Friday, April 19

The Crestone Eagle is a nonprofit monthly newspaper serving Crestone and the San Luis Valley

Our April Edition is Here

Front Cover
Baca resident Lynn Drake walks with Bella during the March 25 snowstorm that blanketed the area. More than two feet fell in the foothills to the east. photo by Matt Lit 

From our current editions

Sheela Bringi: April concert at Colorado College

By Peter Gyallay-Pap. Hindustani harpist, vocalist, and bamboo flutist Sheela Bringi will bring her rare and beautiful crossover music artistry to Crestone on Sunday, April 21 at the Colorado College indoor amphitheater.   Sheela is a classically trained Indian musician who artfully reimagines traditional melodies, seamlessly weaving them into vibrant modern compositions. Experience lush modern renditions...

Smoke: Baca Grande Ambulance organizes Mental Health and Wellness fairs

By Christina Lakish. People almost never want to see Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs), but here’s a great reason to connect with local first responders:  The Baca Grande Ambulance Department is hosting two Mental Health and Wellness Fairs, one April 18 at the Crestone Charter School in the Rainbow Hall, and the other April 25 at Moffat...

Mayor Kairina Danforth bids farewell

My last month as Crestone mayor I came to the Baca in 1999, with my husband, to retire and live a contemplative life. Never, by background nor by inclination, was I a politician. Rather, I came to Crestone to “find enlightenment” and to reinvent myself.   We lived first in the Baca for four years before...

USFS History: Crestone-Baca volunteers help forest service

By Jose Villa. More than a decade ago, in 2014, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) held a meeting at the Crestone Charter School (CCS). Officials were concerned that their allocated budgets at that time had no funds for maintenance of designated trails including those in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains with trailheads near Crestone and...

Firewise: Thanking the crews who make up the workforce

By Daniel S. Johnson, Saguache  County Firewise Program. It’s been a highly productive fall and winter for the Saguache County Firewise Program, in its 15th year, mainly due to the skills and dedication of the workforce. Kevin Matz, the Baca Assistant Fire Chief, was instrumental in helping do assessments and complete hands-on mitigation projects since...

Crestone Board still divided on town stage, events

By Anya Kaats. A town-appointed special events committee was created last month to address town board and resident concerns about hosting events in the town. Despite the formation of this committee, town trustees remain divided in their support. At the March 11 meeting, Crestone trustees reviewed an email from Saguache-based artist Gigi Douglas. Douglas proposed a...

Colorado 2024-2025 fishing licenses are now available

DENVER – Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) reminds anglers the 2024-2025 fishing season is officially here. The 2024-2025 fishing license is valid from March 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025. Regulations and pricing for annual, daily, and multi-day fishing licenses are in the 2024 Colorado Fishing Brochure (Pesca en Colorado​ En Español​​​​​​​). For individuals ages...

Gofundme campaigns help wolf rescue and owner of Moffat home

Wolf rescue needs community help Charlene Wolf, of Crone Wolf Medicine, has started a gofundme to help with her expenses of running the wolf rescue, outside of Saguache. From the gofundme page: “I would like to thank everyone who has been donating to Crone Wolf Medicine. We have reached $645.00 of our $4500.00 goal and this...

A young library visitor approaches Smokey the Bear during the Baca Grande Library's Open House on Saturday, March 23. Photo by Uma Jolicoeur

Local children enjoy the opportunity to connect with horses and riding at Baca Grande Stables. photo courtesy Baca Grande Stables
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The April 2024 issue is on sale now! Get the full story with the full edition. $3 digital download.Click on the image below.

LISTEN IN!

NEW! Recorded for community radio station KRZA 88.7 FM. Janet Woodman reads “Open Air Cremation Etiquette" from our March edition.

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PODCAST

Chris Ryan interviews Liza Marron for his podcast "Tangentially Speaking." Liza came to the San Luis valley about 30 years ago to work on a buffalo ranch with her husband. Since then, she’s lived a lot of life in this valley. Raising kids, horses, dogs, working as school board president and County Commissioner, and founding and running the San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition are just a few of the things that have kept her busy over the years.

