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Year In Review
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
www.HighTimberTimes.com
year in review From Page 5 son but not that surprised that he won. “He’s a pretty smart kid,” Jeanne said. “He’s always been a good speller. When we want to know how to spell a word, we ask Wyatt.” Karl added: “(His spelling ability) is not genetic.”
Bus fees instituted
Jefferson County Schools instituted $100-per-student bus fees for students riding buses in an attempt to increase revenue for the district, which slashed $40 million from its budget for the 2011-12 budget. Reaction to the new fees was mixed, with some parents happy to pay the fee because it ensured their children had a safe ride to and from school, and it was a lot cheaper than the gas parents would buy to drive their children to school. Others were unhappy that the district was imposing yet another fee when families were feeling the pinch of the economic downturn.
Friends of Conifer Parks & Recreation thwarted
Few ballot measures have generated more interest, opposition and support than the question of whether to organize a park and recreation district in Conifer. The proposal failed in the May election. Friends of Conifer Parks & Recreation organizers campaigned for the creation of the district with zeal, just as those in opposition to a future mill levy battled anything that smacked of organized government in Conifer. The FOCPR raised money for the election through a series of fund-raisers: barn dances, pumpkin patches and a “vote for your favorite pet for mayor” election. Skepticism over the district focused on the promise by proponents that they could organize the district without an immediate mill levy, relying on grants that could only be sought by an organized district. Money for the district’s fledging offerings would have came from park-impact fees collected by the county and through grants, donations and staffed by volunteers. Many voters expressed fatigue with the negativity, damaged pro/ con advertising signs and general discord that surrounded the ballot issue. In May voters turned out in droves, packing the parking lot of a local school, creating a neverbefore-seen traffic jam in Conifer and incredibly long lines at the single, ill-equipped polling station. Some voters left in frustration over the two-hour wait to cast their ballots on the creation of a district and the election of six board members should the proposal have passed. In the end, voters said no to an organized rec district: 1,331 to 1,043.
Historic structures
In 2011, three important structures in Conifer were impacted by fire, damage … and paint.
File photo by Barbara Ford | The Times
Clay Thurman is a Watch D.O.G.S. organizer at Marshdale Elementary School. D.O.G.S. stands for “Dads of great students,” and about 60 dads spend an entire day at the school each semester. The fathers patrol the grounds, make sure there are no unauthorized personnel on the premises, and keep the school and its students safe. First, a lightning strike during a fast-moving storm in July ignited a fire in a historic barn at Aspen Peak Cellars and reduced it to rubble in a matter of minutes. The barn, whose build date was uncertain, could have been built as long ago as 1868. The structure took a lightning strike that startled neighbors, shook the ground and burned the barn to the ground in 15 minutes. The elegant 6,000-square-foot wooden structure was used for weddings and was built of timber hewn and cut on the property; the frame was held together by handmade pegs, and it was covered with a tin roof. Second, a Littleton motorist died and a historic cabin was nearly destroyed in October when the driver failed to negotiate a turn on Pleasant Park Road. Miranda Henke of Littleton plowed into the structure and died at the scene. The owner of the cabin, Jerry Murphy, hopes to rebuild with help from local historic groups. The old cabin was part of the first stagecoach stop in the Conifer area. Third, the Yellow Barn at the corner of Barkley Road and Highway 73 received a much-needed facelift with a new coat of yellow paint in August, courtesy of new owners Andy and Denise Clark. The Clarks purchased the corner from Corrine Meyers for $965,000 at the end of 2010 and began restoring the historic property. The structure, built from a kit in 1918, stands at the location of the old Bradford Junction in Conifer.
Leprechaun evades traps at Parmalee Elementary
A wily leprechaun visited Brandy Gulliford’s kindergarten classroom at Parmalee Elementary School in
March, and he was so clever that he sprung each of the 26 traps the children made and took some of the fake gold coins they left as bait. The children came into the classroom on March 10 to discover that the leprechaun had been up to his tricks, and they also found that he had left behind a shoe. The children tried on the shoe, and one girl even started doing an Irish jig because the shoe was magical. The leprechaun traps were part of the children’s learning about the March 17 St. Patrick’s Day holiday. This was the first year that Guilliford had given Parmalee children the leprechauntrap assignment, and it was a
huge success.
Watchdogs guard Marshdale Elementary
Marshdale Elementary School started a program to benefit the school, kids and just as importantly, dads. The Watch D.O.G.S. program, which stands for Dads of Great Students, puts a dad, uncle or granddad into the school for the entire school day every day of the school year. The dads have many tasks, but their main mission is safety. In an elementary school, where most of the staff is female, it’s nice to have another male presence in
the school, said school principal Christie Frost. The D.O.G.S. don bright orange vests and T-shirts sporting a laidback dog with sunglasses. They carry radios, so they can be called if needed. They sit at a station just outside the office and greet students, parents and guests when they arrive. They help keep traffic flowing in the parking lot at the start and end of school, regularly walk the perimeter of the school grounds, and check doors to make sure they are locked. Frost has been pleased with the number of families who are participating.
File photo by Barbara Ford | The Times
The Yellow Barn at Barkley Road and Highway 73 received a much-needed facelift with a new coat of yellow paint in August, courtesy of new owners Andy and Denise Clark