Horizon Magazine Fall 2019 by Horizon Magazine

Horizon Magazine @cmuhorizon @cmuhorizon issuu.com/horizon.magazine cmesauhorizonmagazine@gmail.com

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Dear readers, Welcome to The Community Issue of Horizon Magazine. While discussing story ideas for this issue, it occurred to us that each story we wanted to tell somehow circled back to the concept of community. Whether it was exploring the possibility of a new community program to help pet owners find housing, getting to know our professors and their passions more deeply, or foraging through decades-old newspapers discovering exactly how the CMU community came to be, each story circles back to community in some way. It’s clear that community and connection hold the fabric of our school, town and society together. The real meaning of community became apparent to us not only as we were covering these stories, but through our own challenges in making this magazine come to fruition. You wouldn’t be reading this right now if our small but dedicated team didn’t unite as a community to make this magazine happen. I’ll be honest. Stories were cut, interviews didn’t work out, photos had to be reshot and things didn’t exactly fall into place on time — but we came together and made this magazine anyway, and that’s the power of our community. To our wonderful staff, contributors, advisors, interviewees, advertisers, professors, families, friends and you, the reader — we are so grateful for your support. This fall, we hope you cozy up with this magazine and a hot drink of your choice, and enjoy this little book we worked so hard to make just for you. COVER ART: LOGAN WAGNER

Want to respond? Send letters to the editor to cmesauhorizonmagazine@gmail.com.

With love, Jenna Kretschman Editor in Chief

CONTRIBUTORS

Jenna Kretschman Editor in Chief

Logan Wagner Art Director

ADVISORS:

Kasia Kucera Photo Editor

Dr. William Wright Eli Marco Hall

X contributors + staff

Casey Smith Managing Editor

Ashlyn Gerbaz - writer Jenna Kretschman - writer Eowyn Larson - writer Delaney Letts - writer Hec Salas - writer Mabel Ellison - writer, illustrator Jessica Todd - writer, illustrator Elias Born - writer, photographer, illustrator Kasia Kucera - writer, photographer, illustrator Dafné Théroux-Izquierdo - photographer, illustrator Brenna Rhiness - writer, photographer Casey Smith - writer, photographer Levi Kramer - photographer Justin Jolley - photographer Leah Ward - designer Logan Wagner - designer, illustrator Alex Cohan - illustrator Esme Contreras - illustrator Austin Draving Ellis Johnson

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

STAFF

Elisa Bianchi Social Media Director

Raymond Hamer Advertising Director

History of CMU

Home is Where the Pets Are

Professor Ology

Home is Where the Pets Are PETS

History of CMU HISTORY

Ghost Towns

TRAVEL

Gone Phishing

CLUB

Treasures from Professors Offices CMU

A Novel Idea BOOKS

Factory

COLLABORATION

Comic Con

COMICS

Uncanny Valley

Turn Your Caring Into Doing VOLUNTEER

Questions & Answers

ASK

Opinion: CMU Montrose

ART

CAMPUS

What's That Noise

OUTDOOR

36 MUSIC

Ski Hut Trips

Professor Ology

‘Tis the Ski-son

PEOPLE

Get to the Point BUSINESS

X table of contents

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TEAM

Peach Street DRINK

Roice-Hurst Humane Society combats community’s lack of pet-friendly rentals WORDS: JENNA KRETSCHMAN PHOTOS: DAFNÉ THÉROUX-IZQUIERDO ART: LOGAN WAGNER

ets can make any house feel like home, but a shortage of pet-friendly rentals in the Grand Valley makes finding a home difficult for those with furry friends in tow. Roice-Hurst Humane Society, a local animal shelter with the mission of promoting bonds between pets and their people, is collaborating with Mesa County Public Health to find a solution to the community’s pet-friendly housing shortage. With the goal of incentivizing property owners to make more rental properties pet-friendly, the organizations are teaming up to figure out what makes property owners reluctant to open up their properties to pets. “We want to put more pet-friendly rentals on the market, and so what we’re trying to do is approach this from a supply side and try to figure

out what the barriers are and what the trepidation of property owners is when it comes to letting pets in the home,” Anna Stout, executive director of Roice-Hurst Humane Society, said. “Our ultimate goal is to figure out what the concerns are of property owners and find solutions to alleviate those concerns with the end goal of opening up more rentals to pets.” One forward-thinking solution in the works is a pet damage fund for property owners. For each pet-friendly unit a property owner has, that person can pay a certain amount into the fund once a tenant moves in with pets. At the end of the rental period, if damage was caused by an animal, the property owner could potentially use the fund to pay for those damages. “We’re still in the baby stages of this, because potentially what we

like this has never been done before. Solutions attempted in other communities focus on providing funds to assist tenants in paying their pet deposits, rather than incentivizing property owners to become petfriendly. But Stout emphasizes that the fundamental problem is that there is simply a shortage of pet-friendly rentals, which is detrimental to both pets and people in the community. “When people have to move into rentals that don’t allow pets, those pets oftentimes end up in our shelter. And that’s not because people don’t want to keep them, but it’s because they simply cannot. One aspect of it is trying to prevent people from having to break the bonds with their

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would be doing is creating a sort of local insurance fund for property owners,” Stout said. “We’re working with Mesa County Public Health to figure out if this is even a viable thing.” Additionally, Roice-Hurst plans to offer classes for pet owners on preventing destructive behaviors that landlords worry about. Topics will include how to combat inappropriate urination and scratching for cat owners, and crate training and separation anxiety prevention for dog owners. A certification of class completion would provide tenants with the tools and knowledge they need to prevent damages and provide property owners with peace of mind. To Stout’s knowledge, a solution

X home is where the pets are

pets, which are crucial to their own well-being,” Stout said. “More petfriendly homes means more homes in the community who are potential adopters for pets. A lot of people that I’ve talked to say, ‘I’d love to have a pet, but I can’t have one because of my landlord,’ so part of it is opening up the adoptions market even broader.” When pet owners can’t find petfriendly housing, they often smuggle pets into rentals, risking eviction and living with the anxiety of being caught. In a United States study published by Petfinder, more than 20 percent of people surveyed reported that they keep pets in their homes against their lease agreements, which can negate the many personal benefits of pet ownership. Pet ownership provides a sense of purpose, responsibility, happiness and companionship. These benefits are tangible and ripple out far and wide throughout the rest of the community, and Roice-Hurst is well-aware of this.

“The number one reason we’re doing this, the key for us, is that it really does affect our community’s health. It’s a mental health issue; it’s a companionship issue; it’s a physical health issue. For us, the absolute main reason that we’re putting the time and effort, and potentially money, into this is that we think that there is such a crucial link between pet ownership and individual health, and therefore community health. And that’s worth it for us,” Stout said. “When people are well, our community is well. When people have pets, they have companionship,” Stout said. “If we can get more pets into homes where mental or physical health might be an issue, those pets are actually playing a role in improving overall health.” Last year, Roice-Hurst unveiled a new initiative called the Community Health Through Shelter Pets Initiative, spearheaded by Community Health Liaison Ashley DiGrado. The program focuses on improving community

“When people are well, our community is well. When people have pets, they have companionship.”

in the Grand Valley. The shelter purchased a full-service mobile veterinary unit, designed to provide low-cost veterinary services out in the community. “The main idea behind the mobile unit is three-fold. One is for shelter pets, one is for community cats and TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return), but the piece of the mobile unit that I’m the most excited about, and frankly, that I think is the most compelling reason to invest in one, is that it will allow us to take veterinary services to people who traditionally don’t access or cannot access them,” Stout said. The mobile unit is expected to be unveiled to the public in November and will be fully deployed into the community in January 2020. b

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health through programs such as short-term pet boarding during crisis situations and hosting a wide variety of community programs at the shelter. “There are quite a few physical and mental health benefits that come from having a companion animal. The biggest one is that having a pet can help decrease loneliness and isolation,” DiGrado said. “Just by having that companionship, it provides a source of physical contact. There’s been a lot of research that shows that even just five minutes of petting a dog or cat releases oxytocin and endorphins in the brain. And it increases physical activity if you get out and take your dog or cat for walks.” In August, the shelter announced another groundbreaking program to benefit both pets and people

X home is where the pets are

OF COLORADO MESA UNIVERSITY

WORDS & PHOTOS: KASIA KUCERA ART: ESME CONTRERAS

a key to the past rests within the dusty bookshelves on the third floor of Colorado Mesa University’s Tomlinson Library. Yearbooks and archived Criterion newspapers from the 1920s and beyond open up a world of ghosts from a once primitive, yet spirited, campus. Back in the day, students would smuggle kittens into their dorms, openly consume 3.2 percent beer in the residence halls and document it for eternity in the campus yearbooks. There was once a popular 3.2 bar across the street from the college for students 18 and over, back when the legal 3.2 drinking age was 18. In the 1960s, a good parking spot was easy to find and only cost $3 per year. CMU’s first class ever began at 8 a.m. on Monday, September 21, 1925 under

the name Grand Junction Junior College. Tuition cost $8 per class and only 39 students were enrolled. The first campus was located in the former Lowell School Building on Fifth Street and Rood Avenue, and according to an old quote by founding teacher Mary Rait published in The Beacon, had more pigeons in the attic than students in the classrooms. Rait, a history professor, eventually became vice president of the school and is now the namesake of Mary Rait Hall. Originally, 30 acres of land were purchased at Seventh Street and Patterson Road for the school to be built on, but the Board of Trustees favored using the old Lowell School Building in order to begin classes as soon as possible. Eventually, three acres of the purchased land was

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had a great opportunity to recreate some of these traditions. There have always been big concerts on campus, but what happened to the collegesponsored keggers of the 1960s? In the mid-1950s, the freshman had interesting social initiations. They had ten rules that they were supposed to follow, according to an old edition of The Criterion. One of the rules was that the freshman, called “frosh,” had to wear beanies and name tags from 9 a.m. until 10 p.m. to all of their classes and sports games until the Homecoming game. Another rule was if the freshman lost a game of tug-ofwar between classes at Homecoming, they would have to wear “marks of distinction,” whatever that means. There are many groups that have survived decades on campus and have evolved to be bigger and better. CMU’s dance team, the Mavettes, were once called the Stepperettes. The Outdoor Program was once called the Outing Club. The radio station we now know as KMSA used to be called KEXO.

above: The Stepperettes line up into formation for one of the basketball halftime shows for Mesa College, circa 1962.