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PODCAST

Anya Kaats interviews Sarah Jones and her husband Michael, fourth generation potato farmers in Hooper, CO. Their farm, Jones Farms Organics, is paving the way in the San Luis Valley (the nation’s second largest fresh potato growing region in the U.S.) for regenerative and sustainable farming practices. In addition to helping manage day to day operations at the farm, Sarah has also recently transformed a local gas station and café into a neighborhood whole-food eatery. Jones Farm was featured in our July 2023 edition.

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Classifieds

LFLP Outreach Assistant

The San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition seeks an Outreach Assistant to support community engagement efforts. Responsibilities include outreach, event coordination, and record-keeping. Candidates should possess strong communication skills and proficiency in Google...

Accountant

The San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition is seeking an Accountant to oversee financial management in accordance with Good Accounting Practices. Responsibilities include accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, and grant reporting. Candidates should...

LFLP Outreach Assistant

The San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition seeks an Outreach Assistant to support community engagement efforts. Responsibilities include outreach, event coordination, and record-keeping. Candidates should possess strong communication skills and proficiency in Google...

Housemate Wanted

Person must be clean with integrity and share responsibilities for cleaning the home; Vegetarian; No smoking, No drugs, no pets. $515 Rent + 1/3rd utilities; first, last $160 deposit 719 628 9539

Saguache County Landfill – Free Landfill Dump Day!

2024 Free Landfill Dump Day Schedule Saturday, April 20th from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Who Can Participate  Saguache County residents can bring most large items, debris, and recyclables to the Saguache County Landfill AT NO...

Letters to the Editor

Letter to the Editor criteria:
We’re glad you’re part of this community. Here’s how it works:
Max Length: 350 words. If your letter is longer than this, we will return it to you to trim.
Must include: author’s name, town/city, organization affiliation (if relevant), contact information in case we have a question. Contact information will not be published with your letter. The decision to print any letter to the editor is completely at the discretion of The Crestone Eagle editor, and we reserve the right to edit all letters. Letters considered libelous, obscene, in bad taste, or containing personal attacks will not be printed. Form letters and letters containing long lists of names will not be printed. Anonymous letters will not be printed. Thank-you letters are welcomed and encouraged, and letters regarding local news and issues will be prioritized.

Send letters to editor@crestoneeagle.com by the 16th of the month.
Thank you.

We like music

We like musicand celebrating eventsand our local breweryeven if others say we don’t We ask that our voicesdo not interrupt the musicand that the music allows for normal conversation We like musicand celebrating events and our local brewerythroughout the year We ask we participatein the dance of lifeto allow good mannershard work, celebratingand learning...
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Love of power over reason

Dear Editor: If you question why the American public seems so unhappy with the current state of affairs, I believe you need look no further than the Congress and more specifically the Republican majority in the House of Representatives. When the Biden Administration asked for additional funding for the Ukraine,...
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Cyclists please save trails

Spring was here early. On my hike up the South Crestone Creek trail yesterday I noticed some of the early signs of warmer weather arriving: deep tire gouges in the snow covered trail. It’s spring and the cyclists are anxious to get out.  Bikers, please take pause to think about your...
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Don’t give up

From “Psychology Today” (www.psychologytoday.com).  Gaslighting:  Gaslighting is an insidious form of manipulation and psychological control. Victims of gaslighting are deliberately and systematically fed false information that leads them to question what they know to be true, often about themselves. They may end up doubting their memory, their perception, and even...
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Charlene Wolf needs your help

Dear community, I’d like to put it out there that Charlene needs help. I found out about a caring, big hearted woman up Tracy Canyon, who is alone taking care of 35 rescued wolf-dogs on just her social security income. I went out to meet her and the wolf dogs...
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Commentary: Solutionaries VII : The Smith-Mundt Modernization Act

