Je Toborg, Parker’s outgoing mayor, takes look back over the four years of his term
Within a few days, Je Toborg went from attending a business opening as the mayor of Parker to sitting in a co ee shop as a Parker resident, re ecting on his past four years.
“I’m kind of that one-day-at-a-time guy,” said Toborg. “So all the questions about ‘what are you doing next’ are kind of like, I don’t know yet.”
Similar to other elected o cials whose terms end, Toborg plans on tak-
ing time for his personal interests, like skiing with his family this winter and training his dog.
However, his work in the community has not ended. Immediately following the end of his term, Toborg joined the Step Seven Ministries board, a faithbased recovery and rehabilitation organization. He also serves on the Douglas County Community Foundation board, Operation Equine, and is active with the Douglas County GOP.
“I will more than likely hold elected o ce one day in the future,” said Toborg. “What that is, I don’t know.”
When Joshua Rivero was sworn in as the town’s eighth mayor on Dec. 16, Toborg said that a good man had won in Parker and told the Parker Chronicle that he hopes his supporters will continue to support Parker.
Cold weather brings heart risks
Winter can play havoc with health due to ‘perfect recipe’
When snow blankets the streets around the Denver metro area, it’s not just roads that become treacherous — your heart might be at risk too. e combination of cold temperatures, reduced physical activity and sudden strenuous tasks can create a “perfect recipe” for heart attacks, according to Dr. Akhil Reddy, an interventional and structural cardiologist with HCA HealthONE in Denver.
Many might assume the cold itself is the problem, but Reddy clari ed that it’s not so much the temperature as it is the activity people undertake in the cold.
“ e more common scenario is people shoveling snow and exerting themselves and having an active myocardial infarction, or heart attack,” he explained.
According to the AHA, intense physical effort combined with cold temperatures forces the heart to work overtime. Blood vessels constrict in the cold, causing blood pressure to
When paired with the sudden cardiovascular demand of activities like shoveling snow, this can trigger heart attacks, especially in people with pre-existing risk factors like high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes.
Physical exertion in cold weather can be deceptively dangerous
Shoveling snow may look like a mundane household task, but research shows it’s a workout that rivals intense cardio.
Reflecting on the past
Being involved in local government has been part of Toborg’s life since he was a young adult in California.
It was 1988 when he learned that a new roof wasn’t going to be put on the local senior center and his grandmother and her friends encouraged him to run for city council. He ran his rst race that year at the age of 18 and was later elected at age 24.
After moving to Parker, he ran for town council in 2016 and was elected in 2018, in which he served for two years.
“Some people join Rotary, some people join a club,” said Toborg. Serving as an elected o cial is “just my way to give.”
Torbog said he didn’t initially think
“Shoveling a little snow o your sidewalk may not seem like hard work,” said Barry Franklin, the lead author of the American Heart Association’s 2020 scienti c statement regarding exercise-related acute cardiovascular events. “However, the strain of heavy snow shoveling may be as or even more demanding on the heart than taking a treadmill stress test, according to research we’ve conducted.”
“ e movements of snow shoveling are very taxing and demanding on your body and can cause signi cant increases in your heart rate and blood pressure,” Franklin told the AHA. “Combined with the fact that the exposure to cold air can constrict blood vessels throughout the body, you’re asking your heart to do a lot more work in conditions that are diminishing the heart’s ability to function at its best.”
According to Reddy, the danger lies in the sudden increase in demand on the cardiovascular system, particularly for people who are not regularly active. e heart, especially one that hasn’t been consistently active, is not ready for sudden, intense exertion.
“When it’s cold outside, you’re more sedentary,” Reddy said. “You just don’t have the ability to understand your own limita-
Outgoing Mayor Je Toborg addresses the public, thanking town sta and police for their work and commitment to the town.
PHOTO BY HALEY LENA
Parker
Medical advances help girl with rare disease
fourth-grader is one of 33 in the world taking new drug
BY JENNIFER BROWN THE COLORADO SUN
Juliette Picard, 10, loves drawing animals, playing Minecraft and hanging out with her dog.
e Parker fourth-grader also has a blood disease so rare that only one in a million people are a ected, and she is now one of 33 children in the world testing a new drug that means she can spend more days at school with her friends.
A huge leap in medical advances to treat the disease — called atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome, or aHUS — has occurred in little more than the time Juliette has been alive. And it has made the di erence between life and death.
Before there was a drug to treat it, a diagnosis of aHUS meant the patient had a 60% chance of death or permanent kidney dialysis within the year, said Dr. Bradley Dixon, head of the nephrology department at Children’s Hospital Colorado and a professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Juliette’s recovery is a re ection of just how far precision medicine, which uses genetic sequencing to pinpoint the cause and treatment of disease, and pharmaceutical discoveries that target speci c proteins in the bloodstream or speci c cells in the body have evolved in recent years.
Juliette’s disease causes the body to attack its own organs.
e body’s immune system, once it starts attacking foreign invaders, can’t stop. e problem is in what’s called the complement system, which includes a series of about 50 proteins that are embedded on the surface of cells or circulate through the bloodstream. ese proteins work like a set of dominoes — attacking one after the next — when they encounter a bacteria, fungus or other microorganism.
is is normally a good thing, because the complement system is the body’s rst defense against infection — a natural response and not one the body created in response to a vaccination.
But in patients with aHUS, the killing power of the proteins runs out of control, attacking a patient’s organs, including the kidneys, heart and brain.
For Juliette, it was strep throat when she was 3 years old that ignited the attack against her own body.
Until then, her parents had no idea she had the disease, which was caused by a defect in one of the proteins in her complement system. is complement system turned on to ght o the strep, and it didn’t stop.
“It ran out of control, causing organ damage in a variety of organs, including her kidneys,” Dixon said. “It caused her red blood cells to be destroyed and the platelets to be destroyed, the result of that complement system running amok.”
Juliette’s mom, Erica Picard, recalled how her daughter kept getting sicker, even though she was taking antibiotics for the strep throat. “ e symptoms really just kind of came on that weekend, like she stopped eating or drinking anything,” Picard said. “She was super lethargic. She was just so tired and would just lay on the couch and was just kind of like a zombie. But we hadn’t seen anything before that. She was totally ne, up until she had strep throat.”
eir pediatrician was alarmed at Juliette’s low red blood cell count, and recommended the family go to Children’s Hospital.
e pediatrician speci cally recommended that Juliette see Dr. Dixon, because — in what Picard considers more than just a coincidence — the pediatrician had recently attended a talk that Dixon gave about a rare disease. e disease was aHUS.
“What she has is so incredibly rare,” Picard said. “I always say the universe, somebody was looking out for us.”
Juliette saw Dixon the day after she was admitted to the hospital and was quickly diagnosed with aHUS. “And it just so happened that we had started a clinical trial of a new drug being developed for this disease,” Dixon said.
One of 18 patients in the world e rst drug to treat aHUS came out in 2011, a “game-changer” that for the rst time meant people weren’t expected to die within a year of diagnosis. Before the drug, aHUS would destroy the kidneys, and there was no point in a kidney transplant because the disease would destroy the transplanted kidneys too.
But the drug — called eculizumab — wasn’t easy to take, especially for kids. It came as an IV infusion every two weeks. Patients had to come to the hospital for every infusion, which lasted a few
hours.
e new drug that was in trial when Juliette was diagnosed was a derivative of that rst drug, one that lasts much longer in the body and allows patients to stretch the amount of time between IV treatments. Juliette only needed to come to the hospital every eight weeks.
She was one of 18 patients in the world enrolled in the study. Children’s Hospital was tied for the most patients enrolled worldwide with two patients, Juliette and one other.
“She responded beautifully to the medication,” Dixon said. “It turned o the signs of organ dysfunction. Her kidneys showed recovery. Her platelets and red blood cells showed recovery.”
Juliette stayed on the medication even after the trial ended. Since her disease is caused by a genetic problem, stopping the medication could allow the disease to wake up again.
e drug is an antibody that binds to the protein and takes away its power to attack infection, which means patients lose the ability to ght o certain infections, including meningitis. Patients must get vaccinations against meningitis and in some cases, preventative antibiotics.
Another clinical trial leads to at-home treatment is year, drug treatment for aHUS advanced again.
e new drug, another antibody that binds to the malfunctioning protein in the complement system, is an injection — not an infusion. It’s a shot under the skin that patients, or their parents, can give at home.
Juliette is one of 20 children worldwide who switched to the injectable drug, called crovalimab, from the infusion. In addition, there are 13 children, including one at Children’s, who were recently diagnosed with aHUS, had not been taking the previous drug and are now taking crovalimab. at’s a total of 33 children in the world on the drug.
Juliette’s parents give her two shots once a month, in her stomach, at their house. Now she only has to go to Children’s to get checked out every four months, which means fewer days when she has to leave school and spend half the day at Children’s getting an infusion.
e only downside: She misses out on getting the ice cream from the hospital cafeteria, and riding in the glass elevators that carry her up from the lobby. Also, the shots at home kinda hurt, but they are quick, she said.
“I really don’t like how the shots feel when they inject medicine into my stomach, and then when it’s out, I’m like, ‘Yay!’” Juliette said.
