Letters to the Editor: Sept 22, 2022

EDITOR’S NOTE:

While we have not had a formal policy for fact-checking letters, we do reject letters that include obvious falsehoods and libelous statements. Sometimes falsehoods aren’t obvious, and libel is a sticky wicket when it comes to political candidates, but we feel it necessary to alert our readers that several recent claims made about HD26 candidate Meghan Lukens in a letter to the editor published on Sept. 1, 2022 are inaccurate or unverifiable. Some of the claims mentioned include:

Claim: Bringing AOC [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez] to Colorado

Fact: U.S. House Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) spoke at a fundraising dinner in Boulder in 2019 organized by the Boulder Democratic Party. Lukens was the fundraising lead for the Boulder County Democrats at the time. According to the Denver Post, “Congressman Joe Neguse, D-Boulder, introduced Ocasio-Cortez at the dinner. He has a record of bringing congressmen and women to his district…”

Claim: Returned to her hometown from Boulder solely for the purpose of running for office.

Fact: Lukens is a Steamboat Springs High School alumnae and attended college at the University of Colorado — Boulder, returning to Steamboat in the summers. She taught at Steamboat Springs High School in 2016, taught overseas in Kosovo in 2017-2018, and then taught in Lafayette until 2021.

Claim: Lives with her parents.

Fact: During the spring and summer of 2020 during the pandemic, she lived with her family in Steamboat Springs. She currently shares a rented condo in Steamboat Springs with a fellow teacher.

Claim: Has held anti-gun rallies on the courthouse lawn in Steamboat and passed a resolution in Boulder in support of SB20-217.

Fact: A rally was organized by Steamboat High School students in March 2018 after the Parkland, Florida high school shooting and held at the high school, not the courthouse. Lukens was teaching in Kosovo at that time.

SB20-217 — the Enhance Law Enforcement Integrity bill — added funding to the Colorado State Patrol and passed with bipartisan support in the Colorado State Legislature. The 150 Executive Committee of the Boulder County Democratic Party passed a resolution in support of SB20-217 in 2020.

Claim: Is against oil and gas and pro-wolf.

Fact: Lukens is on the record as being anti-wolf, stating “Wolf reintroduction should never have been on the ballot. This was not something that should have ever been a statewide vote.” Her position on energy is an “all-of-the-above domestic energy strategy.”

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Lukens rises above

Dear Editor:

Meghan Lukens is an upstanding, thoughtful, and intelligent young woman. She is the kind of person everyone in Routt, Moffat, Rio Blanco and Eagle counties will be proud to call their State Representative

If I may paraphrase, the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., our country would be much better off if people concerned themselves with the “content of their character,” rather than the color of their party.

I have come to know Meghan Lukens through the years beginning when she was my student at Steamboat Springs Middle School. She impressed me by not only being an active student in our school but an involved participant in many other activities and organizations she belonged to. Wouldn’t we all love a dynamic member like Meghan in the State House representing us?

In Meghan, Colorado House District 26 has a candidate with the moral character and ethical attributes desperately needed today. I was pleased to find that someone like her had taken an interest in politics. I often think about the community and those I have had the pleasure to know or teach while I was there; a community that cares more about a person’s character than the party they “represent.”

That is why I support Meghan Lukens.

Not because she is a teacher — although her background in teaching will benefit her greatly at the State House. Not because she promises to put students first and is a strong supporter of early childhood education — although money spent on our youth brings about greater returns. And not because she is a strong proponent of mental health care — although we need better care now more than ever. No, I support Meghan Lukens because I know the content of her character. Simply speaking, Meghan is a decent and forthright human being.

Meghan will always listen to her constituents and her own conscience before casting a vote in the State Legislature, regardless of the affiliation of the sponsor of a bill. She will be thoughtful, fair, and transparent. How much more could we possibly ask for?

If only all of our elected officials behaved this way, then perhaps, we, like Dr. King, would no longer have to dream.

Vote for Meghan Lukens, Colorado House of Representatives, District 26

Respectfully,
Jerry Buelter
Former Principal
Steamboat Springs Middle School

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Kelley responds

Dear Editor:

Per Mr. Beckstead’s concern that I did not reach out to advocates outside of Rio Blanco County: I did. In fact, I sat in on a Zoom meeting which was chaired by Beckstead some weeks ago about the Piceance gather. It was his meeting which inspired me to research and write an article. Because I only monitored the meeting and did not announce myself as a journalist, I did not feel it would have been fair to use quotes from it.

Additionally, I considered Delia Malone to be an excellent representative for the absentee/advocates. I sincerely appreciated her willingness to answer my questions by email. Since her report, which she did as the Colorado Sierra Club Wildlife Committee Chair, was also published on the American Wild Horse Campaign Website, the Cloud Foundation, and pushed out by the Sierra Club to elected officials, I considered it to be iconic of those groups. Any position they offered, based upon my prior experience in Beckstead’s meeting, would have been redundant. Their intent, certainly clear on their websites, is to stop mustang gathers and remove livestock from public lands. Enough said.

“As for the facts:” my article, in a minor point, states that the Malone report: “…identifies Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife lands as State School Lands. There are no lands administered by the State Land Board in the Piceance Basin.”

That statement is true. What Ms. Hadden Marsh quoted is not.

