All Local, All The Time
All Local, All The Time
Sorted by date Results 351 - 400 of 441
Maddie Dangerfield moved to Colorado from Maryland three summers ago, just before she started her freshman year at Niwot High School. Throughout middle school, she had been involved with Best Buddies. Best Buddies is an international organization for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their peers without disabilities. The group’s website states, “Our programs empower the special abilities of people with IDD by helping them form meaningful friendships with the...
Boulder County Commissioners met with Xcel Energy officials on May 8 to discuss the current status of the energy company’s Valmont power plant. Following the cessation of most of the facility’s coal operations in 2017, cleanup and containment efforts have been in process. Both the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the federal Environmental Protection Association regulations determine the specific directives to which Xcel must adhere throughout the process. Commissioners Elise Jones, Cindy Domenico, and Deb Gardner wer...
Heatherwood Elementary School (HES) won the lottery when Carrie O’Boyle moved to Gunbarrel seven years ago. Her husband Patrick was starting a new job in the area, so after more than 20 years in Madison, WI, the couple and their two young children headed to Colorado. The O’Boyle boys are Finn, now 11 and attending Platt Middle School, and Cormac (Mac), 9, a fourth-grader at HES. “Carrie, a valued volunteer at Heatherwood Elementary, is always willing to pitch in where needed and lend a helpi... Full story
Although it may seem that Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, Walmart, and Kroger (King Soopers) have cornered the market on drug sales, there are more than 22,000 independent pharmacies across the United States according to the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA). Flatirons Family Pharmacy, on the southwest corner of Highway 287 and Ken Pratt Boulevard, is one of the 150 plus independent pharmacies in Colorado, according to NCPA’s 2016 Digest report. Opened four years ago by o... Full story
Boulder County Transportation Department held an informational meeting May 14 at Niwot High School to update the public on the status of the Quiet Zone project along Highway 119 between Boulder and Longmont. Quiet zones are a system of warning signs and physical barriers (raised medians, quad gates, and channelizing devices) that fulfill the safety requirements of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and eliminate the need for train engineers to sound horns as they approach each crossing. To an audience of approximately 40 local...
Calming, strengthening, healing, energizing, balancing, and clarifying are some of the primary benefits of practicing yoga. Jeff Bailey loves that his livelihood allows him the opportunity to help people improve their lives through yoga and he’s utterly passionate about it. Bailey has been a yoga instructor for 33 years. Growing up in Gunnison, CO, Bailey took his first yoga class when he was 22 years old, and it instantly felt transformative and vital to him. He was captivated by the functional...
From healthy food to exceptional employer practices Raglin Market hopes to hit all the high notes. The new eatery, slated to open on the corner of Gunbarrel Center Court and Lookout Road this August, will be partnering with local food producers to offer the freshest food. They also intend to provide a uniquely supportive work environment for their crew. Director of Operations Kevin Hartmann describes the new restaurant as fast and casual, and then even a step higher. Diners start out ordering...
Hans Kissner opened Cutter’s Edge Hair Salon in Gunbarrel more than 30 years ago. Over the years he developed a stellar reputation as both a business owner and a stylist. So it was no accident that he assembled a solid team of professional stylists. After having gradually stepped back from the salon’s day-to-day operations for several years, Kissner and his wife Murielle decided to formally offer the salon’s core team of long-time employees the reigns. In February 2018, Mary Romero, Sarah Benso...
May 1, launch day for the book Chasing New Horizons, marked the beginning of a 21-day, 11-state book tour for author Alan Stern of Niwot. While this journey is very exciting, it’s comparatively short for the scientist, whose new book chronicles spacecraft New Horizons’ three-billion mile adventure to Pluto and beyond. Stern, the mission’s principal investigator, and his co-author, David Grinspoon, take readers deep inside the project to get an understanding of its intensity and how what start...
Husband and father Doug Squire of Niwot passed away in August of 2017 at the age of 46. His fight against colon cancer lasted four and a half years, more than the three years his doctor had anticipated. There was no reason to believe Squire was anything but perfectly healthy, even when, at age 39 he began to experience what he thought were simply “stomach issues.” His wife Heather said they thought perhaps he had food allergies, such as celiac disease. So, for more than a year they made sev...