X history of cmu

donated to build St. Mary’s Hospital and the rest sold for other building sites. In 1940, the school broke ground at 12th Street and North Avenue with Houston Hall. The college was renamed to Mesa College in 1937 and then to Mesa State College in 1988. The most recent name change occurred in 2011 to Colorado Mesa University. Many dances were held throughout the years, and selected among the dance royalty were two students crowned Joe College and Jane College. There was once a dance called the Gold Diggers Ball, held each spring semester, in which the ladies were to find the men of their dreams and escort them to the dance. Some things never changed about CMU. The homecoming parades with handmade floats have survived decades with school pride. The first homecoming celebration was nearly a century ago. Last year’s homecoming theme honored the past, present and future of CMU. The CMU community

TOP: Mesa College Spanish Club poses for their 1950 yearbook photo.

It’s easy to take for granted the spirited students and trailblazers who came before us and set the foundations for CMU to become the institution it is today. We have them to thank for creating CMU’s timeless traditions as students continue to drink beer and smuggle cats into the dorms. b

Bottom: CMU's Horizon Magazine Fall 2019 editors posing for their own magazine.

According to a 1962 issue of The Criterion, one of the first cheerleading chants for Grand Junction Junior College in 1920s was as follows: "I thought I heard my grandmother say, That Junior College was coming this way, With a fee-fo and a fie-fo, And a rit-tail-rat-tail hanging on a cat tail, Sis-boom-bum, Boom-a-lac, boom-a-lac, bow wow wow, Chick-a-lac, chick-a-lac, chow chow chow, Boom-a-lac, chick-a-lac, who are we, Junior College, don’t you see, One-a-zip, two-a-zip, three-a-zip zam, We can beat [other team] and we don’t give A razzle dazzle hobble gobble sis-boom-bah Junior College, rah rah rah!"

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GHOST TOWNS

X ghost towns

WORDS: CASEY SMITH

PHOTOS: LEVI KRAMER & BRENNA RHINESS

ART: ESME CONTRERAS

empty. Abandoned. Eerie. Stepping foot in a place that once flourished and now stands empty may result in an unsettled stomach — the feeling of anxiety and unsurety. These towns were once full of people, and now little to nothing remains of their existence, except for perhaps a few structures. Ghost towns. Even the name leaves a phantom-like unsettlement in your bones. Western Colorado is home to dozens of them. Ike Rakiecki, a librarian at Mesa County Libraries, does specific research and studies on local ghost towns. “Local history has always been a really big fascination for me, and ghost towns fall into that,” Rakiecki

said. “Especially if there are things that I can research and find more information about and then can actually go to those places. I think that's pretty cool.” For about three years, Rakiecki has been offering presentations on local ghost towns through Mesa County Libraries. The best way to learn about ghost towns is to learn about history. Colorado was a big part of the gold rush of the mid-1800s. A lot of mining towns began popping up during that time. In fact, about thirty years after the gold rush began, Grand Junction became a town after settlers had forced the original Ute Indians who inhabited the land onto a reservation.

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standing structures is Calamity Camp in Gateway. “Calamity Camp is my favorite ghost town,” Rakiecki said. “They mine uranium, vanadium and radium there. One of the cool things about Calamity Camp is it's on the register of the National Register of Historic Places. So it's pretty well taken care of, and for some of the buildings, they've actually restored them partially.” The National Register of Historic Places, run by the National Parks Service, is a great resource to find more information about particular historic places. The oldest ghost town in the area is Carpenter, which was founded in 1890. Most of the structures from the mining town are gone now, but there are just a few still standing. Luckily, Carpenter was relatively documented for the 1800s. Old photographs were taken of the town back then and can be compared to the same area now, almost

above: Ashcroft was built on the stagecoach route from Aspen to Crested Butte.

X ghost towns

Between 1888 and 1895, commercial coal mines in Grand Junction, Cameo and Palisade were in full operation. A lot of the local ghost towns that we know of today were mining towns. These abandoned little towns offer a unique perspective for local history buffs like Rakiecki to look at. “You can see firsthand what those people were living like, what their lives would have been like. Things like where they slept, where they ate dinner, where they worked. It's just a neat sort of like, firsthand glimpse into their lives. In some cases, going back 130 years.” There are several ghost towns in the area. It is important to know that not all ghost towns look alike. Some towns leave behind everything, and there are many buildings and artifacts that are still standing and may still be in decent condition. Others are very weathered and may have little to no remaining structures to look at. A camp that does have still-

130 years later. “Carpenter is not necessarily that far away from Grand Junction. I mean, you can be there in 30 minutes. Well, you could drive to what I would consider the trailhead in about 30 minutes from here. But Climax Camp and Calamity Camp are extremely remote. They're kind of places where the chances of just happening upon it would be minimal, because they’re way out in the middle of nowhere,” Rakiecki said. Those daring enough to explore local ghost towns can utilize the Mesa County Assessor website. This website allows users to search an address or a name and it will pull

up GPS and satellite imagery of the area, so users can look at trailheads or nearby geographical indicators to find these towns. If explorers get lost or confused on how to get to a certain camp or site, they can likely turn toward the locals for direction. Always remember to check if a ghost town is on public land. Never assume that a ghost town is on public land, because several of them are not. People can do this by researching sites prior to exploring, either on the Assessor website or on the Register of Historic Places. “Definitely make sure you have a reliable vehicle. Let people know where you're going. Having a first aid kit would probably be useful, and bring plenty of food and water,” Rakeicki said. b

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X ghost towns

phishing Cybersecurity department and club promote online safety WORDS: ASHLYN GERBAZ ART: ALEX COHAN

Scamware, phishing and fraud. These are just a few of the many ways people’s cybersecurity is in danger. As the years have gone by and technology advances, cybersecurity is at an all-time risk. Phishing and scamming are all over social media as well, in the form of links and messages from friends whose accounts have been hacked. These threats may be everywhere, but there are skills and tools that can be used to keep confidential information safe. The director of computing and network systems at Colorado Mesa University is Michael Kansgen. For more than twenty years, he has worked in technology and has seen cybersecurity threats in many eras of technology. He is best known around the CMU community as the person sending out scam warning emails and reminding the community to keep their information private. Most recently, members of the

CMU network received an email from Kansgen warning of a part-time job listing sent out to CMU students via email that was actually a social engineering attempt. These reminders may seem trivial, but in a digital world, a person's online presence can be a link to their whole world. “The greatest threat to the CMU community is criminal social engineering activity. Social engineering is the attempted psychological manipulation of an individual in order to trick them for a specific purpose. That purpose may include obtaining confidential information, such as MAVzone account credentials, or the completion of an activity that compromises the security of a person, device or system,” Kansgen said. Because people who hack the entire CMU email network can send scams to everyone in that network, it can be easy to have a few people give up their information. “From time to time, individuals

“We are not training a syndicate of college hackers, but trying to usher in a new age of secure computation.”

X gone phishing

criminals. It’s very important to be skeptical of emails, websites, phone calls and text messages that seem out of the ordinary or job offers that seem too good to be true,” Kansgen said. CMU has a Cyber Security Club, composed of computer science majors with the intention to learn and educate others about being safe

on the internet. The club’s OrgSync page is written in hexadecimal code, translating to "Come and join us to learn how to protect yourself with guest speakers and L33T exercises.” The club hopes to grow and expand into having members of all different majors. Club members learn about a plethora of cybersecurity-related topics and skills, including how to hack. “We are not training a syndicate of college hackers, but trying to usher in a new age of secure computation …. If you know how the hacks are performed and why they work, you can easily protect yourself and others from similar attacks,” Cyber Security Club President Nathan Bellew said. The Cyber Security Club meets twice a month and encourages students of all majors to join and expand their cybersecurity skills and knowledge. Reach out to President Nathan Bellew at ndbellew@mavs.coloradomesa.edu for more information. b

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can be a bit too trusting of unknown individuals, and that often leads to very serious consequences. The key to avoiding these situations is to be acutely aware that you are a target of

FROM PROFESSORS’ OFFICES An inside look at CMU professors’ favorite office items WORDS & ART: JESSICA TODD

Eli Hall Associate Professor of Graphic Design About the item: “This [frame] is actually a garage sale find, and I took away the canvas because it was an ugly painting, so then I was just like, ‘someday I’ll use it.’ Then my son, Drew, almost became a professional skateboarder when he was about 19 years old. He was right there. We had stacks of decks at our house. When he started skating, as he would do a trick, he would write it down on [the decks]. So this is the history of his main tricks that he started to do. And then he fell off a two-story parking garage and broke almost everything in his body and almost died. He can’t really skate anymore because of the injuries. So this piece is kind of like the timeline and the history of his skating experience.” Why it’s in his office at CMU: “It’s this memory, and this reminder, that I’m just blessed to still have him alive. He’s 28 now and lives in California, and I don’t get to see him much, so one of the more important pieces in my office reminds me of him every day. I built this piece to go specifically in my office. I carried dozens of decks around to wherever I lived, so finally I just took the ones that were most memorable to me and made this piece.”