“ e shots take ve minutes to do the whole thing,” her mom said. “We’ve already gotten so much time back in life. It’s de nitely better than it was, and hopefully down the road, it will be even easier.”
e Picards are hopeful that Juliette will get to take part in yet another clinical trial, next time for an oral medication.
So far, their insurance, through Tricare because Picard’s husband is in the U.S. Air Force, has covered the cost of Juliette’s care. And enrolling in trials means the medication comes at no cost to the patient — which is important since the cost of one infusion, the kind Juliette used to get six times per year, was about $200,000, Picard said.
For the Picards, it’s hard to think about the fact that without the last decade or so in pharmaceutical advancements, Juliette’s outcome would look much di erent.
“ e hope is that one day down the road, it will keep evolving, and maybe she will have a pill form,” Picard said. “ ey’re always working on new things.”
e trial Juliette is enrolled in is one of more than 1,200 research studies ongoing at Children’s, which had more than 7,000 patients enrolled in research in 2023. Studies can have even just one patient, and range from “registries,” in which the point is just to track and study a disease, to studies that test the safety and e cacy of new drugs.
Besides the drug trials, Juliette was helped by the quick diagnosis of a disease that is sometimes missed by doctors because it’s so rare, and by the precision medicine team at Children’s, which uses genetic testing and research from across the world to come up with tailored responses to treat diseases. In Juliette’s case, genetic testing helped determine which protein was not working properly and how much medicine she needed to x it.
“Precision medicine has allowed us to even take a rare disease like aHUS and tease apart how some patients may need to be treated di erently than others,” Dixon said. “It’s a very exciting time.”
is story was printed through a news sharing agreement with e Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned nonpro t based in Denver that covers the state.
Juliette Picard, 10, has a blood disease that a ects one in a million people.
COURTESY OF THE PICARD FAMILY
NAR’s 2024 Survey of Buyers and Sellers Provides Some Interesting Insights on the Market
Every year the National Association of Realtors (NAR) publishes a “Profile of Buyers and Sellers” which contains some useful data and insights on the real estate market.
The 2024 survey was just released and contains some interesting trends which I’ll summarize here.
The image at right is an example. In the posting of this week’s ad at http://RealEstateToday.substack.com you’ll find the full highlights of the report on the following topics:
Characteristics of home buyers
Breakdown of homes purchased
Use of real estate professionals
The home search process
How homes are being financed
The experience of home sellers
Use of listing agents by sellers
For Sale by Owner statistics and trends
Here’s just one of those highlight pages, to give you an idea the detail provided. This is the one about FSBOs (for sale by owner):
Here are some of the key take-aways from the other chapters;
Characteristics of Home Buyers: The median age of home buyers surged in 2024 over the prior year — 56 vs. 49. The median age for first-time buyers jumped from 35 to 38, and for repeat buyers jumped from 58 to 61. 73% of buyers had no children under 18 in the home, and 17% bought a multi-generational home. First-time home buyers constituted 24% of home sales, down from 32% in 2023. This was the lowest percentage since NAR started doing these surveys in 1981.
Characteristics of Homes Purchased: 15% of buyers purchased new homes from a builder. Among those who purchased existing
homes, the typical home was built in 1994, compared to homes built in the 1980s in two prior surveys. The typical home was 1,900 square feet, with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. The median distance of the new home from the previous home was 20 miles, compared to 50 miles in 2022. (That was the height of Covid, spurred by remote work.) PreCovid, the median distance was typically 15 miles. 16% of 2024 buyers purchased in an urban area or central city, the highest such percentage since 2014, spurred perhaps by the end of some work-at-home arrangements. Proximity to the home buyer’s job was important to 34% of buyers, down from 52% in 2014. The top consideration this year was the quality of the neighborhood (59%), followed by proximity to friends and family (45%).
Home Buyers & Real Estate Professionals:
88% of home buyers used the services of a real estate agent. Looking at buyers of existing homes, that percentage rose to 92%. Only 63% of new home buyers were represented by an agent. 80% of first-time buyers said that their agent’s assistance in understanding the home buying process was “invaluable.”
40% of all buyers and 51% of first-time buyers found their agent through a referral from their friends, family or personal network. Most buyers only interviewed one agent — it was 71% for repeat buyers.
Although 88% of buyers said they would use their agent again or recommend him/her to others, only 21% of buyers actually used the same agent they had used before. Of those who purchased in 2024, 61% have already recommended their agent to others.
The Home Search Process: 43% of buyers said they started the process by looking at homes on the internet, with 21% first contacting an agent. 69% of buyers searched for homes on their mobile or tablet devices.
Open houses were deemed “very useful” by 23% of buyers. About 40% said they valued photos and detailed listing information, while 31% appreciated floor plans. The typical buyer spent 10 weeks house hunting and saw a median of 7 homes, 2 of them online only. 51% found the home they bought through their own online searching. 55% said that finding the right home was the most difficult part of the process.
59% of buyers said they were “very satisfied” with their home buying experience, and another 33% were “somewhat satisfied.”
Financing the Home Purchase: 91% of first-time buyers and 69% of repeat buyers financed their home purchase with a loan. These percentages were down from 92% and 81% respectively from last year. The overall percentage was 74%, meaning that 26% of all home buyers paid cash — an all-time high.
The median down payment was 9% for first-time buyers and 23% for repeat buyers, That’s the highest down payment percentage for first-time buyers since 1997 and the highest for repeat buyers since 2003. 25% of the first-time buyers used a gift or loan from a
relative to finance their down payment, but savings was the biggest source at 69%.
In 2009, 55% of first-time buyers used an FHA loan, but that has dropped to 29% now that there are many conventional loan offerings requiring minimal down payments and no mortgage insurance premium. In 2024, 52% of first-time buyers took out a conventional loan.
Home Sellers and Their Selling Experience:
The median age of home sellers in 2024 was 63 — the highest ever recorded. 69% of the sellers were married couples, the first increase in this statistic in four years. Of all the homes sold in 2024, 77% did not have any children
under 18 living in the house -- empty nesters! 66% moved within the same state, 16% within the same region. (Note: These are national statistics.) Roughly one-third bought a bigger house, one-third bought the same size house and one-third bought a smaller house. 52% bought a newer home, with the rest split equally between the same age or older home.
The single most common reason for moving (23%) was to be closer to friends and family. The median number of years that a seller owned their home was 10 years, a big drop from 6 years in 2000 to 2008.
Median time on market in 2024 was three weeks, up from two weeks in 2023.
68% of sellers were “very satisfied” with the selling process. 22% were “somewhat satisfied.”
Home Selling & Real Estate Professionals: 90% of sellers hired a listing agent, up from 89% in 2023. Only 6% were FSBO (for sale by owner), a record low percentage. Of those sellers who did not know the buyer, 95% used a real estate agent. Two-thirds of sellers used an agent who was referred to them or that they had used before. 81% interviewed only the one agent they hired. 71% of sellers who bought within 10 miles of their home used the same agent for both transactions. The most important criteria in selecting the listing agent were the agent’s reputation (35%) and the agent’s honesty (21%). 58% of sellers offered open houses.
Again, the full reports of each of the above sections can be found on our blog, http:// RealEstateToday.substack.com
Is a Reverse Mortgage the Best Option for You?
If the idea of not paying principal and interest for the rest of your life and possibly drawing a lump sum from your home’s equity to help you with taxes and insurance, sounds like something you’d like to explore, let me tell you about “reverse mortgages.” They are officially known as Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECM). They can be used to purchase a home or to refinance your current home.
Many seniors are in a situation where they have substantial equity in their home but don’t have quite the amount of income they need to live on day-to-day or month-tomonth. If you are still paying on your mortgage, a HECM allows you to reduce that monthly expense by the amount of your principal and interest payment. That alone may be enough to improve your monthly cash flow, but you can also draw on your surplus equity to have additional money for living expenses or discretionary expenditures such as travel.
If downsizing is in your plans, the HECM can also be used to purchase a home that better fits your senior lifestyle.
Here’s the nitty gritty. You have to be 62 or older to qualify for a HECM. The amount of down payment or equity you need to have is based on your age and life expectancy, because the lender wants to know that you’ll outlive the equity which is going to be used up by not paying principal and interest until you die.
That down payment requirement (or equity requirement if you are refinancing into a HECM) ranges from 45% to 70%. A HECM
loan is FHA insured, which covers the possibility that you live longer than expected and drain all your equity by not paying those monthly principal and interest payments. When you die or move out, the home can be sold, and the FHA insurance means that the proceeds of the sale don’t need to cover the mortgage payoff.
If you’re married, only one of you needs to be over 62, and if the qualifying senior dies, the surviving spouse can remain in the house until he or she dies, even if that means the equity is exhausted.
You retain title to the house, just like with a conventional mortgage. You can sell at any time and pay off the loan balance with your proceeds at closing.
Because it’s an FHA loan, the closing costs of the HECM loan are greater than for a conventional loan, but, depending on your cash flow situation, it may be worth it.
Eligible property types include 1-4 unit properties, so long as you live in one of the units. It can include FHA-approved condos and townhomes, and properties that are titled in a living trust.