Last month, St. Vrain Valley School District superintendent Don Haddad was announced as one of four finalists for Clark County School District’s (CCSD) search for a new superintendent. CCSD serves over 75 percent of the students in the state of Nevada, including the Las Vegas area. CCSD’s school board’s selection was originally expected to be announced April 19. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, immediately following the announcement of the final candidates, the school board trustees balked at the absence of nominees from within the d...
“Service above Self” is the motto of the international Rotarian Club and it fittingly captures the spirit of the organization and its members. Beginning in 2006, Rotary Clubs around the world designated the last Saturday of April as the day members perform hands-on work in their communities and the day was titled Rotarians at Work Day (RAW). The Rotary Club of Niwot decided that this RAW they would help the Niwot Historical Society remove a large raised planting bed adjacent to the Niwot Fir...
Up-A-Creek Robotics Team 1619, comprised of primarily St. Vrain Valley School District students, came away from the 2018 FIRST Robotics World Championship competition in Houston with a third-place alliance finish, making this the most successful finish to a season for the team. Adding to the excitement of the finale, the team also earned the General Motors Industrial Design Award, which recognizes “form and function” for the robot that best performs each year’s assigned challenge. Prior to th...
More than a dozen volunteers donated their time and energy to plant hundreds of perennials and spread wheelbarrows full of mulch at Left Hand Valley Grange Park on the corner of Niwot Road and 83rd Street, Saturday, April 28. Boulder County Parks and Open Space workers were on hand to assist and direct the community helpers. Beautiful warm weather and lightly cloudy skies provided a gorgeous day for the workers and a first-rate day for the plants to start to spread their root...
Forty years of immersing himself in Rocky Mountain majesty and magnificence, countless miles of hiking and skiing to rugged, remote, and idyllic locations, and hours of patiently waiting for the perfect lighting, hues, and wildlife to be present has ensured that John Fielder’s epic images are now synonymous with the wondrous state of Colorado. Fielder spent the good part of last Tuesday at Longmont’s Flagstaff Academy. His initial meeting was with art teacher Natalie Reed’s photography 2 class... Full story
Longtime president of the Niwot Community Association (NCA), Dick Piland, presided over his final meeting, Wednesday, April 18, at the Left Hand Grange Hall. Piland announced at the January NCA board meeting that he would not seek re-election this year, marking the end of five years heading up the board. Voting for available board positions concluded at the annual meeting, signifying the conclusion of two-year terms for half of the board. Each nominee ran unopposed. The other half of the board...
What began in Europe as a movement to protect and celebrate local food production in the late 1980s blossomed into a global organization with the goal of ensuring that healthy seasonal food is accessible to everyone. Boulder’s local chapter of Slow Food has recently reactivated and expanded service to all of Boulder County. According to www.slowfood.com, the organization was named because, “It’s a way of saying no to the rise of fast food and fast life. Slow Food means living an unhurried life, taking time to enjoy simple pleasures, start... Full story
There have been restaurants and stores to support Gunbarrel residents for quite some time now. But with the recent addition of large multi-family developments (over 300 new units) and many new businesses in the last few years, the sense of a warm, small town with a heart center is really starting to inch in. Two Boulder-raised, longtime friends are adding to the village atmosphere with the opening of a café-by-day/libation-by-eve enterprise. Come the first week of May, Gunbarrel resident Mike... Full story
It might be presumptuous to say that more handwritten messages made their way through Niwot Elementary School (NES) than digital messages for a five day period, but it could be a close match. Here’s the figure — at least 1500 Lucky Grams were directed to students. And the sweet bonus an electronic message couldn’t begin to compete with — there was a Jolly Rancher or Starburst taped on each Gram. Every year, the 12-member NES Student Council sells the candy-decorated Lucky Grams to raise money f... Full story
Parking spots were scarce at the Lefthand Valley Grange Park early last week while several crews were hustling to make headway on some finishing touches to the project. Three key elements were in the works this week – landscaping, work on the map kiosk, and laying down materials on the new trails. Boulder County Parks and Open Space (POS) employees Cathy Thiltgen, an arborist, and Ari Addes, a POS volunteer coordinator, were working with volunteers to plant trees. Brian Bartel, a Boulder C...
