Letters to the Editor

Please vote for the environment in CD3

As a young voter concerned about the climate crisis, I am deeply disturbed by the policies of Congressional District 3 candidate Lauren Boebert and impressed by the policies advocated by can...

DATE: Oct 27, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Joe Biden is anti-Catholic, anti-family

As a Catholic, I am sick of in-name-only Catholic politicians telling me to believe them, trust them and vote for them because they are a practicing Catholics. It is impossible to be a pract...

DATE: Oct 20, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

We are Americans and we support Trump

Our Trump flags were stolen from our property the first day they were up. Not only were they expensive and an investment, considering difficult times and people being laid off, they were bra...

DATE: Oct 20, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Samulski can make a difference here

When I was a new mother and first-time business owner, my husband and I were fortunate to know and hire Rebecca Samulski. Although she was not yet an adult, we could trust her with our custo...

DATE: Oct 20, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Thank you, Jack: I finally understand

I have been reading recent letters to the editor by one Jack Ryan. Initially, I assumed these letters were from the perspective of the fictional character from the Tom Clancy nove...

DATE: Oct 20, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

White supremacy: Itâ€™s your move, senator

There were many painful moments in the first presidential debate but the worst was when President Trump refused to disavow white supremacists. I call on Sen. Cory Gardner to disavow white su...

DATE: Oct 13, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Boebert markets sex, not sound policies

Tight-pants glamour pictures and videos of Congressional candidate Lauren Boebert swaggering toward the camera, gun strapped to her hip, market sex. Does she have any ideas on pressing curre...

DATE: Oct 13, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Rebecca Samulski right for commission

Rebecca Samulski, candidate for Montezuma County commissioner, knows how to develop a plan to solve problems. She came to our neighborhood several times as the coordinator for FireWise and p...

DATE: Oct 13, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

You can look it up – don’t bother me

A new age is upon us; post-reason. The past is only felt and not known. The sky isn’t real and bats are being gene-spliced with monkeys to produce unholy, un-American progeny which is all go...

DATE: Oct 13, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Odd when camo crowd become wimps

The American Right wing is full of wimps. “Oh no! They’re gonna take away our guns!” “Oh no! They’re gonna make us wear masks!” “Oh no! They’re gonna shut down our church!” An employee at th...

DATE: Oct 13, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Next will we be arming pool lifeguards?

Many object to NFL players taking a knee during the National Anthem. However, they display no outrage over President Trump’s comments concerning POW John McCain. And I’m confused by how anyo...

DATE: Oct 13, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Write in Tipton instead of this ... Boebert

I hope the Tea Party folks who voted for Lauren Boebert in the primary are happy. Moderate Republicans like me will not be voting for her. I cannot support anyone who d...

DATE: Oct 6, 2020 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Mancos Valley Chorus hits the road againTheir spring tour is right around the cornerAs the afternoon sun illuminated stained glass images of Lady Madonna and baby Jesus in the Mancos United Methodist Church, the Mancos Valley Chorus enlivened the airwaves, as the singers’ sopranos and altos converged to create song.After a few breath exercises and Do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do’s, the chorus sang “Route 66” to kick off rehearsal that Tuesday evening. From there, they worked their way through the set list for their upcoming spring tour of shows, “On The Road Again.”

“It can mean literally on the road, or it means roads in life,” said Marty Lordier, the chorus’s treasurer. “Or even boats, trains.”Lordier was alluding to some of the other songs they’ll perform, like one she loves called “Freedom Train.”“I love music and singing with good people,” Lordier said. “It gives me joy.”Everyone The Journal spoke with that evening expressed similar sentiments of community and the joy of singing among friends and neighbors.“This gives me hope for a bright future, and it’s a sense of belonging, too,” said secretary and singer Becky Walker. “I have community in chorus.”Maggie Gillette, the director of the chorus said, “We have a lot of fun, and I think that translates into our performance.”

Unlike other groups in the area, the Mancos Valley Chorus doesn’t require auditions and is thus “low stress” by nature.“I think we sound good. There’s people here who like to sing, and when we pull our voices together, we good sound,” said Gillette.Instruments – namely a piano, guitar, bass and drums – complement the songs. Some are performed as solos, duets, even quartets.“We work really hard to put together a high-quality show,” said Raleigh Cato, the president of the chorus. “There’s familiar tunes, tunes you love.”“And it’s familiar faces, singing,” Vice President Carrie Schneider added. “We’re your neighbors.”In recent years, more younger voices have joined, which has brought variety to the chorus’ cumulative voice and new faces to the audience, said Susie Frye, a soprano singer.Amanda Vodicka, a local musician who joined this year, is one of the younger voices.“I’ve learned to challenge myself, and I’ve met new people in the community,” said Vodicka, smiling at her musical peers in the room. “Also, breath control.”She added that “people should come because it’s community art. People from all over the county come together and raise their voices together.”Check out one – or several – of their upcoming shows in Montezuma County or Durango!