If you’re purchasing a home with a HECM, the seller can provide a concession for up to 6% of the purchase price to cover those higher closing costs.
If you’re not a senior but have parents who own their own home but are struggling with monthly expenses, you might want to explore with them the benefits of a reverse mortgage.
Our in-house lender, Wendy Renee, is an expert on this product. Give her a call at 303868-1903 to get your questions answered.
Elizabeth shows its heart for young man
Community helps ease burden for struggling employee of Safeway
BY NICKY QUINBY SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
As the Christmas season comes to a close and Elbert County enters the new year, it’s time to take a moment to re ect on how Elbert County can come together for someone in need. When Jamae Corcoran, the owner of the food truck Mother Clucker’s Wings, put out a call for help on social media on Sept. 30, the community stepped up in a big way.
“Friends and neighbors,” the post read, “I’m reaching out to our amazing community for help. ere’s a young man named Luke, just 18 years old, who has fallen on tough times here in Elizabeth. He’s been living in his car while working at Safeway for the past seven months, doing everything he can to stay on his feet. Unfortunately, his car recently broke down and no longer runs or moves. With winter approaching, I’m deeply worried about his well-being. Luke is a bright, kind young man who just needs a helping hand to get through this di cult time. I’ve been doing what I can to support him, but I know the power of this community is strong, and together, we can make a di erence.”
Corcoran began donating 15% of Mother Clucker’s pro ts to help Luke get back on his feet. She had faith in the “strength and compassion of this wonderful community” and con dence that people would help Luke. She was right.
After that initial post, businesses and individuals came out of the woodwork to help. Lupita Medina with Catrina’s Mexican Grill as well as the Full Moon Saloon set out donation jars in their restaurants. Catrina’s fed Luke and the Full Moon Saloon o ered him a free meal a day.
Richard Huston, a mechanic, checked out Luke’s car for free and determined it was no longer drivable. “ is vehicle was not just his transportation but also where he stayed and drove his car to take a shower,” Corcoran shared. “We’re reaching out to nd Luke a place that’s inexpensive to rent. In the meantime, I’m giving him a brand new bicycle. Any help, whether donations, connections, or suggestions, is greatly appreciated!”
A friend of Medina’s donated an RV for Luke to live in, Jennifer Capaiu graciously o ered up her property for it to be parked on and David Cox, from Dads of Elbert County, o ered to move it to what would hopefully be its semi-permanent parking spot.
Cox, an admin for the Dads group, said:
“Jamae went to work trying to nd a better situation for this kid. She found a good sized RV in Franktown that the owner would rent to him real cheap and she found a sweet lady with a house walking distance to Safeway … that o ered to park the camper in her front yard for the winter to help out.”
Unfortunately, the RV didn’t t on the property and Cox had to bring it back to the owner the next day. ey were back to square one for a place for Luke to live. Cox doesn’t regret trying. “We live in such a great community with country values, that when someone asks for help there are usually people ready to act,” he explained. “Jamae is truly an amazing woman. She would give her last sip of water to a person in need.”
Getting involved
Capaiu got involved after noticing Luke’s broken-down car in the Safeway parking lot over the summer. Her daughter saw the yer at Catrina’s asking for donations.
“Oddly enough, two days before this, I was driving past Luke’s car and felt compelled to introduce myself and ask if he needed any assistance — but I thought that may have been too forward. When my daughter showed me the yer, I said that we needed to help him if we can,” Capaiu said. After the trailer failed to t on Capaiu’s property, she realized her older SUV might be the perfect car for Luke. Capaiu ended up selling it to him for just a dollar.
er’s, Catrina’s, the Full Moon Saloon and everyone else who o ered him help, saying: “Everything that everyone has done has made an impact in my life and heart.”
“I am so happy my family and I could help him out. He is such a sweet, kind and grateful person that it made us helping him easy. Sometimes, people just need a little help when things are not going quite as they had planned,” Capaiu shared.
“As many of you know, Luke, a young man working at Safeway, has been living in his broken down car in the Safeway parking lot,” Corcoran’s update read.
“ anks to the incredible generosity of this community, we’ve received a wonderful blessing: someone has o ered to give Luke an SUV! is means that while he continues saving for an apartment, we can use the funds already collected to help cover the licensing, registration, and insurance for the vehicle. With this support, Luke can stay with a friend temporarily and have reliable transportation to get to work each day.”
e community also donated clothing, towels, toiletries, and monetary gifts to give Luke a fresh start. Sun Country resident Jennifer Tracy gathered donations in her subdivision, Candace Gilchrest donated clothing for Luke, and Jean Marcussan donated towels and a Walmart gift card.
Luke gave a shout-out to Mother Cluck-
“To everyone who has helped me get through this tough time I would like to say thank you for everything you guys have done and have helped support me and helped me when I thought it was all over,” he added. “Everyone that has stepped up to the plate to help me has been amazing and I am beyond thankful for everything. I would like to say a huge thank you to the Lord for putting me in a nice community that cares about people and are willing to help where they can.”
After a few false starts, Luke nally has some stability. He has transportation and is now living with a friend.
“We live in such an amazing community,” Corcoran said. “I absolutely love it out here. I know that no matter what, I have neighbors I can count on. When I rst got my food trailer, if I couldn’t park it, any farmer would jump in my truck and help me out — and it’s happened more than once! If more folks could be like that, what a better world we’d have!”
To nd out more about Dads of Elbert County visit dadsofelbertcounty.com.
e Mother Clucker’s Wings food truck schedule is posted on Facebook at tinyurl. com/777z538n or Instagram at tinyurl. com/evkcupvr.
Jamae Corcoran standing in front of her food truck, Mother Clucker’s Wings, last summer.
PHOTO BY NICKY QUINBY
Jamae Corcoran, right, spending time with Luke. Corcoran rallied the community to come alongside and help find Luke support including housing, transportation and food. COURTESY OF JAMAE CORCORAN
The inoperable car that Luke was living in when Jamae Corcoran reached out to the Elizabeth community. PHOTO BY NICKY QUINBY
COLD WEATHER
tions. It’s like asking a Toyota Camry to race on a NASCAR track. You’re not going to do well,” he said.
Reddy emphasized that even those who don’t have symptoms of heart disease should consider getting a stress test before starting new, intense physical activities.
“If you haven’t exercised in a while, that’s a reason to see a doctor and ask, ‘Is my heart OK to do this?’” he said.
The role of hypothermia in heart health
While heart attacks from exertion are the most common winter concern, Reddy also discussed the dangers of hypothermia, which occurs when the body’s core temperature drops.
He explained that prolonged exposure to cold weather, particularly if someone is wet or underdressed, can lead to dangerous changes in heart rhythm.
“Hypothermia can lead to bradyarrhythmias, a condition where the heart beats too slowly,” he said. “You can end up passing out or having a cardiac arrest.”
How to recognize the warning signs of a heart attack
Recognizing heart attack symptoms early can mean the di erence between life and death. Reddy noted that while most people know to watch for chest pain or tingling in the left arm, symptoms for women and people with diabetes can be more subtle.
Reddy stressed that symptoms that appear during physical exertion — rather than at rest — should not be ignored.
“Peak exercise bringing about any sort
sea, or back and jaw pain. People with diabetes may also have “silent” heart attacks without obvious chest pain. Reddy highlighted the importance of
way to avoid cold-weather heart strain is to maintain regular physical activity throughout the year. “Try to be active at home, like going up and down stairs,
doing jumping jacks or using an indoor bike,” Reddy suggested. Keeping the heart conditioned prevents it from being “shocked” by sudden, intense activ-
2. Get a stress test before new exerIf you plan to start a new activity like running, CrossFit or even shoveling snow, consider a stress test. is step is particularly important for people with risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes or a family history of heart disease.
3. Dress warmly to avoid hypotherProtect yourself from extreme cold by wearing layered clothing, gloves and hats. e AHA emphasizes that keeping your head and extremities covered prevents heat loss. Stay dry if you’re planning outdoor activities since wet clothing increases the risk of hypothermia.
4. Know your limits when shovelBreak up snow shoveling into smaller sessions, and don’t be afraid to ask for help. e AHA recommends using a smaller shovel to avoid lifting heavy loads of snow, which reduces strain on the heart. Take frequent breaks and stay
5. Schedule annual health checkups: “If you’re over 40, you should be getting yearly checkups,” Reddy advised. A physical exam can detect heart murmurs, a potential sign of valve disease and identify other cardiac risk factors. If a doctor hears a murmur, they may recommend an echocardiogram or further
6. Recognize heart attack symptoms: Watch for classic heart attack signs, but don’t overlook subtle symptoms like nausea, lightheadedness or back pain. Women may experience heart attacks di erently from men. If symptoms occur during physical exertion — even if they seem mild — seek medical attention immediately.
Shoveling snow can be demanding on the body and blood pressure. FILE PHOTO
Elizabeth schools face lawsuit over book removals
ACLU of Colorado files complaint on behalf of students, NAACP, authors
BY NICKY QUINBY
SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
e American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado is suing the Elizabeth School District in federal court over the district’s removal of books from school libraries, alleging that the books were removed due to school board members’ partisan political values and that the removals violate constitutional guarantees of free speech.
