RBC | The first death due to “complications from COVID-19” has been reported in Rio Blanco County, according to a press release issued Friday, Nov. 20. Due to HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) laws, no other details will be made public at this time. The county asks that[Read More…]
Author: Niki Turner
Town discusses reserves, speed limits
MEEKER | The 2021 Town of Meeker budget will dip into reserves to balance the budget if approved in December. Town staff presented the budget to the board of trustees Tuesday, Nov. 17. Changes can still be made between now and Dec. 14. “The focus will be on maintenance more[Read More…]
From an ER physician: COVID is no hoax and no joke; an experience to be missed
RBC | Former Pioneers Medical Center emergency room physician Kurt Papenfus, MD, was recently released to his home in Cheyenne Wells to continue recuperating after a week’s stay in a Denver hospital while battling COVID-19. He was interviewed by friend and part-time Meeker resident James Magid by telephone last week,[Read More…]
When in doubt, quarantine
RBC | Local COVID-19 case counts are changing quickly, and not in the right direction. The number of positive cases has tripled in the last two weeks, putting the county in “mitigation” status to attempt to preserve its Protect Our Neighbor status. As of press time Wednesday there are outbreaks[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: Denial has an ugly side
Denial isn’t a river in Egypt. (The Nile is a river in Egypt for those of you, like me, who don’t like puns.) I have no idea what living conditions are currently like in Egypt along the Nile, but I do know what living in denial is like. At first,[Read More…]
Joint MoCo/RBC DHS director job open
RBC | Rio Blanco County held the budget workshop for the Department of Human Services on Oct. 28. Making budget cuts to DHS is “tricky” because many of the programs, like food assistance, are at least partially reimbursed by the State of Colorado. “If you really want to meet that[Read More…]
Obituary: Nettie Faye (Burke) Modlin
May 16, 1925 ~ Nov. 7, 2020 Nettie Faye (Burke) Modlin, a longtime member of the community, passed away Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020. Nettie was born May 16, 1925, to Fred and Anna Burke, the 11th child in a family of 15 children. She grew up in the Piceance Creek[Read More…]
Busy meeting for Meeker trustees
MEEKER | At the most recent Meeker Board of Trustees meeting on Nov. 3, many items were on the agenda, making for a discussion-filled meeting. 2020 business grant program Suzan Pelloni has recently purchased the building on Sixth and Main for her real estate endeavors. The building is in need[Read More…]
Vietnam vet, family fighting a different kind of battle, 49 years later
RANGELY |One of our nation’s many wars may be “over,” but the battles rage on for our veterans and their families. Bob and Gaila Bell are Rangely natives. Bob’s (Robert) family tree in Rangely precedes the oil boom that put the town on the map, and Gaila’s history traces back[Read More…]
COVID-19 spreading in RBC
RBC | “We have seen evidence at this point of community spread,” Rio Blanco County Public Health Director Alice Harvey told community stakeholders Monday during a pandemic response meeting. “These are not isolated cases.” Just prior to press time Wednesday, RBC Public Health released an urgent message, notifying residents of[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: The election that made everyone unhappy
Regardless of how you filled out your ballot this year, there’s likely to be some election outcome that makes you unhappy, whether it’s who gets to go to (or stay in) D.C. or Denver, or one of the umpteen ballot measures. While Rio Blanco County voted as expected on most[Read More…]
Elk Creek Ranch Owner’s Association wins case
UPDATE 11/12/20: Attorney Caitlin McHugh of Lewis Roca Rothgerber Christie LLP in Denver, requested clarification on this press release which can be read at this link theheraldtimes.com/clarification-elk-creek-ranch-owners-association-case RBC | Elk Creek Ranch Owner’s Association prevailed in its lawsuit against developer William H. Wheeler for breaching his fiduciary duties while he[Read More…]
