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Week of March 2, 2023
ELBERT COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
ElbertCountyNews.net
VOLUME 128 | ISSUE 3
Elizabeth considers community center Town holds meetings to get resident feedback on possible facility BY CHANCY J. GATLIN-ANDERSON SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
Elizabeth Cardinals softball player Grace Alltop in action. She will play for Colby Community College in Kansas. PHOTO COURTESY OF GRACE ALLTOP
EHS girls make their mark
Five female athletes commit to colleges on National Signing Day BY CHANCY J. GATLIN-ANDERSON SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
An all-female group of five Elizabeth High School athletes committed to colleges and universities on National Signing Day, Feb. 3. The girls represent Elizabeth High School’s exceptional softball and track and field teams. The five athletes, their sports, and the schools they’ve committed to are: • Grace Alltop, softball, Colby Community College in Colby,
Kansas • Hanna Espinosa, softball, Colorado Christian University in Lakewood • Rachel Glaser, track and field, Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Missouri • Ella Hedman, track and field, University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, North Dakota • Lily Smith, track and field, Nebraska Wesleyan University in Lincoln, Nebraska “It feels pretty surreal,” Ella Hedman said in a Feb. 21 interview. “Running in college has been one of my biggest goals for a long time. I have spent a lot of time working towards getting recruited and improving my times and it really hasn’t hit me yet that I will be going to the next level. My focus right
INSIDE: CALENDAR: PAGE 11 | VOICES: PAGE 12 | LIFE: PAGE 14
now is more towards being the best athlete I can be in high school and setting a solid foundation for what comes next.” American girls have been working toward carving a space for themselves in the world of sports for a century, but only in the past few decades have they had more opportunities to compete at advanced levels. Millions of girls have diligently and tirelessly fought for the same athletic opportunities, the same funding and scholarships, and the same spotlight as their male counterparts — and the five female athletes to commit from Elizabeth High School prove that the fight has been paying off. SEE SIGNING, P4
The Town of Elizabeth has held two meetings with residents to discuss the possibility of building a local community and senior activity center. On Feb. 18, more than 50 people were present for the meeting, including members of the Elizabeth Board of Trustees, Town Administrator Patrick Davidson and Mayor Nick Snively. The meetings were held to gauge public interest and gather feedback and suggestions for the potential center. The process is in its preliminary planning stages and no decisions have been made. There is no plan to raise taxes on town residents. The Town of Elizabeth has been working with the Colorado Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) and the University of Colorado-Denver’s Technical Assistance Program to begin designing the center. Designs were presented at the Feb. 18 meeting by three graduate students with CU-Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning along with lead architect Jeffrey Wood. 2022 survey results
In September 2022, the Town of Elizabeth sent out a survey to its residents, hoping to determine whether there is a need for a community and SEE CENTER, P8
CHAMPION WRESTLER
Thomas Lee is Colorado’s 3A winner in weight class P2