2020-04

To our dear readers,

We are experiencing history in the making, and The Crystal Valley Echo is experiencing these pains right along with all of you. For the first time in over 16 years, this newspaper is solely producing a digital edition.

This decision was reached after painstaking discussions, in which two main points were addressed. The majority of our advertisers have closed their doors, temporarily, to help slow the spread of Coronavirus, and therefore, we did not have the financial backing to make a print edition possible this month. However, we are hopeful to return in May with our regularly printed issue.

With many of our advertisers’ doors locked, we also lost some pickup locations, and Ryan and I were not comfortable asking all of you to go to our boxes for a physical copy. As the nature of these boxes, they are not properly disinfected between each of the hands that touch them. We are doing our part to also flatten the curve.

The Crystal River Valley is no stranger to living history, and one thing that has not changed since our inception is our sense of community. We would like to encourage each of you to reach out if there may be anything you need. Whether you’re feeling ill, need someone to make a grocery run, or even unforeseen repairs, your neighbors, up and down the valley, are here.

And we are here for all of you! Please contact us with anything that comes up, so we may be of help. If Ryan or I are unable, we will connect you with the person who can.

We are Crystal Valley Strong!

T HE C RYSTAL VALLEY E CHO

& Marble Times

Mission Statement: To provide a voice for Crystal Valleyites; to bring attention to the individuals and local businesses that are the fabric of the Crystal Valley region; to contribute to the vitality of our small town life.

Editor • Gentrye Houghton

Publisher • Ryan Kenney Contributors

Charlotte Graham • Michael Askew

Russ Cunningham • Amber McMahill

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Gentrye Houghton • 970-963-1495

GentryeH@hotmail.com

DISTRIBUTION

The Crystal Valley Echo is published monthly, and is distributed throughout the Crystal Valley.

NEWSPAPER BOX LOCATIONS:

Carbondale City Market (inside) • Village Smithy

Carbondale Post Office • Redstone Inn

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Please send $40 for print or $25 for digital editions along with address information to: The Crystal Valley Echo 364 Redstone Blvd. Redstone, CO 81623

Getting to Know You

Charlotte Graham

A delightful visit this month with Marble’s Community Church pastor and wife: Jon and Peggoty Stovall.

This is the Stovall’s ninth winter in Marble and their 19th move upon retirement from their 28-year career in the U.S. Air Force. “This is the longest we’ve lived anywhere together as a married couple,” Jon said.

Peggoty added, “When he retired, Jon didn’t feel done with ministry. He had been in a leadership role in the military. And too young to quit. The last five to ten years before retirement, we knew we wanted to live where we could hike wherever we were. At first, we were looking at the beach.” Peggoty is from North Carolina.

“And we were [also] looking for a parish in the mountains,” said Jon — raised at the foot of the Black Hills in South Dakota. “We wanted to spend more time skiing….”

“Strike that!” Peggoty piped up. “We never discussed skiing before we came here.”

Looks quickly crossed. A shrug. Obviously, a private joke there. We all laughed. She continued, “We mostly wanted to experience the Great Outdoors.”

Bettie Lou Gilbert, a past resident of Marble, was instrumental in getting Jon and Peggoty up here. She knew Pastor Gary Higgs, recently retired USAF, based in San Antonio, Texas. She had asked Gary to help the church find a replacement for the previous pastor. Gary and Jon knew each other, and next thing you know, Jon was called up to Marble in September 2011 to interview with the Marble congregation.

“After the interviews, I was asked to preach a sermon. It was the 10th anniversary of 9/11, and I shared about my military experience during that time. One story was when I was in Kandahar, Afghanistan. There was no chaplain there yet. C-17s were beginning to bring in troops, tanks, and equipment. No fence was around the base yet. Fox holes dug all the way around. There was one guy in each hole guarding the perimeter at night.

“I went around to each one. I couldn’t see their faces. But with the moon rising, I could see their eyes and their teeth. And I offered each a treat from home: A Tootsie Roll Pop. They could see it and then I could see their smile. These were 18- and 19-year-old kids, tears coming down their eyes,

Jon and Peggoty Stovall

by

reflected in the moonlight. I told the congregation, ‘These are the guys America sends to war. Let’s pray for them.’”

Peggoty said that while being interviewed, she got the impression the church was “scared that I would come out, take one look and leave. I was told that many times. We weren’t here a week when one person came up to me and asked, ‘What possessed you to come up here sight unseen?’ Peggoty replied in her soft Southern lady’s pointed way, ‘I’ve been everywhere sight unseen. I’ve never had a choice about where we live, so it’s just another assignment to me.

“Turned out I loved it.”

Jon’s ministry experience is quite astounding. “Depending on where I was, sometimes I was pastor of the contemporary service, or the general protestant service or the gospel service. Some small, some quite bigger. I was also chaplain to different units of the military; flying units, maintenance units, medical hospital units. Also, the prison chaplain. And Wing

Getting to Know You Continued . . .

Chaplain for the entire base supervising from five up to 12 chaplains.”

Today, Jon says, “I spend a lot of personal time with folks up here during non-church time. I’m the pastor of the church family and kind of chaplain of the overall community. I really like doing that.”

He has a running joke with one local who teases Jon, “'You have the best job in the whole world, you only work one hour a week.’ I say back to him, ‘How long since you’ve come to church?’ ‘Oh, a long while.’ ‘Well if you came more often, you’d find out it’s only a half an hour.’”

As always, such as during the war when Jon was flying 12hour stints each way, back to back on C-17s, Peggoty had the challenging job of holding down the home front with two children. “There’s a saying among the spouses, if anything will happen, it’ll happen while the spouse is deployed.”

A nurse by profession, Peggoty also has a creative side. She has written, choreographed, and performed drama presentations since high school. If any of our readers have attended Marble’s church on an Easter or Christmas Eve, they have been treated to her monologue dramatizations of various

female biblical characters.