F Hall’s son's skateboard decks that he framed

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Dr. Erica Jackson Associate Professor of History

F Print encouraging women and female students to use their voices

X treasures from professors’ offices

About the item: “I want to make my office comfortable for me, but also for my students too. But as a women’s historian, and also one of the co-advisors for the women and gender studies minor, it’s very important to me that I’m really encouraging my female students in particular. Because studies show that right around middle school, girls stop raising their hands; it was found in the early ‘90s that was happening, but it’s still a problem today. So, I really want my student’s eye-level to see that and really know that college is just this opportunity for them to study whatever they want to study, be whatever they want to be, and I really want to empower them to do that.” Why it’s in her office at CMU: “I think [my mom] got it last year, and I said, ‘This really needs to be in a prominent place in my office.’ I think she was thinking of my office, because she thought, ‘This will be something that will be really great for your students to see.’ I, of course, love putting different things that are funny or empowering to me on my door.”

Elaine Venter Assistant Professor of Mass Communication About the item: “This little pineapple was created by my sister when she wanted to crochet something. And this was one of the most advanced things she had ever tried to crochet. I like pineapples as a fruit, and I like it for its imagery and its symbolic nature of being welcoming. (And I believe pineapple is perfectly great on a pizza. Fight me.) … It meant a lot to me for her to ... take the time to make that. And, coming to Grand Junction, I moved far away from my family. At the time my sister made this, she was actually living on the East Coast, and I only got to see her twice a year, if that. We’re night and day from each other, but we’re very close. If there’s difficult stuff going on, we’ll talk to each other about it. This was just kind of that connection that I still have to her and to my family.” Why it’s in her office at CMU: “This is where I spend most of my time now. I spend a lot of hours in this office, so to have a little reminder of more of the personal element of my life, and a reminder of my family, is kind of a nice thing — especially when work gets to be a lot.” Michael Philipp Instructor of Accounting About the item: “The Lego thing was done by my sons. When I got this office, they said, ‘Oh, when he gets a new office we need to make him something.’ Which I think was also for them to say, ‘Oh, we need a reason to get some LegoS,’ so they said, ‘Let’s get him that.’ In October, they [turned] nine and eleven, and I moved in here over the summer a year ago. My boys are into LegoS — well, the older one a little bit more so than the younger one. There’s actually a thing going on at their school right now called Lego league.” Why New York? “I visited New York with my wife a couple of times, and each time it was a ‘babymoon,’ so that’s a vacation you take a little bit before the kids are coming.”

F Lego scene of New York built by Philipp’s two sons, Henry and Harrison

F Crocheted pineapple made by Venter’s sister

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Suzie Garner Professor of Art, Department Head

Dr. Geoffrey Gurka Professor of Accounting About the item: “Several buddies of mine, when I was working through my PhD program, ran across that clock in upstate Michigan, and they broke out laughing when they saw it and said, ‘You know, Gurka’s in tax — let’s give it to him; he can understand this thing.’ It makes sense! Because, if you ever fight your way through tax law, you begin to realize that Congress and the

F 1960s whiskey decanter

F Backwards clock that still tells the time correctly, gifted by Gurka’s friends

X treasures from professors’ offices

About the item: “It belonged to my grandfather, and he collected bottles. Then upon his departure, there was an estate sale that we sold most of his bottles at. But I kept this one, because growing up I always thought it was amazing. This is the ‘I Dream of Jeannie’ bottle. I used to watch the reruns when I was a kid.… from what I have learned over the years, when they needed a home for Jeannie, somebody had this decanter on his desk that had been a Christmas present, and they thought, ‘Oh, that would make a home for Jeannie.’ They had it and they painted it up to look like her home. When I was a little kid and watching reruns of the show, I thought this was the coolest thing ever.” Why it’s in her office at CMU: “This one I’ve always kept; it usually stays in my office because it’s safe. There are no cats! My grandfather had a garden and I would follow him around; he was always outside doing stuff. This one has a lot of sentimental value.”

federal government have their own reality bubble that they’re living in, and it doesn’t quite square with what the real world looks like at times. It’s like time is going backwards for them. After several years of having it, I can glance at it and read it.” Why it’s in Gurka’s office at CMU: “I’ve had it in my office ever since they gave it to me, because it so encaptures the spirit of Congress when they’re writing tax laws that simply don’t make sense to any reasonable person out there. There was a special regulation called the Uniform Capitalization rules that came out in the early ‘90s, and I took a snippet of two paragraphs out of it and hung it on my office door of the school that I was teaching at, because I simply could not understand it. Each and every individual word looks suspiciously like the English language, but when you string them all together … what? So, there is the connection.”

Dr. Aparna Palmer Professor of Biology & Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs for Student & Faculty Success About the item: “Many years ago, I had a wonderful student named Austin, and Austin had come to this university, but he just yearned to be a marine biologist. That’s my background. My research can be done here, as long as I spend summers on the ocean. So, he was so eager; he took all of my courses. He was also my advisee, and he asked me one year how he could get more experience. So he applied for an internship at the Boston Aquarium …. He spent the entire summer there. He absolutely loved it, and at the end of the summer, as a gift, he brought back that jellyfish. Just as a memento, because he just really appreciated having that experience, and I wrote him his recommendation letter for that particular position.” Why it’s in her office at CMU: “When I look at that jellyfish, I think, ‘Oh, I loved working with Austin,’ and students were my real focus. When I came to interview at the university about 20 years ago, I just fell in love with the students. I really like who they are, and I really felt like I could make a difference in their lives. [The jellyfish] is just symbolic of the ability to really help students.” F Beaded jellyfish gifted to Palmer by a former student

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

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Books to Curl Up With This Fall

ART: JESSICA TODD

What kind of reader are you? 1. The one who needs a break Finals and holidays and families, oh my. If you find yourself super stressed out and the last thing you want to do is worry about reading, there’s still a book out there for you. 2. The one who needs something exciting If you get bored easily, find yourself never finishing books, or just crave that adrenaline that keeps you turning page after page, you’re in luck this holiday season.

Lauren Cantwell is a librarian at Colorado Mesa University’s Tomlinson Library. It is her job and passion to connect students with literature. “I can say that one of the hardest and most interesting things that I think librarians can encounter is to have someone come up to them and be like, ‘Can you help me find a book that I'll enjoy reading?’” Cantwell said. Luckily, she’s been a librarian for a long time and has good recommendations for every kind of reader.

1. Try… “Beautiful Boards: 50 Amazing Snack Boards for Any Occasion” by Maegan Brown

Snacks need no further explanation, but this book is full of the most beautiful food displays and snacks you’ve ever seen. It might make you hungry, but it requires very little brain power, which might be just what the doctor ordered after you’re done with all your finals. Do not fear — those who are vegan, gluten-free or have allergies can still enjoy.

2. Check out… “Full Throttle” by Joe Hill

In case that name doesn’t sound familiar to you, you might know his dad, Stephen King, a little bit better. “Full Throttle” contains thirteen short fiction stories, two of them co-written with Stephen King. “I’m hearing good things about the stories,” Cantwell said. “If I had to recommend something horror, it would be worth investigating Joe Hill, because Stephen King is so well-known.”

Maybe reading a cookbook sounds weird, but think about all the hands-on learning opportunities this book could give you. Who would have thought reading could be a little boozy? “There are techniques, and they'll talk about, ‘usually it's done this way, but we decided to do it this way,’” Cantwell said. “It’s a great season for [making drinks].”

4. Find... “Talking to Strangers” by Malcolm Gladwell

While it’s always good to have the book in front of you, the audiobook version is interesting, because it offers the voices of those whom he interviewed. “It's just kind of connecting with humans,” Cantwell said. The book is less of a self-help book and more of an investigative piece on iconic interactions throughout history, such as the trial of Amanda Knox, the suicide of Sylvia Plath and the Bernie Madoff scandal.

5. Procure… “The Trouble with Christmas” by Amy Andrews

“I remember when I was in high school, I could go into the trashy romance section of Barnes & Noble and I would know from the cover and the design whether I was interested or not,” Cantwell said. Not only does this trashy romance novel take place in Colorado, but it's the perfect way to heat up a rather dreary season.

“It sounded really sort of like the kids from ‘Stranger Things’ and ‘It,’” Cantwell said. “It's sort of in that vein of content.” Amazon listed it as the top new release for humorous science fiction. This book follows a group of kids and their mysterious discoveries of a suspicious reformatory school in their small religious town in North Carolina. And remember — the beautiful part about libraries is that you do not have to pay for books in order to enjoy them. All of these books are accessible to you for absolutely nothing. X

4. The one who likes the facts Are you not one to beat around the bush? You avoid the “he-said, she-said” and just want to get down to the cold, hard truth.

5. The one who loves being in love If ya like ya loins to be aflame, this is your section, baby. Got a man? Don’t got a man? Wish ya had a man? Feel shameless reading a trashy romance novel this holiday season.

X a novel idea

6. Reserve… “The Lost Causes of Bleak Creek” by Rhett McLaughlin & Link Neal

3. The one who hates reading We get it — you’d rather wait for the movie to come out. It feels like work, or you just do not have the patience or time to sit and read a book. You’re just not the type.

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

3. Grab… “How to Cocktail: Recipes & Techniques for Building the Best Drinks” by America’s Test Kitchen

6. The one who hates the government Because sometimes anarchy feels like a great choice. If you like books like “The Hunger Games” or “Divergent,” then maybe you would enjoy flipping through a quality dystopian novel for the holidays.

WORDS & PHOTO: CASEY SMITH DESIGN: LEAH WARD

Factory is a coworking space in downtown Grand Junction.