Their spring tour is right around the corner

Photos/video: Galloping alongThe Rio Grande Southern Galloping Goose No.5

The Rio Grande Southern Galloping Goose No.5

Check out hundreds of snakes on the 'Colorado RattleCam'Located near Fort Collins, this mega den is said to have as many as 2,000 rattlesnakes

Across northern Colorado, flowers are blooming and the snow is melting. With the spring also comes the return of rattlesnakes and a popular webcam that captures a massive den of one of Colorado’s most spotted snakes.Located somewhere near Fort Collins, this mega den is said to have as many as 2,000 rattlesnakes. The webcam is part of a research project called “Project RattleCam.”

Researchers from California Polytechnic State University and Dickinson College in Pennsylvania are behind the project. According to their website, the biologists are working to “raise awareness about rattlesnakes, their behavior, and their importance in the ecosystem.”Two cameras are part of the project. One is in Northern Colorado at an undisclosed location. Researchers say this is to protect the den and the animals that call it home. The other is in California, which is still hibernating at the moment.The cameras allow researchers to study the animals without disturbing them. It’s also a way to gain the public’s support by sharing the feed online.In Colorado, many of these snakes will be pregnant through the summer and await giving birth. Unlike other snakes, rattlesnakes give birth to live babies. They then spend weeks caring for their young and helping to keep them warm. Typically, snakes live alone, but during this period, they live in a den, which becomes a nursery or “rookeries.”“If you have a whole bunch of expectant mothers together, they don't all give birth exactly at the same time,” Scott Boback, professor of biology at Dickinson College and co-leader of Project RattleCam, told NPR last year. “Essentially, what you have is the opportunity for other mothers to babysit for the mother that actually has given birth to those pups.”The California camera is expected to be operational by July.To read more stories from KUNC, visit www.kunc.org.

Located near Fort Collins, this mega den is said to have as many as 2,000 rattlesnakes

Photos: Protests held Saturday in Cortez and Durango

Play ball: Demons in action at homeDurango High School baseball wins over Montezuma-Cortez on Tuesday

Durango High School baseball wins over Montezuma-Cortez on Tuesday

Photos: Hozhoni Days at Fort Lewis CollegeTribal members come together for two days of celebrating their Indigenous heritage

Tribal members come together for two days of celebrating their Indigenous heritage

Cortez gathers to honor Orly Lucero at celebration of lifeLucero was known for his catchphrase ‘Living the dream’Following his death on March 7, David Orlando (Orly) Lucero, 67, was laid to rest on Friday after a celebration of life at the Cortez Recreation Center. Rather than flowers, his family requested that donations be made in his honor to the American Cancer Society.Lucero served as the mayor of Cortez from 2002 to 2010 and a member of the Cortez City Council from 2014 to 2022. He worked as a staking engineer at Empire Electric Association Inc.

