The Lost Creek Guide June 21, 2023

“Truth will ultimately prevail where there is pains taken to bring it to light” George Washington

“If we are to guard against ignorance and remain free, it is the responsibility of every American to be informed” Thomas Jefferson

What’s Working: Colorado’s Summer Jobs Are Disappearing

Fewer teenagers are part of Colorado’s labor force than past decades. Employers are focusing on retention and hiring longer-term workers.

by Tamara Chuang, Colorado Sun

It’s one of the more traditional summer jobs for students: Greeting fast-food customers, taking burger orders and working for or near minimum wage. That’s how Leo Agoi, who’s 15, is spending his summer — or at least 16 hours a week of it — as an employee at the McDonald’s on West Alameda Avenue in Lakewood. He loves it.

History of Fourth of July by

History.com

The Fourth of July—also known as Independence Day or July 4th—has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution. On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later delegates from the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson. From 1776 to the present day, July 4th has been celebrated as the birth of American independence, with festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues. The Fourth of July 2023 is on Tuesday, July 4.

History of Independence Day

When the initial battles in the Revolutionary War broke out in April 1775, few colonists desired complete independence from Great Britain, and those who did were considered radical.

By the middle of the following year, however, many more colonists had come to favor independence, thanks to growing hostility against Britain and the spread of revolutionary sentiments such as those expressed in the bestselling pamphlet “Common Sense,” published by Thomas Paine in early 1776.

On June 7, when the Continental Congress met at the Pennsylvania State House (later Independence Hall) in Philadelphia, the Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee introduced a motion calling for the colonies’ independence.

Amid heated debate, Congress postponed the vote on Lee’s resolution, but appointed a five-man committee—including Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, John Adams of Massachusetts, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and Robert R. Livingston of New York—to draft a formal statement justifying the break with Great Britain.

Crew

McDonald’s June 8, 2023, in Lakewood. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)

“I love my coworkers here. It’s like a good, I guess, social network. And I see a lot of my friends because a lot of people come to McDonald’s,” said Agoi, who worked at the same restaurant last summer. He got a raise this summer, too.

He liked the job so much, he recommended it to his friends. Many found jobs elsewhere. But others told him it has been difficult to get hired this summer and companies “they’d applied to haven’t gotten back to them,” Agoi said. “That’s what they’ve been saying.”

For the record, McDonald’s owner and operator Jessi Bucar is still hiring. Employees get free meals during their shifts. For those who stick around past summer, there’s health insurance, tuition assistance and more. But for the summer especially, she needs people who can work nights and weekends. And even for a summer gig, there are expectations: Show up on time, wear the (free) uniform, be courteous. Those who do well get a 10- to 15-cent hourly raise after 30 days. Too much to ask? Maybe.

“It’s really hard with kids these days because they always want to be on their phone. They always want to have their AirPods in their ears and in the food-service industry, hospitality is huge,” Bucar said. “When we tell them some of those things, they’re like, ‘No, I don’t want to work here.’”

Did you know? John Adams believed that July 2nd was the correct date on which to celebrate the birth of American independence, and would reportedly turn down invitations to appear at July 4th events in protest. Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died on July 4, 1826—the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

Colonists didn’t just take up arms against the British out of the blue. A series of events escalated tensions that culminated in America’s war for independence.

On July 2nd, the Continental Congress voted in favor of Lee’s resolution for independence in a near-unanimous vote (the New York delegation abstained, but later voted affirmatively). On that day, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail that July 2 “will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival” and that the celebration should include “Pomp and Parade…Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other.”

On July 4th, the Continental Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence, which had been written largely by Jefferson. Though the vote for actual independence took place on July 2nd, from then on the 4th became the day that was celebrated as the birth of American independence.

Early Fourth of July Celebrations and Traditions

In the pre-Revolutionary years, colonists had held annual celebrations of the king’s birthday, which traditionally included the ringing of bells, bonfires, processions and speechmaking. By contrast, during the summer of 1776 some colonists celebrated the birth of independence by holding mock funerals for King George III as a way of History of Fourth of July continued on page 10...

WHAT’S IN THIS ISSUE

Page 2: Way of the World

Page 3: Steve Laffey Running for President

Page 3: Representative Richard Holtorf Water Bill Signing

Page 5: Wiggins School District Newsletter

Page 7: DACA Update Article

Page 11: Colorado GOP Leader Goes after a Republican Congressman

The summer job has evolved. There is still summer-heavy demand for gigs like

rafting guides and camp counselors. But expectations of workers and employers have shifted in the past two years. Both can be pickier. Workers were able to What’s Working: Colorado’s Summer Jobs Are Disappearing continued on page 6...

Page 13: Republicans Do Not Have a Candidate for CD 8, Yet

Page 16: BobStock Free Music Event in Fort Morgan July 7 & 8

members Alex Chernov, 17, and Leo Agoi, 15, prepare food orders at a

Jessi Bucar, owner of McDonald’s in Lakewood, poses for a portrait June 8, 2023. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)

lifeguards,

Way of the World

by Bob Grand, Lost Creek Guide

This past Sunday was Father’s Day, earlier in the week was Flag Day, and in two weeks we will be celebrating the 4th of July. Those are things I am proud to take pride in. There is nothing wrong with taking pride in things. This is America and we have an absolute right to do that. We have a group today that seems to believe that they have an exclusive right to use the word pride and what it means. It is America and they are entitled to their beliefs as long as it does not interfere with the rights of other Americans to have their beliefs but please remember that America is composed of a great many individuals and groups. We should expect all Americans to respect the rights of other Americans who are entitled to have their own opinions.

The history of Mother’s Day and Father’s Day is interesting. Unfortunately, the commercialization of both has made them a major event in the retail marketplace. In 2023 it is estimated that $35.7 billion will have been spent on Mother’s Day and $25.9 billion on Father’s Day, which is significant. But more importantly one should assess the impact on the concept of the family. America has, on a percentage basis, the largest share of single, one parent homes. In an article for Pew Research, Stephanie Kramer notes that almost one quarter of children under the age of eighteen live with only one parent and no other adult, three times the world average. We ask why that is? A complicated set of issues. Religious participation is on an ever-decreasing membership base where the family is considered an essential element in the raising of a family. Our education system and political system do not promote the importance of a good family life in a child’s development. We have forgotten the importance of core values. Those core values are the basis on which a life should be built, and we wonder why our society seems to be going to hell in a handbasket.

Have you have been following the press releases from Dave Williams, the Republican GOP Party Chair for Colorado? I had the chance to chat with two Republican Party County Chairs recently who absolutely supported Dave Williams’s belief that the Republican Party has to unite all the Republicans together, under one tent. The problem is that the tent is too small to produce statewide election victories. If you look at the data available by county from the Colorado Secretary of State’s office from year end 2012 to June of 2023 total registered voters in the state are up 46.2 percent, to a total of 3,858,218. Of that number Republicans registered voters increased by a whopping 2.8% or 24,990 registered voters while registered unaffiliated voters grew by 116.1% or 968,294. Democrats grew by 21.8% or 188,678 registered voters. The Libertarian Party grew by 116.9% but that only represented an increase of 21,471 voters. These four classifications represented almost 99% of the registered voters. Now this does not tell you who actually voted but rather what the party registrations are. To solve a problem, you have to define what it is. I am not sure the Republican Party leadership over the past ten years in Colorado has known or been able to define its fundamental issue. Although many of their core values are commendable, they do not seem to be promulgated by the vocal minority who maintain control of the party apparatus and hence continue their personal control. If the Republican’s do not wake up, they will continue on an ever-decreasing percentage of the state’s electorate and in the not too distance future will even lead to their demise in Weld County. Wake up Colorado Republicans! Waking up is not a bad term, it just needs to be shared more.

Following the progress of what is going on in Ukraine is difficult in the media in America. For what is the largest conflict in recent memory the coverage is amazingly sparse. There are about a dozen channels on YouTube covering the conflict, but I follow two that I find particularly informative. One by Denys Davydov, a Ukrainian commercial pilot who has a daily update on the war activities. The other is by Constantine called Inside Russia. Both of these commentors are currently based outside of both Ukraine and Russia for obvious reasons.

Steve Bannon put forth a thought-provoking idea. He does not think that Robert Kennedy Jr. can win the Democratic Presidential nomination against Joe Biden, even with all of Biden’s flaws. Donald Trump, even with all his encumbrances will be difficult to unseat as the Republican front runner. What Bannon proposed is that Robert Kennedy Jr. should consider the number two spot on the Republican ticket in 2024. He is currently polling with about 15% of the Democratic party who want an option to Joe Biden. If half of those folks voted for the ticket that could tip the election in favor of the Republicans. Latest polling indicates, despite all that is going on with both Trump & Biden the American people are split about 50/50 between them. That says a lot about the state of the American political scenario in the United States. The world is a complex place, and we need strong leadership that can unite Americans and put America’s best foot forward. Where is that leadership in today’s major political parties in America? Bannon’s thoughts may not be so crazy but that assumes Donald Trump would even consider it.

As always, your comments and thoughts are always appreciated: publisher@ lostcreekguide.com

Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor,

I read an article here about women in sports and I felt I needed to share my story. I was in Byers, CO for a match. I looked across the mat and in front of me was a girl. And in seconds I was staring at the ceiling hearing the ref slap his hand on the mat. “One!” “Two!” And I was thinking to myself, “I’m not going to make it. How do I get out of this?” And it was a thought I had had many times before. She won, and the ref lifted her hand.

In this pursuit I was very aware of my sense of self-development, and I had three deferring opinions in my mind at the same time: One was the knowledge that I would have a much harder time being true to myself. And Two was that I knew that had I been true to myself I would have been divided from my family and friends. And lastly, I knew I needed to develop strength because the world is not fair.

So I kept showing up to that version of myself, and practiced. Had a wonderful girlfriend that rode horses, and we went to prom. And my story would have continued just like that if it weren’t for a conversation that my sister mistakenly misheard while eavesdropping. And just like that, I had to rebuild my friends and connections from scratch. I was told to get out. I generally just make a joke that my mother was illinformed to send me to an all-guys school to keep me from being distracted. We’d all laugh and I wouldn’t have to retell the story again.

Now back to that evening before my Senior year began, I was on the pavement laying on my back looking up at the stars. I’m not going to say that sports made me the man I am today, but I certainly was shaped for the better. Being able to accept defeat, and keep showing up to practice the next day played a solid part. I found new friends at the new school. I went to the Renaissance Faire frequently with my new friends, wearing chainmail, ready to defend the glen of fairies. After I’d hung up the tunic, I found I was strongest at playing the role of myself.

So that said, I think that anybody should be allowed to participate in sports if they want to. It’s worth a Google, but Bill is incorrect in speaking about DNA. A man is not defined by birth, a man is made by his courage to live his truth.