A press release issued on Dec. 19 stated: “ e ACLU of Colorado, representing C.C., a student at Elizabeth High School, E.S., a student in the Elizabeth School District (ESD), the NAACP - Colorado - Montana - Wyoming State Area Conference (RMNAACP), and the Authors Guild, sued the Elizabeth School District for removing books from school libraries that contravened the school board members’ partisan and political values. ese removals violated federal and state constitutional free speech protections.”
e press release went on to explain how the Elizabeth School District enacted a “Library Sensitive Topic Protocol and Book Lists” last summer that resulted in 19 books being removed from school libraries. “ is disproportionately targeted books by and about Black and Brown people and LGBTQ+ people, including ‘ e Hate U Give’ by Angie omas; ‘Beloved’ and ‘ e Bluest Eye’ by Toni Morrison; and ‘#Pride: Championing LGBTQ Rights’
by Rebecca Felix,” the press release stated.
e ACLU posits that the removal of these books violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Free Speech Clause of the Colorado Constitution: “It deprives students of access to a diversity of information and viewpoints. It also denies authors their right to share their books with students free from view-
Keep your home safe with concrete repair
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point-based censorship.”
e lawsuit seeks a preliminary and permanent injunction that would place the removed books back on library shelves; a preliminary and permanent injunction against further removals; a permanent injunction that would allow students to share books with each other; declaratory judgments that the Elizabeth School Board has violated the U.S. and Colorado constitutions’ free speech guarantees; attorney fees and costs; and “damages including but not limited to those for past and future pecuniary and non-pecuniary losses, pain, humiliation, fear, anxiety, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of liberty, privacy, and sense of security and individual dignity, and other non-pecuniary losses.”
To read the lawsuit in its entirety, go to tinyurl.com/esdlibrarysuit.
To read the press release in its entirety, go to tinyurl.com/esdaclunews. e ESD Library Sensitive Topic Protocol and Books Lists are available at tinyurl. com/esdbooklist.
To listen to past Elizabeth School District Board Meetings visit elizabethschooldistrict.org/domain/124. e board usually meets the second and fourth Mondays of each month at 6 p.m. at District O ce Board Room, 634 S. Elbert St.
Elizabeth School District Superintendent Dan Snowberger said: “Elizabeth School District received its rst noti cation regarding this legal claim late this afternoon. We are disappointed that the district is being tied up in a political attack. It intends to vigorously defend itself and decisions made in the best interest of our children.” e books are “ e Hate U Give,” “ irteen Reasons Why,” “#Pride: Championing LGBTQ Rights,” “You Should See Me in a Crown,” “It’s Your World - If You Don’t Like It, Change It,” “ e Kite Runner,” “Beloved,” “ e Bluest Eye,” “ e Perks of Being a Wall ower,” “Looking for Alaska,” “Nineteen Minutes,” “Speak,” “Identical,” “Fallout,” “Glass,” “Burned,” “Crank,” “Smoke” and “Melissa/George.”
Elizabeth High School was one of the schools that saw books removed from library circulation this year as part of a school board initiative.
State will oversee charter school after disagreement
Douglas County School Board relinquishes control in 4-3 vote due to politics
BY MCKENNA HARFORD MHARFORD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
A proposed charter school in Sterling Ranch will be overseen by the state’s charter institute instead of the Douglas County School District, following a split vote by the school board to relinquish oversight. e Douglas County School Board voted 4-3 at its December meeting to release authorization for the proposed John Adams Academy charter school to the Colorado Charter School Institute, an organization that oversees charter schools throughout the state.
Releasing authorization for the school to the Charter School Institute means that the district will not be involved in the school’s creation or operations. Ellie Reynolds, the founder of the proposed charter school, said she asked for the release to protect the school from the politics of the Douglas County school board.
“We believe that this board currently is pro-charter schools and pro-classical charter schools, (but) we also realize that this board has a tendency to ip,” said Reynolds, who is also the president of the Northwest Douglas County Chamber. “Oftentimes, when this board does ip, it becomes not charter school friendly and that pendulum swing is risking our children and my child, who I would send to this school.”
Reynolds said she preferred the Charter
School Institute board for its stability because it’s bipartisan and the seats are not elected but appointed.
John Adams Academy is a classical school based in California. Reynolds’ school would be the rst Colorado location, encompassing kindergarten through high school. Reynolds said she is aiming to open the charter school in the fall of 2026.
e school’s website describes it as “restoring America’s heritage by developing servant-leaders who are keepers and defenders of the principles of freedom for which our founding fathers pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor.”
Douglas County School Board members were split on the decision to release the school, with Susan Meek, Brad Geiger and Valerie ompson raising concerns about Reynolds circumventing the district’s charter authorization process and not having transparency on why the charter was avoiding district oversight.
e board also discussed the potential impacts on enrollment in Sterling Ranch.
Douglas County voters in November approved a $490 million bond that dedicated funding to build an elementary school in Sterling Ranch, which doesn’t have any schools in the neighborhood yet. e neighborhood school is expected to open for the 2026-27 school year, the same year as John Adams Academy’s targeted opening.
“Once you four vote to do this, they will be gone forever and they will never be required to communicate with us again,” Geiger said. “We could delay this to get an (agreement) so that we can see the trafc patterns and plan around it, and so we could see where their (students) come
from, so that we can make our own plans. at’s what I would prefer.” e remaining board members were sympathetic to Reynolds’ request and didn’t raise many questions. Board President Christy Williams said she supported charter autonomy, pointing to past disagreements between charter schools and the district over policy waivers.
Most recently, Ascent Classical Academy, a charter school in Lone Tree, left the district in 2019 over its policy preventing sta from carrying rearms on school property.
“ ere have been charters that have put forth waivers, where there has been a very
Ellie Reynolds, center, a founding member of the proposed John Adams Academy charter school, speaks to the Douglas County School Board with Colorado Charter School Institute President Terry Croy Lewis about the proposal for her school. Reynolds requested the school district release authorization over the proposed charter school to the Charter School Institute.
SCREENSHOT OF DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD MEETING
A look back at 2024 in DCSD
So far, the 2024-2025 school year has been absolutely incredible in the Douglas County School District! In addition to the many academic accomplishments of our teachers and schools — here’s a quick look at some celebrations from the rst half of this school year.
Sta retention rates improve thanks to 2023 MLO
e mill levy override (MLO) passed by voters in 2023 is having a positive impact! e MLO allowed our school district to increase teacher and sta pay, making it more comparable with pay in our neighboring school districts. As a result, we have seen teacher and sta turnover rates decrease, and morale and job satisfaction increase. In addition, our school district is seeing more job applications for vacant positions, including for bus drivers. We were able to restore six bus routes (including two in Parker), meaning those routes will no longer have a rotating cancellation week schedule. We are working to train additional drivers to restore even more routes in early 2025!
Safety and security
Also thanks to the passage of the 2023 mill levy override, DCSD has hired campus security specialists at each of our elementary schools and added additional school resource o cers at the middle
EDUCATION CORNER
During the special season of appreciation and gratitude marked by anksgiving’s thankfulness and Christmas’s hope, peace, love and joy, many of us re ect on the gifts we exchange with loved ones. But what if we embraced a di erent gift that costs nothing but holds immeasurable value? What if we gave the gift of encouragement? Imagine receiving a call from someone you trust, love, and respect. ey call to tell you how much you mean to them, to express their admiration and appreciation for your presence in their lives, and to thank you for your love, advice, and support. Picture how that would feel. Even now, just reading these words, you may feel a warm glow, joy and a rmation.
Now ip the scenario. Imagine being the one to make that call, to reach out to a friend, family member, or colleague with a heartfelt message of encouragement. Envision their reaction and the connection that becomes strengthened. at same warm glow you imagined feeling. You might experience it intensely when encouraging when receiving it. Our world has experienced division fueled by contentious debates and heated arguments for years. Families and friendships have been strained, sometimes broken, over di erences of opinion or perspective. In such an environment, words can become weapons used to criticize, dismiss, or tear down. But words can also build. ey can inspire, uplift and heal. ey are the tools of either demolition or construction. We have the power to choose. In this season that emphasizes love and joy, what if we
and high school levels. ese amazing individuals are making a tremendous impact — not only on safety but also on our students!
Artificial intelligence pilot
In order to help us thoroughly understand and research the possibilities of AI in our classrooms, DCSD entered into a partnership with Khan Academy. Khan Academy o ers a new AI tool, Khanmigo, built speci cally for education. 18 of our schools are participating in a Khanmigo pilot this school year and we are hearing very positive feedback about how the tool is helping our teachers save time (so they have more time to focus on our kids) and assisting students in the learning process with personalized learning (including tutoring!). At the same time, Khanmigo is a perfect springboard for helping our principals, teachers, students and families alike in safely and ethically utilizing AI in a school setting. We have exciting things coming up in 2025 too, including next steps with the bond and strategic plan meetings.