FACTORY Downtown coworking space sparks community The energy of coworking spaces is second to none. Workers may come from many backgrounds and fields but each occupy and share the same space, creating an area where productivity meets ideas and networking. Coworking spaces are a new frontier for individuals who would be working from home. There are actually hundreds all over the world, creating a global network of working individuals. In Grand Junction, workers can join the community at Factory, a thriving coworking space at 750 Main Street. Factory is actually one of three connected locations in the Western

Slope area — the others being in Montrose and Ridgway. “All of our members are a bunch of different people in different places of life — some of them are younger, some of them are middle-aged, and they all are doing similar things,” Julia Sundstrom, community space manager at Factory, said. Sundstrom recently graduated from Colorado Mesa University with a degree in mass communication and a minor in business entrepreneurship. “Our community is primarily goofy, sarcastic, but also very driven and focused.” Coworking spaces operate on memberships. Workers of all kinds

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need for fast internet a necessity. And as a father, it was difficult for him to be productive from home. “At first, I started working in the open space, and it was great because I had recently moved on from my last job and went freelance. I just didn't have the money to pay for a lot of overhead. So it was an affordable solution where I could come in with my laptop,” Campbell says. Now he works out of an office at Factory, where he is able to have more of his equipment with him when he works. “I didn't start coworking because I necessarily felt like I needed to be surrounded by people. I'm kind of an introvert. But one of the unexpected things was that I've gotten a ton of business just by being located here. It's kind of this central business hub where, because of all the events they run here, there's always people coming. And with the people that work here and in the building, I've ended up doing business and projects with some of them,” Campbell said. Coworking spaces bring shared ideas, communication and networking to work that can, at times, be so individual that it’s isolating. Factory and places similar to the concept give those individuals a space to be unique with other unique individuals. b

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pay a monthly membership to have access to the space. Factory offers three plans for its users. For just $20, anyone can drop in and work from a workspace, have kitchen access (which includes coffee from Kiln Coffee Bar), utilize the “freaky-fast” Wi-Fi and rent conference rooms. Workplace memberships give users 24/7 access to the building and five free hours of conference room rental. Desk Members are given all the perks of workplace members, with the added bonus of a designated desk or office. “In a coworking space, in general, it's all about community and spending time with people you like. So when you're interested in working out of a coworking space, you can go to so many different coworking spaces and see which community fits best for you,” Sundstrom said. Coworking spaces significantly cut costs of small businesses, freelance and startup workers, but it really creates an opportunity for networking and communication. Factory was launched by Josh Hudnall and Brian Watson in 2016. Since then, it has gained more than 100 members. One of those members, William Campbell, works out of Factory as a freelance director and cinematographer. “I’ve been using Factory services since before they opened the doors — before they even built down here. My good friends, Brian Watson and Josh Hudnall, are both people I have known and worked with for a while. I remember they got this location with fiber internet and we would sometimes scramble in and use their internet, before they opened the doors, to upload large files.” Campbell works primarily with large video files, which makes the

“In a coworking space, in general, it’s all about community & spending time with people you like.” — Julia Sundstrom

WORDS: JENNA KRETSCHMAN & MABEL ELLISON ART: GABRIELLE BODE

The epitome of community and cosplay is Comic Con, a place where fandoms connect through costumes, art, comic books and conversation. In October, Mesa County Libraries held its fourth annual Comic Con at Two Rivers Convention Center in Grand Junction. The convention drew almost 6,000 people, and it featured cosplay contests, fandom meetups, panels and presentations on a variety of topics, an expo hall of exhibitors displaying and selling products and artwork and special guests. “A library is about more than just books. A library is about connecting people in the community, and Comic Con is a great way for people to connect over common interests,” Bob Kretschman, communications manager at Mesa County Libraries, said. “Comic Con draws people of all types. We get young, old — it's a very diverse crowd. And they all come together around the shared fandom. It is really cool to see everyone from little kids to seniors with gray hair dressing up as different characters.” The Justice League of Hope, a group whose mission is to create “unbreakable smiles” by dressing up as superheroes, visiting children in hospitals and adopting underprivileged families during Christmas, was one of the convention’s special guests. Chris DeLeon, a Colorado Mesa University student, is part of the group. “The charity project every year for the JLH is to raise money to

adopt underpriviledged families for Christmas, but this is more than just getting nice things for children. We do that too, but it’s about giving hope to the whole family,” DeLeon said. “We step in and use the funds we raise to help make sure families have food in their kitchen, utilities paid and sometimes find a way to keep them from becoming homeless.” Another special guest was the Junktown Comic Book Project, a local comic book that features a variety of artists in western Colorado. A founding member of the project is Brooke Safken, a CMU art instructor. It is through Safken that graphic design student Gabrielle Bode became involved. This year, Bode’s comics were featured in the book, and she showed off her passion for cosplay at the event. “The Junktown Comic Book Project is a way for local artists here in the community to be able to show off their illustration skills, whether it be digital or traditional media,” Bode said. She spent the day cosplaying as Princess Belle in a costume she created by hand. “[My favorite cosplay I’ve done is] probably my Princess Belle gown, just because it is the most perfectly done. I used to whip costumes together, and as long as they looked okay for a convention and survive a few hours, I’d call it good. But now, I really take pride in making everything perfect down to the last stitch,” Bode said. Jessica Todd and Esme Contreras, both graphic design students, sold

in music, and music as a genre and as a medium is pushing boundaries in a way that I haven't seen television or film really going for it,” Venter said. “My favorite [part of Comic Con] was actually walking around the convention and the exhibit hall and seeing all the different artists. I spent a lot more money than I planned.” Mesa County Libraries Comic Con is a day for people with shared interests to unite — to take pride in their passions and support each other’s creativity, and that’s what community is all about. b

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original items like stickers, posters and coloring pages at the expo hall. “As someone who was part of the artist alley this year, there was also a wonderful community amongst the artists, and everyone was very supportive and ready to help each other out,” Todd said. Elaine Venter, a professor of mass communication at CMU, was one of four panelists on LgBTQ+ in pop culture. This year’s panel focused on the increase of representation the LgBTQ+ community has recently gained, particularly in music. “I’ve seen a lot more representation

comic con X

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HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

Uncensored art gallery inspires community and expression WORDS: HEC SALAS PHOTOS: BRENNA RHINESS ART: MABEL ELLISON

never be hung anywhere except a tattoo shop. The public is very skittish when it comes to nipples. I started doing a yearly show called the Erotica Art Show, which is a show just for all forms of erotica, from classic nudes to pin up to what-have-you. That was really where the uncensored art gallery idea came from.” The pro-artist philosophy does not end there. Uncanny Valley does not take a commission from the artists for the pieces that they sell. “Everyone pays a small membership fee that goes directly to rent and keeping the lights on. I tell my artists I don’t make my money and pay my bills off their hard work. They’re just helping keep this place be the self-sustaining, beautiful house of cards that it is,” Goss said. The community has embraced Uncanny Valley’s mindset and presence. They are sponsored by the likes of CopyCopy, Discontent and Plum Creek Winery. The city of Grand Junction has accepted the art gallery with open arms, recognizing the

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Matt Goss runs one of the most unapologetic art galleries in the Grand Valley. Uncensored. Commission-free. Pro-artist. Uncanny Valley Art Gallery in downtown Grand Junction offers some of the more bizarre, interesting and unfiltered art anybody can find. Goss acts as the gallery director at Uncanny Valley, though his team consists of several people. “We are a co-op,” Goss said. “All of our members pitch in a small monthly due to keep the rent going and keep the lights on.” It’s a team effort at Uncanny Valley from the artists to the management. Yet, even the management are artists in their own right. Goss, although busy with the operations of the gallery, has his own work on sale and on display for patrons to see. “I started off doing figure art. Just classic nudes. Loved doing it,” Goss said. “It was just a great passion, but even my classical nudes could

monthly art shows and benefits. “We’re just about getting art into homes. So far, the community has really come out to support the idea. They know every penny they spend here goes directly into the pocket of the artist that made it.” Because the community embraces Uncanny Valley, the art gallery embraces the community right back in the form of hosting events, supporting charity and welcoming community programs. “We do a steampunk themed event. We have our erotica art show. We do benefits for the Veterans’ Art Center. We’re getting ready to do one for an after-school program called After School Art Jam, and we’re doing a depression awareness show,” Goss said. “We like to do private painting parties, drink and paint events, birthdays, meetings.... We want to be a community art space more than anything else. All the members here are all allowed to teach.” Anyone can come to Uncanny Valley and propose their art for display. Students and community members alike are encouraged to pitch their creative ventures. “If an artist is brave enough to make it, I’m brave enough to show it for them,” Goss said. In 2017, Downtown Grand Junction officially became a state-recognized creative district. Here is where

reflect on yourself or think about the subject, then art has done its job. The worst thing you can do for art is not pay it any mind.” Although the art in Uncanny Valley certainly can make a statement, the goal is not to outright shock people for the sake of getting a few visitors. Goss summed up Uncanny Valley’s personality well: “We’re not looking to kick up dust, but we don't want to be your normal, everyday, boring art gallery. We definitely like to be a little stranger.” b

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Uncanny Valley finds its role in the community as it gives a voice to local artists on a potentially state-wide stage. That’s the gallery’s goal — to empower the artist. It’s not about making a profit. “I tell people I’m a terrible businessman, but a great art manager,” Goss said. The entire purpose of the gallery is to get the community to freely engage with art and each other. “Whatever the artist has to say, I think they should be allowed to say it,” Goss said. “Whether you agree with it or not is not really the point. If it gets you to

uncanny valley X

WHAT’S THAT NOISE? Local Music in Grand Junction

WORDS & PHOTOS: BRENNA RHINESS DESIGN: LEAH WARD

The Grand Valley’s diverse music scene allows the community to find a local artist with a unique and distinct sound any weekend of the year. From seasoned artists to up-and-coming student musicians in a variety of genres — punk, folk, metal, rap — the Grand Valley’s got it all. Jeff Steele, drummer of Union of None, a local high-energy ‘80s/‘90s cover band, calls the local music in Grand Junction “the soul of the community.” As music labels become larger and fewer, local music feels more down-to-earth. “We have an amazing music scene in this town; [students] need to see it,” Steele said. “With a local band,

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Above: Southside Highway jams out.