Thank you,

Alexander Stokes, Weldona

Letter to the Editor

To the Editor:

No matter where we fall on the political spectrum, if we care about the rule of law and protecting our country’s national security, we should support the latest federal investigation and indictment of Donald Trump.

A group of everyday Americans, fulfilling their civic duty by serving on a grand jury, reviewed mountains of evidence—including testimony from dozens of witnesses, documents, and more. They decided there was enough evidence that Trump committed a crime to bring charges against him. 37 charges in fact.

Trump is charged with violating the Espionage Act, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy. According to the indictment, he knowingly took documents from the CIA, Pentagon, and National Security Agency that contained everything from U.S. nuclear secrets to potential military vulnerabilities and our response plans for a possible foreign attack against us.

Trump publicly and repeatedly confirmed that he intentionally took classified documents containing highly classified materials with grave national security implications. He touted them around to unauthorized people at his private residence, and then he tried to prevent law enforcement from getting back what he stole. These crimes are too serious to be ignored.

Fame, fortune, and title doesn’t make someone above the law—that includes Trump. When others have committed crimes of this nature, they were prosecuted. The same must happen here.

Our democracy depends on it.

Sincerely,

Carrie Gleason 80102

Presidential Campaign Announcement

I am running for President of the United States because we must directly confront our problems. My party, and this country, have avoided directly confronting our problems for many years, and the results have been disastrous. Our country has done the equivalent of using Band-Aids in place of major surgery. Somehow, we have “gotten by”. But because the public has borrowed over $20 trillion, the day of reckoning is upon us. My goal is to change the very nature of the debate.

For the first time in a generation, we must directly confront our problems.

I plan to enact this in five ways:

First, it does not make sense that the Republican policies set forth by the Speaker of the House, the former President of The United States, and future Presidential candidates all do nothing about Social Security. We need a complete plan that directly confronts the problem of Social Security, of which is in arrears by approximately $43 trillion. I adopted a plan from Doctor Larry Kotlikoff, a worldwide expert in Social Security. This plan will bring the undefined unfunded liability down to zero.

Second, we must change our policies to stop stealing from our children. The generational stealing from young people must cease. Instead of directly dealing with issues, we have postponed them to the next generation. This ends now. With dept to Gross Domestic Product hitting 100%, there is nothing to leave. The United States of America is financially bankrupt.

Third, I am constantly ruminating on the travels that I took to create the film Fixing America in 2011. I still see the faces of the people all across this country; those who just want a decent life. They think that the whole system is rigged. They feel disconnected, and they feel like they are alone. Normal, middle-class families don’t know where to turn. I have a difficult time even watching my own movie because of the haunting images of so many people struggling, feeling disconnected, falling behind, and not knowing what to do. All of this comes from the misguided policies in Washington D.C., of which have mostly been to the benefit of the politically connected and to those who are already wealthy.

Fourth, this next period in the United States calls for a financial expert. We do not need another lofty businessman, nor another career politician. We need someone to guide this country in the right direction. I believe that I am the only person running who has the financial background, the backbone, and the track record that proves that I will do exactly what I say. What many people now call the third rail of politics, I have entitled the “Laffey Lane”. But that is what we need now: Someone who has the proven talent to convince others, and to change votes. I have a talent, through the power of my ideas, to convince people to change their minds. Today, most people simply go with the generic platform set by career politicians. They believe that those politicians have but one vote to yield. But that is not enough for our country to be successful. Much of my life has been spent convincing other people to do what is necessary to fix a problem, convincing them of things that they originally thought they would never do. I have succeeded in these objectives in both the public and the private sector. In a nation divided, a talent such as mine is required.

Fifth, I am able to get to the heart of problems, and I focus on them until they have been fixed. I take on large issues first and am not sidetracked along the way. People who have seen me work know that I focus on the biggest, most pressing problems; that I directly confront those problems; that I make the hardest decisions in order to solve the problems; and that I solve every hard issue set in front of me. For better or worse, it is all that I know how to do.

While I was in the public sector, I worked with a great team. In the quickest turnaround from effective bankruptcy in American history, with bond rating going up eight notches in 3 ½ years, we resurrected Cranston, Rhode Island. This has never happened in the history of American politics. Now, we see the United States going into a serious crisis. No one is stepping up to tell people the truth about how messed up the policies are in this country. Those representing the older people in this country, me included, may have to take a little less so that the younger people can have a lot more. Why do you think that in the last 20 years, nearly all right/wrong direction poll results indicate that we are heading in the wrong direction? It is because we truly know that we are destroying the future; the younger generation.

I intend to take this grassroots campaign directly to New Hampshire and then to other states so we can convince people that the Republican party must change the way that it conducts business. I am the outsider. Lest there be any doubt, grab a copy of my book, Primary Mistake, and read it. I remain the only elected Republican running for higher office to be attacked by the National Republican Party. While I was mayor of Cranston, Rhode Island, I became known as, “The Man with the Bullhorn”. This bullhorn is ready to be used again. It must be taken to all 50 states, but first we will travel to New Hampshire.

I believe that I am the only candidate who is uniquely positioned to discuss and fix our terrible education system. I was educated in the public schools. I am a graduate of Bowdoin College and Harvard Business School. I taught the top finance class at the University of Rhode Island for three years. As the Mayor of Cranston, I have dealt

directly and successfully with an antagonistic school system. While raising my six children, I have sent them at different times to a Montessori school, a private school, a public school, and a charter school. Some may wonder where I have been for the last eight years. My daughter Sarah was diagnosed with Stage IV Neuroblastoma. My wife, Kelly, had to take care of her. I have personally taken time out of my career to stay home with my three youngest children, as my wife and daughter were often at the hospital. As a father, you do what you must, not what you want to do. Ask my children and my students what they have learned from me. They have learned the best, from the best. I have led them toward success, and I have taught them how to be successful. I wish to do the same for all students in this country.

I also believe that I am uniquely qualified to discuss healthcare in this country. Through my siblings I saw an enormous amount of social welfare spending. My experiences as a father have caused me to spend far too much time in hospitals. My daughter Audrey had seizures that have been cured, and my daughter Sarah is still battling cancer. I have seen the millions of dollars of heath care bills, and have interacted with the families suffering at both the wonderful Ronald McDonald House and in the Children’s Hospitals of Colorado, Philadelphia, and Boston. I know why so many people go bankrupt over the lack of health care: The expense of basic healthcare is great, and there are millions of misspent dollars. We need to manage our healthcare in a way that lets everyone have Sarah’s experience, with good doctors and swift treatment. I have moved around the country for her, and our doctors have been nothing but wonderful.

One of our biggest problems in this country is the mishandling of money. America’s middle class has been destroyed by the combination of bad trade policies and the Federal Reserve’s ignorance of the middle class in favor of the rich and elite. I am the best person in this race to both understand the Federal Reserve, and how it must be fixed for our nation to survive. The elites, and the candidates they represent will not like it, and will try to fight it. But I do not leave them room to say I don’t understand it. To the reader, I would like to speak to you personally. I am not running for President because I want to better my own life. I have a wonderful life. I have six wonderful children, a beautiful wife, and I am content with what I have. However, I see that others do not have a wonderful life, even though the United States could very easily do a lot better. I have had enough with waiting around, waiting for someone to do something to change this nation for the better. I have had enough with the Federal Reserve knowingly causing inflation, which causes suffering throughout the country. I have had it with the “talking lane” of corrupt American politicians. We must directly confront our problems. I do at stevelaffey.com. I list my accomplishments here, and I want you to stand with me.

I want to be clear about one last point: This is not a campaign against one person. This is a campaign for specific issues so that if we can solve them, our children can live a better life. I have traveled the country twice, once with my children for 3 1/2 months in 2008, and once making a movie that involved stopping on the sides of roads and talking to real Americans. As a man told me on the side of the road in Kentucky, “I just want people to do the freaking job we put them in there to do”. Those words have stayed with me for almost 12 years. You may think that because of my absence from politics these last years, that I am coming to a knife fight with a rock. But sometimes, the rock hits its mark before the knife can. I am the best person for this job. Thank you, and with your help, we can and will fix this great country.

Press Release on Bill Signing - HB 23-1220

On Saturday, June 3rd, Governor Jared Polis came to Yuma County to sign Representative Richard Holtorf’s signature bill of the 2023 legislative session. Representative Holtorf was the architect and prime sponsor of House Bill 231220, the Republican River Water Study bill. It will allow the Colorado State University’s Water Institute to study the economic impact in the tri-state area of the Republican River, which includes Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado. This will allow the Republican River Water Conservation Board and the state of Colorado to plan for future fiscal outlays required to complete the large irrigated acre retirement plan over the next six years.

The three-state agreement of the Republican River compact mandates for reduction of the consumptive use of water by requiring the retirement of 25,000 irrigated acres by 2029 to meet a key interstate compact agreement set forth and signed by these three states.

This key piece of legislation was highlighted at the Governor’s bill signing in Yuma County on the Blach farm on the Republican River basin. It was attended by members of the Republican River Water Conservation District, including the President and the Executive Director. Also present were Yuma County Commissioners and Dave Blach, a irrigated corn farmer who lives and farms in the Republican River Basin.

This bill will now become law and the information will be used to further determine what critical economic requirements will be needed, to meet interstate compact compliance. This will ensure the longevity of farming in the Republican River Basin and the conservation district to meet full compact compliance in the three state region.

Go to HoltorfforColorado on Facebook or HoltorfforColorado.com for more information or to contact your District 63 representative.

Weld Central FFA at State CDE’s

Weld Central FFA took 48 members to the State FFA Career Development Events Contest at Colorado State University April 30th-May 1st. The FFA members did a great job in each contest!

The Livestock Judging Team consisting of Kashley Hayden, Cydni Dudley, Hannah Auer and Tanner Rupple received Gold as a team. Kashley received Gold individually and Cydni, Hannah and Tanner received Silver. The Horse Judging Team consisting of Bonnie Koehn, Audrey Koehn, Kennedy Cardillo and Paisley Gallegos received Gold as a team. Bonnie and Audrey received Gold individually and Kennedy received Silver. The Floriculture team consisting of Sydnee Klausner, Kayla Kitzman, Citlali Calixto and Addie Forbes received Gold as a team.

Sydnee and Kayla received Gold individually and Citlali and Addie received Bronze. The Meat Judging Team consisting of Westin Barrows, Max Riblett, Frederick Weisenborn and Lela Prokop received Silver as a team. Westin received Gold individually, Max and Frederick received Silver, and Lela received Bronze. The Dairy Judging Team consisting of Sydney Patrick, Hannah Culp, Alex Culp and Marcello Rossi received Silver as a team. Sydney received Gold individually and Hannah received Silver. The Vet Science Team consisting of Cassidy Herman, Emily Spayd, Megan Hopp and Brielle Bange received Silver as a team. Cassidy, Emily and Megan received Silver individually. The Ag Sales Team consisting of Aaron Rodriguez, Aubree Klausner, Camerin Langely and Torrin Anderon received Bronze as a team. Aaron received Silver individually and Aubree received Bronze. The Food Science Team consisting of Cyler Troutner, Tessa Schutter, Breanne Dowdy, and Shelby Boxberger received Bronze as a team. Cyler received Silver individually. For Ag Mechanics, Cody Bydalek, Jacob Turner and Austin Essig competed. Cody received Gold individually. For Crop Judging, Brayden Moser, Gavin Kitzman, Alexis Villela and Briley Cale competed. For Milk Judging, Auburn Thoene, Cole Rushfeldt, Gracie Weber and Eric Forbes competed. For Farm Business Management, John Howard, Makayla Santos, Cael Schellenberg and Charlotte Goodman competed.

Weld Central FFA would like to thank the community members who helped coach and prepare our FFA members for our CDE contest season! Thank you to Jess and Brook Nighswonger, Dylan Galligan, Stacie Powers, Rae Ellen Windsheimer, Elizabeth Spayd, Emilee Klausner, Ryan Witzel, Lori DeVoe, Glenn Gibson, Heather Cook, Kristin Weems, Hunter Eldred, Steven Bell and everyone else who has contributed to the members and their successes for career development events!”

Caldara: Legislative Fumbles Show

Chinks In Polis’ Political Armor

by Jon Caldara, President of the Independence Institute

In the final days of the Colorado legislative session, I saw something I have never seen in the last five years. A couple of spectacular fumbles by our otherwise politically flawless governor.

I’m talking “ESPN highlights of the week” kind of fumbles from a guy that normally plays like Tom Brady.

When I say “flawless,” I don’t mean he is implementing good policy or leading Colorado in the right direction or running state government as an effective chief operating officer. I can’t mean that because he has ushered in the most dangerous and devastating policies and political changes in Colorado history which, if left unchanged, will inevitably bankrupt this once liberty-loving state.

I mean “flawless” in terms of being a slick politician, remaining high in approval polls, and keeping his sycophantic media with him like a rich lady keeps a toy Shih Tzu in her carry-a-long purse.

No one should ever underestimate how politically savvy Jared Polis is, how quick on his feet he is, how quickly he can change his speech to masterfully sound like he is a genuine member of whatever group he is talking with, and therefore make that group feel like he is working on their behalf, and how much money he has to spend to get to whatever end he wishes.

So, even for a casual political observer, it was surprising that the last week of the legislative session was the most publicly bungled, disorganized, schizophrenic, rudderless week of his governorship.

The most impressive fumble was the mishandling of his much anticipated, much ballyhooed, “here I come to save the day,” property tax relief bill.

The governor had TWO YEARS to take the lead on how to handle the massive, massive tax bills that are rolling our way now that his legislature conned voters to repeal the Gallagher Amendment.

But in the very opposite of leadership he waited until eight days before the end of session to drop a shell game of a bill that was too cute by half.

Senate Bill 303 merely stole our TABOR refunds from our right pocket and put them into our left, relabeled as a tiny bit of property tax relief, with the real cost being losing our TABOR refunds forever and ever in just a couple of years.

Property tax issues are complex. Hell, the governor can usually count on most legislators not understanding the issue. How surprised he must have been when the media he thought he had on a leash started realizing it wasn’t going to solve their own property tax problems.

As Kyle Clark from 9NEWS opined on the sleight-of-hand of Jared’s scam: “Governor Polis, he’s a smart man. That doesn’t mean Coloradans are dumb … like earlier this week when the governor proposed reducing property tax increases by using our own TABOR refunds, giving you some of your own money and claiming that he’s saving you money. Come on.”

The bill was so rushed it referenced the wrong referendum for this fall’s ballot. As the news site CompleteColorado.com broke, the bill meant to refer to Proposition II, but wrongly referred to Proposition HH.

This means either the governor must call a special session to fix their own sloppiness, or the Secretary of State is going to have to do regulatory somersaults to fix it for them.

Poor leadership leads to rushed jobs, which leads to bad governance.

The next fumble is the guv’s signature bill which promised a home for every budget, Senate Bill 213. Built on the faulty premise that increased density means lower home prices, it would have stripped local governments of much of their local zoning authority.

The Democratic governor who sits on top of a legislature with a super majority Democratic House and an all but one vote supermajority state Senate watched his signature bill fly into a brick wall and splat to death on the last day of the session. This is one of those highlight-reel fumbles where the guy keeps dropping the football and kicking it as he tries to pick it back up.

What it really showed is trouble in paradise.

Apparently, the progressive mob that runs our state government is starting to have the seven-year itch. The ultra-progressives and simple leftists are squabbling for control.

What’s the old saying about absolute power?

At least no one’s talking about our “libertarian” governor anymore.

Jon Caldara is president of the Independence Institute, a free market think tank in Denver.

Local Students Earn Dean’s List Recognition at Utah Tech University

ST. GEORGE, UT (05/24/2023)-- In a display of academic achievement, nearly 12 percent of Utah Tech University students earned Dean’s List recognition for the Spring 2023 semester.

Specifically, 1,240 students were included on the Dean’s List. Inclusion indicates students’ strong commitment to their academic pursuits, as they must achieve a GPA of 3.5 to 3.89 for the Dean’s List. Students are also required to complete a minimum of 15 credits.

Local students who earned Dean’s List recognition at Utah Tech University for the Spring 2023 semester included:

Brooke Risser of Severance, CO

Emma Christensen of Fort Morgan, CO

Peyton Michaelson of Erie, CO

Utah Tech University is a premier open-enrollment teaching institution that offers more than 250 academic programs at one of the lowest tuition costs in the Western United States. The University was built upon a rich tradition of determination and generosity that is still embraced by the campus community today. With the motto “active learning. active life.” Utah Tech provides personalized and engaged learning experiences that prepare students for rewarding careers and enriched lives. Outside of the classroom, students have the opportunity to enjoy the unparalleled opportunities for an active life that accompany UT’s location in beautiful Southern Utah.

WIGGINS SCHOOL DISTRICT 50J JUNE NEWS

GOOD PEOPLE OF TIGER NATION: June 2023

Sale: Wiggins School District will be selling numerous furniture on Saturday Jul 8, 2023 in the secondary parking lot. There are numerous individual student desks, teacher desks, chairs, tables, and bookshelves that must go. If you are interested in purchasing a few items please bring a check or cash as no cards will be accepted.

Curriculum: For the past several years the district has failed to show desired achievement and growth in Math. Over the past school year, teachers and administrators have reviewed numerous math curriculums to take the place of EveryDay Math. Staff along with the Board of Education have determined that Bridges is the math curriculum that would best suit our students. Teachers will begin to receive Professional Development to prepare them for the upcoming school year.

Construction: Wiggins Elementary is nearing completion. The interior of the school is on track to be completed by July 12. The elementary school will be open for students to on Aug 15, 2023. As we get closer to August the school will pick a date for community members to walk through the new building.

Monthly Expenditures for May

Prentice: Climate Lawsuits Aim To Push Energy Costs Even Higher

by Paul Prentice, Complete Colorado Page 2

The U.S. Supreme Court recently signaled a shift in climate litigation aimed at energy producers, allowing the suits to proceed in state rather than federal courts across the country. This is bad news for energy producers and consumers.

In a unanimous decision written by the late Justice Ginsburg, the high court previously found that climate change policy is not under the purview of federal courts and is better suited for Congress. State courts conversely are held to no such standard and are generally viewed as friendlier venues for winning massive awards against energy companies.

There is no legal basis for blaming energy manufacturers for purported damages from climate change. Rather, activist groups are looking to redefine environmental policy through the courts. Their stated goal is to not only make manufacturers pay for alleged damages, but also to increase prices for consumers.

Nearly two dozen states, cities, and municipalities across the country are suing major energy companies, in an attempt to hold them liable for damages that they allege were caused by climate change. Three localities in Colorado — Boulder County, San Miguel County, and the city of Boulder — have joined the litigation effort.

Given the global nature of emissions it is impossible to assign blame to a few energy producers in just one country for alleged damages caused by climate change. Everyone across the globe uses energy, and there are energy producers in nearly every country in the world. By that logic, everyone is responsible for causing “climate change.”

The architects of the Colorado litigation have said: “Whether that’s cutting back on the harmful activities, and/or to raise the price of the products that are causing those harmful effects so that if they are continuing to sell fossil fuels, that the cost of the harms of those fossil fuels would ultimately get priced into them.”

Colorado residents rely on energy products to heat their homes, fuel their vehicles, and live their daily lives. Increasing energy prices significantly would be financially devastating — especially to low income and minority communities. Since Colorado has a major energy industry presence, if these lawsuits are successful the statewide economic costs would cause tremendous harm.

The most recent estimates have found that the energy industry creates enormous economic benefits for Colorado, generating $13.5 billion in annual economic activity and supporting about 90,000 jobs. The industry also provides nearly $1 billion in tax revenue, which is about 80% of the money that the school trust pays to Colorado schools.

Ultimately, courts are not the appropriate venues for setting environmental policies on such a scale, legislatures are. Former Attorney General of Colorado and U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Gale Norton, noted, “By establishing rules that punish oil and gas companies, such cases can tilt the direction of energy development … it is the type of fundamental policy that should be determined by elected officials, not by state court judges.”

Colorado policymakers have already shown that they can advance productive and innovative ways to reduce emissions — the main culprit environmentalists blame for climate change — without the need for such counterproductive lawsuits. For example, in 2021 the Legislature passed a bill with broad bipartisan consensus to “Promote Innovative and Clean Energy Technologies in the Electric Utility Sector.”

Instead of litigating against the very businesses that are helping to create the sustainable future that environmentalists claim they are fighting for, these local governments should find ways to expand private incentives that will help support a cleaner energy future.

Emissions in the American power sector have dropped by 35% since 2005, mainly due to investments made by utility providers to switch to cleaner burning natural gas and other alternative fuel sources. As the demand for newer and cleaner energy sources continues to grow, the private sector will continue to innovate to meet that demand.

Paul Prentice is a senior fellow at the Independence Institute, a free market think tank in Denver.

High Plains Bank Celebrates Customer Appreciation Day at the Keenesburg Branch

This past Friday the High Plains Bank celebrated Customer Appreciation Day at its new branch in Keenesburg. A great turn out enjoyed lunch provided by the Slawpy Barn with beverages supplied by the Cattle Grounds Coffee Truck. Local bank customers got a chance to tour the bank, meet and chat with all the members of the High Plains Bank staff and all the young people got a chance to enjoy the bouncy house. A genuinely nice community event enjoyed by many.

What’s Working: Colorado’s Summer Jobs Are Disappearing continued from page 1...

demand more benefits and flexibility during the pandemic labor shortage. Employers, tired of getting ghosted by applicants during the pandemic, looked for ways to operate more efficiently and with a smaller crew. Companies like Walmart began focusing on hiring permanent workers rather than temporary seasonal ones, and went into last holiday season needing to hire fewer employees.

As workers returned, the applicant pool has grown larger even if the actual openings did not.

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Sage Hospitality Group, which operates 16 hotels and 14 restaurants and bars in the Denver area, doesn’t even look for a summer crew.

The “jobs are year-round positions, regardless of whether they are full time or part time, salaried or hourly,” said Thelma Rockhold, Sage’s chief people officer. “While seasonal business absolutely influences the occupancy and business levels within our hotels and restaurants, the number of job openings is not driven by a seasonal peak.”

Fewer teens work, a trend decades in the making

While it’s easy to point to the pandemic labor shortage for workforce shuffles and worker ennui, the data shows that the number of teenagers who work has been declining for decades.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Colorado’s population of 16- to 19-yearolds is the highest it’s been since 2000. But the percentage of this age group in the workforce has dropped to 39.9% from 55.4% two decades ago.

A Flourish chart

That’s similar to the national trend, said Ryan Gedney, principal economist for the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. Declines in teenage workers started in 1979 as the early 1980s recession was kicking in. There were also notable dips during the Great Recession and, of course, the recent COVID-19 pandemic.

But for the past two decades, Gedney pointed to BLS analysis about why teenagers have dropped out of the labor force: more educational opportunities.

“In particular, teen participation during the summer has dropped dramatically. School enrollment has increased, especially during the summer months, and enrollment affects the participation of teenagers in the labor force. Along with the increased emphasis toward college, coursework has also become more strenuous in high school. In addition, teens spend much of their time on school activities — only sleeping accounts for more time in a teenager’s day,” a 2017 BLS report concluded.

A Flourish chart

However, there was an uptick during the pandemic when schools went remote and many workers lost their jobs. But the number of teenagers joining the labor force increased. Gedney pointed to 2021 data showing that the percent of Colorado’s teenage population that was employed increased to nearly 40%, from 37.4% in 2019.

“I think that’s due to two reasons,” he said in an email. “Disruption in the school year due to the pandemic, which could have shifted more teens into the labor market and 2) an increase in demand for pandemic-services that traditionally have higher concentrations of teen employment (like grocery stores).”

Why it may be difficult to find a summer job

Applications to work for the summer at Kind Coffee in Estes Park began arriving in January. They were filled by early May, mostly by local high schoolers and returning staffers who are college students home for the summer, said Kimi Nash, who joined Kind Coffee in 2019 and bought the business about two months ago. She’s handled summer hiring since joining the shop.

She’s been fortunate, she said. She didn’t experience the recent labor shortage because word of mouth has helped fill Kind Coffee’s seasonal jobs. Two college students returning for the summer started when they were 14 and in high school. Another five are still in high school.

“That’s something we work with our leaders on. As tempting as it may seem, please don’t hire somebody in the moment because the amount of time you’re going to spend training is a big focus. We want to make sure that whoever’s coming in is set up for success. That can only be done if they feel that they are the right fit and they’re able to give us the time and effort to do that training,” Shankar said, adding that the number of overall hires hasn’t changed much since pre-pandemic times.

The past two years were more of a struggle, she added. Last year, the lodge held a hiring event every month. The company also started using more technology like artificial intelligence to better find candidates and respond to them. In April, they added a new tool to encourage younger candidates: texting.

The lag time between someone submitting an application and getting called in for an interview was taking too long. An application by text means they can schedule an interview within hours. Texting also supports the hiring process, allowing new employees to complete paperwork.

Kind Coffee in Estes Park began receiving applications for summer jobs in January. The spots were filled by early May. (Screengrab)

That said, she’s had to turn down “several” summer applicants.

“Everybody was great, but we just had our commitments already,” Nash said. “And it’s not who applies first. It was just more like figuring out who has barista experience. Or what do they say about Kind Coffee? Did they even know the business? It’s clear that it’s just someone sending in their application as opposed to saying, ‘I would love to be part of your team.’ ‘I’ve been there.’ ‘I’ve spent my summers there.’ Those are the ones who make their way to the top of the pile — when there’s that personal connection because it’s exciting that they want to work with us.”

Over at the Great Wolf Lodge, a resort and indoor water park in Colorado Springs, hiring director Yamini Shankar called this summer’s hiring effort a great success. For the first time, the chain held a one-day hiring event May 2, promoting it with TV ads and national campaigns to help its local lodges.

About 200 candidates attended the Colorado Springs event. Shankar estimates 80 offers were made. Even though the lodge aims to have a mix of about 100 full-time and part-time lifeguards, they don’t want to over hire for the sake of having warm bodies.

“It’s played a huge role in terms of limiting that turnaround time. People get excited, ‘Hey, I got hired within a day,’” she said. “One thing we noticed with the current generation, especially for summer jobs for mostly teenagers, they want everything to be really quick. They want to see results really quick. They can literally apply online and at the same moment schedule an interview. They could be coming in for an interview within the next 24 hours.”

Come August, she’ll have to revisit whether another hiring event is needed. At that time, they’ll start talking to seasonal staff to find out who can stay longer or just return during the holidays. Flexibility on the company’s end is key to retaining staff, she said. “The usual norm in hospitality is that you need to be available 24/7. You know, all days of the week. We are kind of changing that mindset. We cannot expect that for all positions,” she said. “Some people may just want to work one day a week and if we’re able to accommodate that business wise, we want to be open to that option.”

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Great Wolf Lodge in Colorado Springs. (Handout)

Inside the Great Wolf Lodge in Colorado Springs. (Handout)

Gov. Polis’ Property Tax Plan Faces Legal Challenge; Questions Around Measure Piling Up

by Sherrie Peif,

Complete Colorado Page 2

DENVER — A bill that has caused conflict with the ballot numbering through the Secretary of State’s Office, still has more questions than answers, including whether the bill violates Colorado’s single-subject law, whether the ballot language is clear, and even how long citizens have to challenge a referred measure.

Senate Bill 23-303, Gov. Jared Polis’ rushed property tax plan that will ask voters to sacrifice Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) refunds in the name of property tax relief, took just seven days to go from introduction in the Colorado Senate to final passage on the House floor.

The initiative that SB 303 places on the ballot is now being challenged in Denver District Court after Advance Colorado filed in opposition on Wednesday, citing several issues.

“We think it violates the single subject rule,” said Michael Fields, President of Advance Colorado. “It’s taking away TABOR. It talks about property tax relief. It puts money toward renters. And it changes the TABOR formula permanently. That all can’t be done on the same measure. If as citizens we brought this to the title board, we’d be laughed out of the title board. Legislators should have to abide by the same laws.”

Fields is also challenging the ballot title language, which promises property tax reduction but doesn’t say how.

“It doesn’t give rates. It doesn’t point out that this is TABOR money. It doesn’t point out that the state can’t keep this money,” Fields said. “It is very unclear what people would be voting on.”

Fields said the language in the bill causes many problems.

More questions than answers

Complete Colorado first reported last week that language in the bill includes a ballot title that labels the measure as Proposition HH, which should be the ballot number for a previous referendum that passed the state legislature first, which appears to make the Polis property tax plan actually Proposition II, according to the state’s election rules.

Speculation since the story has led most to believe the measure will end up on the ballot as Proposition HH, as the legislature declared. However, a spokesman for the Secretary of State’s office still won’t commit to that.

Complete Colorado reached out several times to those in the office who work in ballot numbering but never received a response prior to publication. After the story broke, media relations for the department contacted Complete Colorado.

First, Deputy Communications Director Jack Todd said: “The Department of State has no jurisdiction over the conduct of the legislature and cannot rule on how the legislature makes decisions.”

When pressed for clarity about the ballot lettering the bill would receive, Todd said: “Until the measures are received by the Secretary of State’s office (neither has been at this point), the Department cannot speculate on the labels of any referred measures.”

Former Deputy Secretary of State Suzanne Taheri told Complete Colorado she had never seen the legislature put the ballot title in the bill — as it usually is passed with a concurrent resolution sending it to the ballot. That is then sent to the Secretary of State to set the ballot order.

Fields agreed, adding the way this referendum is making its way onto the ballot is unprecedented. The law gives citizens five days after the legislature makes the referral to challenge its validity. However, because the legislature embedded the referendum into a bill, Fields said no one knows if its five days after passage or five days after the governor signs it.

“There is no precedent on this,” Fields said. “So we didn’t want to miss out on something if we waited for the governor to sign the bill.”

Fields said Advance Colorado plans to file an amended challenge after Governor Polis signs the bill, as he said many other groups have come forward who want to put their names on the challenge in support of the opposition.

“The fact the governor has to sign this before it goes to the voters is not normal,” Fields said.

11 Years After the Creation of DACA, Congress Trying Again To Give ‘Dreamers’ More Legal Certainty

by Caitlyn Kim

A bipartisan group of U.S. House members reintroduced a bill to protect DREAMERS on the 11th anniversary of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA program. There are over 13,000 DACA recipients, or Dreamers, living in Colorado, and more than half a million total across the country. The program authorizes some undocumented people who were brought to the U.S. as children to live and work in the U.S.

“Dreamers pay taxes, build and own small businesses, and work hard to grow our economy. Yet they remain in limbo,” said Democratic Rep. Sylvia Garcia of Texas, who introduced the bill this Congress. “This bipartisan American Dream and Promise Act is about giving Dreamers, TPS, and DED holders an opportunity to achieve the American dream.”

She said the pathway would be simple, legal and safe. The bill would grant qualified people 10 years of conditional permanent resident status. It would also provide legal status for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders — a program that covers migrants from specific countries that the deems unsafe for people to return to — and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) recipients. It also included provisions to some immigrant families as they apply for citizenship.

Unlike past years, three Republicans have signed on as co-sponsors.

According to GOP Rep. Maria Salazar of Florida, this bill is long past due. “I think it’s inconceivable, once again, that good people cannot stand up and say proudly, ‘I’m here and I’m contributing and I want to be part of the promised land.’”

She urged the public to send politicians on both sides of the aisle the message that it’s time for solutions. “Give dignity to those people who live in the shadows, including the Dreamers, who are the most innocent victims of this situation.”

At least one Republican sponsor admitted that more work needs to be done on their side of the aisle before the bill can be brought to the floor.

GOP Rep. John Duarte of California said when there’s more support for the bill and “it’s a reality with a lot of very firm facts,” then they’ll take it to Republican leadership for consideration.

A version of the bill passed in the last Congress, when Democrats had control of the House, but never made it through the Senate. Only nine Republicans supported the bill then. All three of Colorado’s Republican congress members opposed it.

House Majority Leader, Democrat Hakeem Jeffries, said he’s committed to working with Republicans and the Senate “to speak up and show up and stand up until the American Dream and Promise Act is the law of the land.”

Caitlyn Kim/CPR NewsBipartisan group of House members announce the reintroduction of the American Dream and Promise Act at a press conference at the U.S. Capitol, June 15, 2023.

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Books for Sale Abound in Brush at Annual July Fourth Sale at EMCL

Children’s books, novels, cookbooks and craft books, travel books, book bundles, large print, historical books, and various audio and visual media—all available, handily organized and categorized—are all available at the annually anticipated book and media sale at East Morgan County Library (EMCL) in Brush, CO at 500 Clayton St. on July 1, 3 and 4.

The sales are held at the library in the Book Cellar (library basement) with Friends members available to help customers and run the sales. The entrance to the Cellar is on the south side of the building. This year’s book sales will take place on Saturday, July 1 and Monday, July 3 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, July 4 sales will be held from 7-10 a.m. during the Lion’s Club pancake breakfast in Library Park in Brush.

A special running at the present time and throughout the July Fourth book sales is a “Buy One-Get One” sale on all cookbooks and quilting books available in the Book Cellar. Children’s books and all paperbacks are $.25 each with a 5 for $1 regular special. Hardback and gaming CDs are $1, and movie DVDs and music CDs are 4 for $1. Book bundles are marked at various prices and are often in the $1.50-$3 price range.

The books and other items for sale consist largely of private donations made by library patrons and area citizens, and often include those in nearly-new condition. Certain items can sometimes be found in new or “gift quality,” condition, all at an economical price. Other items for sale are discards from the library itself.

Each year, held in conjunction with the City of Brush Fourth of July celebration, the Friends’ Organization of EMCL hosts the annual event, making the most of visitors to the town for the rodeos, parade, pancake breakfast and other activities. All proceeds are used by the Friends to help with library events, programs, new books and other library materials.

While the earliest sales on July 1 will provide the best selection for those interested in purchasing, the July 4 sales typically yield the most sales, as the pancake breakfast in the park attracts many visitors. The sale is just prior to the annual Fourth of July parade which begins at 10 a.m.; also, the parade route passes by Library Park, providing a shady spot for viewers.

Shoppers do not need to bring a bag unless so desired. If one wishes to buy large quantities of items, however, EMCL Friends recommend bringing your own boxes if possible.

Viewed from Afar’ Exhibit Opens June 9 at Musemum

Unique exhibit demonstrates Europeans’ perspective of America

A unique exhibit opening Friday, June 9, in the Fort Morgan Museum Lower Gallery shows how 19th century Europeans saw – or imagined – the exotic land of America.

“Viewed from Afar” features vintage 19th century prints that were seen by audiences in England, France and Germany. Europeans were eager to learn about the West as many friends and family migrated to the United States during this time.

Images of indigenous peoples and Western landscapes, which were so foreign to Europeans, were particularly fascinating. America’s unique natural heritage splendors –deep canyons, thermal features, stupendous waterfalls, contorted lava beds, weird badlands, and novel flora and fauna bore no comparison to Europe’s cultural antiquities. Some prints were realistic imagery based upon firsthand knowledge acquired by Western travelers, while other prints were fanciful imaginations created to satisfy an insatiable demand.

As 19th century communication technologies improved, events in the American West were quickly transmitted across the Atlantic Ocean to eager audiences. This exhibit amply illustrates how the frontier West was intensely “viewed from afar.”

For more information contact Brian Mack at (970) 542-4011 or brian.mack@ cityoffortmorgan.com.

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CPW Slashed Hunting Licenses To Save Wildlife. What about Colorado Towns That Rely on Hunters?

Thousands fewer tags and shorter seasons means thousands fewer hunters and a lot less spending in towns like Craig, Meeker and Rangely

by Tracy Ross

Hunters also need to eat, buy last-minute supplies and maybe treat themselves to a few shots of whiskey after their hunts, so that’s more money they spend and more tax revenue for the town of 2,200.

Dylan LeBleu, a dispatcher for the Rangely Police Department, says that while Rangely isn’t a “hunting town,” he’s part of a community of hunters who rely on game meat to fill their freezers. “We have a market here, but not anything big, and it’s a little expensive,” he says, “and the nearest Walmart is an hour away.”

A pound of “all natural” 97% lean ground beef at Walmart currently costs around $7. This multiplied by the estimated 160 pounds of meat a hunter can typically harvest from an average-size 500-pound elk equates to $1,120. Add the cost of gas to drive 100 miles round trip to the Walmart in Vernal, Utah, and back, and subtract the $63 cost of an over-the-counter license to hunt for an elk, and no matter how you look at it, it’s more affordable for a local to hunt than it is to buy their meat from a grocery store.

Debbie Fitch and her family own several businesses associated with their Fitch Ranch in Parshall, so they likely won’t be as impacted as some due to the size and diversity of their enterprise. “But a lot of people’s livelihoods in this part of the country rely on hunting revenue and I think it’s going to be a tough year for a lot of them,” she said.

“For restaurants, outfitters, processors, taxidermists. They’ll be impacted in multiple ways. And then there’s just … the wildlife out here. It’s so sad,” she added. “It was hard to look at. We had one elk that just laid down in our yard next to our hay bales and that was it. You’ve never seen so many dead animals on the side of the road, either.”

Then there are the outfitters who guide hunters who’ve either won a tag in the lottery, purchased one in person, or paid a landowner equipped with a specialized CPW “landowner preference program” voucher to hunt the landowner’s property.

Deep snow near Craig in February 2023 made it difficult for elk to forage, causing many to suffer malnutrition or starve. (R. Gonzales, Colorado Parks and Wildlife)

When the storms bearing more snow than people had seen in years came to northwestern Colorado last winter, they were full of promise.

Of creeks and rivers bursting at their seams. Of reservoirs finally full again. Of ground so saturated, fires like the ones that had burned the previous summers might not be able to take hold.

But the slow-moving fronts that dropped snow in four-foot increments brought no help for the deer, elk, moose and pronghorn that forage near the towns of Maybell, Meeker, Rangely, Dinosaur and Craig. For them, the precipitation that fell, the winds that blew and the temperatures that hovered below zero for weeks on end meant death in numbers not seen in decades.

Rachael Gonzales, the northwest region public information officer for Colorado Parks and Wildlife, wrote as much in a post on the agency’s website dated March 28:

“It has been a tough winter for wildlife. … Since the start of the season the National Weather Service’s Maybell weather station has recorded over 80 inches of snow for the area. Prolonged snow combined with strong gusty winds have made an already hard time of year for wildlife even more difficult. Food has been extremely difficult for big game to find as much of it is covered by deep, hard-packed snow. This has forced thousands of animals to migrate farther west than they typically do, burning muchneeded fat and calories they likely won’t replenish.”

She then relayed a story of a bull elk she saw while on a ride-along with District Wildlife Manager Jeffrey Goncalves in the region:

“…we noticed a mature bull elk that was unable to get up after several attempts. After watching and evaluating the elk for several minutes, the decision was made to euthanize the bull so it would no longer suffer from starvation.”

And she said that in addition to mortality from malnutrition, wildlife officials had seen an increase in animals injured or killed from vehicle collisions.

With normal migration routes difficult for wildlife to navigate, they had resorted to using roadways as they searched for food. Sometimes that food was located on a narrow shoulder along a windy section of road, Gonzales wrote. On Jan. 14, a semi traveling eastbound from Utah on U.S. 40 hit 35 pronghorn on the road, and on Jan. 19, another driver hit a group of 18 near Craig. Over the course of the winter, district wildlife managers in the northwest region responded to four incidents involving vehicle collisions with groups of 10 or more of the animals.

On April 5, the Rio Blanco Herald Times, a newspaper serving the northwest region, quoted now-retired CPW wildlife manager Bill deVergie as saying deer fawn survival was in the 30% range and heading toward 20%; elk calf survival was 35% to 40% of normal; and only 10% of pronghorn fawns, the hardest hit, were surviving.

CPW said it was one of the worst winters for wildlife it had ever seen, despite massive efforts to help the animals. Area managers had dropped tons of hay for them to eat, and local ranchers had left barn doors open, welcoming them in. But in the end a catastrophic number of Colorado’s healthiest ungulate herds died.

As bad as the winter of 2023 was for wildlife in the corner of Colorado bounded by Wyoming and Utah, however, it could also be bad for thousands of people who live in the same region and rely on the big-game hunting seasons that start in mid August and run through November.

Historic mortality leads to drastic cuts in hunting licenses

Emails from CPW started going out to hunters who put in for the draw the first week of June. Once hunters know they’ve scored a tag, many start planning their trips. But Cody Nelson, who owns Moosehead Lodge in Rangely, 13 miles east of the Utah border, in the White River Valley, said she can “already see a dramatic decrease in bookings from previous years.”

“To be honest, there was a little bit of worry even before the reductions were announced,” she said. “I totally understand why CPW is doing what they’re doing, but I don’t know what it’ll mean for the area as a whole.”

Even over-the-counter tags, which are set by the Colorado state legislature and available in August to any hunter for a certain price after the limited draw is over, were affected. While CPW didn’t reduce the number, it did shorten two seasons in which hunters could use over-the-counter tags for elk in the severe-winter zone — downsizing one season to five days from nine and another to five days from seven. Rooms at Nelson’s lodge range from $85 to $105 per night and she says she books up during hunting season. With nine lodge rooms and seven cabins booked seven days a week at an average of $95 per night, Nelson could lose more than $100,000 between the start of the deer, elk, and pronghorn hunting seasons, in mid-August, and the end, in December.

Tyler Emrick, who owns and operates CJ Outfitters outside of Craig with his wife, Michelle, offers fully and semiguided deer, elk, moose, bear and mountain lion hunts for prices ranging from $3,500 to $10,000 per person. Like Fitch, he says the economic impacts he’ll endure this season will be limited compared with others because he has diversified his hunts geographically and now has permits to guide in Wyoming as well as Colorado.

But the Colorado towns of Craig, Meeker, Rangely, Maybell and “maybe, especially Dinosaur,” near the Utah border, “will be hurt because each of these places depend on the hunter harvest for their economy,” Emrick said. He knows an outfitter participating in CPW’s landowner program who “normally gets 12 to 14 licenses, and this year he’s getting three to five. It’s those small guys that depend on that $15,000 to $30,000 to pay for hay that are going to be hit hard. I do believe Meeker County will feel it hardest because even though it’s a rich county because of oil, there’s still all those restaurants. And a new brewery that just moved in. And I don’t know how many public hunters will come.”

Public lands hunters often purchase over-the-counter tags if they came up emptyhanded in the lottery. But Emrick wonders if OTC hunters will avoid traveling to units in the severe-winter zone given the new shorter seasons.

“I don’t know if anyone will come out for five days or hit some other places out of state that weren’t hit like we were,” he says.