Googling Starbuds Niwot Marijuana Dispensary brings up nearly 50 reviews and a rating of five out five stars — happy customers across the board. And chances are that most of those reviews are from patrons who live within a relatively close radius of the store located on the southwest corner of Cottonwood Square Shopping Center. One review reads, “Finally an awesome dispensary near me! Great little place, family owned operated and man do they have selection. Customer service is top notch.” Owner...
Niwot’s Michelle Law has dedicated herself to the boys in her life and the community, earning her the Courier’s Left Hand Laurel. Law is the mother of three boys and also a long-time leader of Boy Scout Troop 161, holding different positions over the years, including serving as the troop’s Advancement Chair for the past two years. A resident of Niwot since 2000, she was a member of the Left Hand Grange when she learned the Grange, as the chartering organization for Troop 161’s Boy Scouts...
An eye-catching sign recently went up next to the familiar Ajuua Mexican Restaurant sign in Cottonwood Square Shopping Center. The two signs will continue to sit side-by-side for a bit to indicate to the community that Raza Fresa Mexican Kitchen is the new Mexican restaurant in town, but is still related to Ajuua. The Mexican slang term, “raza fresa,” means the hip crowd and, along with that theme, the vibe of Ajuua has just become a whole lot cooler. Gone are the large wooden booths and Cal... Full story
The Niwot Historical Society will present the second lecture of the 2018 series - Ghost Towns of the American West - on Wednesday, April 25, at the Left Hand Grange Hall. Award-winning writer-director, and self-proclaimed ghost town junkie, Ethan Knightchilde will regale on a topic which has enamored him since he was nine years old. Even as a youngster, Knightchilde carried his camera everywhere. But it wasn’t until he was an adult that he combined his fascination with ghost towns and his photog...
Catherine Médal, owner of Miss Catherine's Creative Learning Center and Infant Center in Gunbarrel for over two decades, announced the completion of the sale to a new owner. The center has been renamed to Growing Minds Learning Academy. “I am so appreciative of the parents and community for allowing me to have been involved in their lives for 22 years,” Médal said. In her farewell letter to parents Médal wrote, “Approaching the big 70 in February, it is now time to think of enjoying retireme... Full story
There’s an uninvited guest staying on the Schultz Family Farm. She’s pleasant though and no one is complaining. In fact, she’s drawing a great deal of attention to a small patch of land on the corner of Oxford Road and Highway 287, which Glen Schultz is hoping will become more familiar to the public. Two months ago, a lone female elk jumped into the pasture that holds two male oxen. And she’s stayed around to graze and lounge in the field with her good-natured horned friends, Chester and Cal...
Don Haddad, Superintendent of Saint Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD), is on the short list of candidates to be at the helm of Clark County School District (CCSD) in Nevada, the fifth largest school district in the country. Haddad was named as one of four finalists for the superintendent position from an initial pool of 77 applicants. Haddad, 56, has been an educator for 33 years and progressively moved up the ladder from being a teacher to entering the administration ranks, including a stint...
St. Vrain Valley School District Superintendent Don Haddad opened the bond update and school safety town hall meeting held at Silver Creek High School (the fourth such meeting this month in the district) by emphasizing that for SVVSD, and for himself, student safety was an area of concern long before the recent shootings. Haddad pointed to the “summer of violence” that occurred in Denver in 1993 as the initial cause for the heightened worry over school safety. At that time he was working at a h...
After nearly seven years of bringing about dynamic changes in others, Begin Fitness Studio has undergone a renewal of its own. Owner Julia Franklin searched prodigiously for the perfect space in Niwot when her lease at the Emporium on Second Avenue was terminated. The new studio location at 6800 79th Street, Suite 104 in the Cottonwood Shopping Center is rich with natural light and much roomier. “The name of the business is Begin Fitness, because I really love the idea of beginning every day s... Full story
Boulder Country Day School (BCD) will be offering two sessions of girls’ technology courses called Girls Who Code this coming summer. The summer camp program is being called Campus. Girls Who Code is a national program designed to increase the low number of females in the field of computer science. Less than one in four computer scientists are women, with that ratio decreasing over time. Campus will be offering 1,000 middle and high school girls introductory computer science and website design and development programs in six cities, i...
