50 Centstrinidad Colorado

Proudly Serving Southeastern Colorado and Northeastern New Mexico • www.thechronicle-news.com

~Vol. 138, No. 214

MondayoCtober 27, 2014

OCTOBER 27City’s Main Street ProgramMONDAY (8-9:30 a.m.) Join in the

weekly conversation October thru No-vember at City Hall in Council Chambers on Animas St. Information: 719-846-9843.

Holy Trinity AcademyMONDAY (5:30 p.m.) School board

meeting at the school, 613 Prospect St. Information: Andrea Jimenez, 719-846-4522.

Community ChoraleMONDAY (6:15 p.m.) Rehearsals for

the annual winter concert under the direc-tion of Russ Gorrell will be held at the First United Methodist Church, 216 Broom St. Info: 719-989-7317. New members al-ways welcome, no auditions necessary.

Today’s Quote“The name of the LORD

is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and

are safe.” ~King Solomon (Proverbs 18:10)

OCTOBER 28Writers’ GroupTUESDAY (2 p.m.) The Trinidad Writ-

ers’ Group will meet at 109 E. Fifth St. Info: Dana Miller, 719-422-8352.

Trinidad City Council TUESDAY (1:30 p.m.) Work session

in Council Chambers, City Hall, 135 N. Animas St., Third Floor. Information: Au-dra Garrett, 719-846-9843.

Vision Loss Support GroupTUESDAY (1:30-3:30 p.m.) OIB

(Older Individuals Who are Blind or have Vision Loss) hosts a monthly support group every month at the Trinidad Work Force Center, 140 N. Commercial. Re-freshments will be served and family and friends are encouraged to attend. Infor-mation: Billie Jo Bacca or Deb Nelson, 719-546-1271.

Primero SchoolsTUESDAY (5 p.m.) The Primero

School Accountability and Booster club meetings scheduled for last week will meet this evening in the Primero School Cafeteria, 20200 Highway 12. Informa-tion: Tina East, 719-868-2715.

GET YOUR FREE HOTDOGS!TUESDAY (7 p.m.) Free hotdogs

while they last to celebrate Sophomore Night during the TSJC vs. Otero JC Re-gional IX Volleyball game that will be held in the Scott Gym.

PUBLIC SERVICETHE SAMARITAN CLINICHere to serve the under-insured and

non-insured community with free health care and low-cost lab work from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on the 1st and 3rd Tues. of each month at 413 E. Frost. Info: 719-846-3536.

Thrift Store BenefitDON’T MISS THIS: St. Vincent De

Paul’s annual Fall Benefit Sale with most items $1, including Levis, at its new loca-tion on Convent Street inside the Soup Kitchen Building, 308 W. Church Street. Info: Isabelle Gutierrez, 719-846-2009.

Trinidad City CouncilWEDNESDAY (8 a.m.) The City

Council will hold a Special Work Session and Roundtable meeting with the Las Animas County Commissioners and SC-COG Executive Director Pete Frasier at Bueno’s Restaurant, 443 N. Commercial St. Info: City Clerk, 719-846-9843.

Historical Society BanquetTHURSDAY DEADLINE: RSVP by

Thursday, Oct. 30 for tickets to the annual Trinidad Historical Society’s Fall Banquet fundraiser to be held Nov. 7 in the Pioneer Room on the TSJC Campus. Info: Mary Ellen Hadad, 719-846-6074.

TRICK ’R TREAT STREETFRIDAY (3-5 p.m.) The Business

Merchants of Trinidad will sponsor the annual Trick ’R Treat Street Spook Pa-rade through downtown. All kids are welcome to participate in this fun, family-friendly event.

Downtown Summer Art TrekFRIDAY (5-8 p.m.) The 3rd Annual

Summer Art Trek event held downtown the last Friday of every month May-October comes to a close. Relax dining out with friends, listen to great music and revel in terrific artwork.

Kids Fun FestivalFRIDAY (5-7 p.m.) Annual “Trunk

or Treat” event for the kids will be held at the Fisher’s Peak Community Church on Santa Fe Trail Drive. Information: Lana Roberts, 719-868-3375 or 719-251-1169.

Empty Bowls SupperSATURDAY (3-6:30 p.m.) The

Empty Bowls Supper benefit for the Soup Kitchen at Holy Family Hall, 308 W. Church St. Info: www.emptybowls.net.

SCRT Gala ReceptionSATURDAY (5:30 p.m.) A free Grand

Opening “Wine & Cheese” Reception in celebration of the new mezzanine gallery at the Famous Theater will be held prior to the Jacquie Gipson / Wilson & McKee Concert. Info: 719-846-4765.

Area Essay ContestSATURDAY DEADLINE: The Trini-

dad VFW Post 984 will again be sponsor-ing the Voice of Democracy and Patriot Pen competitions for all local school stu-dents (grades 9-12). Information: Com-mander John Rios, 719-846-6094.

the Fine Print

Weather WatChMonday: A 10 percent chance of

showers after noon. Mostly sunny, with a high near 63. West wind 5 to 10 mph

becoming east northeast in the afternoon. Night: A 20 percent chance of showers before midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 29. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light after midnight.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 58. Light and variable wind becoming south 5 to 10 mph in the morning. Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 34. South wind around 5 mph becoming west south-

west after midnight.Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near

66. West southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the afternoon. Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 37. Calm wind.

Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 64. Northwest wind around 5 mph becom-ing calm in the afternoon. Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 36. Calm wind.

river CallPurgatoire River Call as of: 10/24/14. Hoehne ditch: Prior-ity # 9 --- Appropriation date: 01/01/1863.

