A Proclamation on National Agriculture Day: “American farms remind us of the beauty and generosity of our Nation. They feed the country and the world, and with each new planting season, they embody that most American of things — possibilities. On National Agriculture Day, we celebrate all the farmers, farmworkers, ranchers, fishers, foresters, and other agricultural workers who do so much to make our Nation strong, fuel our economy, and steward our lands. America owes them.”
Colorado Governor
The Governor’s Office of State Planning and Budgeting (OSPB) released its quarterly economic forecast showing Colorado’s strong economy continues to grow faster than other states in the United States. Colorado’s strong labor market has continued to grow and exceed expectations. This week, Governor Polis announced that in February 2023, Colorado’s unemployment rate returned to pre-pandemic levels at 2.8 percent, among the lowest unemployment rates nationally.
Denver Mayor
Denver City Council approved a $5,557,500 agreement with Shanahan Development, LLC, utilizing American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to help support acquisition of a 1.5-acre site at 1530 W. 13th Ave. for future affordable housing. The six-story development will provide at least 190 income-restricted rental units for households at a range of income levels, including up to 30 or 80 percent of the area median income.“We’re proud to make affordable homes possible at this site for hardworking individuals and families for decades to come,”Mayor Michael B. Hancock said.
There are few names in Colorado politics that carry more political ignominy than that of Republican Mike McKevitt. McKevitt once represented Colorado in Congress…for a single term. He might have stayed longer had he not been so flush with confidence over his ‘preordained’ reelection against a political neo- phyte and, back then, a woman whose place, heaven forbid, was nearly anywhere but in the House of Representatives. Big mistake.
Photo courtesy: Denver Public Library
Campaigning against the Vietnam War—a winning strategy in 1972—the neophyte, Pat Schroder, soundly defeated McKevitt. She ran a smart, well-organized, grassroots campaign winning comfortably. Schroeder, who went on to win reelection a dozen times established herself as a national figure, perhaps even the preeminent feminist’s name in Congress. Little is remembered about her first opponent.
Schroeder died on Monday. She had recently suffered a stroke. At the time, she was living in Florida. But it is Denver and Colorado where her memory will be long emblazoned.
Schroeder will be remembered as a twelve-term Congresswoman, to be sure. But also as a woman whose quips were as quick as they were crisp; as a woman who stood her ground in a puddle of testosterone; as someone whose legacy will be as deep and as memorable as any public servant our state has ever seen.
“She’s a tremendous loss,” said former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb, who also won public office in 1972 when he was elected to the Colorado Legislature. Webb said Schroeder “gave so much to Colorado…not only to the women’s movement but to Civil Rights.” Schroeder, said Denver’s former chief executive, “left an impeccable legacy behind.”
Schroeder took office as a 31-year-old mother of two young children. At the time, Congresswoman, a word common in today’s world, was back then a word that stumbled off the tongue. But Schroeder helped make it not only easily pronounceable but also an ingrained part of the lexicon.
Photo courtesy: Denver Public Library
“Pat Schroeder was a pioneer for women’s rights,” said Democratic Congresswoman Diana DeGette, who succeeded Schroeder and who has held the same seat since 1997. Calling her predecessor “a trailblazer, a role model, a mentor and a friend,” DeGette also praised Schroeder as an inspiration. “Pat’s brilliance, passion and wit will never be duplicated, but will always be remembered.”
Schroeder’s independence caused her to stand out, making her a target for the right and darling of the left. She was unafraid to ‘nudge the bear,’ taking on establishment individuals and institutions. Schroeder was once asked ‘how she could be a mother of two small children and a member of Congress at the same time,’ she replied in a remarkably simple and sublime way. “I have a brain and a uterus, and I use both.”
She also tangled with then Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich who, at the time, was hosting a college lecture series. Schroeder filed an ethics complaint that ultimately resulted in a reprimand against Gingrich.
In 1987, Colorado had two names in the presidential sweepstakes. One was a suave, debonaire man of the West, Senator Gary Hart. The other, Schroeder. Hart seemed on a fast track to win the Democratic nomination for President. But, combining over brimming overconfidence with inordinate clumsiness and absurdly poor judgment, Hart destroyed his hopes with an ill-conceived tryst, appearing in photographs with a woman who was not his wife. Ironically, one of the photos was aboard a boat named ‘Monkey Business.’
Schroder, while certainly as qualified to seek the high office, was underfunded. She had to withdraw as she was testing the waters. But her announcement became as newsworthy for its pronouncement. The image that was captured in newspapers and television that day in Denver was memorable. As she was announcing her decision and saw the disappointment on faces in the crowd, Schroder remembered, “My heart sank, and I began to cry.” The image of that single emotional moment made front pages everywhere. “I went on with my speech, but it was my tears, not my words that got the headlines.”