By Nathan Good with Heather D’Alessio. This month we explore how our news has been critically affected by H.R.5736, aka the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act of 2012 (SMMA). This law permits the federal government to feed you its agendas through press, paper publications, radio, motion picture, the internet, and other information media including...
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Commentary: The Last President’s Day 

An op-ed by Carew Papritz, the award-winning author of The Legacy Letters. I wasn’t around to see the end of the passenger pigeon. One day there were three billion. Over one third of the bird population of the planet. And within a lifespan, they were no more. The last passenger...
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Commentary: State of the Town

By Carl Cole. Hello Crestone, You may remember me for initiating a recall election against Mayor Danforth in 2021. I tried to present a factual, direct, and open campaign, based on the issue of mismanagement. Today, every town office employee has resigned, the budget is blown, and the community is debating the...
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Halls Of Justice Amendment XIV, Section 3

The constitution of the United States is our nation’s document in which elected and confirmed officials take an “Oath of Affirmation.” Times have evolved since its creation. One thing remains; people have bled in upholding their duty and honor for this country’s constitution. Section 3 of the 14th Amendment...
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Features from our B Section: "Living on the Earth"

Colorado Gator Reptile Park – Rebuilding one year after the fire

By Kimberly Black ~ photography by Matt Lit. Colorado Gator Reptile Park is recovering, rebuilding, and open to the public after a devastating fire last year burned down a barn and killed as many as 180 animals. The educational reptile facility in Mosca has been open to the public since a week after the fire. A lot of people thought the facility was entirely closed but as family, owner-operator Jay Young said, “We’ve been open the whole time.  We shut down for a week because we had to regroup and figure things out. We got through last summer. It was difficult, but we had to be open or we’d...

USFS History: Crestone-Baca volunteers help forest service

By Jose Villa. More than a decade ago, in 2014, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) held a meeting at the Crestone Charter School (CCS). Officials were concerned that their allocated budgets at that time had no funds for maintenance of designated trails including those in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains with trailheads near Crestone and the Baca Grande subdivision. They asked the community for help during those low-budget times and local residents, Dave Miller and Cathy Amenta, stepped forward.  In their idealistic and community-minded action, they became the founders and co-administrators of a small volunteer organization which they named Crestone Wilderness...

The Indigenous role of fire

Using fire as a tool in land stewardship By Hillary Renick. Fire as a tool Fire, powerful and often feared, has been a fundamental part of the life of healthy forests throughout history.  Fire helps seeds germinate, aids in keeping meadows and grasslands balanced, and attracts healthy habitat for animals, insects and pollinators. Utilizing skills acquired by living in place for millennia and learning the rhythm of the seasons through observation, experimentation, and practice, Indigenous cultures use fire as a land management tool. By developing low-risk land management practices, Indigenous communities achieve the same effect as wildfire, but minimize the length of disruption...

Cactus Hill Farm: Upholding a six-generation sheep farming legacy

By Anya Kaats. Elena Miller-ter Kuile was studying International Agricultural Development (IAD) at Cornell when she had a life-altering realization: “I thought working in IAD was going to help save the world, but then I realized, wait a second, the United States isn’t great when it comes to agriculture. Why would I go to other countries to tell them how to live when my own country also needs help figuring out how to do things better?” After her realization, Kuile returned home, determined to continue her family’s legacy of sheep farming, which stretches back six generations. Kuile’s ancestors were some of...

Is it a scooter? Is it a bike? e-bikes offer new alternative

By Wade Lockhart. Are e-bikes part of the new transportation revolution?  During the warmer months, and even year-round when the roads are not icy, one sees them. These bikes sometimes look like scooters with their smaller wheels and headlights, but many look just like a mountain bike. Most e-bikes are hybrids, meaning they are pedal powered, battery powered, and a combination of both called pedal assist. They usually weigh a bit more than a regular bicycle, maybe 30 pounds more depending on the battery, and their travel range before recharging depends on their use and battery capacity:  www.electrek.co/2020/06/12/how-far-can-an-electric-bicycle-really-go-on-a-charge Venues for purchasing  In The Crestone...

