Meeker chamber honors members

MEEKER I The Meeker Chamber of Commerce’s October chamber members-of-the-month: Shell Exploration Company, The Upstairs Gallery and White River National Forest Service.
Since 1981, Shell has been researching new technology for in-situ development of oil shale resources. Several Shell employees are long-term residents of Meeker but their entire staff shares a deep appreciation for Meeker and all of Rio Blanco County. Shell is proud to be members of the Meeker Chamber of Commerce and looks forward to their continuing support of the community!
The Upstairs Gallery in the Hugus building has been in operation since 2004. Artist and gallery proprietor Pat Sheeran Daggett has been painting full time for 20 years. At any given time you may see her out on the highway with her easel. Wave and she will wave back. She has maintained a studio in the Hugus Building since 1997. Opening the Upstairs Gallery adjacent to her studio has allowed her to continue to paint and keep tabs on the gallery simultaneously. The gallery displays Pat’s artwork: pastel and oil paintings and jewelry, as well as showcasing other original work from regional artists. One can purchase Andy Goettel’s ceramics, Piceance Creek cedar furniture created by Ted Gillis. And various jewelry items, cards and textile works. Each December the gallery presents “The Christmas Shop” bringing in new handmade and specialty items from the community. The Upstairs Gallery is a small shop that Pat hopes will become known as a special “nook” to find original art of the area and unusual pieces.
Pat paints many landscapes around the Meeker area, buildings, wildlife and sheepdogs. She has been commissioned to paint ranches and old homesteads as well as an occasional portrait. Prior to opening the gallery, she displayed her artwork in New York City and at Wendll’s in Meeker for several years. Pat’s artwork can be found in the collections of numerous corporations and public entities including St. Mary’s Hospital, Colowyo Company, CNCC and the Children’s Advocacy Center in Colorado Springs. She has also donated her time over the years painting portraits both at the Walbridge Wing and of fifth-graders at Meeker Elementary School.
For more information, stop by the studio located at 592 Main St. #11 in Meeker, or contact Pat by phone at 970-878-5164 or by email at [email protected].
More than 100 years of caring for the land and serving people has been the focus of the White River National Forest Service. The White River National Forest became the nation’s second forest reserve, land set aside to protect natural resources and manage land, in 1891.
While hunting in this area, President Theodore Roosevelt learned of the public sentiment against the forest reserves, which settlers felt “locked up” the land. The settlers’ concerns led to the passage of 1897’s Organic Act, which mandated that the government provide timber, clean water and opportunities for other commodity production for the benefit of the public.
In 1905, the management of the reserves was transferred from the Department of the Interior to the Department of Agriculture. Gifford Pinchot, the first chief of the newly formed Forest Service, restructured the management of the national forests to protect watersheds and to provide goods and services for a growing nation.
Today the Blanco Ranger District in Meeker has 11 permanent employees, as well as seasonal employees and volunteers. For more information visit the Forest Service office at 220 E. Market Street in Meeker or by phone at 970-878-4039.