you get raw talent from people that you work with and see every day.” He advocates for people to pay attention to the music at their front door. Steele is also the publisher of Grand Valley Live magazine, a monthly publication that highlights local musical artists, stories within the music community, local beer reviews and upcoming shows. The community of musicians in the Grand Valley is unparalleled, from the country/rock-influenced band Southside Highway to the loud, punkshredding of the NC-17s. The original duo of Wave 11, a funky hip-hop reggae band, sat down with Horizon Magazine at Kiln Coffee Bar. Zach Couron, a Colorado Mesa University alumnus, and Charles Walker chatted about music and greeted friends when they came in the door with huge hugs and a few laughs. Wave 11 recently added a new member, a drummer. Walker wanted to focus on his vocals. He discussed his favorite track on their debut album, “Wisdom & Strength.” “‘Sippin’ is my favorite [track]. I get to do the beat pad; I get to rap,” Walker said. The addition of Derek Suiter, also known as D-Wreck, has added another level to their sound. “I just get into a really weird state of mind where I close my eyes, and my fingers just do weird things on the guitar, and I open my eyes and everybody’s just like, ‘whoa’,” Couron said when discussing one

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

“With a local band, you get raw talent from people that you work with and see every day.” — Jeff Steele

“We’re just a bunch of dudes who make weird sounds and somehow we’ve made it this far.” — Zach Couron

of his favorite covers to play, “Hotel California” by The Eagles. “I love music. I don’t know what I would do without it. I’d just be a hobo on the street — just chilling here on Main Street. I don’t know what I’d do without music. I’d be a really weird person,” Walker said. According to Walker and Couron, they’re just two dudes who met while working at an Applebee’s who make music. They’ve played at weddings, Mesa Theater and a plethora of other events. “I think from the beginning, any goals that we might have had we’ve absolutely blown through. It blows my mind,” Couron said. “We’re just a bunch of dudes who make weird sounds and somehow we’ve made it this far.” Morgan Crouse, lead vocalist for Southside Highway, is a mass communication major at Colorado Mesa University. She began playing seriously with the band in March 2019. The members originally came together and played for fun before getting the opportunity to open at Warehouse25sixty-five. They played off of one rehearsal and

never looked back. Southside Highway is composed of Crouse, Randy Brown on rhythm guitar and vocals, Jared Shaw on lead guitar, Morgan “Mo” Nelson on the drums and Steve Johnson on the bass. Johnson and Nelson are also in a band in Rifle called LeverAction. It’s difficult to nail down the sound of Southside Highway. “The best description we’ve been able to come up with would be like kind of a southern, rock, Texas-country kind of sound; it’s not the country music you hear on the radio today,” Crouse said. This “old country and rock marriage” is the lifeblood of the band; it doesn’t sound like anything else. “There’s no shortage of local music to get to …. It’s everything from bluegrass to punk and hardcore metal. So, it doesn’t matter what’s in your rotation, we can find something that can fit it,” Steele said. If there’s something locals are looking for, they can look no further than their very own community. “Virtually every month there’s at least one band releasing either singles or full EPs or albums.” Steele spoke highly of local bands trying to go national. “Zolopht is amazing, and right now they’re doing some shows. They just opened for UB40 …. They’re working on saving up or making enough money to go to Chicago and record an album out there.” The next time you walk by a group of people in town playing music with the raw talent that Steele describes, stop and listen for a while. b

CMU professors get nerdy b VENOM BIOLOGY Dr. Steve Werman

hopes of uncovering where the genes came from. The science behind snake venom is still not entirely understood, but there is a pretty solid idea of how it works. “It’s basically a cocktail. It’s a mixture of a lot of different components. There’s a lot of different proteins and enzymes and peptides in venom,” Werman said. Snake venoms target muscle fibers and destroy bodily tissue. Muscles in the body have sodium channels that help move the muscle and are activated by the docking of a chemical called acetylcholine to the surface. There are two kinds of neurotoxic snake venom, both of which affect acetylcholine. The first is called alpha, or postsynaptic neurotoxins. The other is beta, or presynaptic neurotoxins. Cobras and sea snakes use alpha toxins, while rattlers and vipers have beta toxins. Werman focuses on beta toxins, which inhibit the release of acetylcholine altogether, stopping the muscles from firing. “My hypothesis is that many rattlesnakes in the distant past were neurotoxic. But over time, evolutionary time, they’ve lost their neurotoxicity, and apparently having more tissue-damaging, hemorrhagic venoms seemed to work better, so selection may have favored those,”

WORDS: ELIAS BORN PHOTOS: ELIAS BORN & BRENNA RHINESS ART: ELIAS BORN

This text contains technical terms relative to the respective fields. Definitions of terms and jargon are included for your aid. Poison vs Venom: While both are toxins, venoms are typically injected and poison is ingested or touched.

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CMU Professor of Biology Dr. Steve Werman has jars of snakes in his cabinets. Coiled tightly into ribbons, they float in the murky alcohol, as if asleep. Werman is studying an intersection of venom biology and evolutionary biology. Focused on two different kinds of snakes, the midget faded rattlesnake and the mojave rattlesnake, he hopes to find out exactly why there are similarities in their venom. The venom in midget faded rattlesnakes contains a neurotoxin, which paralyzes the nervous system. “I’m trying to see if the gene sequences for their neurotoxin, when you look at the actual nucleotide sequence, are similar to the mojave neurotoxin genes,” Werman said. “And what we’re finding out, interestingly, is that they're almost identical, which raises the question: here you have two snake species that have been separated by ... millions of years, and yet they have nearly identical venom genes?” The two snakes are not very closely related. The midget faded rattlesnake is found in western Colorado, while the mojave is further south in the United States and Mexico. Werman compared the DNA sequences of each snake’s neurotoxin genes to find their level of similarity in

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

OLOGY

Nucleotide: The basic structural unit of nucleic acids — in this case, DNA. Acetylcholine: A compound within the nervous system that functions as a neurotransmitter. Convergent Evolution: Unrelated organisms that evolve similar features due to occupying similar ecological niches. This story was inspired by the Ologies podcast by Alie Ward. alieward.com/ologies

b TYPOGRAPHY Eli Hall

Font vs Typeface: Font is the specific size, weight and style of a character set, such as Freight 8pt italic. A typeface refers to a general family of one or more fonts such as Freight. Serif: The flare at the base and/or top of a character that splays into the baseline. Sans Serif: Sans means without. Thus, they are letters without serifs. Also called gothic.

Werman said. “I think that for [the midget faded rattlesnake], it may be a relict, a holdover from the distant past that they just never lost.” His work is contributing toward figuring out how to characterize venom variation, which could lead to the development of different kinds of antivenom. “For example, in India, there are 100,000 deaths a year from snake venom, and a lot of the snakes have venom variation. So if you can get a handle on the variation and produce effective antivenoms and get these out to where people need them, you can save a ton of lives. But it’s all based on what’s the variation, and that variation starts at the gene level,” Werman said.

Colorado Mesa University Visual Design Professor Eli Hall has drawers filled with wood blocks of letters in his letterpress room. Step inside and you’ll see a harmony of ink and print on practically every surface. “All typefaces have personalities. They have their own voice. Some typefaces are workhorses, and you can use them in many areas,” Hall said. “Some typefaces are so specific, they only work in one certain space. Maybe it’s on a certain app, or maybe it’s on a certain page layout.” Typography is the art of working with type. Be it simply choosing what font to use when writing a paper or literally designing a unique style of letters and characters, typography encapsulates a broad spectrum. “Typography has really changed over, I’d say in my experience, the last two decades especially, because of how many more people have access to it,” Hall said. “What I’ve found as a professor is that most of it is done pretty poorly, and done without ... good concepts. That’s why you can go to any store in the United States, pick up half the products in there, and then you can’t read the ingredients.” Typography is everywhere, from posters to cereal boxes to building signs to this magazine. “One of the hardest things for a designer to do is to choose the right typeface for the right job …. A lot of designers will actually work within a field of, say, 10 to 20 typefaces for almost everything they do in their career.” Making a typeface always starts with a pencil, paper and two

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019 X professor ology

questions: what do you want your typeface to do, and what do you want it to be? After those questions, it’s time to develop the personality of the typeface, as Hall puts it. “You write a couple of words, pretty large, ... and [see] how letters sit next to each other,” Hall said. “And then you get into the real technical aspect, and that is where all the letters, all the glyphs, all the numerals, everything is drawn out. And then we’re critiquing them individually.” Hall himself is currently working on a typeface called Slab Hard. The word slab comes from slab serif, and the hard comes from the maple wood that he’s using. As for how one names their typeface? “That one was driving me nuts,” Hall said. “A lot of people try to be clever with them. Some people name them with an A, ... so that it will be higher up on the [alphabetical] list when people go to [choose their font].” While typographers might be few top: Slab Hard was cut into maple with a computer-automated drill and letterin number, typography helps build pressed after shape development was finalized. bottom: Miscellaneous slugs (letter blocks) are stored in divided font drawers. brands, making this a skill sought after in the marketing world. b GEOCHEMISTRY “Typefaces have trends, just like Dr. Andrew Wolff everything else in design,” Hall said. “Like in the ‘90s, for example, ... CMU Instructor of Chemistry Dr. Helvetica was taking over branding; Andrew Wolff has globs of hot starch everybody used it. Typefaces were sitting on coats of paint in his lab. made for a reason, and it’s when He’s working on a patent for using they’re used for things outside of that starch to remove graffiti from the reason that they start to get a bad Colorado National Monument, and reputation. The best example of that eventually any other place that would is Papyrus was used for the Avatar like to remove marks seen as unsightly. poster .... It’s just the wrong typeface “Last summer, some guy tagged to use on signs.” the monument …, and that kind Typography gives the written of annoyed me …. Like, that’s my word personality, and when used national park. He doesn’t get to put Nucleophile: Chemical substances that donate skillfully, it can influence decisions graffiti on my national park if I can a pair of electrons to and shape experiences. Typography prevent it,” Wolff said. complete bonds in the is ubiquitous yet invisible, and that’s He has rocks covered in black paint event of a reaction. what gives it power.