Trinidad Reservoir Accounting:Release 0 AFInflow 67.59 AF -- 34.08 CFSEvaporation 5.59 AFContent 12,140 AFElevation 6,170.35Precipitation 0Downstream River Call /

Highland Canal: 04/01/1884.

the ChroniCle neWsEXERCISE

By Steve BlockThe Chronicle-News

Going for a nice long walk at

Trinidad’s Central Park now has a new twist after Thursday’s unveil-ing of several new exercise station’s along the park’s walking trail.

The Trinidad Community Foun-dation (TCF) took the lead role in funding the project, which has equipment for doing exercises as a part of an overall fitness system that includes walking. Storyboards explain how to do the exercises, and how they help various parts of the body stay fit. Each fitness station has a sponsor and their names are written on the storyboards.

Student-athletes from Trinidad State Junior College (TSJC), TCF members and Chamber of Com-merce Ambassadors were all on hand to check out the fitness stations, try out some exercises and then have a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Other key sponsors include the El Pomar Foundation, the Bar N-I Ranch Com-munity Foundation and the City of Trinidad, whose workers installed the fitness stations. A second 20-sta-

tion fitness walk will be installed along the Riverwalk next year, and TCF is looking for station sponsors. TCF received a $5,000 grant from the Colorado Health Foundation for the new project.

A key part of the economic de-velopment strategy for Trinidad and Las Animas County is health and

recreation, which are two of TCF’s main focus areas. TCF is working with a diverse community coalition to make Trinidad the gateway to a healthy Colorado. That’s a huge challenge, given the present reality.

Las Animas County has an obe-sity rate of 22 percent, according to a 2012 survey by the Center for Dis-ease Control’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention. The study concluded that the high obe-sity rate was caused by “an overall energy imbalance due to limited physical activity.”

Utilizing multiple years of data, that same survey rated the percent-age of physically inactive people in Las Animas County at 25 percent, as compared to 17 percent for Colorado as a whole.

Las Animas County ranked 57th out of the 59 counties in Colorado in mortality, morbidity and healthy behaviors, according to the 2012 Health Ranking Survey by the Rob-ert Woods Johnson Foundation.

A recent Health Care Needs As-sessment conducted by the JSI Re-search & Training Institute revealed that “Las Animas County is at, or

near, the bottom in every health and wellness category when compared to other counties in Colorado.”

There’s clearly a need for no-cost venues and opportunities that offer healthy exercise. The Central Park Fitness Trail serves as an integral part of a larger community effort to transform local parks and trails into an attractive recreational resource that, in time, could be a magnet for economic development.

Three fundraisers helped TCF raise its share of the $6,500 required for the project. The first was held at Central Park, the second was a free concert by Lori Kester at the Mt. Carmel Health, Wellness and Com-munity Center with free-will dona-tions and the third was a “House Concert” by Kester at the home of TSJC President Dr. Carmen Simone.

The list of fitness station sponsors includes, Pro-Rehab Center, Stay-Fit Family Center, the Mt. Carmel Cen-ter, Colonel Louis and JoAnn Sim-pleman, Mt. San Rafael Hospital, J & J Motors, Ed R. Bearden Insurance, Griego Insurance Agency, Wendy’s Restaurants, Hot Yoga on Main and Phil Long Toyota.

New fitness stations now available at City’s Central Park

Photos by Steve Block / The Chronicle-NewsThursday’s ribbon-cutting at Central Park officially opened the City’s Fitness Trail. In front, clockwise from lower left, are Carson Bennett, Acting City Manager Audra Garrett, Phil Rico and Kim Krisco of TCF. Below, TSJC student athletes jogged around the lake as part of the Grand Opening celebration.

ANNUAL FUNDRAISER

By Steve BlockThe Chronicle-News

Las Animas County still has sev-

eral ghost towns scattered among its vast canyons and plains, and local historian and author Dean Sneed will give an address on that subject to the Annual Trinidad Historical Society’s Fall Banquet. Sneed, who wrote the 2000 book “Las Animas County Ghost Towns and Mining Camps,” also co-hosts walking tours of downtown Trinidad which have a ghostly theme.

Sneed’s book lists more than 30

ghost towns and mining camps in the County, ranging from cow towns on the eastern plains to coal camps in the canyons to the west. Some of the towns still have intact buildings, while in others only the foundation stones remain. Many of the towns are on privately owned land, with no public access available but Sneed managed to visit them all and his book contains photos of the town sites.

The buildings in some of the coal camp towns were removed and tak-en to other locations, or destroyed to protect the coal companies from

liability issues. A few of them were built to serve the railroads, and sur-vived because coal deposits were found in the vicinity.

Mallory Pillard of the Carnegie Public Library will also speak at the banquet. The historical society was instrumental in helping the acquire a collection of historical documents from Ralphael Fresquez of Roswell, N.M., concerning the lives of two

prominent figures from Trinidad’s early history, Casimiro Barela and Jesus Maria Garcia. Barela served as a Colorado state senator from this area for more than 40 years. He was also a rancher and racehorse owner, a bilingual Democrat who was con-sidered a hero by the Hispanic com-munity. Known as “The Perpetual

Photos by Steve Block / Chronicle-NewsLibrarian Mallory Pillard, above, displays a portrait of Jesus Maria Garcia, a prominent figure from the city’s past and one of the historical items donated to the library. Mary Ellen Hadad, left, holds a picture of the St. Joseph’s Academy graduating class of 1913.

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Historical Society Dinner to feature document donations, ghost towns