Schroeder left in imprint in Congress that resounds today. She worked to pass legislation allowing women to fly in combat. Schroder, herself, was a trained pilot. Schroder’s success in passage of the legislation led Lt. Col. Oliver North to brand her as one of the nation’s 25 most dangerous politicians.
Another one of her legacy pieces of legislation was the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act. It prevents employers from firing women if they become pregnant. She also has her name on the Family Medical Leave Act.
Foto cortesīa: Denver Public Library
Schroeder was also the first woman to sit on the powerful House Armed Services Committee, though its chairman, because he thought both women and Blacks were undeserving of the position, forced her to share a seat with Congressman Ron Dellums, an African American. Again, Schroeder cleverly described the situation as one of sitting “cheek to cheek.”
Schroeder’s life after Congress included taking a teaching position at Princeton and, later, serving as CEO of the Association of American Publishers. She also worked local politics in her retirement state of Florida.
Schroeder’s ascendency from Colorado wife and mom to national prominence was as much inspiration as aspiration. “She was a role model for women who cared about their communities,” said Rosemary Rodriguez, former President of the Denver City Council. “She changed our perspective on the world and what was possible. She really thought she was there to help.” And for a generation in Congress, she did, said Rodriguez, “with courage and humor.”
Schroder’s life in Congress was finely detailed in her autobiography, “24 Years of House Work and the Place is Still a Mess.”
But just having her name in the conversation, albeit briefly, her run burnished her name in way it, perhaps, had not before been known.
The role of Congresswoman and mother were essentially missing from any congressional biography. But her natural political instincts and innate intelligence, quickly established her as a serious politician but also one unafraid to be herself.
At 11 years old, most younger girls spend their school days learning a basic education curriculum like multiplication tables, followed by playing with friends during recess.
Foto cortesīa: Adhara Pérez Instagram
But 11-year-old Mexican native Adhara Pérez is different. When she was three, she learned how to read, studied algebra, and put together 100-piece puzzles. And by age five, Pérez was finished with primary school and earned her high school degree by age eight. To pass time, Pérez enjoyed studying the periodic table at home and has dreams of being an astronaut and colonizing Mars. And right now, she is on the right path to fulfilling those dreams.
At primary school, Pérez was bullied by peers for being different and didn’t show interest in lessons designed for other children her age. She has Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of Autism Spectrum Disorder that causes young people to have a difficult time relating to others socially. But that hasn’t stopped Pérez from achieving milestones in her life that are unheard of for someone her age.
Pérez already has two engineering degrees that she earned at the Technological University of Mexico and Systems Engineering at the CNCI University in Mexico. Today, she is currently pursuing her Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering at the National Polytechnic Institute.
After seeing doctors, therapists, specialists, and psychologists, Pérez was given an IQ test, revealing that her IQ is 162 — a higher score than well known geniuses like Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking.
Pérez’s story has made its way around the world, including Forbes Magazine where she was listed as one of the 100 powerful women in Mexico in 2019. She’s even wrote a book called “No Ten Rindas” (Do Not Give Up) where she discussed her experiences being bullied and being a genius with Asperger’s.
So far, Pérez has given a presentation at an event organized by the Institute of Art and Culture on black holes at Tijuana, Mexico, has traveled to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Texas, and was a guest at a conference at Oxford. Pérez was also invited to a science and technology conference in Russia to meet Yuri Gagarin’s grandson. Gagarin is the first man to travel to space.
Today, Pérez is developing a smart bracelet that can monitor emotions of children with disabilities as one of her goals is to support children with autism. Pérez presented her bracelet at an event in Dubai and is still in the process of developing the technology. She also has her sights on studying astrophysics at the University of Arizona and has already been offered a scholarship by the school.
While Pérez is certainly unique, other children have scored similar IQ tests. In 2019, 10-year-old Freya Mangotra scored a 162 IQ test. Yusuf Shah, an 11-year-old from Leeds also scored 162 on an IQ test.
Pérez does have the intellectual means to offer great inventions and knowledge to her country and the entire world.
The Denver Broncos didn’t waste any time on Monday when the legal tampering period opened at noon ET. Although free-agency doesn’t officially began until Wednesday, the Broncos announced the acquisition of San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle, Mike McGlinchey, Baltimore Ravens offensive guard, Ben Powers and Jacksonville Jaguars blocking tight-end (TE) Chris Manhertz.