“This year was one story I had always wanted to share. It is the presentation of the Shepherd’s Story. I found Jay Davison to act the shepherd part, with myself as Mary, Mother of Jesus, in a dialog long after Jesus’ crucifixion. Pam Robinson helped choose the music for the choir interludes. It was my greatest gift to give the congregation.”

Peggoty also volunteers and substitute teaches at the Marble Charter School. “Another gift I enjoy is being able to teach reading literacy.”

They both shared the calling they felt of Marble. For Jon, it was that day he was driving up for his interview. “I was coming up to McKee Pond. There was a huge bright rainbow right in front of me and I’m driving into it. I said, ‘Lord, I don’t know if this is the place you have for me…but help me never, ever, forget this moment. This is paradise.’”

Peggoty said, “I don’t have a single moment, but I can tell you that I’ve never had a place where my heart, my soul, my God, and the people here have all come together like a completion for me. These mountains have become woven into my soul.”

Wednesdays & Saturdays 9 a.m. - 11 a.m.

St. Patrick's Day Parade

Gentrye Houghton President Ron Phaneuf Vice President Katie Lowery Treasurer Sara Lewis Secretary

Heather Marine David (DJ) Johnson Nathan Helfenbein Josh Wambolt Steve Pavlin

Alternate Member: Cathy Montgomery

Business Subcommittee

The RCA has created a business subcommittee to create a stage for business owners to meet and discuss what it takes to own and maintain a business in our beautiful little town. All business owners are invited to attend and provide their input on their trials and tribulations. Meetings are held before the regular RCA Board meetings the 1st Tuesday each month at 6:00 p.m. at the Redstone Inn. If you have questions please feel free to contact DJ at DJredstone68@gmail.com.

The Geology of the Leadville Limestone

The Leadville Limestone found in portions of modern-day Colorado is interpreted to have been deposited in a shallow sea during the geological period known as the Mississippian and represents the period from approximately 360 million years ago (mya) through 320 mya.

Mississippian age Colorado was a much different place than what we see today. To understand these different conditions, we can borrow Mr. Peabody’s “Wayback Machine” and travel back in time to the Mississippian Period.

For those of you who haven’t enjoyed the animated “Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle” created in the early 1960s, the “Wayback Machine” was developed by a bespectacled genius dog and his boy Sherman so they could experience time travel and witness history in the making.

The North American continent was much smaller at that time than it is now. North America and present-day Asia were joined together to form a larger landmass known as Laurasia. As we disembark the “Wayback Machine” we see present-day Colorado is beneath an expansive shallow sea (and we’re happy the Wayback Machine floats).

The water is warm since we are near the equator, and clear because there is not an abundance of eroded sediment in the water. The only partially exposed landmass is where the present-day Front Range Mountains are located, about 70 miles east of the Crystal River Valley. The Leadville Limestone contains some sandy beds that indicate intermittent erosion that occurred from these mountains.

Gazing about we see a vast ocean to the west absent the Utah mountain ranges, no Las Vegas, and thankfully, no California yet. This is a broad continental shelf submerged by a shallow water sea.

The sea life is dominated by crinoids (sea lilies), bivalves attached to the seafloor (brachiopods), gastropods (crawling sea snails), cephalopods (swimmers in hard shells), solitary horn corals, colonies of rugose corals forming small reefs, and some species of sharks and fish. Most of these sea creatures require calcium carbonate (CaCO3) rich waters to form their shells and skeletal structures.

One consequence of the CaCO3 rich sea waters is the formation of “lime mud” as the dominant sediment type. This lime mud primarily forms by precipitation from the seawater, me-

chanical breakdown of critter’s hard parts (shells and stems), and decay of CaCO3 algae.

The sediment is very fine-grained, the equivalent to mud size sediments we see from modern rivers. These lime mud sediments continue to accumulate and form thick deposits burying previously deposited layers. Overlying sediments are then deposited on top of the lime mud layers further compacting the mud into denser and denser sedimentary units.

In the Crystal River Valley these younger, overlying units are represented by the coarse clastic rocks, which are comprised of broken pieces of older rocks, of the Gothic and Maroon Formations. These buff and red-colored units were eroded from nearby uplifted mountains and are now exposed along the Crystal River Valley (a story for another time).

Geologic time progresses, earth processes continue to alter the landscape with crustal plates shifting, building mountain ranges where plates collide and creating depo-centers where the plates diverge. However, sedimentation continues burying pre-existing layers deeper and deeper, compacting them from soft mud deposits into hard rock units.

These compacted rock units maintain their original sedimentary features including bedding planes that represent minor interruptions in the rate of sediment accumulation. Sometimes these newly created rock units are exposed to erosion due to a drop in sea level or uplift due to mountain building. The erosion of the rock units can eliminate that unit and convert it into newly deposited sediments, or the rock unit can be partially preserved, albeit dramatically reduced in thickness.

The Leadville Limestone experienced a number of these post-depositional processes including compaction which altered the crystal orientation to make a denser unit with grains smushed together. As the crystals are smushed, there can be pressure solution, i.e., a small portion of the crystal dissolves at the boundary with an adjacent crystal.

That material migrates into very tiny pore spaces and further cement the rock into a more uniform texture, while still maintaining the crystal size variations. These processes that change the Leadville Limestone from a simple muddy seafloor bottom into a well-indurated rock unit is called diagenesis and represents a multi-stage alteration of the original sediment.

Then, the final stage that we are all familiar with is the metamorphism of the Leadville Limestone into the marble cropping out at Yule Creek outside of the municipality of Marble, but that is a story for another time . . .

From Patagonia to Quarantined in the Falklands

Two years ago, along with Cathy Montgomery, Stephanie and I took a trip to French Polynesia, which comprises about 100 islands in the South Pacific, with National Geographic and Lindblad Expeditions. This was our first Lindlblad trip, and we were hooked!