2024 bond next steps
We have hit the ground running get-
ting ready to spend the 2024 bond money exactly as intended by voters. You can see estimated completion dates for bond projects at each of our schools at www.dcsdk12.org/funding. Additional data and information will continue to be added to the funding website so our voters can watch as the money gets spent exactly as promised.
Our Citizens’ Oversight Committee (Mill Bond Oversight Ad-Hoc Committee) is seeking parent representatives from Castle Rock and Parker. Visit our website to learn more and apply (www. dcsdk12.org/funding - go to “Accountability and Transparency”).
Strategic plan meetings
We will soon be hosting a series of engagement opportunities for you to contribute to our upcoming strategic planning process. It is always our goal to be the best school district in Colorado and to ensure that our students receive the best public education possible. We hope we can count on you to join us to IMAGINE what we want our school district to look like in 2035 and beyond and DREAM of the possibilities for our students and graduates.
We wish you a very happy new year and can’t wait to see what 2025 brings! is guest column was written by Erin Kane, the superintendent of the Douglas County School District.
Gift of encouragement is timeless treasure
all consciously choose to be builders, using our words to encourage and uplift those around
Giving the gift of encouragement is not always easy. It requires courage, sincerity and a foundation of kindness and grace. It asks us to set aside ego, bitterness or judgment and o er words a rming and
Encouragement is powerful because it meets people where they are. It acknowledges their struggles, celebrates their victories, and reassures them of their value. Whether someone is pursuing a dream, overcoming a challenge or simply navigating the complexities of daily life, encouragement can provide the boost they need to keep going. It’s easy to criticize or dismiss others. But o ering genuine encouragement takes e ort and a sincere heart. It requires us to step into a construction zone, rolling our sleeves to build others up rather than tearing them down. Encouraging doesn’t have to be complicated or grand. Small, thoughtful gestures can have a profound impact. Here are a few ideas: Reach out to someone and express gratitude for their presence in your life. Tell them how much they mean to you and why you admire them for their creativity or courage. A handwritten letter or card can be a treasure someone has kept for years. Take the time to articulate
We need interstate highways for electricity
IBIG PIVOTS
your appreciation and encouragement. If someone is pursuing a goal or facing a challenge, acknowledge their e ort and cheer them on. Sometimes, simply listening and being there for someone is the most tremendous encouragement you can o er.
Encouragement is not a one-time gift; it has a ripple e ect. When we lift others, they are often inspired to do the same for someone else. A single word of encouragement can create a chain reaction, spreading positivity far beyond its initial source.
As we re ect on the spirit of this season, let us remember that encouragement embodies the essence of hope, peace, love and joy. It strengthens relationships, heals wounds and brings light into the darkest corners of our lives.
So, this year, alongside the physical gifts we may exchange, let’s give the gift of encouragement. It costs nothing but can change everything. Let’s use our words to build, lift and inspire. As we offer this gift to others, we may nd that it is also the greatest gift we give ourselves. May this season be one of connection, kindness and encouragement. I would love to hear your encourager story at gotonorton@gmail.com. Remember that we all have something to give one another, the gift of our true feelings, making it a better-than-good life.
Michael Norton is an author, a personal and professional coach, consultant, trainer, encourager and motivator of individuals and businesses, working with organizations and associations across multiple industries.
nterstate highways have transformed Colorado and America altogether. People growing up in the 1950s rarely had fresh fruit or vegetables in winter. Now, broccoli beheaded yesterday in a eld near Yuma, Ariz., can be on a store shelf in metro Denver within a day or two. Much of that journey will be on an interstate highway. High-voltage transmission lines are our four-lane highways of electricity. ey worked well enough when giant coal plants provided most of our electricity. Now, as Colorado and other states strive to replace fossil fuels with renewables, new connections must be built to knit us together across broader areas.
A federal agency this week delivered cause for cautious optimism. e Department of Energy has picked three transmission corridors among 10 national candidates for advanced work. One of them, the Southwestern Grid Connector Corridor, would begin in southeast Colorado near Lamar, and work south into New Mexico and then somewhat west.
e 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law authorized the Secretary of Energy to designate any geographic area as a national interest electric transmission corridor. e energy department has found that the absence of transmission harms consumers. With more transmission, we can share low-cost renewable generation across broader areas. We need an electric grid larger than one weather system and covering more than one-time zone. e existing transmission network is akin to our highways of 50 to 60 years ago. We have transmission, but it’s as if Interstate 70 stopped at the state line. In fact, transmission lines do. Colorado is in the Western electrical grid of 10 states and some adjoining areas. is grid, however, is better understood as a collection of 34 di erent islands connected by narrow causeways.
“A cautious hurrah,” said Mark Gabriel, the CEO of United Power when I asked his reaction. e Brightonbased electrical cooperative supplies 113,000 members from the foothills to Weld County’s oil and gas elds, including many new industrial centers along I-76.
“Anything that promotes additional transmission is a good thing,” said Gabriel. “However, the challenge remains in actually getting something constructed in a reasonable period of time to make a di erence.”
Erin Kane WINNING
Allen Best
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
I also am an American
In response to the “I am an American” letter in the Dec. 19 editions: I have almost eight decades on this earth. I grew up on farms and in cities. I have dedicated my heart to our American ag. I watched American politics intently from a very early age. Patriotism surges in my heart when I salute the ag. I have numerous awards for my lifetime protecting my foster children and all foster children. I have never experienced an election that put us in such grave danger as this last. I also am not like Trump: racist, sexist, bigot, Nazi, a fascist.
I cannot begin to understand how someone who claims patriotism can vote for a braggart candidate who is all of these things. Trump made fun of disabled reporters, supports swiping money from children with cancer, brags about grabbing women’s intimate parts, speaks idolatry about Nazis and white supremacists, is responsible via negligence for thousands of COVID deaths, steals secret documents from our government, continues a friendship with traitors, and planned an attack against our country, etc. at so many Americans cared more for their pocketbooks than about our freedom is appalling. MAGAs do not recognize the strong patriotism of those of us who fear traitors such as Trump and his ilk. We love being the ones with compassion and generosity (“woke”) to the vulnerable, as Jesus asks us to do. Please learn and recognize the caring within us; we are those who continue to try to hold this country together after your dangerous vote.
Adoree Blair, Highlands Ranch
Urban wildfire risk needs attention
Great article from the Colorado Sun
by Jerd Smith in the Highlands Ranch Herald on 12/2/2024 reporting on progress being made in protecting aquifers and saving water in residential communities. Hopefully, these di cult changes and future e orts will deliver enormous bene ts and allow the Front Range to continue to sustain growing populations in coming decades.
Another extremely serious threat to this area is urban wild re. Colorado is one of three highest rated risk states for urban res, and Je erson and Douglas counties are at the top of the risk lists for destructive urban wild re.
First Street, a risk analysis company, rates our home in Highlands Ranch as “severe risk” for re damage/destruction, South Metro Fire rates it “very high risk” and Xcel Energy Wild re Risk Zones map looks like an even higher rated risk.
Gabriel pointed out that more than $40 billion in transmission projects have been announced. “Only a fraction are actually being built.”
Permitting has been the bane of many transmission projects. For example, it took 18 years before the TransWest Express Transmission project that will ferry wind-generated electricity from southern Wyoming to Utah and West Coast markets nally broke ground in 2023. It nicks the corner of northwest Colorado.
A bill being negotiated in Congress would ease federal permitting requirements to allow more rapid creation of transmission lines. Other provisions of the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 would also bene t oil and gas extraction.
Tri-State Generation and Transmission, the wholesale provider for 17 of Colorado’s 22 electrical cooperatives, pointed to the need for streamlined permitting in its reaction to the transmission line in southeastern Colorado.
Transmission doesn’t come cheap. And just as interstate highways have their unsavory aspects — my companion and I can routinely hear I-70 roaring a mile away — transmission lines have their downsides. Who wants one in their backyard?
Some want to believe nuclear energy will solve all of our problems. e Pueblo City Council, while saying nice things about nuclear, intends to scrap a goal of 100% renewables by 2035. Maybe nucle-
Highlands Ranch and many Front Range communities were designed in the 1970s before we knew we were headed for serious water and re issues. A lot more information and research is available today, stu that needs to be incorporated into plans.
Residents need to call on our state, local and neighborhood leadership organizations to address urban re threat. Douglas County’s acquisition of a helicopter for re ghting is a great move: Now governing organizations need to leverage their authority to lower the serious risks.
Denver Post, August 15, 2023, “More than 322,000 homes at risk.” Colorado Sun May 19, 2022, “1 million buildings are threatened by wild re.”
OBITUARIES
October 23, 1940 - December 16, 2024
Paul Robert Timm of Castle Rock – passed away on 12/16/2024. He did so peacefully with his family at his side.
Born on 10/23/1940 in White Lake, Wisconsin; his surviving sister Rachel, and surviving brother Phil, preacher’s kids of John & Frances Timm (both deceased). Relocating often during childhood – the family reached Shawano, Wisconsin. Here – Paul was a member of the state High School championship basketball teams in 1956 and 1957.
From there – Paul went on to attend and play hoops at North Central Bible College ( now NCU).