Cuts will affect CPW’s budget, too

The Colorado Wildlife Council says hunting is a $843 million industry in Colorado. And, combined with fishing, hunters contribute $3.25 billion and 25,000 jobs to the state economy.

Those potentially 32,000 hunters who could have purchased the eliminated tags? Their absence and the revenue associated with it could impact CPW’s annual budget by as much as $8 million, the agency says.

CPW employs a “user pays” model of funding in which hunting and fishing licenses, federal excise taxes on hunting and fishing equipment and license applications contribute millions of dollars to the agency’s budget.

“But statistics do show that nonresident hunters are gone from home for eight to nine days on average including travel time and that they hunt five days,” Emrick said. “So with those numbers, it could either be really good or really, really bad. Easier to say hindsight is 20/20, we don’t know yet. I hope everyone can make it through, but I’m sure some outfitters could go under this year.”

CPW stands by its decision to cut hunting licenses, saying it’s the only way to bring back decimated herds to healthy numbers. (R. Gonzales, Colorado Parks and Wildlife)

Hunters fear for big game

No matter what happens to the humans, the CPW commission stands by its reductions, saying they are the only way to bring the decimated herds back to healthy numbers.

But at its May 3 meeting to discuss license reductions, Emrick and a handful of other hunters, ranchers and outfitters said they wished the agency would do more.

In a letter to the commission beforehand, the Colorado Wildlife Conservation Project, consisting of 11 members representing tens of thousands of hunters, anglers, conservationists and outdoor enthusiasts, said it was willing to take “further reductions

CPW Slashed Hunting Licenses To Save Wildlife. What about Colorado Towns That Rely on Hunters? continued on page 10...

CPW Slashed Hunting Licenses To Save Wildlife. What about Colorado Towns That Rely on Hunters? continued

to limited licenses and/or temporary suspensions or caps on over-the-counter licenses” to address the problem, while recognizing “fewer hunting opportunities would mean fewer trips and lost revenue for the state and rural communities on multiple fronts.”

Others who spoke during the public comment period asked the commission to add a mandatory hunter harvest survey to get a clearer picture of what’s happening with various species in the severe-winter zone, adding that a penalty that revokes hunters’ privileges to apply for a license the next year if the hunter doesn’t complete the survey would round out the deal.

Emrick asked CPW to make “an immediate emergency declaration and end cow hunting in (units affected by the severe winter) along with the whole northwest, or offer a minimum of 10 tags.” He also asked the commission to limit either-sex elk hunting in certain months because “when a hunter harvests a cow they could be killing three elk with one bullet.”

But as managers had pointed out earlier in the meeting, the average success rate among elk hunters is just 20%, which means with a limit of 10 licenses there’s a good possibility only two elk in one of the severe-winter zone units would be killed.

CPW manages its herds for the health of the population as well as for hunters. This means it keeps hunters in mind when making “sex ratio” decisions — how many antlerless deer to make available for hunting and how many antlered deer, for instance. And the agency expects the lowered number of licenses to help herd health start improving immediately. So maybe the decision to stick with the reductions rather than make further cuts will take some of the sting out of the deadliest winter for wildlife CPW can remember, at least for humans.

SNHU Announces Winter 2023 President’s List

MANCHESTER, NH (05/16/2023)-- It is with great pleasure that Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) congratulates the following students on being named to the Winter 2023 President’s List. The winter terms run from January to May.

Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.700 and above for the reporting term are named to the President’s List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

Adrian Luna of Fort Lupton (80621)

Jennifer Erwin of Milliken (80543)

Tina Hyde of Brighton (80601)

William Humphrey of Erie (80516)

Gabrielle Cain of Commerce Vity (80022)

Shaun Washington of Commerce City (80022)

David Minor of Firestone (80504)

Gabriel Griego of Fort Lupton (80621)

Sarah Grebenc of Windsor (80550)

Brenna Christen of Longmont (80504)

Andrew Meduna of Longmont (80504)

Alexandra Julian of Longmont (80504)

Charles Boyce of Greeley (80631)

Christopher Gray of Frederick (80504)

Shantel True of Thornton (80602)

Jena Hamilton of Windsor (80550)

Jay Warm of Briggsdale (80611)

Stephani Kuntz of Brighton (80601)

History of Fourth of July continued from page 1...

symbolizing the end of the monarchy’s hold on America and the triumph of liberty. Festivities including concerts, bonfires, parades and the firing of cannons and muskets usually accompanied the first public readings of the Declaration of Independence, beginning immediately after its adoption. Philadelphia held the first annual commemoration of independence on July 4, 1777, while Congress was still occupied with the ongoing war.

George Washington issued double rations of rum to all his soldiers to mark the anniversary of independence in 1778, and in 1781, several months before the key American victory at the Battle of Yorktown, Massachusetts became the first state to make July 4th an official state holiday.

After the Revolutionary War, Americans continued to commemorate Independence Day every year, in celebrations that allowed the new nation’s emerging political leaders to address citizens and create a feeling of unity. By the last decade of the 18th century, the two major political parties—the Federalist Party and DemocraticRepublicans—that had arisen began holding separate Fourth of July celebrations in many large cities.

Flashback: Independence Day 1941

The first fireworks were used as early as 200 BC. The tradition of setting off fireworks on the 4 of July began in Philadelphia on July 4, 1777, during the first organized celebration of Independence Day. Ship’s cannon fired a 13-gun salute in honor of the 13 colonies. The Pennsylvania Evening Post reported: “at night there was a grand exhibition of fireworks (which began and concluded with thirteen rockets) on the Commons, and the city was beautifully illuminated.” That same night, the Sons of Liberty set off fireworks over Boston Common.

Fourth of July Becomes a Federal Holiday

The tradition of patriotic celebration became even more widespread after the War of 1812, in which the United States again faced Great Britain. In 1870, the U.S. Congress made July 4th a federal holiday; in 1941, the provision was expanded to grant a paid holiday to all federal employees.

Over the years, the political importance of the holiday would decline, but Independence Day remained an important national holiday and a symbol of patriotism.

Falling in mid-summer, the Fourth of July has since the late 19th century become a major focus of leisure activities and a common occasion for family get-togethers, often involving fireworks and outdoor barbecues. The most common symbol of the holiday is the American flag, and a common musical accompaniment is “The StarSpangled Banner,” the national anthem of the United States.

FINANCIAL FOCUS

A Biggest Threats To A Comfortable Retirement?

If you save and invest for decades, you’d like to know you can retire without financial worries. Nonetheless, you still have to be aware of some threats to a comfortable retirement — and how to respond to them.

These threats include:

• Inflation – Inflation has been high recently, but even a mild inflation rate can seriously erode your purchasing power. In fact, with just a 3% inflation rate, your expenses could double in about 25 years — and your retirement could easily last that long. So, if you’re going to rely on your investment portfolio for a sizable part of your retirement income, you will need to own a reasonable number of growth-oriented investments, such as stocks or stock-based funds, whose potential returns can equal or exceed the inflation rate.

• Excessive withdrawals – Once you retire, you should establish a withdrawal rate for your portfolio — an

amount you can take out each year and still feel secure that you won’t run out of money. Some people make the mistake of withdrawing too much, too soon, once they’re retired. Your withdrawal rate should be based on several factors, including your age at retirement, the size of your portfolio and the amount of income you receive from other sources, such as Social Security. A financial professional can help you determine a withdrawal rate that’s appropriate for your needs.

• Market volatility – The financial markets will always fluctuate. When you’re still working, this volatility may not be such a problem, as you have years or decades to recover from short-term downturns. But when you retire, you don’t want to have to sell investments when their price is down. To help prevent this, you can tap into the cash in your portfolio, assuming you have enough to cover several months’ worth

on a CD “ladder” — a group of CDs that mature at different times — to provide you with resources for the next few years and allow your equity investments time to recover their value.

• Unexpected costs – You had them when you were working, and you’ll probably have them when you’re retired: the furnace that breaks down, the car that needs a major repair, and so on. But if you’ve established an emergency fund containing a year’s worth of living expenses, with the money kept in a liquid account, you may be able to “ride out” these costs without jeopardizing your investment portfolio. Be sure to keep these reserves separate from your typical day-to-day accounts to avoid the temptation of spending your emergency money.

• Health – Retirees may face more health concerns than younger people, and those concerns often come with

important to maximize the benefits from Medicare or your Medicare Advantage plan. Also, if you contributed to a Health Savings Account (HSA) while you were working, and you haven’t depleted it, you can use the money in retirement. As long as the HSA funds are used for qualified medical expenses, withdrawals are taxand penalty-free, and won’t be included in your income. This could help keep your income below certain levels, lower your Medicare premiums or avoid the 3.8% surtax on net investment income that can be assessed on high-net-worth taxpayers.

Retirement can be a pleasant time in your life — and you’ll enjoy it more if you’re prepared for the challenges that face all retirees.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor.

Edward Jones, Member SIPC

from page 9...

In Rare Move, Colorado GOP Goes After Republican Congressman

by Bente Birkeland and Caitlyn Kim, Colorado Public Radio

When former state Rep. Dave Williams was chosen to head the Colorado GOP in March, he pledged to be a conservative fighter, not another “timid politician.” He told Republicans at the party’s organizing meeting that he would go toe to toe with “radical Democrats” every chance he gets.

Williams also made it clear that fellow Republicans wouldn’t be off limits.

“It’s not just the Democrats. It’s people like Liz Cheney, Mitt Romney and Mitch McConnell. They need to start listening to us,” he said then.

Now he’s brought that confrontational approach closer to home.

In a recent email to party members, Williams called out GOP Rep. Doug Lamborn, who represents the 5th Congressional District in Colorado Springs, for voting in support of the debt ceiling compromise.

“Deceptively, Congressman Doug Lamborn broke his word and voted to increase our debt while helping Joe Biden continue to fleece American taxpayers,” the email states, before listing some of Lamborn’s previous comments critical of government spending.

“Colorado Republicans are fed up with say-anything politicians like Doug Lamborn who say one thing to gain power but then do the opposite when they think no one is paying attention,” the email goes on.

A second email blasted Lamborn for not signing onto a letter Williams sent to the White House on behalf of the state party regarding Space Command headquarters and abortion policy.

The move has left some Republicans disappointed and questioning why their party head would attack one of its most prominent members. As some have pointed out, the main job of a state party chair is to get Republicans elected, and that includes helping incumbents keep their seats.

Political consultant Dick Wadhams, who led the Colorado GOP from 2007 to 2011, said he can’t remember ever seeing a party chair openly hostile to one of their own elected officials.

“I guess if Dave Williams wants to be in that category openly opposing a Republican incumbent or a Republican candidate, I guess that’s his choice. But this is virtually unprecedented.”

Williams defends his actions. He told CPR that for too long “establishment Republicans” have sold out conservative values and weakened the party brand, “rather than supporting hardworking taxpayers.”