Their “expedition ships” are small, and we were on the National Geographic Orion, with about 100 passengers. Nearly a quarter of us on that trip were scuba divers, so we dove the coral reefs of many of the islands including Tahiti, Bora Bora, Rangiroa, and Fakarava.

We especially enjoyed getting to know the crew along with the National Geographic staff, who took such good care of us, and on our return trip home, I learned they offered a land/sea combination trip to Patagonia. For this excursion, we would have the opportunity to spend four days on land in Torres del Paine National Park to see the famous Cuernos mountains, or “Horns,” among the lakes and glaciers in the park, and then also spend seven days cruising the channels and fjords of Tierra Del Fuego and Staten Island, again on the Orion.

Patagonia's been on my list for a long time, so we booked it!

After two years of anticipation, we departed on March 8, flying to Santiago, Chile, and then on with National Geographic to Ushuaia, Argentina. At that time, the virus was mostly on the coasts, in Seattle and New York primarily. Air travel was definitely getting risky, so we took masks and sanitizing wipes to clean our immediate surroundings in airports and on the airplanes.

We were screened at all our stops for fever and potential illness, and of course as we boarded the National Geographic Orion. We were a little surprised at the level of health forms we were required to complete, and touch-less temperature devices in all airport entries and exits.

The first part of our trip went off without travel problems and illness-free for all around us; COVID-19 cases had only just begun to appear in Chile and Argentina. We felt we were in a

From Patagonia to Quarantined

very safe place on a small ship cruising in the Beagle Channel and out to Staten Island (Isla de los Estados) off the tip of Tierra Del Fuego.

We were expertly navigated around Staten Island for two days, and taken to shore on Zodiac boats, which are inflatable pontoons that hold around ten people, for hikes and tours of the many waterfalls in the fjords. The Orion has a dozen Zodiacs on the upper stern of the ship that can be deployed in about 20-minutes with the use of cranes. On the French Polynesian trip, they loaded our scuba tanks with the cranes into the Zodiacs and we were able to just roll off the side into the ocean.

Staten Island has only been open for human travel in the last few years, with National Geographic as the first operation allowed onshore. It remains a protected wilderness, and home to many animals only known in this area. Sea Lions and seals were very curious about our inflatable vessels, and the albatross, Rock Hopper Penguins, and other birds were abundant. In the Zodiacs, we cruised on quiet waters through towering cliffs with beautiful weather, it was just perfect.

We ended up with an unusually calm, sunny day on the way back to the Beagle Channel and landed with the Zodiacs at Cape Horn, notorious for churning seas and wicked winds. There, on a hilltop 165-feet above sea level, stands a two-part metal memorial, about 30-feet tall, of an albatross in flight — the seafaring symbol for souls lost at sea. When the pieces of this sculpture align while viewed from the sea, it represents the border where the Pacific and Atlantic oceans meet.

This is a notoriously challenging area to navigate due to the number of storms and high seas, but we had a beautifully calm day and sailed around the fearsome Cape Horn before leaving for Ushuaia to change channel pilots as we left Argen-

tinian waters and entered those of Chile.

For the next several days, we explored the Beagle Channel and the fjords of Chile, moving West and then North up the Pacific coast. One advantage of being on a small ship is that we were able to get into the fjords and small coves that are not available to larger craft.

One highlight for me was seeing Seno Garibaldi glacier, at the end of a long narrow fjord; this is the only glacier in Chile that is still advancing. We toured within about 150-feet of the face, and right up to the foot of several towering waterfalls; although, we had to stay at least 100-feet from the ice because it was calving, dropping tons of ice into the water creating large waves, and then the ice would surge back up from its downfall. We watched about ten large calving events as the thunder reverberated from the ice cracking and moving.

We continued to our next stop, Karukinka Natural Park, adjacent to the Strait of Magellan, on Sunday, March 15. During that morning’s regular news briefing, we began to hear of port and border closures. Yet, we still enjoyed a hike to the base of a very tall waterfall in the park. We also saw a large group of Southern Elephant Seals and watched the male pups sparring with each other, practicing for their years to come, competing for the attention of females, and making loads of racket.

Upon our departure from Karukinka, we were told our itinerary would change at our next stop, where we were supposed to disembark for the land portion of our adventure to Torres del Paine National Park. That morning, while we were still in the Patagonian wilderness, the Chilean President had closed all ports to passenger ships, and the Argentinian government followed suit.

The Orion waited for a few hours outside the Puerto Natales

Quarantined in the Falklands

harbor to see if there were any possible exemptions for a small expedition ship that was still illness-free; our ship then headed east through the Strait of Magellan on a new course to the Falkland Islands, a two-day voyage.

Our National Geographic Expedition Leader was now in constant communication with Sven Lindblad, the CEO of Lindblad Expeditions, to work out the details of our situation, and learned that the National Geographic Explorer, a sister ship, was already near South Georgia Island, on its intended destination of the Falkland Islands.

The uncertainty of not knowing if we’d be accepted to the Falklands didn’t bother many of us, as we learned folks back home were now being socially isolated and normal functions shutting down. At least we were being well-fed, entertained, and, as we were all healthy, continued our social engagement.

We did, however, feel great disappointment at having the land portion of our trip canceled and not being able to get to Torres del Paine. But by and large, everyone on board accepted the circumstances and started finding other things to do.

The National Geographic staff continued to give relevant presentations that we otherwise would not have enjoyed, such as the geology of the Andes and Patagonia ranges, underwater videos of the South Atlantic and Argentina, and even presentations on the smells and sounds of the oceans given by a Ph.D. in cetacean biology, which are undersea mammals including whales, dolphins, and porpoises.

On the morning of March 18, we arrived in the Falklands to the news that we would not be allowed into port for five more days, and then would only be transferred directly to a charter flight arranged by Lindblad. It had already been five days since we changed personnel in Ushuaia, Argentina, and they

wanted extra days of quarantine to ensure we all remained virus-free.