Shortly after – Paul met Rita and relocated to Colorado. If you’ve stayed in a townhome, condo, apartment in our mountains – there is a good chance Paul Timm hung the drywall.
Focusing on drywall jobs, they also built dozens of homes in Douglas and Elbert counties. Paul and Rita opened Paul Timm Construction and remained in business for over 40 years.
Rita was Paul’s partner and caretaker for over 55 years. Without Rita Timm – Paul admittedly could not have found his way to the golf course. Let alone be dressed half-way decent.
Paul’s passions included Golf, Travel, Music, Gardening, Soccer, and attending local High
School sporting events.
Sometime in the 90’s – Paul with a few buddies (Herschel Pickett, Carl Alexander, Bill Handschmidt) had the idea to play golf and start doing something good for charity. Today known as the Parker Golf Association – with over 50 members –the charity has raised close to $250k for local, needy families. e PGA has been named Colorado’s ‘Club of the Year’ each of the last 4 years by the Colorado Golf Association. Survived by his wife Rita; Children Brent, Debbie, Brian, Deena, Brandi – Seven grandchildren and One great grandson.
Whether in person – or on his phone: Paul greatly enjoyed keeping in touch with his friends and family. If you are reading this -- odds are he spoke to you recently.
Without doubt – you were important to him. e family thanks you for being his friend and sharing in his life!
An Open House Celebration of Paul’s life: Saturday January 11th, 1:00 to 4:00 @ e Pinery Country Club
In lieu of owers – donations can be made to: Parker Golf Association PO Box 64 Parker, CO 80134
Where will the Front Range experience the next Marshall Fire in Colorado?
Jim Remley, Highlands Ranch
ar will be an answer, but recent projects have had eye-bulging costs. Natural gas has problems, too, as was evident in Winter Storm Uri of February 2021 when costs soared.
Chris Hansen, as a state legislator from Denver, sponsored key legislation to push transmission planning in Colorado. Now in Durango as CEO of La Plata Electric, he has started working on guiding his electrical cooperative to 97% emission-free electricity in the next decade. Transmission, he says, will be crucial. e capacity of existing transmission lines can be expanded by reconductoring and other technology. But we all together need to be better connected east and west, north and south.
One crucial question, says Hansen, is whether Denver-based Chris Wright, the choice of Donald Trump to be secretary of energy, will support continued transmission planning. His Colorado-based career has been in oil and gas. Wright sees renewables as a distant solution.
Southeastern Colorado brims with renewable energy potential. Baca County has Colorado’s best wind, according to a 2017 study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. It also has strong solar. at’s why corn grows so well there — assuming it has water. e water of the Ogallala Aquifer won’t last, but the solar and wind almost certainly will. What it lacks now is a farm-to-market transmission highway.
Allen Best publishes Big Pivots. If you’re interested in the transitions in energy and water provoked by climate change, check it out at bigpivots.com.
TIMM
Paul Robert Timm
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Health care spending rose 139% between 2013-2022
Coloradans paying more out of pocket, higher premiums
BY ERIC GALATAS PUBLIC NEWS SERVICE
Between 2013 and 2022, health care spending in Colorado surged by 139% to nearly $30 billion, according to a new analysis by the Center for Improving Value in Health Care.
Cari Frank, vice president of communications at the center, said in addition to rising private health insurance premiums paid by Coloradans and their employers, people are also paying more out-of-pocket.
“Out-of-pocket costs for the most recent year of data, in 2022, was roughly a little bit over $1000 out of pocket per person, per year, for people with commercial insurance,” Frank reported. “ at has risen over 45% since 2012.”
Parker Chronicle
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Between 2013 and 2022, the amount of medicine prescribed to patients increased by 10% and drug costs rose by 151%. e number of outpatient visits ticked up by 25% and the cost of those visits rose by 51%.
Higher costs do not necessarily a ect insur-
SHUTTERSTOCK
ance company bottom lines. e Denver Post reported Cigna Healthcare’s 2022 pro ts at $6.7 billion.
Frank noted out-of-pocket costs increased by 80% for older Coloradans with Medicare Advantage, plans claiming claim to limit health costs for people living on xed incomes.
“Which is roughly $1,700 per person, per year,” Frank pointed out. “Again, huge for a senior population who may not have any income coming in the door besides Social Security.”
e analysis of data from the Colorado All Payer Claims Database found the number of inpatient hospitalizations dropped by 19% since 2013 and costs only dropped by 11%.
Frank believes access to transparent, reliable data is essential for policymakers to improve the state’s health care system.
“ is data is helping people understand where can we implement policy changes that can bring down those prices,” Frank emphasized. “ en this data can help track the progress that we’re making when those legislative initiatives go into e ect.”
Reprinted with permission from Public News Service, an independent, member-supported news organization providing news in the public interest.
State forecast shows smaller deficit than anticipated
BY SARA WILSON COLORADO NEWSLINE
Colorado lawmakers will still need to cut a considerable amount of spending during next year’s budget making process, though probably less than the nearly $1 billion anticipated in 2024.
e budget de cit could be around $672 million, the Legislative Council Sta and the Governor’s O ce of State Planning and Budgeting told lawmakers during the quarterly economic forecast on ursday morning.
“We are a little better o , or rather a little less worse o , than we were before,” said OSPB Director Mark Ferrandino. “We are still looking at a very di cult budget.”
e number revision primarily comes from a change in the revenue cap set by the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, which is determined by population and in ation and dictates how much the government can spend before returning money to taxpayers. Economists predict that the state will collect less revenue subject to that cap, freeing up budget space.
e projected budget de cit, caused by factors including rising Medicaid costs and
TOBORG
that he was going to run for mayor. However, his ideas on economic development, taxation and the police department are what led him to run for the o ce.
“Whether I won or not was secondary to getting my ideas out,” said Toborg. “Fortunatley, it paid o and it’s been an amazing four years. No regrets.”
In addition to “being the guy that spoke for Parker,” Toborg said some of his proudest accomplishments have been infrastructure improvements like the Chamber Road expansion, welcoming businesses such as In and Out Burger and Trader Joe’s, and increasing sta in the police department.
Although the citizen’s initiative to “modernize” the Parker Tax Code by eliminating local sales taxes on groceries in several cat-
slowing in ation, will still make it a di cult year for the Joint Budget Committee as they wrestle with where to cut spending while preserving core state services.
“Due to TABOR, our state resources remain tight and we have our work cut out for us to balance this budget,” JBC Chair Sen. Je Bridges, a Greenwood Village Democrat, said in a statement. “Everyone will have to work together, across party lines, to protect essential services for the people of Colorado and continue e orts to make our communities safer and housing more a ordable Gov. Jared Polis will submit a revised budget request the rst week of January ahead of when the Legislature reconvenes. His original request from November recommends a series of spending cuts and changes, including some Medicaid provider rate cuts that could become a primary point of tension between lawmakers and his o ce.
ursday’s economic forecast did not account for Proposition 130, which requires lawmakers to spend $350 million for law enforcement recruitment and retention. e Legislature does not, however, have to implement that this year and nd room for it in the
egories didn’t go as planned, Toborg said he is still proud of getting the conversation started about what’s considered fair taxes. He believes the initiative might have failed when the council stated in March 2024 that it would hurt the town’s budget, including the police.
He told the Parker Chronicle that was never the intent of the initiative and that he would have vetoed a budget that had any cuts to the police department. He added that he understands cutting taxes on certain grocery items would have an impact on the town’s budget, which is why it’s important to build highquality businesses.
“I’ll never give up on the fact that food should not be taxed and it’s a regressive tax,” said Toborg, adding that he expects that conversation to continue among the town.
“Government is about long-term goals,” said Toborg. “If ultimately your goal is to remove this regressive tax, you do it incrementally while you’re building up high-quality, tax-paying businesses.”
budget.
e Legislative Council Sta ’s TABOR surplus estimates for the current scal year went down by $14 million from September. ey estimate a surplus of $356 million this scal year, $844 million next year, and $1.2 billion the year after that. It would trigger the six-tier sales tax refund and various property tax refunds next year.
Expected general fund revenue for the next two scal years were revised upward compared to the September forecast from both OSPB and LCS.
“Today’s forecast shows that Colorado’s economy remains strong, with excellent wage growth, slowing housing costs, and healthy reserves,” Polis said in a statement ursday. “While this economic forecast shows potential challenges could emerge, Colorado’s budget environment remains tight, and the reality is that the legislature must make difcult decisions to deliver a balanced budget.”
is story is from Colorado Newsline. Used by permission. For more, and to support the news organization, visit coloradonewsline. com.
Staying engaged in Parker
While he believes the town’s future is bright, there are some improvements Toborg would like to see — one being more community engagement. He said the town has gotten better about communication and transparency, however, he would like to see ways for public comment to be more accessible.
He also hopes the town can address the number of car washes in the town and work to secure open space.
Understanding the councilmembers work hard to get to a consensus, Toborg is encouraging them to ask more questions when they are on the dais, even if the item is routine.
“I hope that they’ll get a little bit more bold in their actions,” said Toborg. “And to stand up even when it may not be popular.”
Now looking forward to being a Parker resident, Toborg said he plans to watch agendas and be engaged, and is not opposed to running for mayor again.
