. This time around, DOCNA will use space at North Face Park and adjacent school district property. File photo by Lynn Burton

12 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • May 15, 2014

Land trusts feed our soul; keep them in mind Land ownership. Two words, four syllables, sounds expensive. Depending on your location, sounds like birds chirping and cows lowing, or like a freeway blowing through your back yard. Can also sound like taxes. Can sound, depending on the county and your baron, mogul, or pye-dog status, like either a little or a lot of taxes. And contingent on your historical heritage or perspective, unfold like a terrible misunderstanding, land grab, or maleficent destiny. Lucky for all of us growing up in the 21st century we deal mostly in well charted plots of By Cameron Scott acreage where no one is allowed to come along with some blue beads then claim to own the land beneath your feet. Well, except for defaulted bank loans and/or mineral rights, i.e. oil and gas, i.e. fracking. To which, pondering the philosophical questions of our era, I have serious reservations with the idea anyone can own the bottom of a river, let alone the stuff underneath the stuff we walk on. But getting back to the land, if you, like me, occasionally find yourself humming along to that old Woody Guthrie classic, “This Land is Your Land,” or find yourself falling in love with ranchers and land owners who allow you to access their property for various outdoor pursuits, it is time to sing some praises. Recently, in one small corner of the world, a 40-acre parcel of land was turned into a conservation easement that dedicates property to wildlife habitat and allows for sustainable timber harvest and grazing, while precluding the property from future subdivision or residential development. Hello! In other words, husband and wife team Jacob Hasslacher and Chris Antemann have protected the first piece of what is locally known in Wallowa, Oregon as the east moraine, and thereby made a lot of east moraine admirers incredibly happy. If you are a particular lover of the wide open vistas of the western United States of America, where you can still find pieces of terra firma without giant houses sprouting out of it, you should think of your local land trust and give them a call, or a hand, or both. It is something special to feel an affinity or connection to the land. An aspen covered hogback. Wide-open sagebrush plain. Jutting mesas. Grasslands and prairie stretching as far as the eye can see. A long rocky draw. Wetlands. Untrammeled riparian zones. Golden bunch grass covered basalt steps. Craggily purpley majestically hued mountains. Healthily forested slopes. Dune grass encased tidal flats. Simply put, we are just about as connected to the landscape as we can possibly be. For recreation. For food production. For solace and solitude. And so I celebrate. Each new wilderness designation. Knowledge of our public lands. A grateful respect for easements and trusts. Whether you live in a Colorado ski town or in a remote corner of Oregon, or pretty much anywhere in the beautiful patch work quilt of the west, working with organizations like land trusts, which often use voluntary, non-regulatory methods to conserve the landscape’s natural, historic, cultural, and agricultural resources, benefits present and future generations. Besides, this writer digs it.

Tailgate

The Renouncement “Let no one who hath renounced the world think that he hath given up some great thing.” – Saint Anthony Each night I create a world of words and sleep in a bed of words. Mid-winter in the back of my truck a pitcher of water freezes beside me. Words immobilize, too. Capture the flame of a candle, the scent of pine. Day after day I fish for steelhead as they move upstream. The weak hatchery ones I keep, the wild ones I let go. At night as the world re-freezes a rime of ice forms on my boots and waders and cracks as I pull them off and on. Each dawn two things happen: I get up and think what light there is might already be gone from last night’s stars. Who knows? And I fish at the bottom of silvery canyons that turn gold when the sun finally hits. Wake up! Wake up! I am hungry again for words. Each day I create a world and while I am asleep winter turns to spring and spring happily defies them all.

Celebrating a weed Nothing could burst Carbondale’s bubbles (upper left and middle left) on Saturday during the town’s annual Dandelion Days celebration. Carbondale is the only known town in the U.S. that dedicates two days out of the year to honor a weed, and the 16th annual Dandelion Days celebration proved it has grown like one with an extra day, and a record number of booths and activities for everyone. For more Dandelion Days pictures, please visit The Sopris Sun website at soprissun.com. Text and photos by Jane Bachrach

THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • May 15, 2014 • 13

Shopping | Dining | Culture | Recreation

VISIT BASALT & EL JEBEL At the confluence of Frying Pan and Roaring Fork Rivers

Town manager takes Athenian Oath very seriously By S. Michael Jundt Submitted Article When the Basalt Town Council was hosting interviews back in 2012 to ﬁll an essential position the comment was made that Mike Scanlon did not interview like a typical town manager. That simple observation says a lot about the man who the town went on to hire by a unaniMike Scanlon mous vote. Although Mike’s approach to his job is very “roll up your sleeves hands on” his focus remains far from the narrow ﬁeld of vision so often associated with town bureaucracies. “I may not have all the answers,” Mike says, and even if I do it’s more effective to encourage the thoughts of others involved. From the council members to town citizens there are always varied ideas and opinions that can create a refreshing solution to problems at hand. Mike feels it is important that commu-

nity members do their own thinking and express their when you have so many people proposing ideas that opinions that involve a healthy direction for their actually consider the best interests of future residents, neighborhoods. well, that’s impressive.” A case in point is his Our Town Planning Effort, Mike’s excitement lies in his firm belief of the Athenwhich began in Febian Oath (go ahead and ruary this year and Google it) and any time is a great example of there is an oath then his open-minded inthere is a requirement clusion of local of discipline. And need voices. The idea is to for discipline does little enlist the concerns to promise immediate of the general popugratification. No, a lace who translate town manager’s work them through both is legacy work and the – The Athenian Oath (excerpt) language and artisrewards are often not tic expression. experienced until years “What’s really excited me about the Our Town down the road, maybe even generations. process,” says Mike, “is not only the variety of the parIn Mike’s office hangs a signed picture of Billy Mills, ticipants who have stepped forward ranging from whose tremendous dedication and heart inspired a nafourth grade students to local architects, but also a tion as he won the 1964 10,000 meter run in the Tokyo common thread which I find unique to this community. Olympics. Like Billy, Mike’s willing to go the distance The passion for this valley as their home is obvious, but for the community so many of us call home.

“ . . . we will transmit this City not only, not less, but greater and more beautiful than it was transmitted to us."”

Basalt Recreation 2014 Spring/Summer Activities Guide is NOW AVAILABLE.

SPRING/SUMMER CLEANING? Now accepting spring/summer consignments Clothing, housewares, furniture, etc!

Scoops

Ice Cream

Open daily Basalt s Only Ice Cream Shop

970-927-4384 144 Midland Avenue, Basalt, Colorado 81621

On the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month, meet in an informal setting with Basalt Mayor Jacque Whitsitt for coffee and a chat.

Coffee with the

Mayor

• Ideas for downtown redevelopment? • Thoughts on marijuana laws? • Questions on the river project? This is a great opportunity to share your thoughts, make comments and catch up on what’s happening in Basalt. All issues and topics welcome.

The next Coffee with the Mayor is: Wednesday, May 28 – Starbuck’s in Willits - from 7 to 8 AM And at Saxy’s in downtown Basalt from 8:15 to to 9:15 AM. 14 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • May 15, 2014

We have some fun activities for youth through adult. You can check it out online, pick your copy up at Basalt Town Hall, or we would be happy to drop one in the mail for you. Just call us at 970-927-8214 x400 or you can visit our website at

www.basaltexpressrec.org. You can also register online. START PLANNING YOUR SUMMER ACTIVITIES TODAY!

Hours: Mon-Sat 10-6 Sun 12-5 927-6488 Down the Block from Big O Tires in the Basalt Business Center

"Non-Profit Supporting Local Sustainable Agriculture"

Letters continued om page 2

Classifieds

material hard costs of $200,000. A very generous matching grant of $100,000 is already in place and to date, $55,000 from the community has been raised toward this match, leaving only the remaining $45,000 to be raised. So I encourage everyone to attend First Friday on June 6 and visit the Carbondale roundabout sculpture booth at Fourth and Main. Look at the renderings, pick up the information packet and chat with the artist, James Surls, to learn about the meaning behind its design. Become engaged in “Sewing the Future” of Carbondale. You may also visit the website carbondaleroundaboutsculpture.com. Jody Ensign Carbondale

ridiculous, in my humble opinion. If we want to make this an art community, then open a large warehouse that houses a compilation of ALL the best local artists, each one with their own designated space, and people will come from all over the valley. A good example of how it’s done is Ashville, North Carolina. Go online. Take a look. It’s really a no brainer. I propose a mass of nothing but giant sunﬂowers. In the summer, they will follow the sun and look toward Mount Sopris. In the winter, they will dry into an interesting shape, attract birds and need no irrigation. Happy happy. Free spirited. That’s Carbondale! Sue Alexander Carbondale