Orcas, dolphins, and albatross entertained us while the Orion hovered outside the harbor for a couple of days until we were granted permission to anchor in a bay offering protection from incoming high winds and swelling sea.

We had some excitement during one highly unusual rendezvous. The passengers of the National Geographic Explorer were not considered at risk, as they had only been to South Georgia Island and had no contact with anyone from Chile or Argentina. Therefore, they were allowed to depart upon their arrival in the Falklands.

Since our ship was now about a week beyond our expected departure, still uncertain of our exit date, the now-empty Explorer came alongside the Orion and sent a few Zodiacs over with food, medicines, and of course, toilet paper. By then, the toilet paper hoarding stories had become a joke around

From Patagonia to Quarantined in the Falklands

Once back in Santiago, Chile, we changed flights to a new 787 with room for over 300 passengers; with only about 85 of us, there was plenty of room to social distance and relax during the nine-hour flight.

We arrived in Miami during the wee hours of the morning to a completely empty customs area: The first time in my life I have ever experienced that!

We collected our luggage and made our way through the airport to a hotel that was just a six-minute walk through the terminal. Stephanie and I were amazed that customs was so uneventful, we'd expected lots of screening and temperature checks, but we were simply asked if we had come into contact with anyone infected.

That was it. We didn’t even fill out customs declaration forms!

the ship; we just didn’t understand the craze.

While navigating off the coast of the Falklands, we spotted a pod of Killer Whales, yet seemly uninterested in us, and followed them for about three miles as they headed west. For about an hour we had the pleasure of watching about a dozen Peale’s dolphins riding in our bow wave, and also saw the unusual Commerson’s dolphin, which is only found in these southern Atlantic waters.

Lindblad had arranged for a charter flight to take us from the Falklands directly to Miami, and then on to our respective homes. However, that flight was canceled last minute due to unexpected high winds that pushed our departure back another day.

We were briefed that evening on the new flight plans, which started with a 4:30 a.m. wake up call on Wednesday, March 25. Departures were arranged, including a juggling of bus schedules, along with two other British expedition ships that had been on a similar Patagonia route, both anchored in the same bay.

The Orion was the first of the ships to depart with about an hour drive to get to the small Mount Pleasant Royal Air Force base and airport, our buses were scheduled 30-minutes apart to allow for manageable lines at the single check-in counter. After about an hour of waiting in the little gate area, our charter plane arrived and we finally felt a little relief at the real possibility that we might indeed start our journey home.

Our flight to Denver was set to leave that afternoon, and back in the airport, we'd heard the airlines were beggining to shut down. Indeed, we saw “CANCELLED” next to most of the flights on the schedule monitors, and about an hour before boarding our flight to Denver a text message informed us our flight to Eagle-Vail had been cancelled.

Our close friends, who were house and dog sitting in our home in Redstone, needed to return to their home in Dallas. As both Colorado and Texas were discussing “stay at home” and “essential travel only” directives, we all felt a rush to secure travel plans.

Lindblad rebooked our cancelled flight, now landing in Aspen, and our friends were able to leave a vehicle there for us as they left for home. Luckily, we did arrive in Aspen, along with our luggage, and, with great relief, we headed home on nearly empty Highways 82 and 133 to a new world order.

In hindsight, we should have cancelled the trip before departing, we just didn’t predict the global shutdown of borders and ports. We thought being off the southern tip of the South American continent would be a safe place, which it turned out to be for those of us on the Orion, but the rapid expansion of the virus around the world took us all by surprise. At any rate, it was still a most enjoyable expedition, even with the unexpected quarantine.

We are very happy to be home in Redstone, and staying at home for the time being!

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

PUBLIC HEALTH ORDER 3/26/2020

An “Event” is a gathering for business, social, or recreational activities, or a location that engages in or allows for such activities. All Events of more than one person occurring outside a Residence are prohibited, except for the limited purposes expressly permitted in this Public Health Order

RESIDENTS IN GOOD HEALTH

Minimize social contact

Follow social distancing recommendations

Adhere to relevant social, business, and Order herein

RESIDENTS AT RISK AND/OR 60+

Cannot attend any Events and gatherings

Cannot enter the workplace or conduct any workplace activities

Eliminate in-person social contact

Follow social distancing recommendations

VISITORS

Leave Gunnison County and return to your primary place of residence as quickly and safely as possible

Self-quarantine for a minimum of 10 days

NON-RESIDENT HOMEOWNERS

Strongly encouraged to leave Gunnison County and return to your primary place of residence as quickly and safely as possible

Self-quarantine for a minimum of 10 days

(continued)

Vintage Valley

A baseball team has been organized, a diamond laid out and the "implements of the craft" purchased within the last week. The first game was played on Sunday afternoon. Superintendent Gibb has been elected manager. R. T, Hynd, captain, and G. B. Stannard, secretary-treasurer.

J. C. Osgood's pet bear is being taken care of by Mrs. E. D. Jones at Placita. Long captivity has not improved the animal's disposition and when on Monday last, he broke his chain, there was a panic in the little village, for half an hour. Two shots were taken at him, but the man behind the gun was so frightened that he could not take proper aim. The bear climbed a tree and was pulled down by a rope thrown over his head; a second rope secured his front paws, after which he was easily chained and led back to his den.

J. T. Kebler, general manager of the Fire Department; Division Superintendent Gibb and Mel Butler, Mr. Kebler's chief "looked in" last Sunday. Mr. Ball returned to Redstone on Monday. We have also had a pleasant visit from T. D. Boal** of Denver and his friend, Mr. Dale.

John Kellock has gone to Spring Gulch to superintend some mason work there and took Andy Johnson with him.

The first rain of the season for Redstone set in on Monday April 7, just after noon. It continued to rain nearly all the after noon, and the early part of the night. About 11 p.m. there was a heavy thunder storm and the rain ceasing, snow began to fall.

The Ladies Aid Society gave a "Box Social" in the hall on Tuesday evening. The "boxes" contained lunch for two, prepared by the ladies. The gentlemen bought the boxes, not knowing (?) whose they were. Well! It was a Box Social. A program, literary and musical, was very creditably rendered; games were played and a very pleasant evening was spent.

** T. D. Boal, partner in the firm Boal and Harnois, the architects of Cleveholm Manor and most of the Redstone village

Excerpted from CAMP AND PLANT Vol. I, No. 19, April 19, 1902, page 328.

Archived by The Bessemer Historical Society, www.steelworks. us/education/primary-sources/camp-and-plant/ CAMP AND PLANT was a weekly periodical published by Colorado Fuel & Iron Corporation’s Social Betterment Department between 1901 - 1904.

For anyone needing help stretching their food budget, Gunnison County Officials currently have boxes of food available distributed through the Marble Community Church. There is no charge to the recipient and no reservation is needed; boxes are available for an individual or up to a family of four and contain enough meals to last approximately three days.

Please call Pastor Jon Stovall at the church to arrange a pickup time for your box today, (970) 963-1464.

What's Up with Pitkin County?

The Pitkin County Commissioners hold weekly work sessions on Tuesdays and bi-monthly public hearings on Wednesdays in our Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) meeting room at the Pitkin County Administration and Sheriff’s Building. Both meetings are televised live and repeated on locater CG12 TV. They are also streamed live and available on the County website. Agendas are posted in the Aspen/ Glenwood newspapers and on-line at www. pitkincounty.com. In this column, your District 5 Commissioner, George Newman offers his take on current matters. You can reach him at george.newman@pitkincounty.com.

PITKIN COUNTY RESPONDS TO CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

As I write this column, dealing with the Coronavirus remains a very volatile situation. This extremely unprecedented event, including sudden unexpected closures, has led to tremendous health, social and economic impacts on our citizens and community. By State Statute, County Public Health Directors have the authority to implement immediate restrictions to protect the public health and safety while it is the BOCC’s responsibility to appropriate funds to aid in the crisis, allocate personnel, communicate to citizens, and lobby State and Federal Agencies for needed resources.

Pitkin County’s Public Health Department continues to be in direct daily communications with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, State and Federal Officials. As of Monday, March 23, the Pitkin County Health Director, supported by Aspen Valley Hospital and local physicians, issued a “stay in place” order and closed all non-essential businesses in the County until April 17. This reflects a change in strategy from mitigation to suppression (although social distancing and group size are still emphasized). Our Public Health Department has only five employees and Aspen Valley Hospital has only 25 beds. We can’t afford to lose any of our staff, doctors, or nurses to the virus. Strong suppression efforts will hopefully flatten the curve of transmission so as not to overwhelm our

limited resources.

Immediately upon approval of the first rapid Coronavirus diagnostic test kits by the FDA on Saturday, March 21, Pitkin County placed an initial order for 1,000 kits, which have a detection time of approximately 45-minutes. As you read this, drive-through testing sites should soon be in place. The new test kits draw blood by a simple pinprick that EMT’s can be trained to perform, dropping the exposure risk dramatically, while avoiding many problems associated with earlier type tests including long lag times awaiting results.

Also, over the past week alone, the BOCC twice authorized emergency assistance funds totaling $1,000,000 to be used as a “bridge” to support community needs until expected disaster relief funds are received. The Aspen Community Foundation and others are stepping up efforts to raise funds for the cause. These emergency funds may aid in basic needs such as food, rent, utilities, etc. While we understand not everyone will be eligible for unemployment benefits, displaced workers needing economic assistance should still

What's Up with Pitkin County?

start with an unemployment claim through the Colorado Department of Labor and Development by visiting colorado.gov/ pacific/cdle/file-claim.

Pitkin County’s Administrative/Sheriff’s Building has been closed to the public. However, all essential government services continue to be offered by government employees working behind the scenes with access available by website, email, or telephone at (970) 920-5200. Meanwhile, the BOCC is meeting in a virtual setting: members of the public may not attend BOCC meetings in person until further notice. Instead, agendas published every Monday in the Aspen Daily News as well as at www.pitkincounty.com include a telephone number for public comment. Meetings are televised and streamed online on CGTV Comcast Channel 11 and www.pitkincounty. com/watchwebcasts.

The Aspen/Pitkin County Airport remains open at this time with extra attention to regularly disinfecting all public areas: Contact your airlines for flight information. The Pitkin County and Basalt Libraries and the Senior Center are all closed to the public. Home delivered meals for qualifying seniors over age 60 may be arranged by calling (970) 920-5432. Some Library services may also be arranged by calling (970) 4291900.

HELP STOP THE SPREAD:

• Wash your hands frequently, and for at least 20 seconds

• Practice social distancing; maintain at least 6 feet between you and others- including recreating

• Avoid touching your face and don’t shake hands

• Disinfect frequently touched surfaces often

To prevent the spread of illness, if you are experiencing fever, cough, shortness of breath, or other flu-like symptoms, it is important to call ahead before going to see your doctor or going to a hospital emergency room. If you experience severe respiratory distress and/or need immediate attention, call 911. Please DO NOT call 911 for general COVID-19 information. For up-to-date resources, including a guide to determine if you have COVID-19 and what you should do, visit www.PitkinCounty.com.

Our site contains information not only about the coronavirus but also on economic services and relief programs available from Aspen to Parachute. For additional information, there is the Pitkin County information hotline: (970) 429-6186.

The following is a snapshot of how quickly Pitkin County has responded to this crisis:

• March 1 — as the first case was revealed in

California, Pitkin County responded by bringing together the County’s Incident Management Team and partnering with Eagle and Garfield Counties for coordinated responses and messaging.

• March 11 — Pitkin County’s Administrative/ Sheriff’s Building was closed to the public. Access to all essential government services is available by website, email, or telephone at (970) 920-5200.