Williams said the party members who selected him chairman “gave me the job to advance our grassroots platform.”

Well before his current role as chair, Williams and Lamborn already had a combative relationship. Last year, when Williams was still a state lawmaker, he mounted a primary challenge against Lamborn. The acrimonious race included an unsuccessful effort by Williams to have Lamborn’s campaign criminally investigated for allegedly making false statements about him.

Lamborn ended up defeating Williams by more than 15 points.

Wadhams said he believes Williams’ critical emails violate the party’s rules, which ban a party official from getting involved in a primary election because the goal of the organization is to “elect duly nominated or designated Republican candidates to office.”

According to party bylaws, no candidate should be opposed by a state officer ahead of a primary unless “such candidate is unopposed in the Primary Election.” While no Republican has launched a challenge against Lamborn yet, there is still plenty of time ahead of next year’s election.

“I think that when you attack a Republican incumbent elected official, you are violating the spirit of that bylaw,” said Wadhams.

Williams did not respond to a follow-up question about whether he believes the emails fall within party rules.

Latest episode reflects division over best course for Colorado GOP

The tumult comes as Republicans in Colorado are trying to chart a new path forward following several rounds of steep election losses. The party holds no statewide elected offices and hasn’t controlled a chamber of the legislature since 2018. Its margins at the statehouse are currently its lowest in state history.

A number of Republican consultants and analysts described Williams’ actions as baffling and extremely unhelpful to the party — although some declined to speak on record for fear of professional retribution.

They also fear these divisions could have a chilling effect on other Republicans considering a run for office, especially in the toss-up 8th Congressional District, which has the potential to be the most competitive race in Colorado next cycle. Democratic Rep. Yadira Caraveo is in her first term and the seat is a top target for national Republicans hoping to expand their margin in the House.

“This is not only wildly inappropriate for a party chair but seems utterly unmoored from any serious strategy to build a robust, statewide election-winning organization,” wrote communications strategist Sean Duffy in a column for Colorado Politics. Duffy was deputy chief of staff to Republican Gov. Bill Owens.

Some Republicans who’ve known

Williams for a while say the situation is reflective of his combative political personality at the statehouse and even while working on other campaigns.

Williams volunteered on President Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign in Colorado but was fired from the position, according to the campaign’s regional director, Brian Seitchick, for abusing his title. In regards to the public criticism of Lamborn, Seitchik described Williams as the antithesis of a team player.

“He has no interest in anything other than his own personal gain. If he has to burn the state party down to get ahead, he’ll do it. If he has to cost us winnable races at the ballot box to further his own political career, he will do so,” said Seitchik.

While the emails surprised many political observers, it’s long been clear that Republicans are split on the best course of action to reverse their recent losses. Some believe the party should take a more moderate approach to try to appeal to unaffiliated voters, while others — Williams among them — argue they need to instead tack farther to the right to rally the base.

And many involved in Republican politics admit that there is a desire by the base, especially those Republicans who show up at conventions and caucuses, to have leaders willing to instigate public fights with Democrats — and with fellow Republicans, if they break from hard right positions.

And Colorado isn’t the first state where party leadership has taken on one of their own for their actions in Washington, D.C. The Wyoming GOP censored Rep. Liz Cheney after she voted to impeach former president Trump, and just last week, delegates to North Carolina’s state GOP convention took similar action against Sen. Thom Tillis for his voting record.

In debt ceiling vote, Lamborn followed national party leadership

When asked by CPR about the Colorado GOP emails, Lamborn declined to comment. But he did respond on Twitter to criticism about his debt ceiling vote, noting it would “cut spending.”

The deal to avoid a June 5 default deadline was brokered by Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Biden. While the email from Williams characterized Lamborn as “extreme” for supporting it, the bill passed the House, 314 to 117, with 149 House Republicans, including GOP leadership, voting yes.

Wliliams did not respond to a follow-up question from CPR about why he considered Lamborn’s support out of line with the party.

Lamborn was Colorado’s only GOP member to back the debt ceiling deal. Rep. Ken Buck from the 4th CD cast a no vote and Congresswoman Boebert from the state’s 3rd Congressional district missed the vote, but publicly opposed the deal. In his email to party members, Williams praised Boebert and Buck for their positions.

And Williams’ discontent with Lamborn isn’t limited to disagreements over fiscal policy. In a separate fundraising email, Williams blasted Lamborn and former Colorado Springs mayor John Suthers for not signing onto a letter Williams wrote that declared Space Command should leave Colorado Springs if it becomes clear that Colorado’s abortion access laws are factoring into the decision.

Asked about the letter, Lamborn told CPR News emphatically that abortion is not part of the equation.

“I’ve already made it real clear, and others have also, that abortion plays no part in this decision and should not play any part in this decision,” the congressman said. Lamborn and the entire congressional delegation have been fighting for the headquarters to remain in Colorado Springs.

Politicians and parties often disagree, but rarely in public

What makes the state GOP’s recent emails so unusual is that when policy differences arise between a state party chair and candidates or elected officials, they’re typically navigated delicately, with both sides trying to avoid any public face off.

The 2022 U.S Senate race saw GOP candidate Joe O’Dea at odds with party leadership over abortion. O’Dea broke with the party to support legal abortion in the In Rare Move, Colorado GOP Goes After Republican Congressman continued on page 12...

In Rare Move, Colorado GOP Goes After Republican Congressman continued from page 11...

earlier stages of pregnancy. The party’s chair at the time, Kristi Burton Brown, got her start in politics as the author of the anti-abortion personhood amendment.

While Burton Brown emphasized that the Colorado GOP remained opposed legal abortion, she was careful not to publicly criticize O’Dea and still urged party members to volunteer for his campaign and vote for him.

“She was a great partner and we worked closely together,” said Zack Roday, O’Dea’s campaign manager.

However, O’Dea’s defeat played a role in changing the party’s approach. Leaders like Williams argue that moderate candidates have failed to bring voters back to the Republican Party and instead have, in Williams’ words, essentially apologized for Republican values.

Instead, said Williams, “If we build a clear contrast with Democrats on defense and align ourselves with voters without compromising, then we will win again.”

Meanwhile Colorado Democrats say they would welcome Williams backing even farther right candidates. And in a jab to both men involved in the current conflict, the party also thanked Lamborn for supporting the bipartisan debt ceiling bill.

“We’ll happily give credit where credit is due. Lamborn voted with Democrats to prevent devastating cuts to Medicaid and Medicare, good for him,” said Shad Murib, the Democratic state party chair.

That credit is likely only to reinforce Williams in his campaign against “wayward elected Republicans.” As he said at one point, if the chairman of the Democratic party praises your vote, “you should know it’s wrong.”

Mother’s Day: Inspiration for Father’s Day

The “Mother’s Day” we celebrate today has its origins in the peace-and-reconciliation campaigns of the post-Civil War era. During the 1860s, at the urging of activist Ann Reeves Jarvis, one divided West Virginia town celebrated “Mother’s Work Days” that brought together the mothers of Confederate and Union soldiers.

Did you know? There are more than 70 million fathers in the United States.

However, Mother’s Day did not become a commercial holiday until 1908, when–inspired by Jarvis’s daughter, Anna Jarvis, who wanted to honor her own mother by making Mother’s Day a national holiday–the John Wanamaker department store in Philadelphia sponsored a service dedicated to mothers in its auditorium.

Thanks in large part to this association with retailers, who saw great potential for profit in the holiday, Mother’s Day caught on right away. In 1909, 45 states observed the day, and in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson approved a resolution that made the second Sunday in May a holiday in honor of “that tender, gentle army, the mothers of America.”

Origins of Father’s Day

The campaign to celebrate the nation’s fathers did not meet with the same enthusiasm–perhaps because, as one florist explained, “fathers haven’t the same sentimental appeal that mothers have.”

On July 5, 1908, a West Virginia church sponsored the nation’s first event explicitly in honor of fathers, a Sunday sermon in memory of the 362 men who had died in the previous December’s explosions at the Fairmont Coal Company mines in Monongah, but it was a one-time commemoration and not an annual holiday.

The next year, a Spokane, Washington, woman named Sonora Smart Dodd, one of six children raised by a widower, tried to establish an official equivalent to Mother’s Day for male parents. She went to local churches, the YMCA, shopkeepers and government officials to drum up support for her idea, and she was successful: Washington State celebrated the nation’s first statewide Father’s Day on June 19, 1910.

Slowly, the holiday spread. In 1916, President Wilson honored the day by using telegraph signals to unfurl a flag in Spokane when he pressed a button in Washington, D.C. In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge urged state governments to observe Father’s Day.

Today, the day honoring fathers is celebrated in the United States on the third Sunday of June: Father’s Day 2021 occurs on June 20.

In other countries–especially in Europe and Latin America–fathers are honored on St. Joseph’s Day, a traditional Catholic holiday that falls on March 19.

Bet You Didn’t Know: Founding Fathers Play Video

Father’s Day: Controversy and Commercialism

Many men, however, continued to disdain the day. As one historian writes, they “scoffed at the holiday’s sentimental attempts to domesticate manliness with flowers and gift-giving, or they derided the proliferation of such holidays as a commercial gimmick to sell more products–often paid for by the father himself.”

During the 1920s and 1930s, a movement arose to scrap Mother’s Day and Father’s Day altogether in favor of a single holiday, Parents’ Day. Every year on Mother’s Day, pro-Parents’ Day groups rallied in New York City’s Central Park–a public reminder, said Parents’ Day activist and radio performer Robert Spere, “that both parents should be loved and respected together.”

Paradoxically, however, the Great Depression derailed this effort to combine and de-commercialize the holidays. Struggling retailers and advertisers redoubled their efforts to make Father’s Day a “second Christmas” for men, promoting goods such as neckties, hats, socks, pipes and tobacco, golf clubs and other sporting goods, and greeting cards.

When World War II began, advertisers began to argue that celebrating Father’s Day was a way to honor American troops and support the war effort. By the end of the war, Father’s Day may not have been a federal holiday, but it was a national institution.

In 1972, in the middle of a hard-fought presidential re-election campaign, Richard Nixon signed a proclamation making Father’s Day a federal holiday at last. Today, economists estimate that Americans spend more than $1 billion each year on Father’s Day gifts.

It’s still early, but each day Democratic incumbent Yadira Caraveo doesn’t have a challenger is another day she can build her fundraising advantage by Jesse Paul, Colorado Sun

National Republicans say Colorado’s highly competitive 8th Congressional District is one of their top 2024 targets. But first the GOP has to find a candidate to run against Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo of Thornton.

No Republican has filed to run against Caraveo next year in the district that spans Denver’s northeast suburbs along U.S. 85 into Greeley. She beat Republican state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer by less than a percentage point, or roughly 1,600 votes, in 2022.