Lucero was also known for his Christmas light display around the holidays. One of his blowup Santa decorations welcomed community members at the door of the Cortez Rec Center as they arrived to pay their respects.People of all ages crowded inside the rec center gym as a photo slideshow of Lucero began to play while “Vaya Con Dios” by Freddy Fender and “On the Road Again” by Willie Nelson played in the background.Pastor Todd Erlandson of Grace Fellowship Church welcomed attendees by reading John 14:1-6 and Psalm 23. Following the reading of the Bible passages, “You Raise Me Up,” by Josh Groban played before Mayor Rachel Medina addressed the family and friends of Lucero.Medina honored the former mayor by speaking of his dedication to public service and his part in multiple projects in Cortez, including the rec center, new high school, the relocation of Walmart and more during his time of public service. He also served on multiple boards, including the Cortez Fire Protection District, Housing Authority, the RE-1 School District, and more.“He lent a helping hand whenever he could,” Medina said.The next speaker was Lucero’s niece, who shared she was still trying to “come to terms” with his death. She spoke fondly of the many stories he would tell.“All I can think of are his stories,” she said. “How many people have that many stories?”She told a humorous story of a time Lucero told her that Mohammed Ali was in the airport while they were traveling, but she didn’t believe him. She ended up missing the opportunity to see Ali in person.She noted that Lucero had impacted countless people in his life by always making them laugh and feel loved, saying she hoped others would always remember Lucero when serving their communities and decorating for the holidays.“You knew exactly who he was, because he always lived fearlessly,” she said.Before Erlandson closed the celebration of life, “Horses in Heaven” by Randy Travis was played.Erlandson spoke of how Lucero’s yard was always decorated for Christmas, and that his proudest moment was when his daughter, Felice, had graduated from pharmacy school.Erlandson also shared a poem called “The Dash” by Linda Ellis, and how it reminded him of the way Lucero had lived his life. The poem focuses on the dash between a person’s birth and date, and how we can forget how vastly important that little dash is.“For it matters not, how much we own/ the cars, the house, the cash/ What matters is how we live and love/ And how we spend our dash,” the poem said.While in chemotherapy, another man in treatment recognized Lucero, and the two struck up a conversation, further emphasizing his impact on others.“Orly lived his dash well,” Erlandson said. “It’s OK to grieve and mourn.”He urged those in attendance to celebrate Lucero’s life, how lived the dream and lived out the words of Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13.“Love the Lord your God with your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbor,” Erlandson said. “Then you’ll be living the dream.”After a closing prayer and thanking attendees for their part in the celebration of life, pallbearers wearing Dallas Cowboy T-shirts escorted Lucero’s casket to be taken to the Bayfield Cemetery.

Lucero was known for his catchphrase ‘Living the dream’

Durango man charged with officer shooting waives preliminary hearingElias Buck to remain in San Juan County jail through trial

A Durango man accused of shooting a police officer was transferred from federal prison to the San Juan County Detention Center to face charges.“We transferred (Elias Buck) here to face the local charges,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Brian Decker said. “We brought him here from Otisville, New York.”Buck, 26, is charged with aggravated battery upon a peace officer causing great bodily harm, a third-degree felony in connection to the Jan. 7, 2022, shooting of officer Joseph Barreto of the Farmington Police Department.Buck waived his preliminary hearing in Farmington Magistrate Court, and the case was bound over to the 11th Judicial District Court with an arraignment set at 8 a.m. March 24 in front of District Judge Stephen Wayne.Buck is serving a 10-year sentence in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. The sentence is running concurrent to a two-year sentence for charges of escape, assault and aggravated vehicle theft in La Plata County, Colorado.The prior felony of attempted possession of methamphetamine for sale in Arizona in 2019 barred him from possessing a firearm.

The La Plata County Jail escape charge is directly tied to the alleged shooting of Barreto.Buck was arrested by the Aztec Police Department on suspicion of motor vehicle theft Nov, 27, 2021, and extradited to Colorado. While at the La Plata County Jail, he climbed a perimeter fence and escaped Dec. 27, 2021.Buck resurfaced in Farmington Jan. 7, 2022, with then-girlfriend Victoria Hernandez Rossi.He allegedly was driving drunk at 10:17 p.m. “in the drive-thru at Starbucks,” located at 2900 E. Main St. Buck reportedly was driving a 2009 black Cadillac passenger car “traveling at a high rate of speed,” according to the affidavit for arrest warrant.Police found the Cadillac unoccupied at 10:32 p.m. in the Carl’s Jr. parking lot, and three minutes later, Barreto located Buck and Hernandez Rossi walking in the area of 10th Street and North Fairview Avenue, the affidavit states.The couple claimed they were “running from a dog,” when Barreto asked them to sit down, the affidavit states.Buck asked if he was being detained and when Barreto said yes, Buck allegedly “reached into his waistband, backed up, asked why he was being detained and shot the officer,” according to the affidavit.

Buck and Hernandez Rossi fled Farmington after the shooting, and were apprehended at a convenience store in Maricopa County, Arizona.The San Juan County Regional Shoot Team investigated Barreto shooting, on Jan. 8, 2022, and reportedly found a 9 mm Beretta handgun, a wig and a hoodie worn by Buck near a dumpster behind a business at 2324 E. Main St., according to an affidavit.Farmington Police took custody of the Cadillac and searched the vehicle, reportedly finding a 30-round Glock magazine, narcotics, wigs, ammunition and multiple cellphones, according to the search warrant inventory sheet.In February 2022, Farmington Police traveled to Maricopa County Jail, where they took into custody gray Nike shoes with white soles and blue boxer shorts, which according to the search warrant matched what Buck was wearing during the shooting.Buck will remain in the San Juan County Detention Center until the police officer shooting case is completed, according to Decker.

Elias Buck to remain in San Juan County jail through trial