• March 12 — Pitkin County passed an emergency resolution declaring a state of emergency, paving the way to apply for and receive State and Federal funds to deal with the crisis.

• March 17 — the BOCC authorized $500,000 in emergency assistance funds to support community needs

• March 18 — the Pitkin County Health Director issued an initial policy outlining social distancing and limiting maximum group size.

• March 21 — Pitkin County orders 1,000 rapid Coronavirus diagnostic test kits the same day they are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

• March 23 — Pitkin County Health Director issued a policy directive including “stay in place” order and closing all non-essential businesses until April 17.

• March 24 — Pitkin County BOCC allocated an additional $500,000 for ongoing public health work and to support those in need ($1,000,000 total).

THE MARBLE TIMES

A LOOK AT LIFE AT THE MARBLE CHARTER SCHOOL

What a wonderful year it has been in music class!

We have had many artists that have been pivotal in teaching the kids music. The Ukulele program has been inspiring to all, with the instruction from Stephanie Askew (pictured below). A big thank you to The Marble Community Church and community members for their donation to the Ukulele program.

We have also had many other musicians sharing their musical talent with the students. A musical thank you to: Michael Askew (drums pictured on the next page), Rodrigo Arreguin (Spanish guitar), Barry Chapman (Collaborative Voicing and cuthere), Cody Lee (from KDNK, Ukulele), and Jessie Lehmann (from Lionheart Drums).

Feel free to e-mail jfiske@gunnisonschools.net if you would like to come share your musical talent with the students at Marble Charter School.

Dear Marble Charter School Community,

The MCS Staff and I would like to take this opportunity to communicate that all students and parents will be contacted by Wednesday, April 1st with specific information on the Distance Learning that will be implemented while we experience the school closure in light of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Due to the lack of internet and cell service, the MCS Teachers and I ask for your patience throughout this process of continuing education for all of our students. Our number one priority is to reach each and every student to ensure that they are provided a quality education and feel successful.

Stay Healthy!

Amy Rusby MCS Director

April Autism Awareness

April is Autism Awareness month, and my daughter, BrookLynn, was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome Disorder (ASD) in 5th grade, she was 11-years-old.

Brook-Lynn was always a “different” child, in that she liked to watch the same movie over and over again for hours on end. She would line up her dinosaur toys in rows as she played with them, preferred to be by herself most of the day, and she had an insanely early talent for drawing.

As any proud mother would, I spoke about her constantly, and a friend started to pick up on some of these eccentric qualities. When Brook-Lynn was around the age of 10, my friend gave me a book about Asperger Syndrome called, Look Me in the Eye, My Life with Asperger’s by John Elder Robison.

As I was reading through it, tears ran down my face as I realized that Brook-Lynn had many of the same qualities of John, the main character. I was crying because as a mother I felt I should have known. I felt if I had done my job better, she would be getting the help she needed.

I know now that there is no fault in the diagnosis, but back then, I started to research on the internet and made lists of her qualities to compare and contrast with what I was learning, and became pretty certain that Brook-Lynn had Asperger’s.

by Katie Lowery

Asperger’s Syndrome

In the 1940s, a Viennese pediatrician named Hans Asperger observed autism-like behavior and difficulties with social and communication skills in boys who had normal intelligence and language development. Many professionals felt Asperger’s syndrome was simply a milder form of autism and used the term “high-functioning autism” to describe these individuals.

The Autism Society website explains, “Individuals with Asperger’s Disorder usually want to fit in and have interaction with others, but often they don’t know how to do it. They may be socially awkward, not understand conventional social rules or show a lack of empathy. They may have limited eye contact, seem unengaged in a conversation, and not understand the use of gestures or sarcasm.”

By 5th and 6th grades, Brook-Lynn was really beginning to struggle in school. She didn’t make friends easily and was bullied often. The other kids didn’t seem to understand her. She was less mature and didn’t go with the “flow." They would make fun of her name and laugh at her outbursts.

Schoolwork was also a challenge. The work itself was not hard for her to grasp and retain, but writing, spelling, reading, and showing math work was a struggle. I decided to schedule an appointment with a child psychiatrist, which lasted about an hour and a half.

The doctor spoke with Brook-Lynn alone and then with me. At this time, I had not told her why we were there. She knew we were going to see a doctor that you talk to, not a doctor for sickness. He told me as soon as she walked in the door, he knew she had ASD. And that’s when the flood gates opened, I went through an entire box of Kleenex during that appointment.

Why was I crying though? I had done the research. I knew deep down that my daughter had a disability, but hearing those words from a professional makes it all too real. It was a very overwhelming experience. There was medication to think of, and therapists, and whether to stay in school or not.

Was it my fault? Did I do something wrong? Shouldn’t I have seen it earlier? All these questions ransacked my mind and heart, and I felt as though I just couldn’t handle it. Thankfully, the doctor was very understanding and patient. We continued to talk for a while; he gave me resources and books to read to help us go forward from that day.

April Autism Awareness

We made a plan to properly diagnose her with an evaluation that included her teachers and counselors that would help set up an Individualized Education Program (IEP) through the school. He also prescribed medication to help her stay focused and to minimize the struggle at home.

Honestly, I was incredibly scared to give her medication. I struggled with it for many days, asking myself what if it changed her for the worse, what if the side effects outweighed the help. Those beginning days were mentally and emotionally draining for me.

Finally, with the support of my family, I started Brook-Lynn on a prescription regiment. I told her that the medication was to help her stay focused in school and to help her worries go away. At that time I felt it was still better for her to go on with her life as if nothing had changed.

One thing I wasn’t prepared for was the backlash of giving medication to my child. Not from family, but from outside people who knew very little of what was going on. I had people tell me that I could manage everything by changing her diet, or that by giving her these medications, I would be changing her personality and everything I love about her.