Acyl: Pieces of a molecule that are made up of a double-bonded oxygen, a carbon chain and a third bond of anything, but OH. Carboxylic Acid: Organic groups where a carbon atom is double-bonded to an oxygen and bonded to a hydroxyl group (OH). Polyacrylate: Synthetic resins produced by the polymerization of acrylic esters. Polymerization: A chemical reaction where small molecules combine to form longer chains such as plastics. Longer chains produce more tensile strength.

below: Wolff displays the effects of the starch solution.

that he’s trying to remove. The paint is the cheap, 99-cents kind from Walmart; another, more premium brand sat on the counter. “What we found is that if we make up a [concentrated] starch, it’s called a paste, and ... apply that paste to these rocks, and let the starch dry, the starch actually pulls the paint off of the rocks,” Wolff said. The process to remove graffiti from the Monument and rock in general currently is to just paint it over with rock-colored paint. Power washing is not an option because of the damage it causes to the rock. After the Monument was vandalized, Wolff set to work, basing his experiments on his decades of prior experience in chemistry. “I got a piece of sandstone, I painted it black, I applied the starch; it didn’t work,” Wolff said. “I applied the starch again, it still didn’t work. I applied the starch a third time, and it

still didn’t work. I got disgusted; I put it in the back of the lab and left it.” Patience would pay off in the end, though. “I came back three weeks later, and it lifted the paint. Turns out, I didn’t have enough starch the first couple of times,” Wolff said. The only ingredients involved in making the mixture are starch and water. That’s it. Here’s what they think is happening chemically, as explained by one of Wolff’s student researchers on this project, Sara Clark: “It’s an organic reaction called a transesterification reaction,” she explained. “It’s a nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction that is completed with carboxylic acid derivatives. There’s a polyacrylate compound in paint, and with the starch, there’s a group on starch that is substituted for a group on the polyacrylate, which then connects the two molecules through a covalent bond. As the starch dries, it has two

In Mathematics Professor Ana Berrizbeitia’s classroom at Colorado Mesa University, algebra becomes more than finding x. Berrizbeitia, known to her students as Dr. Berry, studies abstract algebra. In math, a set is a collection of objects, such as integers. “An algebraic structure is a set with, well, structure,” Berry said. “If you had a set with numbers, you could add them to create more, or multiply them, and those are the operations. I work with more complicated structures with

Coalgebra: Dual and inverse to unital or normal algebra which its principles are translative to. Hopf Algebra: Simultaneously unital algebra and coalgebra, yielding comultiplication, coassociativity and counitarity. Path Algebra: Directed graphing where vertices are allowed multiple arrows in a multidigraph; a quiver.

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b ABSTRACT ALGEBRA Dr. Ana Berrizbeitia

more operations.” Berry studies what are called Hopf algebras. In mathematics, algebra is the study of symbols and the manipulation of those symbols. However, there is also an algebra, which is simultaneously a ring and a vector space. In an algebra, objects can be added, multiplied and scaled. Next, we have a coalgebra, which takes the operations in an algebra and reverses them. For example, instead of multiplying objects, the objects are broken apart. Hopf algebras have the structure of both an algebra and a coalgebra. “What we want to do is figure out how a set with that much structure can act on another set with structure. Acting means taking an element and hitting another element, and seeing the reaction,” Berry said. “I take Hopf algebras and act on other algebras — in particular, path algebras.” Hitting means doing calculations on a piece of paper. Still with us? So far, we have Hopf algebras and path algebras. Hopf algebras, remember, have the structure of both an algebra and a coalgebra, which literally means it is a set of objects that we can add, subtract, multiply and scale, as well as perform the “opposite operations” on each object — like break apart instead of multiply. Path algebras are linear combinations of paths, which are literally connected line segments. Berry’s research can be thought of as putting a bag of Skittles on a table. They have a position on that table. The Skittles are path algebras. Berry wants to answer the question, if you attack your Skittles with a Hopf algebra, or your hands in this case, which skittles didn’t react at all?

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

structures, a fluid and dry. When dry, it starts to coil. That’s why people used to starch their shirts, because it made the shirts sturdy.” What does this all mean? Essentially, starch stretches out like spaghetti when it’s heated. This reacts with the chemical that binds the color to the paint, called acrylate. Since starch coils after it reacts, it pulls the acrylate right off the surface, and the color along with it. As for how massive of a structure could be de-vandalized with this method? “How massive do you want?” Wolff smiled at the question. “If you wanted to take down a wall that’s covered with graffiti, the only question is how much starch do you need and how fast can you get it applied.” “Once it dries, ... we’re guessing 90 percent [of the paint should be gone] on the first application and another 50 or 60 percent on the second application, so it’s going to be pretty clean,” Wolff said.

Lipid: A class of organic compounds, including fats, oils, waxes and hormones that are insoluble in water. White Sucker Fish: Catostomus Commersonii. A freshwater, benthic (bottom-dwelling) fish that can grow up to 2 to 6 lbs and 12 to 20 inches long.

“I know the answer in certain cases,” Berry said. “I’m still figuring it b FRESHWATER ECOLOGY Dr. Erieck Hansen out in general.” CMU Associate Professor of Biology The strategy for finding which Dr. Erieck Hansen studies white Skittles don’t move is to first make sucker fish — the ones that have them move. We can’t predict which puckered lips and look like they’re ones won’t move; we can only know pouting all the time. retroactively. So to find the ones that “Right now, what I’m doing is trying don’t move, we need something called to develop a technique to estimate a Hopf integral, which pretty much how fat fish are, without having to makes things unmovable. What Berry euthanize them,” Hansen said. discovered is that all of the things that The research would identify a are unmovable come from oriented potential problem with the fish more cycles, which are closed paths in the efficiently than other methods. It path algebra, similar to a loop. So, to also could identify what’s causing the find all the unmovable objects, we just problem. Lipid mass measurements need to hit the oriented cycles with are the most precise way to measure the Hopf integral. how healthy a fish is. Think of it like this: imagine you’re “For humans, you don’t want to trying to figure out what type of have too much fat. But for fish, being people aren’t able to get wet. There’s fat is a good thing, because you might a group of people walking around need to migrate. Winter is a hard time; outside, and we have a water balloon. there’s not a lot of food. Or if it’s a After throwing the water balloon, we really hot summer and there’s drought, find that there are people who look or when they’re spawning, they need the same, even after getting drenched to use those energies. They need to with the water balloon. They were have a lot of fat to be able to do these drenched in water before the balloon things,” Hansen said. was thrown. Now we know what The current process to measure people can’t get wet: those who were the lipid content of a fish is timedrenched already won’t get any wetter consuming and unkind to the fish, from the water balloon. taking a few weeks to find out the “When we study an object and exact numbers. Hansen and a number observe how it interacts with other of other researchers are looking into objects, it gives us a big picture of how what’s called bioelectrical impedance the pieces of the puzzle fit together,” analysis (BIA). This involves Berry explained. “If I know what hooking up electrodes to fish and didn’t change, it gives me a focal point administering a 400 microamp shock, to start with.” which then gives measurements that So far, Berry speculates her can be used to determine lipid content. math could have quantum physics “From those measurements, we applications, but the math is can get a resistance and reactance still too abstract to be sure of measurement, and then we go and anything for now. make statistical models to ... predict water mass, fat mass [and] fat free

“The application is a tool or technique to help you answer other questions, like the comparison between a place that burned or a place that didn’t burn,” Hansen said. “Or y’know, if you’re working in a hatchery, and you’re doing one diet, you can compare diets and use this as one measurement, so you wouldn't have to sacrifice your fish to see where they’re at.” Hansen’s team of students helping with this research are Kristine Crippen, Keila Utu, Kristina Morben, Jacob Eggers, Tyler Walton, Ashlee Henson, Jefferson Jenson and Ben Fairbanks.

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mass,” Hansen said. Resistance is the measure of friction between cells, while reactance can tell the mass of a cell from how it holds the charge of electricity. The statistical models are linear regression models, which Hansen is still working on. Hansen uses fish from the Catostomidae family, or suckers, that get their name from their enlarged lips. White suckers are an invasive species to the Colorado River and are similar to other endangered fish species in the river. By developing the BIA for white suckers, he can then move on to other species.

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A look at CMU’s student-run campus pub The Point at Colorado Mesa University is a hub of socialization and community. The on-campus pub and restaurant is more than just a convenient place for students to play a game of pool or grab a beer with friends — it’s an educational opportunity for students to gain real-life experience in business, entrepreneurship and restaurant service. What’s now a popular hangout spot, complete with games, music, food and drinks, began as a simple idea by a few students in a spring entrepreneurship class in 2013. They surveyed other students and found what was most wanted on campus at the time was live music, students art and free Wi-Fi. Originally, the idea

was to open a coffee shop in an old house around campus. “We looked around at houses, and at that point, we talked to President Foster. And he said, ‘No, you should do a bar,’ and I'm like, ‘I’m not doing a bar.’ I used to own a bar that was close to here, and I wasn't into having college students in a bar. You know, that's just not my idea of a good time. Therefore, we started a bar. Associated Student Government was interested in starting an on-campus bar, so they funded us,” Georgann Jouflas, business instructor and advisor of The Point, said. The bar first opened off-campus in the space between where FedEx and Jimmy John’s are along 12th Street. It operated there for a year before the

a petition.” City Council approved the statute change, and the bar was in business. The Point offers relevant experience to students in a range of disciplines who often go on to work in related fields after graduation, like marketing, accounting, mass communication and even cooking. “I really believe that people learn by doing. I can talk about accounting, but it means nothing to you unless you really see what it's doing. And so that's what the [entrepreneurship] class does; it gives you experience. And to me, experience gives you confidence. I don't expect you to have the confidence to run a bar, but I want you to have confidence to just exist in the real world. Because if you've done it here, you can transfer that somewhere else. And that's why it's important,” Jouflas said. Committed to being a community gathering place, The Point hosts a variety of entertainment and art nights, including mimosa Mondays, trivia Tuesdays, karaoke Wednesdays, open mic nights, student bands, drag shows and club events. Ultimately, The Point is a place where students can embrace community and connect with others, whether it be exchanging ideas over a beer, meeting new friends while playing games or developing a foundation for a successful career. “We are a place where people can exchange ideas — not just business people, but any discipline. It’s a place where all good things come together,” Jouflas said. b