Photo courtesy: Russell Wilson Instagram
The moves have significantly improved Denver’s offensive-line who has struggled in recent years at keeping Denver’s quarterbacks safe. The Broncos didn’t just make moves on the offensive side of the ball but also picked up Arizona Cardinals defensive-end (DE) Zach Allen after Dre’Mont Jones signed with the Seattle Seahawks.
Speculation has been a buzz in Denver about the futures of both Jerry Jeudy and Cortland Sutton who have been the center of discussions from teams around the league. Currently the Broncos have traded neither, however; Sutton sent out a cryptic tweet that read, “I just want to be where I’m wanted and appreciated.”
While free-agency hasn’t officially began, the Denver Broncos have made some big moves in an effort to give Russell Wilson more time in the pocket.
In other sports the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Montreal Canadiens 8-4 in Montreal on Monday afternoon. The Avs lost Artturi Lehkonen to a broken finger and will require surgery, but not before scoring two of Colorado’s 8 goals. Lehkonen is expected to be out four to six weeks with just 17 games left.
The Avs have moved ahead of the Winnipeg Jets for the number 3 spot in the Central Division but still remain a point behind the Seattle Kraken in the Western Conference for the number 5 spot overall. This week the Avs are on the road in Toronto, Ottawa and Detroit to face the Maple Leafs, Senators, and Red Wings before returning home to host the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday night.
The Denver Nuggets have lost three straight after going on a four-game winning streak that ended with a loss to the Chicago Bulls in Denver last Wednesday. The Nuggets are in Toronto (results not available at the time of this writing), Detroit and New York to face the Raptors, Pistons, Knicks and Nets through this weekend.
The Nuggets still hold a 4.5 game lead over the Grizzlies but need wins to hold on to the number one seed in the West heading into the post-season.
The Colorado Rapids lost to the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. The Rapids are on the road in Minnesota this weekend to face the Minnesota United FC. Minnesota is coming off a tie with the New York Red Bulls on Saturday.
The Colorado Rockies regular season kicks off in San Diego in about two weeks when they face division rivals, the Padres on Thursday, March 30 at 2:10 p.m. MST. The Rockies home opener won’t kick off until the following Thursday, April 6 when the Rockies host the Washington Nationals.
Like a phantom, it’s hard to predict on any given day what Pueblo native Elizabeth Gallegos might be doing. It would be an understatement to say, ‘she keeps busy.’ Actually, busy falls well short when describing the scope and involvement of this civically engaged businesswoman.
When she’s not overseeing her nationally recognized salon, she has her hands in real estate, either selling a property or staging one. Or she might be at a board meeting; she sits on a number of boards in the city she loves. Yes. She stays busy.
She credits her indefatigable drive to her late father, Manuel, a career grocer who showed her the power of personal relationships. Of course, she also credits her late mother, Bertha Marie, a person who also set a great example and the person who first encouraged her to give cosmetology, the beauty industry, a try.
In college, said Gallegos, “I really didn’t know what I wanted to do.” She loved learning, but not necessarily loved college. She moved to Denver for a brief period but was drawn back to Pueblo. There for a few weeks and still trying to figure out a plan, she took up her mother’s advice and started beauty school. “Within a couple of months,” she said, “I found out how much I enjoyed it.” From behind a chair, she came to see what her father had told her years before, how personal relationships, little things, could make a big dif- ference. “I learned that we make people’s day! She’s been ‘making people’s day’ ever since.
She had not only found her niche in the beauty industry, but it had also found her. A large chain in the industry hired her to shuttle across Colorado and to shops in Nevada to work with stylists and fix problems that might be holding a store back. She did that for a dozen years, but the travel and transience came at a cost. She still loved the work but needed to find another path. “I was really at a crossroads and had outgrown what I was doing,” Gallegos recalled.
Armed with a solid understanding of her industry along with business skills acquired over the previous dozen years, she returned to Pueblo. She did interior design for a year, staged a few homes, all the while keeping her hand in the beauty industry, when she decided to open her own shop, calling it Euphoria. The decision paid off. “It grew quickly.”
The salon is now in its 22nd year. It has been recognized as one of Colorado’s top fifty minority-owned businesses, won consecutive Best of Pueblo awards and, in 2011 and 2012, was recognized by Salon Today Magazine, an industry standard, as one of the 200 top salons in the U.S.
Running a business presents its own challenges. But Gallegos has managed to keep things running smoothly, certainly smooth enough to allow her to participate on sev- eral boards across the city. She is currently President of the Saint Mary Corwin Hospital Board of Directors and is Vice President of the Pueblo Urban Renewal Authority. Gallegos serves on the Pueblo Library Foundation. She has also served as board president of the Pueblo Latino Chamber of Commerce and The Greater Pueblo Chamber of Commerce. She also sells homes for one of the city’s real estate firms.