It’s still early, but each day Caraveo doesn’t have a challenger is another day she can build her fundraising advantage. Candidates must file to run before they can start raising money.

Caraveo’s campaign began April with about $300,000 in the bank.

The 8th District is expected to be the GOP’s best shot at flipping a seat of consequence in Colorado next year, and the outcome of the contest could help decide which party controls the U.S. House.

A number of Republican politicians are weighing whether to toss their hat into the ring, including Kirkmeyer.

“I’m still considering it,” Kirkmeyer told The Colorado Sun last week. “I haven’t said that I’m going to and I haven’t ruled it out at this point.”

She plans to make a decision by July 4. If she makes another congressional bid, she’ll have to forgo running for reelection to another four-year term in the state Senate, where she is a member of the powerful Joint Budget Committee. Republicans, however, are in a 23-12 minority in the chamber, and they aren’t expected to take control of the Senate after the 2024 election.

State Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, a Republican running to represent the 8th Congressional District, speaks to a voter at an event Saturday at her campaign’s headquarters in Thornton. (Jesse Paul, The Colorado Sun)

The GOP’s next real shot at taking power in the Colorado Senate will be in the 2026 election.

State Rep. Gabe Evans, of Fort Lupton, is also mulling an 8th District bid.

“I haven’t said ‘yes.’ I haven’t said ‘no,’” he said. “I can definitively tell you I have no concrete plans right now. Everybody and their brother has been reaching out to me.”

Another Republican considering a bid for the seat is Weld County Commissioner Scott James.

“I have received numerous inquiries from folks and have been asked to run,” he said. “I’m honored by the encouragement and am taking the time to discuss this with my colleagues and my family.”

Weld County Commissioner Steve Moreno and former state Rep. Dan Woog, of Erie, are taking a look, too.

“There are multiple seats I’m keeping my eye on,” said Woog, who narrowly lost reelection to the state House last year, “but I haven’t taken steps toward any at this point in time.”

Moreno said an 8th District bid is on the table.

“I’ve had some encouragement,” he said. “I’ve had some conversations.”

Politico suggested last month that Joe O’Dea, the Denver construction company owner who made an unsuccessful 2022 U.S. Senate bid, is considering whether to make a run in the 8th District.

The Sun confirmed he is interested, but hasn’t taken any steps toward launching a campaign.

One big hold up: O’Dea lives in the Cherry Hills Village/Greenwood Village area, far from the 8th District’s boundaries. While congressional candidates don’t have to live in the district they are running to represent, O’Dea would almost certainly be painted as a carpetbagger by opponents if he launched a bid to unseat Caraveo. That fact reduces the likelihood he would jump into the race.

O’Dea’s federal campaign account — which remains active — had about $50,000 in it at the start of April. He gave millions to his campaign. O’Dea lost to Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet last year by 15 percentage points.

The GOP primary in the 8th District will be held on June 25, 2024.

The Colorado Sun is a reader-supported news organization that covers Colorado people, places and issues. To sign up for free newsletters, subscribe or learn more, visit ColoradoSun.com

Republicans don’t have a candidate yet in Colorado’s highly competitive 8th Congressional District. Here’s who may run.

Obituary

Phyllis Lee (Thyfault) Kildal

Phyllis Lee (Thyfault) Kildal, age 65, passed away on January 29,2023, at her home in Mesa, Arizona, after a 14-year struggle with ovarian cancer.

Phyllis was born on February 1, 1957, to parents Meddie (Babe) Lee Thyfault and Carolyn Ruth Thyfault in Denver, Colorado. Phyllis grew up in Fort Lupton, Colorado where she graduated from Fort Lupton High School. That area is where she would call home until 2018 when she and husband Ted moved to Mesa, Arizona.

Phyllis is best known for her career in the food service industry. She owned/ operated The Chuckwagon Café 1&2, in Brighton, and the Ironhorse Roadhouse in Keenesburg. She would finish her career in the Bistro at Platte Valley Medical Center.

Phyllis is survived by her husband of 33 years, Theodore (Ted) William Kildal, her 3 children, Amy Lee Frazier-Gibson, Brennon Scott Frazier, Matthew Scott Frazier, and 4 grandchildren.

Phyllis is predeceased by her father Meddie (Babe) Lee Thyfault. She is survived by her mother Carolyn Ruth Thyfault and brothers and sisters, Carl Edward Thyfault, Denise Marie (Thyfault) Wittmus, JoDe Ann (Thyfault) Brown, Randy Allen Thyfault, and Michael Shawn Thyfault.

A mass will be held at St. Augustine Church, 178 South 6th Avenue, Brighton, CO on Friday June 30th at 11:00 a.m., rosary at 10:30 a.m.

A Celebration of Phyllis’s life will be held at the Elks Lodge, 101 North Main Street, Brighton, CO on Friday June 30th at 1:30 p.m.

The family asks that all flowers and notes be sent to Amy Frazier-Gibson at 219 Poplar Street, Lochbuie, CO 80603.

Irrigate Safely: Be Aware of Electrical Hazards

by Morgan County Rural Electric Association

Irrigation systems are vital in supporting local agriculture. While the equipment helps farmers combat dry spells and summer heat, it also introduces an electrical hazard. Electrical hazards with irrigation equipment include contact with overhead power lines, short circuits, and lightning strikes. Morgan County REA reminds owners and farm workers to be aware of the potential hazards and to stay safe.

Electrical safety becomes a concern when lifting equipment overhead. Common irrigation pipe is long enough to reach overhead power lines when lifted up. Accidental contact can result in severe electrical shock. Take time to survey your surroundings. Look up and around, and make note of any power lines that could be close enough to come into contact with equipment. Always maintain proper clearances.

The combination of water and electricity is also hazardous. The sprays of water from irrigation systems should never be directed near overhead power lines. Because the impurities in water serve as conductors of electricity, a stream of water reaching non-insulated wires will become the path for deadly voltage and can energize the entire irrigation system.

Wiring maintenance should also be a safety priority. Read all operator manuals and follow the manufacturer’s suggestions for inspection and maintenance. When working on the system, always turn off the power first. Also, make sure all equipment is grounded. Call a professional electrician to check the pump and wiring and to complete any needed repairs.

Storms can also pose dangers for irrigation systems and those who operate them. Keep an eye on weather forecasts and stay away from piping during storms with lightning.

Follow these additional precautions to help ensure the safety of those working around irrigation equipment:

• If fuses continually blow or circuit breakers repeatedly trip, have a professional check the wiring. This could indicate a potential electrical hazard.

• Avoid moving irrigation equipment on windy days when pipes could blow into nearby power lines. Keep pipes horizontal to the ground rather than vertical to minimize the risk of power line contact.

• Store unused irrigation pipes far away from power lines or electrical equipment.

• Position irrigation pipes at least 15 feet away from power lines.

• Position the water jet streams so that there is no chance of them spraying onto power lines. If this happens, the entire system could become energized, creating a danger for anyone nearby.

• If an irrigation pipe comes in contact with a power line, never try to remove it yourself. Stay away from the pipe, and call Morgan County REA for help.

For more information on electrical safety, call MCREA at (970) 867-5688 or visit SafeElectricity.org.

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Premier Farm Credit Seeking Capital Markets Analyst

We are seeking a self-motivated individual to help us grow and manage our Capital Markets participation portfolio. The position may be located in Sterling, Fort Morgan, or Yuma CO with options available for remote or hybrid work once fully trained. Responsibilities include analyzing audited financial statements of complex worldwide industries, evaluating industry trends and forecasts, preparing recommendations on credit packages which includes writing credit narratives, evaluating credit risk by analyzing financial, operational, and industry factors for new and existing customers, and recommending loan related actions for approval. Other duties include monitoring accounts noting compliance with financial covenants, performing portfolio trend analysis, assist with credit administration and preparation of Association reports. The successful candidate will be detail oriented, have knowledge of credit and financial analysis, including cash flow analysis, balance sheet analysis, profitability, liquidity, and solvency analysis, possess a high level of accountability for work performed, possess excellent communication and analytical skills, be proficient in Excel, have the ability to quickly develop high competence in company loan system programs, ability to work independently with minimal guidance, as well as collaboratively in a team environment, excellent organizational and time management skills, with the ability to meet deadlines and adjust to changing priorities. Bachelor’s degree preferred in Business, Accounting, Finance, Agriculture, Economics or a related field along with one year of related experience. Grade and salary commensurate with experience with base salary range of $45,000-$75,000 plus team bonus opportunity. Excellent benefit package includes 401(k) with 3% employer contribution and up to 6% matching, 12 vacation days, 15 paid sick days, 10 paid holidays, medical, dental, life, and vision. Position will be open until filled. Send your cover letter, resume, and application to Recruiting@PremierACA.com or to PO Box 1785, Sterling, CO 80751. EOE/AA/M/F/V/D

Angelo State University Announces Spring 2023 Dean’s List

SAN ANGELO, TX (05/30/2023)-- Angelo State University in San Angelo, Texas, has announced the students achieving the Dean’s List for the 2023 spring semester, including Hannah Kinnison of Grover.

To be eligible for the ASU Dean’s List, full-time undergraduate students must maintain a 3.25 or better grade point average on a 4.0 scale.

Kinnison is majoring in Food Animal Science Marketing at Angelo State. The complete spring 2023 Dean’s List is available at angelo.edu/commencement.

BobstockMusicFestival.com

Friday July 7th

7:30pm: Rick Lewis Project

9:30pm: Riley's L.A. Guns

Saturday, July 8th

8:00pm: Romero

9:30pm: .38 Special

2. Parts Smart Carquest Stage

Friday July 7th

6:30pm: Venture Still

Saturday, July 8th

12:30pm: Karter Roberts

1:00pm: Danny Derail Band

4:00pm: Next Tuezday

6:00pm- Draft Punk

3.

Friday July 7th 5:30pm: Neon Blonde

Saturday, July 8th

2:00pm: The Hangover's

4:00pm: Persuasion: Tribute to Santana

7:00pm: West Hwy 7

Friday July 7th

view event map here

Glenn Miller Park, Downtown Fort Morgan

Friday July 7th 6:00pm: Hooligan Holiday: Motley Crue Tribute: Presented by Club Tap

Saturday, July 8th 1:00pm-4:00pm: Open Mic & Local Variety 5:00pm: Naked Mannequins 6:15pm: Gutterok: Presented by Club Tap

6:00pm-9:00pm: Denver Dueling Piano's Show

11:00pm: Nature's Herb & Wellness VJ After-Party

Saturday, July 8th

9:00am-11:00am: Brunch with "The Hangover's"-Presented by Kids at their Best

4:00pm: Barre Chord Bangers

6:15pm: The Circuit Breakers

11:00pm: High Plainz Strains VJ After-Party

1. Rival Services Stage

Morgan County REA Stage

5. Vap Construction Stage

4. Cyclone Diesel Stage