I stand by my article as written.

Kathleen Sullivan Kelley
Meeker

PS–Kelley is spelled with an “ey,” not just “y” as written by Beckstead and Hadden Marsh.

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Ice Cream Social

Dear Editor:

Another EPIC Septemberfest 2022! A big thank you to Tim Webber and the Western Rio Blanco Park and Rec. District crew! This event is always a big win every year. We at the museum have a big thank you list and please know that we can not hold the Ice Cream Social without your help and how much it is appreciated.

A big shout out to the Town of Rangely crew who prepared the East End Park, along with Shane Mecham and the Moon Lake crew. Board member Mike Miller, who again donated his time, helped with crowd control and our safety plan; Jarrod and Dan Fiscus for the entertainment; Cheryl Roberson who donated money for the supplies; staff member Sarah Drake for running the main building, sales and sign-ins and for all the help with set-up and tear down; and Keith and Sara Peterson and their boys who ran the greeting and sign-in table, managing the crowd and monitoring our safety plan. Heather at White River Market donated supplies. Rangely Fire Department donated ice. Thanks to the judges, who will remain anonymous, for their tasting skills and deciding the winning flavor.

Chloe Noel was the first place winner with a flavor called Bar B Que Pineapple, the second place winner was Ashley Sanford with Mint Chocolate Chip, the third place winner with Banana Split was René Harden. The Ice Cream social was well attended again this year, we had approximately 320 people attend and enjoy some ice cream, lemonade, great weather, entertainment and better company.

Best Regards,

Diana Sizemore
Rangely Outdoor Museum Director

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Thanks for help

Dear Editor:

From time to time I become absolutely overwhelmed with the work ethic and volunteerism of this community. In the White River Museum, people frequently tell us how amazing our community is, but there are several times during the year when it is more obvious than others, such as the 4th of July and the Sheepdog Trials. We, as a community, should be so deeply proud of the way we represent our community during these two events. Folks who visit the museum go on and on about the people who make the events happen and how kind people are and how generous they are with their time. As a benefactor of that generosity, I want to make sure that I am acknowledging the hard work of the Rio Blanco County Historical Society Members and the White River Museum Staff. Nothing that we do could happen without them.

Thank you to my staff — Richard Secklecki, Kevyn Mack and Barbara Swope — for the endless hours and putting up with me. And also a big thank you to all of the volunteers who scooped and poured, Ellen Riechart, Ed and Tracy Peck, Jasmyne Denny, Karen Curry, Scott Reed and Andrew Speith who helped pull off yet another year of Root Beer Floats.

Teresia R Reed ED
Rio Blanco County Historical Society
Meeker

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Golf memberships

Dear Editor:

The Rio Blanco Golf Association (RBGA) would like to remind certificate membership holders (if you haven’t already done so) to contact the board via email if you would like to retain or relinquish their membership certificate(s). Additionally, if you have information about folks who RBGA does not have current addresses for as per the published list, please send an email to [email protected]. Memberships not confirmed, or formally transferred by Dec. 31, 2022, will be relinquished as per current bylaws.

The RBGA board has been working diligently to update the membership list since April with two mass mailings and three notices in The Herald Times. It has been time consuming but our hope is to have an updated membership list to move forward with in the future.

The annual meeting will be held on Oct. 9, 2022, starting at 11 a.m. There will be a buffet luncheon available for purchase at the golf course during the meeting. Please RSVP at 970-878-5642. After the meeting (weather permitting) the Frostbite Tournament will be held.

Thank you,
RBGA Board of Directors
Mark Litzelman, JC Watt, Mindy Finley, Toby Leavitt, Dan Lemmon, Tim Nelson, Erik Brown

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NW Colorado needs Lukens

Dear Editor:

We need more teachers in the State Legislature, especially from rural communities. Northwest Colorado and House District 26 are fortunate to have such a candidate in Meghan Lukens. As someone who truly knows our Northwest Colorado community, I am proud to support Meghan Lukens in her race for the State Legislature in House District 26.

I am a former teacher at Moffat County School District and an adjunct professor at Colorado Northwestern Community College. Now, you see me on the football sidelines, at High School sporting events, ringside at the county fairs, taking pictures of the many youths in our communities, as well as taking weddings, senior photos, and commercial work professionally for over 30 years.

My roots in this community run deep just like Meghan Lukens. Meghan grew up in Northwest Colorado, swimming in the swim meets in Craig, Meeker, and Rangely and being a part of these wonderful communities. She wants to preserve and protect the communities that she grew up in and loves.

Because of these deep roots, she believes in our ranching and agriculture values. Meghan knows our ranching and agricultural communities and will be their best advocate at the State Capitol. Meghan is against wolf reintroduction and will prioritize mitigation and compensation for ranchers. She has already started to advocate for and work with ranchers on the campaign trail.

Meghan also believes in the importance of education and has a Master’s degree in educational policy. Northwest Colorado needs more teachers to have a seat at the table, especially teachers who understand the challenges our rural communities face. We need someone who has grown up here and will use good, common sense to get things done and be fair to everyone in House District 26. In this election, I encourage you to vote for the local who believes in our ranching and agriculture communities and will support improvements to our rural education systems. I encourage you to vote for Meghan Lukens, the best candidate for House District 26.

Dwight Siverson
Craig