“I saved my signs,” Toborg said.
Thu 1/09
Beyond Laser Light Experience @ 4pm Denver
The Panhandlers TX: Gothic Theatre @ 7pm Gothic Theatre, 3263 S Broadway, En‐glewood
Born Innocent: The Redd Kross Story
Screening
@ 7pm
Alamo Drafthouse Sloans Lake, 4255 W Colfax Ave, Denver
Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom & Other Side, 2637 Welton St, Denver
Death By Dub @ 9pm Ophelia's Electric Soapbox, 1215 20th St, Den‐ver
Experts give insight on how to stick to your New Year’s resolutions
BY NINA JOSS NJOSS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Afew years ago, Randi Smith received an Italian accordion as a gift from her husband.
For years, it had been her goal to learn how to play the instrument. She planned to start learning once she retired, but her husband encouraged her to start before that.
But, despite resolving each new year to become an accordion player, Smith still hasn’t learned to play.
“I set myself up, because my goal to learn to play the accordion — it wasn’t speci c enough, and it certainly wasn’t attainable enough,” she said. “Whatever I did have in my mind was a fantasy rather than an achievable, measurable, stepwise map towards progress. It was just like, ‘I’m gonna learn how to play the accordion this year!’”
Smith, a professor of psychological sciences at the Metropolitan State University of Denver, said her story is a common one. Research shows that people tend not to stick to
their New Year’s resolutions beyond a few weeks, with some articles stating the failure rate is as high as 80% by February. rough her research and her work as a licensed psychologist and a licensed clinical social worker, Smith has seen that many people do not achieve their goals for a variety of common reasons. Whether people are making New Year’s resolutions or setting goals at another time of year, there are tips everyone can keep in mind when aiming to build new habits.
One strategy, Smith said, is to set realistic and measurable goals. Unlike her goal to learn to play the accordion, she said good goals should be speci c, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. Many experts refer to these goals by the acronym “SMART.”
For learning to play the accordion, a smart goal could be to play 20 minutes per day, ve days per week and master the song “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” by February, Smith said.
A man scrolls on his phone in his bed at night. SHUTTERSTOCK
BOTTOM LEFT: Exercise groups can be one way to find social support to help you toward
TOP LEFT: An accordion gifted to Randi Smith by her husband. COURTESY OF RANDI SMITH
RESOLUTIONS
“It’s speci c,” she said. “I think it’s achievable. It’s time-bound because it just gives me one month to get that far. And, I can certainly measure it and see whether I’ve been able to do that.”
Smith said it can also be helpful to write goals down. Putting goals on paper encourages the goal-setter to think about how to make the objective more structured, and also helps a person track their progress.
It’s critical, however, to make sure that you aren’t too hard on yourself if you falter, Smith said. She said one roadblock to reaching a goal is “developing this all-ornothing thinking around it.”
“As soon as there’s something that is not counted as success toward the goal, the person feels like, ‘I’m a failure, I blew it — better try again next year,’” she said. “Obviously, that’s not good, and that’s why so many resolutions fail within the rst couple weeks or couple months.”
Smith said many people think they need to be hard on themselves in order to keep themselves accountable, but that strategy can actually back re.
“Sadly, the inner-drill-sergeant approach doesn’t really work, because then failure seems so total,” she said. “ e truth of the matter is — and it’s born out in the research, and I certainly see it in my own psychotherapy practice — that you’re actually creating more space for success if (you choose) to be more exible and kind to yourself.”
Cindy Morris, a clinical psychologist, said there are also things to keep in mind when deciding which habits to build for yourself. She is the clinical director of the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus’ Behavioral Health and Wellness Program, where her team trains organizations around the country to help them
help patients and clients change their behaviors.
Speci cally, her program trains healthcare organizations, mental health organizations and community and public health groups to help their clients live nicotinefree, practice self-care and improve sleep habits, nutrition, physical activity and more.
Morris said self-awareness is the most important step to changing behavior. First, she said it’s important to reect on your emotions, especially when you feel guilty or bad about something you have done or continue to do.
“It’s important to listen to it and see what the emotion is telling you,” she said. “Is it,‘I feel bad because I have a rule in my mind, a thought, a belief that tells me this is bad to do?’ or is it that it actually isn’t right for me? Once you get a sense of what’s going on — what is it that you want or don’t want — then you can focus more on the behavior.”
When a person decides they want to change a behavior or build a healthy habit, Morris said, it’s helpful to re ect on the triggers or cues that lead to the behavior they’re trying to change, what their current routine is and what the reward is.
“As people are aware of this kind of habit loop, then they can choose a new, di erent behavior, or di erent habit that they want to practice, and then they can replace the routine,” she said.
For example, if a person nds themself going to sleep late because they always stay up scrolling on their phone, they might recognize that this happens in the lull in the evening after they nish cleaning up from dinner, Morris said. ey might try to replace their mindless phone use at that time of night with reading a novel or taking a relaxing bath — something that can still let them get the reward of turning their brain o for a little bit before they go to sleep, without keeping them awake all night.
Morris said practice is an important part of habitbuilding.
“It’s not like anyone does anything like, say, plays a
“It just feels good to not only be thinking about yourself but to have other people in mind and wonder how they’re doing on what they wanted to be accountable towards.”
sport or something (and) the rst time you do it, you’re incredible and you’re going to the Olympics,” she said. “It’s incremental. And so, we want to be gentle with ourselves.”
Morris and Smith both said having social support is a helpful environment when you are practicing new habits.
“( ere’s) good empirical support for having social support when we’re working on a new goal,” Smith said. “If my goal is to lose 30 pounds in 2025, having a partner who is engaging with me — maybe somebody I meet with to have some regular exercise, or joining a support group to improve my nutrition and master my overeating... We know those things are helpful.”
For Lakewood resident Ty Preizler, having social support is helpful when working towards goals. at’s why he started the Denver Healthy Habits Accountability Group, a community for people to come together to support each other in building new habits.
“I nd that I’m I’m way more motivated when I know that there’s going to be a group of people in a few weeks that I’m going to sit there and talk with about this,” he said. “Just having that companionship makes it a lot easier to stick to to the habits that we want.”
His group, which he launched in October, generally meets once a month. ey discuss their goals and sometimes do guided meditations or journaling sessions to re ect. With a variety of ages and backgrounds, the group members are working towards goals related to tness, nutrition and nding purpose in life.
Learn more about the group at https://www.meetup. com/denver-healthy-habits-accountability-group/.
So far, Preizler said his favorite part of the group has been getting the chance to help people, hearing their challenges and nding a community of people who understand and encourage self-improvement.
“It just feels good to not only be thinking about yourself but to have other people in mind and wonder how they’re doing on what they wanted to be accountable towards,” he said. “It just feels good.”
Psychology professor Randi Smith says it can be helpful to write down your goals. SHUTTERSTOCK
Ty Preizler, Lakewood resident
Colorado cyclist returns from 5-year trip around the globe
Ted Eliason details circumnavigating the world on his bicycle
BY JOHN RENFROW JRENFROW@COLORADOCOMNMUNITYMEDIA.COM
After over ve years pedaling across 56 countries spanning ve continents, Ted Eliason is back in time for the holidays and enjoying the creature comforts of his Westminster home.
On Dec. 14, Eliason, 57, turned the nal corner of his neighborhood bordering Westminster and Arvada on his Surly bike to return at last to his wife, Kendra, and the welcome sight of his friends, family and food he’d missed for a half-decade.
It only took 51,164 miles and 1,379 days.
Eliason had always planned to climb the Himalayas. To prepare for this bucket-list goal, he moved to Colorado in 1999 with the idea of using the Front Range as a training ground for tackling the tallest peaks in the world. He and Kendra had lived a life together of rock climbing, ice climbing, mountain climbing and all sorts of mountaineering adventures (including summiting all of Colorado’s 14ers), from the Rockies to the Alps to the Andes and in Canada.
But one day a mountaineering accident broke Eliason’s foot. To help in his recovery, he took up cycling, but could never have guessed the places it would take him.
“I had started watching people on Instagram doing this kind of cycling, and realized the money that I would spend on one guided peak in the Himalayas was enough to fund me for about three years on a bicycle instead,” Eliason said. “And so I sort of changed my lifetime goal at the last minute. Instead of taking three months with a 50% chance of success at one mountain, how about we take three years and try to go through 50 countries around the world in one trip? And so I was at a point in my life where I decided, if I’m ever going to take a shot at this, this is when I need to do it.”
Part I: Hitting the open road … and quick roadblocks
After weeks of planning and plotting, he set out on his expedition in 2019, pulling his loaded-up bike out of his garage to trek across the country to Newfoundland, stopping during nights to set up camp and nd at ground for his tent. In the beginning, it was easy to overthink, and to overdo just about everything, he said.
“Absolutely there were a lot of doubts,” Eliason said. “I started by over-planning, over-gearing, over-spending. And it’s funny. e longer that I’ve been doing this, the more my executive
thinking about, ‘OK, where do I have to be tomorrow? Where am I going to eat, sleep, you know, what can I a ord?’ And over time, I just got better at it.”