IndigiNews: Decolonizing the media, elevating Indigenous voices

This year The Crestone Eagle will be taking notes from the all-Indigenous-led newsroom, IndigiNews. The Crestone Eagle is grateful to be mentoring under IndigiNews Publisher, Eden Fineday, who will offer DEI council to staff, provide cultural sensitivity readings of published content and deepen our capacity for meaningful, sensitive, and accurate coverage of Indigenous topics.  By Eden Fineday IndigiNews Publisher My name is Eden Fineday. I am a Cree woman (nehiyaw iskwew). I live above the imaginary line that was drawn across the continent back in 1846. I come from Treaty 6 Territory, which is an agreement made by my people and the...

SLV language: Rare 16th-century Spanish dialect spoken

By Anna Lee Vargas. Nestled between expansive mountain ranges and the Río Grande, the fertile lands of the San Luis Valley (SLV) have always been a point of contact between cultures and races.  The SLV represents a multicultural tapestry, including Native Americans, Hispanic, Mormon, Asian, and other rancher-settlers, while also encompassing the most extensive wetlands system in the Southern Rocky Mountains. This long and rich history dates back to the Paleo-Indians who lived here 13,000 years ago. Our people’s Indigenous, Spanish, and Mexican roots have played a major role in influencing our food, farming practices, religion, art, culture, and language.  For example,...

Home of the Happy Yak

Chokurei Yak Ranch faces change after 16 years of stewardship By Zaylah Khundmiri  photographs by Matt Lit. When Kyle Grote, a video producer from Ohio, first came to the San Luis Valley (SLV) in 2006, he was looking for a quiet place where he and his wife Teanna could raise their family. He never would have expected that he would soon be the new steward of 2,400 acres of highly sought after land in the remote SLV. Bidding on water  It all began at an auction in 2007. Stretching between Moffat and Crestone, 2,400 acres of undeveloped land, previously the Weiss Ranch, was being sold...
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From our columns...

Sports transition: Bball ends and track runs

By Ziah Knight-Pesqueira  HS Boys Basketball ends After a tough 73-39 playoff loss against the Stratton Eagles the Moffat Cowboys season officially comes to an end. The Cowboys finished their season with a 13-8 record while also qualifying for the Colorado Regional Playoff. Over the course of the past four years...

Puerto Rico! 

CCS Seniors mix education, culture, art and fun in their out-of-country trip By Sequoia Sirois. The Crestone Charter School (CCS) gives amazing diverse learning opportunities to all students.  LINK high schoolers are given the lucky chance to go places out of the United States mainland. LINK is a reference to seniors...

Moffat Archers participated in the 2024 NASP Colorado State Virtual Tournament on Tuesday, February 27th, with 30 students participating. This is the most important tournament of the season for our archers. Competitors will shoot 30 arrows to score. Scoring officials will submit results to the State NASP Coordinator and...

Moffat sports 

By Ziah Knight-Pesqueira  Moffat Boys Basketball: The Moffat Cowboys have finished the regular season with a 13-6 record; solidifying themselves a place in the regional playoffs. The Cowboys most recently faced the Sierra Grande Panthers in a district play-in tournament. Unfortunately, the team came short, taking a 48-43 loss in a...

Phone policy reins in use

By Ziah Knight-Pesqueira  The phone policy in CCS has been a major topic throughout previous months of the school year. Earlier in January there was a discussion about the phone policy throughout the school, particularly for high school and middle school students.  In the January CCS Eaglet an informal survey of...

CCS students activities

Student trip to capital Middle School students recently took a trip to the Colorado State Capital.  Students visited as representatives of the Crestone Charter School on Advocacy Day and meet with Senator Cleave Simpson and Representative Matthew Martinez, bringing to their attention the need for a Recreation Center for Crestone. In...
At the end of the road

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