Gallegos admits that the commitment she has to her busi- ness and community can be exhausting. Fortunately, over the years, she said, she has learned when to say ‘No.’ When asked to take on ‘just one more task,’ she asks herself, “What is it really going to take?” If the answer doesn’t add up, she’ll gracefully decline. “It’s self-preservation.”
Her off-the-clock life is taken up with family. She is married and has a daughter and two grandchildren.
While it might seem like she is juggling more than any normal person might need or want, she has few complaints. It’s a trait she got from her parents, people she described as “the perfect role models.” Her father—a Safeway store manager—periodically uprooted the family and moving, sometimes out of state. The company would send him into communities to fix under-performing grocery stores falling short of meeting customer needs. In order to solve the problems, no job was too trivial and every customer, Gallegos remembered, was important. “He knew everybody’s name… he embodied the entrepreneurial spirit,” she said.
While Gallegos is quick to acknowledge the traits she picked up from her father, she gives equal credit to her mother, a woman who maintained a well-organized home— also a woman who decided to go to college after her children grew up.
The Pueblo businesswoman says she has applied what she would see her father doing for people in her own business while trying to replicate the same finesse and organization that her mother employed at home. It’s a formula that has worked for her as a businessperson, as a board member helping shape the direction of organizations she has joined and the community she serves. It’s all pretty simple, she said. Offer your best effort every day at whatever you’re asked or need to do.
The City of Pueblo and Pueblo Fire Department have been made aware of an ongoing scam related to public interaction with the Fire Department.
There is a fake solicitation asking citizens to join a Pueblo Fire Department support group with a one time registrations fee. This is not a real request of the Pueblo Fire Department and should be recognized as a scam.
“Pueblo Fire Department will never ask citizens for a registration fee or payment of any kind,” said Chief of Pueblo Fire Department Barb Huber. “Our services are paid for by the taxpayers and if we ever do some kind of fundraising effort, it will be communicated explicitly our intentions to generate revenue. Sometimes you may see firefighters ask for a donation like when we do something such as “Fill the Boot.”
The City of Pueblo and Pueblo Fire Department urge citizens to be aware of a potential scam caller stating or asking individuals to join a Pueblo Fire Department support group and to not give any personal information, form of payment or any other compromising data. There is no such group sanc- tioned by the Pueblo Fire Department.
“We are not outreaching to the community for a support group at this time and encourage the public to ignore, decline or report these calls,” said Chief Huber.
For any questions or concerns related to Pueblo Fire Department protocol or public outreach, please contact 719-553-2830 for clarification or further information.
A committee of educators and administrators recommended College Board’s adaptive computer-based suite of assessments, which include the SAT and PSAT, be selected as Colorado’s college entrance exam beginning in 2024.
Statute requires the Colorado Department of Education seek competitive bids for the college entrance exam every five years. The process was delayed a year due to the pandemic. A selection committee of teachers and administrators from urban, rural, and suburban districts across the state met to evaluate the bids and recommended College Board continue as the state’s vendor with its new computer-based SAT and PSAT exams for the end-of-the-year assessments for ninth through 11th graders in Colorado beginning in 2024.
The computer-based exams would replace the current paper-based exams that will be administered for the last time this spring. The selection will become official after the conclusion of the procurement process, which includes a 10-day waiting period.
More information on Colorado’s spring 2024 administration of the new computer-based PSAT and SAT exams will become available by September after the official award and contract negotiations have been completed.
David Conde, Senior Consultant for International Programs
I have been part of discussions involving the still hot topic of reparations for the past enslavement of African Americans.
In most cases, I have decided to remain quiet because, as a Latino, I am part of a community with its own grievances relevant to the past and present political circumstances in our country.
Besides, rather than grieving the past, our best chance to achieve a greater and more inclusive country comes from taking on the great labor required to achieve a transformative future for all Americans. As Paulo Freire states: “This then, is the great humanistic and historical task of the oppressed: to liberate themselves and their oppressors as well.” (Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 1968).
I saw the opposite in the racially charged comments about our two-time Nugget and National Basketball Association (NBA) Most Valuable Player (MVP) Nikola Jokic by Black ESPN sports analyst Kendrick Perkins, who made hateful and insensitive comments that one would associate more with a historically “entitled” individual. The “Joker” who is a White East European is favored to achieve a third MVP award and Perkins is intimating that Jokic is in line for that award because of being White.