Maybe it’s the splendor of the glorious view of the mountains. It could be the peacefulness and beauty of the rural setting. Whatever the case, the vibe in Niwot inspires many artists. The seventh annual Why Not Niwot? Juried Art Show will be tapping into that creativeness by offering a showcase for pieces featuring Niwot. Sponsored by the Niwot Cultural Arts Association (NCAA) and hosted by businesses throughout town, 30 artists will display their entries beginning Friday, April 6, in conjuncti...
Local robotics Team 1619, based in Longmont, earned a significant honor this month at the Hub City Regional Competition in Lubbock, Texas - the Regional Chairman’s Award. Along with their alliance teams, the team also took first place out of 41 teams at the same event. Since the St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) team was formed in 2004, and dubbed Up-A-Creek Robotics, membership and facilities have dramatically improved. Its beginnings were humble, with the first meeting in a t...
Kim and Alan Schwarz have racked up thirty some years of odd jobs for their resume. A little of this and a little of that adds up to a whole lot of doing good. When you have kind hearts, some really cool tools, and simply notice that something needs to be done, your hometown is fortunate to have you waiting in the wings. One of Niwot’s stealth power couples, the Schwarzes have made it their second nature to jump in and plow parking lots, cart around 300-pound Left Hand cement chairs, buy h... Full story
Niwot High students flowed out of the school building Wednesday morning just before 10 a.m. to join in the countrywide momentum of teens exercising their rights to free speech by asking for stronger gun control legislation. Student hopes were that by emptying classrooms and being heard, they will bring about speedy changes to prevent the growing wave of senseless tragedies in the U.S. Student organizers Sophia Jones and Lauren McHugh stood with fellow march leaders on the berm at the front of...
Students and staff are ecstatic that local real estate firm, Estate Professionals, recently donated a 3D printer to Niwot High School (NHS). Computer science teacher Teresa Ewing, who was also integral in bringing this wish list equipment to the school, said this donation has been a great way to help build up the school’s technical program. “Programming the 3D printer is a carrot,” Ewing said. “When students complete an assigned project, like their latest one of designing a playground, they ar...
Seven-year-old Edsel Bennett of Niwot stepped up for his community by initiating a creative fundraising event on behalf of Niwot’s Firehouse Museum forecourt restoration project. During March’s First Friday Art Walk, Bennett’s fidget spinner skills were on full display for a requested donations of five cents. Spectators at the downtown event happily paid more than that for the unique show and, as a result he raised $13 for the project. The Niwot Historical Society committee organized to raise...
There’s an old saying that “To catch a thief, you have to think like one.” For five intense days, two teams of Niwot High School (NHS) girls rewired their thought processes to compete in a computer security challenge to thwart cybercrime. Stepping into the virtual shoes of hackers, the teams out-performed their competitors admirably. The Coding Cougars team, made up of Julia Curd (sophomore), Davita Bird (sophomore), Michelle Tran (senior) and Aileen Ma (senior) finished first in the state...
Niwot High students flowed out of the school building this morning just before 10 a.m. to join in the countrywide momentum of teens exercising their rights to free speech by asking for stronger gun control legislation. Student hopes were that by emptying classrooms and being heard, they will bring about speedy changes to prevent the growing wave of senseless tragedies in the U.S. Student organizers Sophia Jones and Lauren McHugh stood with fellow march leaders on the berm at the front of the sch...
Niwot High School’s remodeling project will take two summers to complete. Plans are for the work to begin this summer, be paused while school is in session, and then begin again in the summer of 2019, with completion being August of 2019. As part of the $260 million bond issue passed in November 2016, NHS’s commons, library and auditorium will be the most changed elements, along with the addition of interior natural lighting enhancements. These improvements will “increase daylight in the building and movement through the hallways,” SVVSD D...
Powder Keg Brewing Company, located at 101 Second Ave. in Niwot, will be closing its doors for good this weekend after almost four years of operation. The company announced via social media late last week that effective March 10, they will be done. Their post read as follows: “It is with heavy hearts that we announce the closing of Powder Keg Brewing Company, effective Saturday, March 10, 2018. Powder Keg fought long battles with rent costs that outpaced sales growth, on-premise sales that d...
More than 400 ticket holders let the wind blow them around Niwot to enjoy wine, art, food, and the hospitality of Niwot businesses. Niwot’s fourth Wine about Winter event took place the afternoon of Saturday, Feb. 24. While the sun was shining brightly, the temperature was still wintery cold and the exuberant wind battered the event’s celebratory balloons. But, the strong breeze didn’t prevent the flow of happy mug-toting participants from moving from one warm welcoming location to anoth...
Our little speck of the solar system is home to the planetary scientist who has the grand distinction of leading the exploration to places the furthest distance ever from Earth. Niwot resident Dr. Alan Stern is the principal investigator of NASA’s New Horizons mission, a 3.8 billion mile, $880M undertaking that began over 25 years ago and is still underway. This month Stern was awarded the 2018 National Award of Nuclear Science and History for his leadership on this project and other a... Full story
Making music on stage at Carnegie Hall is a gold standard for performance excellence. Earlier this month, 20 Niwot High School (NHS) students did just that. This is the fifth year that NHS has hit the big-time in NYC by taking part in a trip arranged through Manhattan Concert Productions. NHS Choir Director Laura Marshall said the school is invited back each year because NHS students have proven they are strong, excellent singers. This year’s trip was chaperoned by Marshall, along with P... Full story
Thirty one year old Gunbarrel resident Jackie Zampella didn’t personally know anyone who had kidney failure, but she knew she could save a life by offering one of her healthy kidneys to someone in need. What she actually did was save four peoples’ lives. Nationally, there are 127,374 people on the U.S. organ transplant waiting list. Every 10 minutes another person is added to that list. Twenty-two people pass away each day, because they did not get the organ they needed. But, the good news is... Full story
Niwot Historical Society’s first presentation in the 2018 Lecture Series will feature Buffalo Bill expert, Steve Friesen. Buffalo Bill Cody died 101 years ago but due to his colorful and very public life, his biography still captivates. “As a small boy I read about Buffalo Bill and thought he was just the coolest guy,” Friesen said. “But I discovered he was in show business and I was a little disappointed to think he was only an actor. I went on to learn he wasn’t an actor, he was the real deal and had an impact on the Wild West and our under... Full story
Chuck Rodgers’ personality emits enthusiasm, which is precisely what you would imagine from the creator of one of the grandest holiday light displays in the area. His creation is the resplendent colony of lights on the crest of the hill on 79th Street between Gunbarrel and Niwot. Rodgers’ deeply set back home leaves ample room for a drive-through holiday light extravaganza. In keeping with his own high energy level, Rodgers fills the enormous yard with the flash, flicker and flair of huge inf... Full story
Family hopeful it will improve her condition Mila Makovec and her family have traveled to Boston to undergo a very promising treatment for the specific gene mutation she has which resulted in Batten Disease. This illness has taken the local girl’s sight, speech, mobility, made her suffer from seizures and now, more imminently, it threatens her life. While her mother, Julia Vitarello, has been piloting Mila’s Miracle Foundation to bring to fruition a gene therapy treatment for Mila and oth...
Nature Doc J, a natural medicine family practice owned by a Niwot resident, Dr. Janine Malcolm, N.D., LA.c., will be relocating from its Boulder location on Walnut Street to 165 Second Avenue in Niwot this April. The name of the business will be aptly changed to Niwot Natural Medicine. Malcolm is a doctor of naturopathic medicine and an acupuncturist, and has had her practice in Boulder for the past 18 years. Along with her 13 year-old daughter and four year-old son, the family moved to Niwot...
Reports of big cat sightings in Niwot seem to be more prevalent these days. It might be because of the availability of sharing the news of sightings on Nextdoor Niwot and Facebook; or it’s possible that there’s an uptick in the population of mountain lions and bobcats in the area; or maybe big cats are getting used to living in close quarters with humans in the area and are not as fearful. This past week, Brooke Moulton wrote on Nextdoor Niwot, “This morning around 5:45 a.m. my husband was o...
Preparations for the fourth annual Let’s Wine About Winter event are underway. During this sometimes chilly, but warm-hearted social event, more than 28 businesses throughout Niwot will be serving up a little something from 1-5 pm, Saturday, Feb. 24 as patrons wander the town and enjoy public outdoor art, art galleries and culinary delights. Ducking in and out of businesses, sipping on wines, brews and other beverages, snacking on cheeses, nuts and chocolates, and meeting old and new friends are among the objectives for the afternoon, along w...