Every child is different; every child that has autism or Asperger’s is different. There is not a cure for anyone living with this diagnosis. What works for my child may not work for someone else’s. I can say that we went through several different medication “cocktails” before we found the right one for her.

One of the medications made her lose weight so fast that she was basically a skeleton, while another made her gain so much weight that she became unhealthy. All this happened within about a year and a half. It was scary and stressful, but eventually, we found the combination that works and she has been taking the same medications now for well over six years. The meds help her stay focused in school, process her thoughts and emotions, and keep her anxiety levels low.

The elementary school was extremely helpful in those early days of Brook-Lynn’s diagnosis as well. We had a great team that kept me in the loop with how her day was and if anything got out of hand. Although, as she progressed through middle school, things started to change for the worse.

Brook-Lynn was getting bored in classes. She continued to get bullied; she was getting detention for outbursts and not participating in class. I was on the phone with the principal multiple times a month. I knew something had to change,

and decided to pull her out of the traditional brick and mortar system to enroll her in an online program she could complete from home. Thankfully, her IEP followed her.

The IEP helps children with disabilities receive the help they need in an academic setting. Brook-Lynn had an amazing support system going into middle school. Myself and my mother as her advocates, our Pastor and his wife as her confi-

April Autism Awareness

dants, her caseworker, who was also one of her teachers, and her counselor at the school.

We continued to see our psychiatrist until he, unfortunately, moved out of the valley. She now attends Colorado Connections Academy online and is thriving. Per her IEP, she is allowed to have extra time on Standardized Tests, 20-minutes a month with a school approved counselor and 60-minutes per month with a school approved therapist. All of this is done online with a webcam so she can speak to and see her teachers and therapists on a one-on-one basis.

Today Brook-Lynn is 16, in eleventh grade, and doing amazing! She is a talented artist: drawing animals, creatures, and supernatural things. She spends her days at home attending school along with her brother Sawyer, an eighth-grader, who is also enrolled in Colorado Connections Academy.

Brook-Lynn loves spending time with her pets, Penny, Socks, and Ginger, and takes care of them when everyone is at work. She also loves to watch cop shows like Live PD and regale us all with her never-ending fun facts and trivia.

I am amazed, shocked, challenged, and delighted by her every single day. The obstacles that she has overcome and the ones she is still trying to work through make her who she is. I feel incredibly grateful to have been blessed to be her Mom.

Marble Board of Trustees

On the first Thursday of March, the small fellowship hall behind the Marble Community Church began to come alive. The tables were removed and the wooden chairs arranged in rows.

As residents started to trickle in from the snowy evening, an almost jovial atmosphere filled the room. People mixed and mingled before settling into their seats. Some came to address specific agenda items or to ask for the board's approval on a project, and some just come as they do each month to keep abreast of Marble news.

The atmosphere is not always so relaxed, of course. Marble has become infamous in the past for its heated politics. The town government was revived, after all, in the 1970s for the opposition. According to author Oscar McCollum in his book Marble: A Town Built on Dreams, after its incorporation in 1899, the town council stayed active and intact until 1945.

As the population of Marble plummeted and in the aftermath of several mudslides, the council failed to hold elections and thus fell inactive. It wasn't until almost 30 years later in 1973 that residents, concerned over the possibility of a ski area, revived the council.

Now officially called a Board of Trustees due to Marble's small population, the board undertook some significant decisions by bringing a government on pause from the 1940s up to date. Over the next four decades, various volunteers stepped up to fill the roles within the Marble Board of Trustees.

With such a small pool of people to draw from, many people have served multiple times and worn dual hats. In a town with little revenue or staff, board members have historically filled needed infrastructure rolls, as well.

This tradition continues today. When the town decided to open the small campground leased from the Colorado Division of Parks & Wildlife in 2015, it was board members who made up the bulk of the workforce. Then-Mayor Will Handville, along with other board members including Mike Yellico and Richard Wells, cleared brush, painted benches, and brought the campground to life.

In addition to the volunteer work and monthly meetings each trustee is committed, there are also hours spent researching and educating themselves on the current issues that the town faces. The hard work, coupled with serving in a place where politics and public servants are often derided and even threatened, it is no surprise the pool of willing

candidates is shrinking. Those who have stepped forward span a range of ages, experiences, and reasons for volunteering.

Larry Good

Larry is the longest-serving of the current trustees. A musician at heart, he and his wife, Karen, own the Beaver Lake Lodge. They’ve raised their two sons, David and Ralph, in Marble and are well known as the backbones to many organizations and projects.

Larry got involved with the board at a time when there was great turmoil. It was discovered that the past Town Clerk, Karen Mulhall, had embezzled some $300,000 over several years from the small town.

"I felt like the town needed a council that would be accountable to the people, and that it would be years before we could win back trust," he remembers. And so, he signed up to achieve that goal.

When asked how he feels about the current council, his voice lights up. "Everyone on the council in recent years has been trustworthy and had the best interest of town in mind. I wouldn't stay if I didn't feel that strongly. Everyone I've served with has been great to work with. Particularly [Town Administrator] Ron Leach."

When asked what his favorite part of March’s meetings was, he joked with his easy laugh, "Ron Leach's briefings and cracking a beer open after the meeting." His serious answer to that question hit more at the heart of every trustee's response. "Actually, it is looking out in the audience and seeing longstanding friends and community members and

A note from the Hub.

We look forward to opening again, if possible, on Memorial Day Weekend. We send our love and appreciation out to you all. We are truly grateful to live in such a wonderful community.

Our internet will remain on and open for anyone needing to use it.

Please contact us anytime with questions or concerns themarblehub@gmail.com

Marble Board of Trustees

knowing we are working together to benefit Marble."

Charlie Manus

Charlie and his wife, Connie, have lived in Marble for over 22 years and have been integral in supporting the community through their volunteerism. In fact, this is Charlie's second time on the board.