Through intensive lobbying and great organizing activities, African Americans have succeeded in becoming the face of the Progressive Movement and leading edge of the Democratic Party.
Also, helped by the many reported incidents of police brutality capped by the murder of George Floyd and its aftermath, media organizations like CNN and MSNBC have done more to show a greater Black presence in the news and commentary analysis programming.
It is ESPN that has gone all out to change the look of the television screen so that the overwhelming majority of faces now appear to be African American. While this is in a sense good, it is also unfortunately creating a new Black racist majority in that channel that emulates the worse we have seen in the White supremacy community.
The put-down by Kendrick Perkins and others amounts to an introduction of a new oppressor in at least in one important segment of our social and political media. The argument that Jokic is not deserving because he is not a top ten scorers in the NBA pales in comparison to the “Joker’s” over 100 triple doubles this season that has set the stage for almost every Nugget win.
In Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Paulo Freire finds that “The oppressed having intermingled with the image of the oppressor and adopted his guidelines, are fearful of freedom.” It is easier to reenact the oppression of the past with new players rather than reach for more common sense and fair play.
The racist words of an important ESPN Black sports analyst is being heard and especially processed by White supremacists who no doubt see this as an example of what to expect from a minority majority and serves to increase their effort to maintain power. For Latinos the issues is of vital importance because unlike other minority groups, the community is on tract to emerge as the ethnic and racial majority in the country.
Hopefully, the future leadership in America will not be so much influenced by past history and present circumstance as by the many opportunities offered by a future that projects inclusiveness, unity and fairness .
Besides, Nikola Jokic is our basketball star and our sports hero not only for what he has accomplished on the court, but also for what he has done as one of our outstanding immigrants.
The views expressed by David Conde are not necessarily the views of la Voz bilingüe. Comments and responses may be directed to news@lavozcolorado.com.
State encourages enrollment in the Child and Adult Care Food Program
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is highlighting the importance of increased access to nutritious food during National Child and Adult Care Food Program Week (March 12-18, 2023) by encouraging child and adult day care centers to apply to be a part of this vital program. The Child and Adult Care Food Program is a federal initiative offering reimbursement for nutritious meals and snacks for children and adults at participating centers and day care homes.
“We are committed to creating a Colorado where all youth and older adults have equitable, convenient, regular access to healthy food,” said Naomi Steenson, CDPHE Child and Adult Care Food Program director. “Research has shown that participation in the program has positive effects on food insecurity and contributes to improved health outcomes for participants, including reduced rates of obesity and decreased risk for chronic diseases such as diabetes.”
CDPHE administers the Child and Adult Care Food Program in Colorado. Participating child care centers, adult day care centers, home daycare providers, homeless and emergency centers, and school districts throughout the nation serve more than 4.9 million free, nutritious meals and snacks to children and seniors each day. National Child and Adult Care Food Program Week is an opportunity to honor and recognize the contributions that these providers make toward creating more equitable and convenient access to healthy food.
“The Child and Adult Care Food Program has made it possible to run a successful kitchen and compose a well-balanced menu,” said Samuel Twining, a chef with participating provider Auraria Higher Education Center. “I love sharing all that I have learned through the program. Not only are the children eating a variety of delicious food, but we are making an impact on their health and starting their nutritious journey of food.”
Participating providers follow United States Department of Agriculture meal standards, which include serving milk, fruits, vegetables, grains, and meat/meat alternatives. The meal standards allow for a wide variety of culturally sensitive foods, and participants have the opportunity to choose from a selection of foods at each meal.
If you would like to learn more about how your child care center or adult day care program may participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program, call 303-692-2330 or visit https://cdphe.colorado.gov/CACFP.
The Biden-Harris Administration released the president’s budget for fiscal year 2024. This budget proposes critical resources to help VA serve all Veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors as well as they have served their country. This is the largest budget proposal in U.S. history for Veterans, their families, caregivers and survivors.
Colorado Governor
Governor Polis and the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) announced Colorado’s unemployment rate has continued to decline and has returned to pre-pandemic levels at 2.8 percent in January. Colorado’s labor force participation rate (LFPR) increased to 68.1 percent, just under the pre-pandemic level of 68.6 percent. Annually, Colorado had the 4th highest LFPR in 2022. Under the Polis administration, Colorado recently outcompeted Georgia and Texas for company expansion.
Denver Mayor
Mayor Michael B. Hancock announced a $1.9 million Bloomberg Philanthropies and Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund) grant to deliver free, one-on-one financial counseling to help low-income residents transition from debt management to saving, thus improving the livelihoods of our Denver families.
