WEEK OF JUNE 27, 2024
VOLUME 129 | ISSUE 17
$2
Wine Walk returns to Parker after successful lobbying effort at state Capitol
‘And he held my hand’ Peer visits at Parker hospital bring hope to patients recovering from stroke
BY HALEY LENA HLENA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
BY HALEY LENA HLENA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Something as simple as a touch of a hand and some comforting words brought Julie Pfankuch from hopelessness to being hopeful. That’s what helped Pfankuch on her long path to recovery from a stroke and now, years later, Pfankuch is spreading that hope at AdventHealth Parker Hospital with their new Stroke Peer Visitation Program. “Not knowing what’s coming down the road for you and the struggles… just sharing that with someone can make a big difference,” said Pfankuch. One of the most common post-stroke complications is depression. A 2023 study published in the federal National Institutes of Health’s National Library of Medicine found that the prevalence of post-stroke depression is high, is often underestimated and tends to occur months after stroke. Recently retired from the hospital, Kimberly Roth was the stroke coordinator at AdventHealth Parker. Throughout her nearly two decades at the hospital, she Julie Pfankuch, who had an ischemic stroke in 2016, is now one of the first peer visisaw the number of stroke patients at the tors with AdventHealth Parker Hospital’s Stroke Peer Visitation Program. With the hospital increasing. premises of giving hope to people who have had a stroke, the program was created by Kimberly Roth, who saw a need for ongoing support for stroke survivors.
SEE RECOVERING, P5
For nearly 15 years, Parker’s Wine Walk events lit a spark in the community, bringing people into Mainstreet shops. But when the state shut down the walks last year, that spark fizzled. Yet the cancellation lit another spark – a lobbying effort that would culminate almost a year later at the state Capitol in the form of House Bill 24-1156. The bill, signed by Gov. Jared Polis, will bring back Wine Walk events. “Wine walks are one of the oldest [events] that’s still around,” said Mayor Pro Tem John Diak. “It was great that we got support at the state level to figure out how we can continue our tradition.” Polis swung through downtown Parker in early June to sign the bill, which is named the Chamber of Commerce Alcohol Special Event Permit. It makes Parker’s chamber, and chambers of commerce throughout
COURTESY OF JULIE PFANKUCH
VOICES: 14 | LIFE: 16 | CALENDAR: 19 | PUZZLES: 31
SEE WINE WALK, P10
ELBERTCOUNTYNEWS.NET • A PUBLICATION OF COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
l a v i t s e F z z a J n Evergree July 26, 27 & 28 The 21st Annual
Big Talent! Small Venues! Great Setting!
Order by June 30
and SAVE! EvergreenJazz.org 303-697-5467
WWW.JAZZ935.ORG