Issuu

STANDARD BLADE B R I G H T O N

SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE 1903

75cI

VOLUME 119

Issue 51

WEEK OF DECEMBER 22, 2022

For Brighton dairy farm, reindeer are part of the family

Denver mayor issues emergency declaration ‘Local humanitarian crisis’ cited as more migrants arrive BY TATIANA FLOWERS AND DELANEY NELSON THE COLORADO SUN

Reindeer are, in fact, a real species. In North America, they are known as caribou. Caribou and reindeer are the same species, but reindeer hail from Europe and have been domesticated for some 6,000 years. North American caribou have never been domesticated and tend to be a bit bigger. And while they don’t fly, McIntosh has a perfectly good explanation, cribbed from a friend and fellow breeder Chris Jessen of Loveland. “My Reindeer are the ‘B’ team so when Santa’s Reindeer get tired

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock on Dec. 15 issued an emergency declaration, hoping to head off a “local humanitarian crisis” as hundreds of migrants, mostly from Central and South America, have converged downtown in recent months, straining the city’s ability to care for them and reunify them with loved ones. The announcement comes as 247 more migrants have arrived in Denver since Dec. 14, overwhelming an emergency shelter at a city recreational center and causing the city to open another. “Let me be frank: This influx of migrants, the unanticipated nature of their arrival, and our current space and staffing challenges have put an immense strain on city resources, to the level where they’re on the verge of reaching a breaking point at this time,” Hancock said. “What I don’t want to see is a local humanitarian crisis of unsheltered migrants on our hands because of a lack of resources,” he said. Many of the migrants had gathered in communities along the Mexico border, mainly in El Paso, Texas, the mayor said, adding that nongovernmental organizations at the border are encouraging migrants to go elsewhere, including to Denver. The mayor spoke Thursday afternoon at the Emergency Operations

SEE REINDEER, P11

SEE CRISIS, P7

Juniper, who happens to be pregnant, stops for a scratch from owners Kayla and David McIntosh.

Small herd is a labor of love for the McIntosh family BY BELEN WARD BWARD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Santa Claus might call them his team, but Brighton’s David and Kayla McIntosh call them pets – sisters Juniper and Cranberry and big old Kristoph. The family and their three reindeer – with another on the way; Juniper is pregnant – live on the McIntosh’s dairy farm in Brighton. And although you will never see them on a rooftop, you might have

seen them out in public this holiday season, behind a fence at a shopping mall or at a holiday event with an educational display about the mysterious and magical species. “When showing the reindeer, adults and kids ask questions about them, and we tell them fun and interesting facts about reindeer,” David McIntosh said. “There is nothing like the excitement about reindeer and the lore of reindeer. They feel very mythical when you see kids come to these events to see the reindeer. We get to partake in giving a piece of Christmas excitement, joy and magic to the people around us,” Kayla McIntosh said.

LOCAL VOICES OBITUARIES CALENDAR SPORTS CLASSIFIEDS LEGALS

PHOTOS BY BELEN WARD

LOCAL

2 6 • Police Chief 7 candidates meet with 8 residents 9 12 • Page 3 14

SPORTS • Duatholon athlete a trail blazer

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