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University Center was remodeled in 2014, and The Point moved into the space it occupies now. Today, The Point is run entirely by about 12 to 15 students in Jouflas’ entrepreneurship class who oversee the daily business operations of the bar, from foodservice to accounting to marketing and social media. Each semester brings a new staff with fresh ideas. Kimberly Weber, who is now the financial administration supervisor at Meadow Gold Dairy, was one of the founding students of the bar. Weber, a former manager at The Point, was one of around 10 students who took it on as a project long past the entrepreneurship class. “We started The Point literally from an Excel spreadsheet and a Survey Monkey. There was a need for late-night food, at least for people who were living on campus, because otherwise, they would have to walk to McDonald’s,” Weber said. After coming up with the initial business plan, the students hit a roadblock. In 2013, CMU was a dry campus, and a city statute prevented the students from obtaining a liquor license. “We had to jump through a lot of different hoops in order to get permission to start this venture,” Weber said. “We were going for our liquor license for beer and wine only, and we had to change a city statute saying that we were serving alcohol within so many feet within an educational institution, so we had to go around to the surrounding neighborhoods and have them sign

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

“We started The Point literally from an Excel spreadsheet and a Survey Monkey.” — Kimberly Weber

HORIZON MAGAZINE fall 2019

WORDS: JENNA KRETSCHMAN PHOTOS: DAFNÉ THÉROUX-IZQUIERDO

very community has problems to solve and improvements to make — people and animals are homeless, hungry, lonely, struggling. The same is true for Grand Junction. Children, seniors and everyone in between could all use community support from time to time. The good news is that there are plenty of mission-driven organizations that exist to not only help those in need, but to enhance the lives of everyone in the community. Many of these organizations cannot operate without the help of volunteers.

Volunteering does not have to mean committing a ton of time. It can be as simple as signing up to tutor children once a week, spending one day each month preparing dinner for the homeless or fostering one animal. Every action makes an impact. Volunteering is beginner-friendly, and every organization is willing and excited to meet and train new helpers. Find something you care about, and choose to be part of the solution. Visit any of the organizations listed on the next pages or find many more online to start turning your caring into doing.

Above: HomewardBound of the Grand Valley volunteers prepare a meal for others.

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Volunteer opportunities to support Grand Valley community

HomewardBound of the Grand Valley “HomewardBound provides emergency shelter for up to 120 people per night,” Jesse Redmond, development director, said. “Hot dinners, evening snacks and breakfasts, as well as sack lunches for guests with day jobs, are prepared and served 365 days a year.” The shelter also uses donations to provide guests with free clothing and toiletry items. They provide case management, vocational training and

transitional and permanent housing for formerly homeless individuals. Volunteer opportunities include cooking and serving dinner in the evenings or spending a day of service at the shelter helping with miscellaneous projects. Sign up to volunteer on their website, homewardboundgv.org/volunteer.

Meals on Wheels Mesa County Meals on Wheels Mesa County is a program that delivers meals to homebound seniors in the valley. At least 23 volunteers are needed daily to run the program. “Willing and friendly people are always needed to drive routes and to serve food at the various sites. Senior isolation is a very real problem, and when it becomes severe, it is as bad [for health] as smoking 15 cigarettes

a day. For many of our customers, their volunteer driver may be the only person they have contact with during the day. The program gives volunteers an opportunity to see immediately the result of their efforts in our community,” Adrienne Carlo, program coordinator, said. To volunteer, visit mealsonwheelsmesacounty.org.

Habitat for Humanity of Mesa County Habitat for Humanity builds simple, affordable houses for families in need. The organization’s Homeownership Program allows people in need to help build their own houses and become homeowners. They also run ReStore, a discount home improvement store of donated items such as furniture, appliances, accessories and building materials. “We have many varied volunteer opportunities both at the ReStore

and construction site, and we can accommodate many skill levels. You can also lend your leadership on a committee or board,” Marifrances Kelly, volunteer coordinator, said. “Habitat for Humanity brings people together to build homes, communities and hope. We are so blessed to be able to work with individuals, businesses, civic and educational partners to build up our community.” To volunteer, visit habitatmesa.org.

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Riverside Educational Center Riverside Educational Center provides after-school tutoring and enrichment activities for kindergarten through 12th-grade students to inspire academic achievement and foster positive social and emotional development in a safe and supportive environment. Volunteers tutor students one evening per week. “Riverside Educational Center knows that you care about our community’s youth but may not know how to get involved to show your

support,” Cindy Haerle, community outreach coordinator, said. “To accomplish our mission, Riverside Educational Center relies heavily on volunteers and donors who dedicate their time, money and talents to ensure the success of our youth. Our volunteers are just like you — they care about the future of our community. Please consider joining our team!” To sign up, visit REC4kids.com.

below: Alex Marr makes a friend at Roice-Hurst Humane Society.

Roice-Hurst Humane Society

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Roice-Hurst Humane Society is a local animal shelter that offers a wide range of volunteer opportunities, including walking dogs, interacting with cats and kittens, cleaning, adoption events, animal transportation or even fostering animals in your home. “If you are an animal-lover and need a little bit of interaction with cats or dogs in your life, RoiceHurst is a great place to volunteer. Whether you're rubbing a dog's belly, brushing a cat, or hugging goodbye to an animal as he leaves for his new home, you'll find your purpose in knowing the difference you've made in each animal's life,” Megan Tillotson, volunteer coordinator, said. Visit rhhumanesociety.org or stop by the shelter to sign up as a volunteer or foster.

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OPINION:

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PART-TIME STUDENTS:

MAIN CAMPUS

MONTROSE

CMU CMU’s satellite campus deserves recognition Satellite. Even the word itself implies separation. Colorado Mesa University, Montrose. They have access to the recreation center, the Student Wellness Center, tennis courts, student clubs and organizations, a luxurious three-floor library equipped with study areas and many other options in lifestyle and leisure offered at CMU’s main campus … just so long they are willing to make the drive. Located 61 miles southeast of the main campus, CMU Montrose stands alone as a bastion of academics in a rural city that serves as the prelude to the mountain towns that tourists and natives alike enjoy exploring. The campus, which shares a building with the Montrose Regional Library, offers the first two years of coursework for those seeking to earn their bachelor’s degree, while also offering full access to programs in the teacher education and nursing fields. Montrose might not have the same ease of access to amenities, but does it need to? Higher education in rural towns is hard to come by. CMU understands the need to give residents of these small towns access to opportunity, not luxury. Montrose is an educational opportunity for

students who might not have the need, want or means to come to Grand Junction as a full-time or part-time student. It’s a different institution than the main campus — one that caters to a demographic of students in a community with different needs. Colorado Mesa University’s Student Profile for both the main campus and Montrose highlights these differences. In the spring of 2019, 51.4 percent of students in Montrose attended classes part-time. On the main campus, this number drops to 14.9 percent. Here, we can see that Montrose is largely made up of students who have other priorities in their lives than school. Perhaps they have a full-time job. Perhaps they have a child to care for. Perhaps they’re taking a year or semester on a light schedule. Gary Ratcliff, director of the Montrose campus, speaks on the diverse ways Montrose students attend school. “Some [students] commute or take online classes. It’s pretty impressive how they pull it off. Some younger students really want to keep their roots in Montrose. The [older] students have families or full-time jobs.” Regardless of their reasons,

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and a long time coming. Hopefully it could bring the entire CMU community together.” It’s fair that Montrose students felt the need to call for more attention to their campus. Montrose students pay the same student fees as everyone else but have fewer luxuries to show for it. Student fees, which according to CMU’s website, total to $32.10 per credit hour, fund the Maverick Recreation Center, University Center, Student Wellness Center, student organizations and services like MavRides and the Outdoor Program, which are all based in Grand Junction. What’s not fair is the gross underestimation of what Montrose is. The area is a growing community. The city will continue to grow and evolve in its respective environment. The goal for CMU is to make the two campuses feel unified. Calling Montrose the “forgotten campus” or failing to recognize how they excel in their unique community is not doing the institution any favors. It is the attitude of the students and organizations in Grand Junction that has to change. Crocodile tears feigning outrage about how Montrose students have to travel over an hour to visit the main campus fail to convey the relationship that exists between the Grand Junction and Montrose campuses. The educational opportunities provided by CMU to the people of Montrose are a driving force in the community. The satellite campus deserves fairness and recognition. The unique opportunities and experiences in Montrose now and in the future are and will be accessible to students in Grand Junction … just so long as we are willing to make the drive. b

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Montrose students attend school differently. In Montrose, 38.7 percent of students are at or over the age of 25. Compared to the main campuses’ 16.9 percent, it’s easy to see the important role that Montrose plays in rural Colorado. A large portion of Montrose students are opportunity-seekers who may not need or be able to travel to Grand Junction for education. “We put a primary emphasis on the learning experience over the social experience,” Ratcliff said. Although the administrative staff is focused on academics, the students themselves have put the social aspect of going to college into their own hands. Last year, Montrose students took the initiative and reached out to the Associated Student Government (ASG) for extra attention toward their campus. Soon after, thanks in part to the efforts of the CMU Montrose senator at the time, Braydon Burris, the student senate held a meeting in Montrose later, touring their study space, high-caliber nursing classrooms and attached library. ASG was shown the prospective area for a gym, learning the details of construction and possible plans moving forward. ASG soon enacted the Montrose Initiative Act (M.I.A., ironically) to help fund the future construction of a gym area for students to enjoy that is set to open in November. “I am proud of our accomplishments as an administration,” said Celeste Martinez, ASG’s press secretary at the time, about the bill’s impact on Montrose. “We were able to work together as a team to help our peers in Montrose. The Montrose gym was something that was well-deserved

MAIN CAMPUS

MONTROSE

Endurance and perseverance are all that is required.

