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Flood tragedy in Texas stirs old memories—and resolve—at Colorado’s Cheley Camps
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CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Flood tragedy in Texas stirs old memories—and resolve—at Colorado’s Cheley Camps

By Olivia Young | CBS News Colorado Among the victims of the devastating flooding in Texas are at least 27 campers and counselors from a girls summer camp, Camp Mystic. A thousand miles from Camp Mystic, the tragedy hits close to home at another summer camp nestled in the Rocky Mountains. This summer, the camp spirit is persisting at Cheley Colorado Camps, a family-owned summer camp with its own history of dealing with extreme weather. "Our great-grandfather, Frank, started camp in 1921 and he set up an amazing foundation and built most of the lodges that we use today," said Jeff Cheley, fourth-generation owner of Cheley Colorado Camps. "We feel that we have this wonderful opportunity to really make a difference in the lives of young people and create this space for them to ...
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Boulder Weekly shuts down publication for first time in 32 years amid internal revolt
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Substack, Approved, Local

Boulder Weekly shuts down publication for first time in 32 years amid internal revolt

By Corey Hutchins | Inside the News in Colorado, Substack The news behind the news in Colorado This week, as the nation’s annual conference for alternative weekly newspapers was convening in Madison, Wisconsin, one of its Colorado members was imploding. Shay Castle, who had been editor of Boulder Weekly for just under two years, said on July 2 that the paper’s owner, Stewart Sallo, had fired her. A week later, things utterly collapsed at the free alt-weekly that has served the city since 1993. “The newsroom is gone,” Castle said over the phone this Tuesday. “All four of us are gone.” While the paper typically comes out on Thursdays and populates news racks around Boulder County, this week those racks are empty for the first time in 32 years. No Big Goodbye, no...
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Garbo: Sheriff Darren Weekly is the exception that proves the GOP’s problem
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, Commentary, Local, Top Stories

Garbo: Sheriff Darren Weekly is the exception that proves the GOP’s problem

By C. J. Garbo | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice In 2022, Darren Weekly wasn’t supposed to win. At least not according to the self-appointed gatekeepers of Republican purity in Douglas County. Branded a “RINO,” derided as “Tony 2.0,” and accused of being soft on Second Amendment rights due to the endorsement of outgoing Sheriff Tony Spurlock, Weekly was the target of aggressive intra-party attacks. The purist wing of the GOP put its full weight behind John Anderson, another outstanding, articulate, and Constitution-minded candidate whose campaign centered on resisting the Red Flag law and defending liberty.  I was among Anderson’s vocal supporters - endorsing, donating, campaigning, and even hosting events on his behalf. But Weekly won. By just over one percentag...
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Lightning-sparked fires top 1,600 acres overnight at Black Canyon National Park
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denvergazette.com, Approved, Local

Lightning-sparked fires top 1,600 acres overnight at Black Canyon National Park

By Nick Smith | Denver Gazette Reaching 1,640 acres in size, the wildfires in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park continue to burn with no signs of containment after two lightning strikes sparked the blazes Thursday. Evacuations for the park remain Friday, and there is no estimated time for reopening, according to fire and incident information agency InciWeb. The agency stated in a late-night news release Thursday that dry, receptive fuel aided by warm temperatures and wind has made for great circumstances for the fire to burn quickly. Incident Management Team San Juan Team 8 took command of wildfire containment operations early Friday. Lori Rome, a spokesperson for the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, said one fire started near the Kneeling Camel Overlook, and the other wa...
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Jeffco Kids First: Court sides with defamer, silences truth in heartbreaking reversal
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Jeffco Kids First, Approved, Commentary, Local

Jeffco Kids First: Court sides with defamer, silences truth in heartbreaking reversal

Lindsay Datko | Commentary, Jeffco Kids First The sharp sting of brutal injustice cuts deep, searing the soul. Your time spent reading this is my measure of justice, and for that, I am profoundly grateful. “In reviewing the record, the Court identifies instances of Defendants’ conduct that a trier of fact could find as clear and convincing evidence of their anger and hostility toward Plaintiffs to sufficiently show actual malice.” Judge Loewer On the afternoon of October 7, 2022, my phone lit up with text messages: “You need an attorney ASAP.”  “Be prepared, there’s an article that just came out.”  Everything went silent except the ringing in my ears as I read the article, the world spinning around me. I remember the exact square-footage of my kitchen I was standing in. With m...
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Denver’s $800M bond plan sparks backlash over priorities, transparency
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Denverite, Approved, Local

Denver’s $800M bond plan sparks backlash over priorities, transparency

By Paolo Zialcita | Denverite The package can still change significantly depending on actions from the mayor and Denver City Council. On Tuesday, we learned how the city plans to spend $800 million from a proposed new bond package. Members of the Vibrant Denver bond’s executive committee unveiled the project list after weeks of work to pare down ideas from city agencies, organizations and neighborhoods.  The bond process was criticized by community members and city officials for being rushed and not properly incorporating public feedback — and Tuesday’s rollout drew a strong reaction, too, with some Denver City Council members implying they could vote to block the proposal. The package will go before voters in November, though the project list could ...
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Western Slope river channel tests positive for invasive and ‘devastating’ zebra mussels—again
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, Local

Western Slope river channel tests positive for invasive and ‘devastating’ zebra mussels—again

By Michael Booth | Colorado Sun New rounds of samples for the voracious creatures keep turning up positive, complicating containment The Colorado River is now officially “positive” for invasive zebra mussels in the latest failure of containment for the voracious species, after three new samples came up with larvae July 3, from between Glenwood Springs and Silt. The main stem Colorado River discoveries piled on top of a confirmed “large number” of adult zebra mussels in a private body of water in western Eagle County, and two more positive larvae tests, at Highline Lake and Mack Mesa Lake, both near the Utah border, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials said Wednesday. Sampling was redoubled throughout June after tests found a single zebra mussel larvae, or veliger, in the Colorado...
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Jeffco Kids First report reveals 33 staff misconduct cases in Jefferson County Schools
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, Local, Top Stories

Jeffco Kids First report reveals 33 staff misconduct cases in Jefferson County Schools

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice An alarming report released by Jeffco Kids First, a grassroots advocacy group led by teacher turned activist Lindsay Datko, has exposed 33 cases of sexual abuse and misconduct by staff in Jefferson County Public Schools since 2022. The article “33 Documented Sexual Abuse and Misconduct Cases in Jeffco Schools” presents a disturbing image of a district with systemic failures.  The data reveals a pattern of misconduct going unreported to the Colorado Department of Education. The scope of abuse: 33 cases and counting Superintendent Tracy Dorland has received pushback regarding the handling of these incidents, with critics citing inadequate communication and insufficient safety protocols. The report documents six ar...
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“They called us hateful”: Colorado parents see their story reflected in Supreme Court ruling
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, Local, Top Stories

“They called us hateful”: Colorado parents see their story reflected in Supreme Court ruling

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that public schools must allow parents to opt their children out of LGBTQ+ instruction that conflicts with their religious beliefs, BJ and Brecken Jones sat quietly in their living room—stunned, relieved and vindicated. “For years, we were treated like extremists for simply protecting our kids,” BJ said. “Now the Supreme Court says we were right all along.” For this Boulder County family, Mahmoud v. Taylor wasn’t just a legal case—it was a mirror.  Reading the Court’s opinion, BJ and Brecken saw their own experience reflected almost line for line. What they didn’t expect was that their quiet effort to opt out—rejected by school officials, scorned by activists and ultimately buried in district archi...
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