My youngest granddaughter — almost 3 — visited last week, and when someone asked her, “What does a fire truck do?” she answered, without missing a beat, “rescues kitty cats.” So when we got word this week that our local fire department had rescued a cat stuck in a tree, there was no way I wasn’t putting it on the front page.
Last weekend, Caitlin sent me a TED Talk titled “Why Are We So Bad at Reporting Good News?” and it’s been rattling around in my head ever since. In a world where bad news dominates the 24-hour media cycle, we all need a more balanced news diet. And if part of that means celebrating firefighters rescuing cats from treetops once in a while, I’m perfectly OK with that. There’s plenty of bad news to go around. Let’s take the good where we can find it.
Last call for questions for our candidates for sheriff and commissioner. We’re compiling and will be sending out Q&As in the next few weeks. You can email those to [email protected] or drop them off at the office!
(see page 3 for additional details on these events)
📌 Coming up in Meeker this week
• Meet & greet for congressional candidate Dwayne Romero — Friday, May 15, 8:30-9:30 a.m. at Mountain Valley Bank.
• Smithsonian exhibit opens Friday — The White River Museum will host the traveling exhibit Americans in May and June, with an opening reception Friday, May 15 at 6 p.m. featuring representatives from History Colorado and Ute Mountain Ute elder Mark Wing.
• New Earth grand re-opening Saturday — Celebrate May 16 from noon to 5 p.m. with food, coffee from Wendll’s, treats from Wild Flour, discounts and raffle prizes at New Earth, 594 Main St., Suite 11.
• Heritage Club meets May 19 — Local history, museum presentation and discussion from 10-11 a.m. at the Meeker Public Library. Open to ages 15+.
• BLM camping presentation May 20 — Learn about responsible camping on public lands May 20 from 4-5 p.m. at the library community room.
• Tole craft class May 21 — Craft Crazy With Erin will make a Tole Dragonfly Decoration at 5 p.m. Register at meekerlibrary.org or call 970-878-5911.
• Meeker Rec Center closed through May 25 — The MRC is closed for maintenance, HVAC replacement and improvements. Memberships will be extended one month. Summer hours resume May 26.
• MACC musical auditions May 26 — Auditions for Finding Neverland are open to incoming ninth graders through adults at Meeker High School auditorium. Contact Shana Holliday at 970-987-9299.
• Library Crafternoon rescheduled — May’s Crafternoon will now be May 28 from 3-5 p.m. featuring “cloud dough” slime. Reservations required.
• Pig roast and country dance May 30 — The White River Community Association’s fundraiser at the Buford Schoolhouse includes a pig roast at 6 p.m. and live music by Cimarron at 8 p.m.
• Grazing workshop June 6 — Ranchers can learn drought and wildfire grazing strategies during a hands-on workshop with Jim Gerrish at the 4M Ranch. Registration required.
• Butterfly Experience in June — The Meeker Public Library will host a four-week butterfly series Sundays in June from 4:30-5:30 p.m., ending with a butterfly release June 22.
AND THAT’S NOT ALL… This one came in after press time:
• Lukens, Roberts to visit Rangely for a Town Hall on May 21
RANGELY | State Representative Meghan Lukens, House District 26, and State Senator Dylan Roberts, Senate District 8, are inviting you to attend a Rio Blanco County Legislative Town Hall, in Rangely, Thursday, May 21, at 5:30 p.m., at 209 East Main St. They are looking forward to sharing updates of the last legislative session and answering questions.
Meeker Sports, MHS Baseball, Sports
MEEKER | The Meeker High School baseball team stayed busy over the past week, playing five games across Western Colorado as it closed the regular season and remained in position…
Rangely Sports, RHS Track & Field, Sports
RANGELY | The Rangely High School track and field teams wrapped up a busy week with strong performances at the Wild West Twilight Last Chance meet May 6 at Stocker…
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