His reasoning for volunteering twice came to Charlie's direct and honest manner. "I love the town and want to protect it the best I can." He’s quite sincere in his efforts, taking time each month to study current issues as well as researching, learning processes and laws, all information vital to a town government comprised of regular citizens and not career politicians.

"It's interesting to me,” he remarked. "You learn a lot from it. But it is hard to study it all and be a good steward of the town while making a living." This fact weighs heavily on him and is behind his decision not to serve another year: His term ends in April. "I'm really hoping someone steps up, a younger person."

Tim Hunter

Another trustee that is no stranger to volunteer service, Tim has been part of the volunteer fire service for over 35 years. His wife, Kathy, and he are also long-time residents of Marble.

Tim, the current Mayor Pro-Tem, has always been community-minded, a ‘doer,' and often provides the hard labor behind projects. He has the kind of do-it-yourself attitude that exemplifies Marble. When asked why he joined the board, he quipped, "Marble needed cheap labor. There are always a million and one things needing to be done."

True to his word, Tim organized a volunteer group jokingly referred to as MDOT, Marble Department of Transportation, comprised mainly of Mike Yellico, Jim Aarts, Ron Leach and himself, they install the seasonal signage and speed bumps each spring as well as some light street repairs.

He’s proud of recent boards, "The council we have now, I feel, has accomplished a lot. Not only ongoing road and infrastructure projects but starting to tackle long-term goals."

These sentiments echo his favorite part of serving on the board. "Making good ideas become a reality for Marble."

Emma Bielski

When Emma met her husband, Mike Yellico, she fell in love with both him and the town in which he lived. She moved to Marble in 2011 and happily resides with Mike, their three dogs, and a cat.

She quickly proved herself to be an essential asset to Marble, tackling a variety of projects from reviving the community

It is amazing to live in a community where most of the things being advised with the current events we face are already practiced.

As the rest of the country adjusts to being on "Marble Time." we have a few requests.

Keep checking in on your neighbors the phone and call to catch up.

Practice physical distancing Most of

Check out the town's website for per townofmarble com

If you are sick call your primary car

If you can keep supporting local busi

Keep calm and keep taking care of ea

and implement Marble's free recycling program. "Compared to my day job, [Marble politics] is a walk in the park," she jokes, referring to her position as a school social worker at Yampah Mountain High School.

Emma, who holds a Master's Degree from the University of Denver, also enjoys the educational aspect of serving on the town board. She stepped up, "Because I feel it is important to show up and support my community, and the efforts for healthy and sustainable growth.

“It is really fun when the board can show up with members of the community to all address troubleshooting, programs, and issues. It feels like we are all working together for the common good of the community."

Ryan Vinciguerra

Marble's Mayor Ryan is also no stranger to hard work or community involvement. As one of the owner-operators of the town's sole restaurant, Slow Groovin', he has not only donated vast amounts of time to the plethora of boards he serves on but also large amounts of food as well. Almost every fundraiser in town serves up his BBQ. He is recently engaged to Katie Mann and lives above the restaurant with her, his son Tobin, dog Brisket, and cat Ziggy.

Ryan decided to run for mayor two years ago for one simple reason, "I thought that I could help it."

He had become well versed in the town's political process over the years as a new resident and business owner. Since taking

office, he has pushed for more follow through on ideas as well as making sure pertinent information is available to board members before meetings. "I try to facilitate meetings for the most part. My goal has been to try to let everyone speak, and in that process, everyone remains respectful."

Evidence of the hard work of past boards is present during the March meeting, as well as the issues still faced by such a unique formation. As people began to take their seats in the rows of wooden chairs, the table of trustees at the front of the room also filled up.

A wooden nameplate, donated by local businesses, marks each trustee's spot. The town administrator Ron Leach moves among them with last-minute briefings as the Town Secretary, Terry Langely, sets up to record the minutes. In many ways, the Marble Board of Trustees has finally solidified into an organized and competent entity.

As the meeting progresses, the comfortable air of the audience is evident as people banter, jokingly, with the familiarity towards each other that one can only find in a small town. There seems no strict process to speak. Usually, people raise their hands, but occasionally the conversation becomes even more casual.

People speak freely and with ease no matter the topic, and it truly starts to feel like it is - a group of active citizens all coming together to shape and mold their town.

Redstone General Store

Call ahead/pick-up orders of fried food, liquor, brownies, ice cream, and any other products we carry.

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday: 4 p.m. — 7 p.m. (970) 963 - 3126

STOP THE SPREAD

Everywhere you go beyond your home can spread COVID-19. Even if you feel healthy you could be contagious.

STAY AT HOME

Stay put, except for essential needs and safe outdoor recreation. Limit your trips to the store and other essential services.

NO GATHERINGS

Avoid contact with anyone outside your household, including outdoor playdates and group exercise.

SANITIZE

Consistently wash your hands and sanitize surfaces.

If You Must Leave Your Home SOCIAL DISTANCING is

Echo Travels

NOTICE OF CANCELLATION OF ELECTION AND CERTIFIED STATEMENT OF RESULTS

§1-13.5-513(6), 32-1-104, 1-11-103(3) C.R.S.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN by the Redstone Water & Sanitation District, Pitkin County, Colorado, that at the close of business on the sixty-third day before the election, there were not more candidates for director than offices to be filled, including candidates filing affidavits of intent to be write-in candidates; therefore, the election to be held on May 3rd, 2020 is hereby canceled pursuant to section 1-13.5-513(6) C.R.S.

The following candidates are hereby declared elected:

Steve Carver

until May, 2023 (Name) (3 year term)

Dirk Eldridge

until May, 2023 (Name) (3 year term)

(Signature of the Designated Election Official)

Ryan Kenney

Contact Person for the District: Ryan Kenney

Telephone Number of the District: (970) 963-1495

Address of the District: 1091 Redstone Blvd., Redstone, CO, 81623

District Email: Ryan.e.kenney@gmail.com