He rode his momentum down to Providence, Rhode Island, where he’d y across the pond to start his European stint. After landing in Dublin, Eliason powered up to Scotland before turning south for Brindisi, Italy, to wind around the Alps to the east.
A ferry took him to Greece, where he biked east through Croatia to the Danube River.
Following the ancient waterway from Serbia to Bulgaria, Eliason quickly learned that this trip wouldn’t be possible in just three years. e COVID-19 pandemic would halt his journey and the world over.
for the Turkish border to open, which it never did.”
Discouraged and antsy, Eliason reluctantly made for the So a International Airport, ashing his passport to guards through highway checkpoints and nally being let through.
Getting home was an expensive roadblock in his journey, costing him both his nances and his time.
Upon his return, Eliason quickly discovered (unsurprisingly) that he wasn’t satis ed sitting around waiting for the Earth to reopen. Before he knew it, he was back on the bike.
So
“I missed the Turkish border from Bulgaria by a day,” Eliason said. “ I got to Bulgaria, and then basically the whole country just locked down. Which, you know, if you’re going to get stuck, Bulgaria is a good place. It’s the least expensive country in the EU. I had a very comfortable one-bedroom apartment on the Black Sea. I wound up staying there for three months waiting
“When I got home, I wasn’t ready to stop,” he said. “My wife suggested I bike out to Oregon and see my brother, and I had always wanted to do the West Coast bicycle route down Highway 1. My COVID loop was up to Glacier, over to the U.S.-Canada border, down the West Coast to Tijuana. And back at that point, I was in California spending $8 on a box of Triscuits, and just was like, this is not the priority for spending. So I went home, and I kind of rotted for a year and a half and waited.”
Ted Eliason poses in front of a sign depicting the longest road through Australia. He biked from Perth to Sydney on his journey.
COURTESY PHOTOS
The map above details Ted Eliason’s final stretch from South America back to Colorado. It also details his trip during COVID-19 to Oregon and down the West Coast.
Part II: Getting back in the saddle
By April of 2022, Eliason nally felt borders had opened enough to pick back up where he left o . But this time, Kendra was coming along, if only for a bit.
e adventurers went back to Greece for Round Two. ey enjoyed parts of Greece and Turkey together for two weeks before Kendra returned to the U.S. and sent him o for Central Asia. A bus took her to the airport in Istanbul.
As for Eliason, he made it into Turkey this time and followed a path across Georgia and Central Asia to the Chinese border.
Rather than go through China, which was still closed due to the pandemic, he traveled to Almaty, Kazakhstan, to y rst to Dehli, India, before connecting to Leh, one of the northernmost points of India and a key historical trade point also known for stunning views and cultural signi cance.
After enjoying a week of backpacking in the area, Eliason continued his journey down the west coast of India around the peninsula to Chennai on the eastern side. Kendra ew to meet him again in Bangkok in January 2023.
All the way from Bangkok to Nha Trang, Vietnam, the two cycled across Cambodia together for ve weeks. It was an experience the two will relish forever and was the favorite stint of the long journey for both riders.
“South Asia was freaking amazing. I would go back,” Kendra said. “ ere’s not many places I would say I would go back. e riding was so amazing. ere’s always a huge shoulder (to bike on), and they’re all on two wheels. You’d see families of six on one motorcycle. It was so crazy exhilarating to go through South Vietnam. e tra c was just insane. We had kids chasing us and cheering us on (and) little kids racing us on bicycles. It was like a bicycle culture.”
From there, Kendra went home while Eliason looped up through Vietnam solo to the Chinese border before wrapping around Laos to get to ailand. He moved south through Malaysia before hopping over to Indonesia to bike from Java to Bali, concluding the Asian stint of his journey.
Another ight took him to Australia, where he’d trek across the outback from Perth all the way to Sydney before taking to New Zealand. While this portion of his trip was undoubtedly beautiful, Eliason said Australia and New Zealand, much like the U.S., can be di cult to navigate. “ e U.S. and Canada together, as well as Australia and New Zealand, are geared around cars, and how you travel through them is just very di erent from how you travel in the rest of the world,” Eliason said. “ e rest of the world is, in general, much easier. I mean, there are towns everywhere, there’s food everywhere (and) it’s more a ordable.” ere would be long stretches of highway between cities or towns that would make him push harder to reach a food source, or often camp for the night and survive on what he already had on his person.
After ve weeks in New Zealand, it was time to go back to the Americas.
Part III: Back to the Americas
Landing in Santiago, Chile, the nal stretch up South America back to Colorado was underway. But rst, he’d loop down the Carretera Austral highway to Ushuaia, Argentina, dubbed the “end of
the world” at the southernmost point of South America on the Tierra del Fuego archipelago.
Most of 2023 had passed since Eliason had seen Kendra. But she decided to y south for the winter in December to explore ve South American countries with him.
ey met in Calafate to cycle through Argentina, Uruguay, Rio Grande Do Sol Brazil, Paraguay and nally Bolivia to La Paz where she ew home again ve months after she’d arrived.
us began the last leg of his transcontinental journey. It began with Peru, which Eliason said was the beginning of his travel burnout.
“Peru was absolutely the most di cult for me,” Eliason said. “ e Himalayas are easier because the roads are like the Front Range — like (here). In Peru, they are not. ey are up and over repeatedly. So you’re doing 3,000-meter climbs, which can take two days, and then going down and doing it again. It’s very safe.
e people are very nice. e dogs are a bit aggressive. But getting through the Peruvian Andes for me was just really, really grueling.”
He continued up through Ecuador and Colombia before taking a sailboat to Panama. Central America took him through Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala before he broke through to Mexico.
e American Southwest was beckoning, and Eliason was anxious to chase it. He longed for his wife, his bed and some Taco Bell.
He nally broke through to Arizona, riding the desert up to Utah and cutting across to Colorado. Just a week from home, a snowstorm would hit Colorado, delaying his nal homecoming. He camped in Parker before making his way to Denver, stopping at the REI at Con uence Park downtown.
Local cyclists and friends joined him there to make the nal stretch back to his Westminster garage. Eliason was welcomed home with a party, a makeshift “ nish line” to break through, and lots of food he’d been missing.
After six sets of tires, countless ats, seven broken chains, eight sets of brake pads, over 20 spokes, four rim/wheel repairs, ve pairs of pedals, 3½ saddles and over 10 ights, he pulled into the garage he’d embarked from ve years ago.
Dismounting from his trusty Surly Disc Trucker, he fell into the arms of his wife while friends and family cheered, ready to celebrate his return. It was sunny and 50 degrees, and for the rst time, Eliason didn’t have to set up camp or worry about what tomorrow’s road would bring.
“ ere’s far, far less to fear about most countries in the world than I ever expected,” Eliason said, re ecting on a lifechanging journey. “ e vast majority of countries will greet a foreign traveler on a bicycle, even an American traveler, like a long-lost relative. I mean, people are just generally good, curious, kind, hospitable people.”
For more photos and to experience Eliason’s journey mile by mile, visit @ bikingthebluemarble on Instagram, and stay tuned for his experience in his own words in a forthcoming book he plans to begin soon.
THERE’S MORE ONLINE!
See more photos at https://coloradocommunitymedia.com/2024/12/17/ colorado-cyclist-returns-from-5-year-triparound-the-globe/ and read answers to four more questions we asked Ted Eliason.
Pictured is a campsite Ted Eliason from Colorado set up along Peru’s grueling highway through the Andes mountains.
Ted and Kendra Eliason pose for a photo as they cross into Brazil.
COURTESY PHOTOS
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CHARTER SCHOOL
clear divide in who would approve and not approve them, and if this board was of a di erent group, then some of those may not have passed and I think that takes away charter autonomy,” Williams said.
During public comment, a number of prominent Republicans — including Douglas County Commissioner Kevin Van Winkle; Darcy Schoening, the Col -
orado GOP’s director of special initiatives; Steve Peck, chair of the Douglas County GOP; and Heidi Ganahl, the former GOP candidate for Colorado governor — spoke in favor of the charter’s release.
“If released to the (Charter School Institute), John Adams will enjoy the freedoms denied to district schools and the students they control,” Peck said, calling the vote highly political.
Some Sterling Ranch residents who spoke at the meeting opposed the charter school because of a lack of transparency from the process and worried
the charter would negatively impact a neighborhood school. Other community members questioned why the charter is able to circumvent the district’s process.
“( e request) is outside the charter cycle and they have not submitted an application or shown demand,” Jason Kassay, a Sterling Ranch parent, said. “Circumventing the process sets a precedent for future charters to operate in counties that don’t align with local goals.”
Terry Croy Lewis, the executive director of the Charter School Institute, said the organization has strict standards to authorize charters to open, including requiring the schools to serve all students and be in compliance with state and federal laws. She said about half of the applications the Charter School Institute receives are denied.
“ e expectation is that if you’re coming to (Charter School Institute), you will serve all students,” Croy Lewis said.
Under the oversight of the Charter School Institute, John Adams Academy will have to present funding for the school’s budget, letters of intent to enroll and a curriculum plan that aligns to state standards.
Elbert Legals
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