Backcounty sleepovers

WORDS: DELANEY LETTS PHOTOS: LEVI KRAMER ART: DAFNÉ THÉROUX-IZQUIERDO DESIGN: LEAH WARD

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SKI HUTS

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xhausting treks are often rewarded by the most spectacular, mountainous views. Even after complaints about the cold and dreary weather are all said and done, Colorado’s wintery days still have plenty of thrilling activities to keep people warm, indoors and out. With Colorado’s rich outdoor landscape, the community has the

advantage of adventuring outdoors in the Grand Valley and beyond. When cold approaches and snow starts to fall, possibilities for winter outdoor recreation are just getting started. Ski hut trips can lead to a bone-chilling kind of fun. A ski hut trip is essentially a winter backpacking and backcountry skiing trip combined. A ski hut is a cabin, often shared by multiple

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groups of skiers, that serves as a home base and gathering place for winter adventurers needing a warm place to stay for the night. Trekking to the tops of snowy peaks can be challenging and physically demanding, but after a cozy night in a ski hut, a worthwhile downhill ski will come as a reward. Material strips called skins can be applied to the bottom of skis to allow more grip for moving uphill, which makes reaching the hut more achievable. Colorado Mesa University students have the chance to participate in these kinds of trips through the Outdoor Program from January to April. Although only offered once or twice each school year, ski hut trips are popular among adventure seeking students.

“You get the most character development out of those trips, because on a hut trip you work for every view.” — Ryan Dutch Because huts are often shared among several groups of skiers, it’s common to befriend and spend the night with other winter mountaineers. Typically, the Outdoor Program will allow eight to 15 students on a trip to fill an entire hut. Students can expect to pay up to $100 to cover the cost of not only the hut reservation, but also transport, gear and food. Colorado Mesa University senior Meghan Cline has led several Outdoor Program ski hut trips. “It’s so remote. When you’re standing on top of the mountain and

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led by trained student trip leaders. Students do not necessarily need to know how to ski before the outing, but some level of physical fitness is recommended. Endurance and perseverance are all that is required. Students can shape up for a ski hut trip by going backcountry skiing just about every Tuesday and Thursday with the Outdoor Program at Powderhorn Resort during ski season. “Hut trips are some of the hardest, most exhausting trips with the longest days and most brutal weather, but they are also some of the most rewarding. It’s a weird combination of leaving luxuries at home and being out of service, but then in return enjoying some of the most amazing views from the porch of your hut,” Ryan Dutch, Outdoor Program coordinator, said. “You get the most character development out of those trips, because on a hut trip you work for every view.” b

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all you can see are snow-capped peaks, it’s incredible and very quiet. Snowfall quiet is very different than normal quiet,” Cline said. Her favorite ski hut trip of all time was to Mount Belle Hut on Red Mountain Pass. It takes about an hour and a half to reach this hut from the trailhead where the transport vehicle is parked. Ian Thomas, vice president of CMU’s Sustainability Council, has participated in a few ski hut trips. “Students have every reason to be intimidated by this kind of trip. Venturing into the backcountry during the summer is one thing, but winter trips are an entirely different animal. Despite the fear factor and increased danger with avalanches, every backcountry skiing trip I've been on has been entirely worth it,” Thomas said. “Backcountry skiing trips are some of the best times and offer an amazing opportunity to push your physical and mental boundaries.” Outdoor Program ski hut trips are

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CMU'S NORDIC SKI TEAM WORDS: EOWYN LARSON PHOTO COURTESY: CALVIN LINDBERG DESIGN: LEAH WARD

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“I do it to stay in shape, but I also do it for the social aspect of it. I think there’s a cool skiing community, and I really like that. It reminds me of home. The team here is really supportive. We have a lot of perks. We’re really lucky with our sponsors; we don’t have to pay a whole lot, and I mean, we have to put in a lot of work to get that,” Hall said. “Our coaches are really great. We’re just really fortunate, and our coaches are good at one-on-one stuff since it’s a smaller team.” The team may be small with only about 10 students, but each member brings their own skills and experiences from all over the world. “We come from all over. We have athletes from Alaska, Minnesota, Utah, Norway and France. It’s amazing to show these groups of people the beauty of Colorado,” Dave Aschwanden, coach of CMU’s Nordic ski team, said. “There is a wide range of skiers; there are athletes like Hannah and me who have been skiing forever, and there are also skiers who have only skied for a year,” Hall said. Ultimately, through the hard work in freezing conditions, the real prizes are the team’s fun times and true friendships. “The team is really accepting and like a family,” Brown said. b

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oan Hall, a senior studying geology at Colorado Mesa University, has skied since he was three years old. To Hall, an Alaska native, the snowy mountains of Colorado are like a second home. A typical day for Hall consists of two things: going to class and training for the Nordic ski team. Even without snow, the Nordic ski team begins training and conditioning a week before classes start in August. While the team waits for snow, they train by roller skiing on the weekends, which is like rollerblading but on skis. During the week, they condition themselves with morning runs and weightlifting. In the wintertime, the team hits the Grand Mesa at least twice a week after classes, and then race days are typically during the weekend. CMU has two club ski teams — Nordic and Alpine. Alpine skiing is downhill, but Nordic skiing is crosscountry, which means skiing through any terrain. The goal of a ski meet is to race a certain distance, typically between one and 21 kilometers, in the fastest time possible against other schools. Last year, the men’s team took third place at the United States Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association National Championships. Hannah Brown, a sophomore from Minnesota studying hospitality management and marketing, started skiing for the Nordic ski team during her freshman year at CMU. She first stepped boot into a ski in seventh grade. “Ski athletes do not typically compete in college in hopes to move onto the Olympics,” Brown said. The rewards of community, friendship and fun make all of the hard work worth it.

“We have athletes from Alaska, Minnesota, Utah, Norway and France. It’s amazing to show these groups of people the beauty of Colorado.” — Dave Aschwanden 63

DISTILLERS WORDS & PHOTOS: HEC SALAS ART: KASIA KUCERA

Oldest indie distillery in Colorado brews passion & pride The Colorado and Gunnison rivers mix right where we call home. This intersection of giants happens nearly at the midway point of the Grand Valley, otherwise known as Grand Junction. This city of rivers serves as a hub for social, collegiate and urban life. What makes this dynamic possible are neighboring cities like Palisade that have been refining crafts like distilling for decades. In turn, commerce comes into the city, promoting local food and drink, while also encouraging locals to leave the urban setting and explore the more rustic and finer approach to craftsmanship. The steady flow of people between the towns in Mesa County is the social heartbeat that keeps the spirit of the area alive. At the forefront of commercial craftsmanship is Peach Street Distillers, who have made a name for themselves in the world of spirits and distilling by loving what they do and where they are. Peach Street Distillers were one

of the first in Colorado to get into the distilling business. Today, it's the oldest independently-owned distillery in the state. Davy Lindig, the head distiller at Peach Street, travelled long and far from Minneapolis to Alaska to Santa Fe to Durango to now Palisade. He learned how to brew in Alaska in 1991. In 2015, his historied career led him to Peach Street, and now they are renowned across the country for their work. “We were of the three first distilleries in the state of Colorado,” Lindig said. “We are the oldest Colorado-owned distillery in the state. There are over 100 in the state, so we’ve been around; we’ve stuck with; we’re successful. In 2012, we won the distillery of the year [award] for the whole country and we’re constantly winning awards and coming out with new products.” There are a few reasons as to why Peach Street is still around today. The fruit in Palisade is so fresh and the farmers are so willing to share, that

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area. There are no secrets here. Their craft is front and center for all to see. Locals can book a tour of the facility and do tastings of the spirits they make. “We hand-make all of these different products,” Lindig said. “We’re not just a bloody mary bar.” Peach Street wants to be known for the product that they craft by hand and sell. They are bold, honest and proud of their craft, mirroring the people of Palisade. From the farmers and fruit growers of the area, to the distillery itself, there is an importance placed on the freshness of the ingredients. There is a pride in working with local produce that emboldens the community. It’s something about looking at something and knowing it came from good hands. “A lot of people think I’m wearing a lab coat and creating alcohol out of thin air,” Lindig said. “But the majority of the work is done in the warehouse.” There is a certain passion that goes into distilling. From the fruit in ground to the aging done in the back, it all is a process carefully curated by hand, making sure that the blend has passion, human error and pride mixed into every bottle. b

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Peach Street has found itself a perfect place to call home. The roots of Peach Street’s passion are in Palisade and its community. When Peach Street first began, they were solely a production team, focusing on the craft of distilling. Over time, as people came in and tasted the fruits of their labor, people started to want a bar-like experience, so Peach Street obliged, creating an area for locals to come and socialize over a few cocktails and mixed drinks. “A lot of people don’t even think we do wholesale,” Lindig said. “We’re a production facility. Most people think we’re just a bar. They don’t even know how these [distills] work.” A fair amount of Mesa County residents see it as a place that merely sells drinks. However, Peach Street is first and foremost a distillery that makes spirits in-house. They are a team of people who pride themselves on the hard work and passion that is put into the producing alcohol. This means that they source local fruits and other ingredients, experiment, tinker and play with flavor profiles, try ingredients that pique interests for the sake that no one has done it before. They mix, distill and ferment in large metal rigs that are displayed in their sitting

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HORIZON MAGAZINEâ&#x20AC;&#x192; THE COMMUNITY ISSUE

FALL 2019