WEEK OF MARCH 6, 2025
VOLUME 105 | ISSUE 2
$2
Lawmakers seek better mental health help for youth Bills tackle insurance coverage and cell phone use in schools BY MONTE WHALEY MWHALEY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Rachel Fewell stands among the stacks of books at Englewood Public Library, located at 1000 Englewood Parkway. Fewell was hired as its new PHOTO BY ELISABETH SLAY director in early February.
New Englewood library director Rachel Fewell is excited to work with the community BY ELISABETH SLAY ESLAY@COLORAOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
After a search for a new director of the Englewood Public Library, the city hired Rachel Fewell in early February. Fewell’s official first day was Feb. 24. The library board announced in December its search for someone to take over the position formerly held by Bethany Lafferty, who left last year. Fewell was intrigued by the position because of all the “really cool stuff happening in Englewood,” she said. “A lot of our cool Denver Broadway establishments are moving south,” Fewell said. “So I was watching that kind of happen in the news and then when I saw this job post, I was like, oh, this is
cool. I know the cool things are happening … So then that’s when I applied for it. I had just completed a really massive career milestone. And so I was looking for a new opportunity.” Fewell previously worked for Denver Public Library as the director of the Central Library branch. There, she was in charge of reopening the branch after it underwent a five-year-long renovation. In 2011, Fewell said the branch decided to provide more services to the unhoused population in the area so a team of social workers and counselors was created. By the time she was hired as the library administrator in 2016, Fewell said the branch was already dedicated to supporting that community, which is
VOICES: 12 | LIFE: 16 | CALENDAR: 19
something she is passionate about. “It’s always been something (that’s) important to me. And I think to most librarians, because we want to make sure that our materials are available to everyone,” Fewell said. “So to me, it’s really important all the time to think about who’s most vulnerable in a community and who needs the library the most and then start to kind of make a path toward breaking down those barriers that might exist.” In Denver, Fewell said about a third of the Central branch’s library patron base were unhoused, a third were tourists and visitors from out of town, and a third were neighborhood users. SEE FEWELL, P14
Legislation aimed at improving the mental health of Colorado’s children is gaining ground after garnering bipartisan support among lawmakers, say bill advocates. “I think everyone is aware that there is a mental health crisis among our kids,” said Zach Zaslow, VP of Community Health and Advocacy at Children’s Hospital Colorado. “I think (lawmakers) are stepping up to be helpful in fighting this crisis.” Zaslow, Dr. Lauren Eckhart, clinical director for the Colorado Springs division of the Pediatric Mental Health Institute at Children’s Hospital Colorado and about 100 parents, health care providers and primary care physicians were at the State Capitol to hail the passage of two key bills — HB 25 1002 and HB 251135. Both measures passed the State House and now are headed for Senate hearings before they are voted on by the whole legislature. Zaslow said neither measure costs taxpayers but could likely save lives in the long term. HB 1002 tries to cut the disparities between standard physical health and mental health benefits. The measure would ensure private health insurance SEE HEALTH, P7
2025 2025
VOTING STARTS VOTING STARTS
NOW! NOW!
ENGLEWOODHERALD.NET • A PUBLICATION OF COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA