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The I-70 Scout & Eastern Colorado News

Category: Upcoming Events

  • Consumer Advisory: January 15 is deadline to enroll in health insurance for 2021

    Consumer Advisory: January 15 is deadline to enroll in health insurance for 2021

    DENVER – The Colorado Division of Insurance (DOI), part of the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA), reminds Coloradans who need individual health insurance (meaning not from an employer) that the deadline to enroll in a health insurance plan for 2021 is Friday, Jan. 15, 2021.

    People who enroll by Jan. 15 will have their health insurance start Feb. 1. Missing this deadline means that those who need coverage will have to wait until 2022, unless they experience certain events in their lives like marriage, birth of a child, divorce or loss of other health insurance (these are called “qualifying life events” that allow enrollment outside of open enrollment). Find more information about these events at Connect for Health Colorado’s website “When can I buy insurance?”

    “Health insurance is always critical, but it’s especially urgent in 2021, as having health insurance will cover the costs for the COVID-19 vaccine,” said Colorado Insurance Commissioner Michael Conway. “And getting everyone vaccinated will let us beat this pandemic. As always, individual, ACA-compliant plans offer coverage for preventive care, routine care and prescription benefits. They have coverage to protect you and your family if you get sick or injured.”

    Colorado individual health insurance consumers can enroll with insurance agents, directly with the insurance companies or through our state’s exchange, Connect for Health Colorado. They can enroll directly on the Connect website connectforhealthco.com, get help by calling 855-752-6749 or find in-person assistance through their statewide network of certified experts at connectforhealthco.com/person-help. 

    In addition, Connect for Health offers tools such as the Quick Cost & Plan Finder that can help you check if you are eligible for financial assistance and find a plan that fits your needs. About 70% of people applying qualify for financial help. Enrolling through Connect is the only way to receive financial help that can make health insurance more affordable. 

    According to Connect for Health Colorado, as of Jan. 6, nearly 172,000 had signed up for health insurance during this open enrollment, which surpasses last year’s total for open enrollment.

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  • Arapahoe County Co-Hosting Virtual Town Hall About Latest COVID Vaccination News

    Arapahoe County Co-Hosting Virtual Town Hall About Latest COVID Vaccination News

    Adams and Douglas County officials to be joined by Tri-County Health experts

     On Thursday, January 7, Arapahoe County will lead a virtual town hall to discuss the latest COVID vaccination developments as they pertain to the counties overseen by the Tri-County Health Department. Officials from Arapahoe County will be joined by leadership from Adams and Douglas counties, and Tri-County Health officials will be on hand to take questions and provide updates.

    WHAT: Virtual Town Hall re COVID vaccine developments and latest case data

    WHEN: Thursday, January 7, 6:30-7:30pm

    WHERE: On the Facebook pages of Arapahoe, Adams and Douglas counties, as well as of the Tri-County Health Department. Participants can also join via ArapahoeGov.com/TownHall or by calling 855-436-3656.

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  • Give thanks to nature on Fresh Air Friday

    Give thanks to nature on Fresh Air Friday

    DENVER – Thanksgiving marks the beginning of the busy winter holiday season, so Colorado Parks and Wildlife invites people to escape the stress of shopping and planning to spend time outdoors on trails. On Nov. 27, Colorado Parks and Wildlife is pleased to offer free entry to all 42 Colorado state parks on Fresh Air Friday. 

    This year marks the 6th annual Fresh Air Friday event that encourages people to take some time over Thanksgiving weekend to create new outdoor memories and live life outside. A Fresh Air Friday celebration can be as big or as small of an outdoor adventure as you choose. To begin planning your outdoor experience, visit the Colorado state park finder or use the free Colorado Trail Explorer (COTREX) mobile app to discover local parks, trail systems and open spaces. 

    CPW requires state park visitors to follow COVID-19 community health guidelines and encourages people to practice Care for Colorado – Leave No Trace principles, such as:

    • Know before you go- check the COVID dial and Public Health Order in your county and visit individual park pages to learn about park closures 
    • Recreate and socialize with your household only
    • Spread out on trails and maintain a social distance from others 
    • Wear a face mask indoors and outdoors where social distancing is difficult to maintain
    • Wash hands often and bring hand sanitizer
    • Pack out all your trash

    Visitors should be aware that Friday, Nov. 27 is a state employee furlough day and some park visitor centers may not be open or fully staffed. Enforcement personnel will be patrolling the parks but some visitor services may be limited. 

    Throughout the year, CPW offers family-friendly activities, fun-filled adventures and opportunities to learn and try new things at all of our state parks. Visit the CPW Event Calendar to find a Fresh Air Friday activity near you. Please call the park visitor center ahead of your visit for hours, closures or other information. 

    For more information on state parks, trails, winter camping and other ideas for celebrating #FreshAirFridayCO, visit cpw.state.co.us. 

    Share your Fresh Air Friday outdoor adventure with us on social media by tagging @COParksWildlife #FreshAirFridayCO #LiveLifeOutside. 

     

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  • Link to Strasburg’s Friday Night Game

    Link to Strasburg’s Friday Night Game

    The schedule for the 1A quarterfinal football between Strasburg and Meeker has been changed to 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 20, at Winter Field in Strasburg. The date and time of the game were changed after the Nov. 17 edition of The I-70 Scout went to press. The staff of The I-70 Scout and Eastern Colorado News apologizes for the issue and for any inconvenience that was created. For updated postseason information, stay tuned to www.i-70scout.com or the Forever Indians of Strasburg High School page on Facebook.

     

    Here is a link to view the game  :   https://youtu.be/8RM3QazdUy0

     

     

     

     

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  • Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission to meet November 19 – 20 in virtual meeting

    Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission to meet November 19 – 20 in virtual meeting

    DENVER – The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission will discuss changes to big game regulations that reconsider the method used to determine the resident/nonresident allocation of licenses in the regular limited license draw; an annual review of all big game regulations; adjusting license fees and license agent commission rates according to adjustments to the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood Consumer Price Index; and regulations for Fishers Peak State Park necessary to ensure public safety, to protect natural and cultural resources, and for CPW and its partners to continue collecting further cultural and biological data while allowing for some limited trail and public hunter access during the master planning process at a virtual meeting on Thursday, November 19 and Friday, November 20. The meeting will be streamed live on CPW’s YouTube page here.

    The commission will also consider aquatic nuisance species boat inspection exemptions; herd management plans for multiple deer units; changes to regulations that include increasing daily vehicle pass fees by $1 at several high-use parks, including Castlewood Canyon, Golden Gate Canyon, Highline Lake, Lake Pueblo, Roxborough and Staunton state parks; annual reviews of fishing and turkey regulations; and 2020 final funding recommendations for the Colorado Wildlife Habitat Program.

    The meeting is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. on Thursday, November 19 and adjourn at 5 p.m. The commission will reconvene at 8 a.m. on Friday, November 20 and adjourn at noon

    Additional agenda items include:

    • Department of Agriculture update
    • Department of Natural Resources update
    • Financial and Capital update
    • Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) update
    • Wolf Ballot Proposition 114 – next steps
    • Awards and Recognition

    A complete agenda along with all materials for public review for this meeting can be found on the CPW website. The public is encouraged to email written comments to the commission at . Details on providing public comments for virtual meetings are available on the CPW website.

    The commission meets regularly and travels to communities around the state to facilitate public participation. Anyone can listen to commission meetings through the CPW website. This opportunity keeps constituents informed about the development of regulations and how the commission works with Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff to manage the parks, wildlife and outdoor recreation programs administered by the agency. Find out more about the commission on the CPW website.

    The next commission meeting will take place on January 13 and 14.

    Photo Credit: MGN Online

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  • Trump Administration Grants Gold Star Families and Military Veterans Free Entrance to National Parks, Refuges and Other Public Lands Starting Veterans Day

    Trump Administration Grants Gold Star Families and Military Veterans Free Entrance to National Parks, Refuges and Other Public Lands Starting Veterans Day

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — On behalf of the Trump Administration and in support of America’s military members and families, U.S. Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt signed Secretary’s Order 3387 at the Iowa Gold Star Museum in October, announcing that Gold Star Families and U.S. military veterans will be granted free access to national parks, national wildlife refuges and other federal lands managed by the Department of the Interior starting on Veterans Day (Nov. 11) this year and every day onward. 

    “The Trump Administration is committed to honoring American patriots – the men and women who have served in our armed forces,” said Secretary Bernhardt. “With the utmost respect and gratitude, we are granting veterans and Gold Star Families free access to the iconic and treasured lands they fought to protect starting this Veterans Day and every single day thereafter.” 

    Entrance fees for the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Wildlife Refuge System, and standard amenity recreation fees for the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Reclamation sites will be waived for veterans and Gold Star Families. They will have free access to approximately 2,000 public locations spread out across more than 400 million acres of public lands, which host activities to fit any lifestyle, from serene to high octane, including hiking, fishing, paddling, biking, hunting, stargazing and rock climbing. Additionally, lands and waters managed by the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are participating in the program. 

    Many Interior managed lands have direct connections to the American military, such as frontier forts, Cold War sites, battlefields, national cemeteries and memorials. These special places pay tribute to our veterans and serve as reminders of their courage and sacrifice throughout the history of our nation, from Minuteman National Historic Park where colonists stood in defense of their rights, to Yellowstone National Park, which was protected from vandalism and poaching by the 1st U.S. Cavalry before the National Park Service was established, to Mount Rushmore where modern warriors attend reenlistment ceremonies.  

    For purposes of this program, a veteran is identified as an individual who has served in the United States Armed Forces, including the National Guard and Reserves, and can present one of the following forms of identification: 

    • Department of Defense Identification Card
    • Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)
    • Veteran ID Card
    • Veterans designation on a state-issued U.S. driver’s license or identification card 

    Gold Star Families are next of kin of a member of the United States Armed Forces who lost his or her life in a “qualifying situation,” such as a war, an international terrorist attack or a military operation outside of the United States while serving with the United States Armed Forces. 

    The Interagency America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass Program already includes a free annual pass for active-duty members of the U.S. Military and their dependents. Other free or discounted passes are available for persons with permanent disabilities, fourth-grade students, volunteers, and senior citizens age 62 years or older. 

    Interior also offers fee-free entrance days for everyone throughout the year to mark days of celebration and commemoration including the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., National Public Lands Day, Veterans Day and the signing of the Great American Outdoors Act. 

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  • Arapahoe County Open Spaces virtual town halls, November 9-10

    Arapahoe County Open Spaces virtual town halls, November 9-10

    Arapahoe County seeks community input to prioritize the direction of its parks, trails and open spaces program 

    Potential priorities based on 2020 Master Plan public engagement findings 

    Littleton, CO – Arapahoe County Open Spaces is hosting two virtual Public Open House meetings to share potential priorities for its future direction for the next decade and beyond.  

    Community members are invited to attend to learn more about the master planning process, ask questions, review findings to date, and give feedback on potential priority areas for future conservation and recreation efforts. This is one of the last public input opportunities prior to Open Spaces drafting its updated master plan; Arapahoe County residents are strongly encouraged to attend and weigh in.  

    The virtual Open Houses will be held via Zoom on:  

    Monday, Nov. 9, 5:30-6:30 p.m.  

    Tuesday, Nov. 10, 5:30-6:30 p.m.  

    Visit arapahoegov.com/osmasterplan for the meeting links, an interactive StoryMaps tool and questionnaire, and to sign up for project updates. 

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  • FREE COVID community testing site event in Bennett for Tri-County residents and neighboring counties

    FREE COVID community testing site event in Bennett for Tri-County residents and neighboring counties

    Testing event is open from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. on November 6 at 610 7th Street Bennett CO 80102.

    Bennett, Colo. (November. 05, 2020): Tri-County Health Department, with the help of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), is hosting a FREE COVID-19 community testing site event in Bennett, Colorado. The testing site is at Bennett High School at 610 7th Street Bennett CO 80102 and will run from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. on November 6.

    The state is encouraging all Coloradans who need or want to get a COVID-19 test to go to any of the many community testing sites and events like these located throughout the state. There are no identification or insurance requirements, and the tests are free.  

    There are more than 50 free community testing sites across the state, as well as dozens of locations offered by private providers. The state’s website has a list of locations. 

    People with symptoms should always get tested immediately. Symptoms include:

    • Fever or chills.
    • Cough 
    • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing.
    • Fatigue
    • Muscle or body aches.
    • Headache
    • New loss of taste or smell.
    • Sore throat.
    • Congestion or runny nose.
    • Nausea or vomiting.
    • Diarrhea

    At the request of some local partners, the CDPHE is supporting mobile test sites and pop-up community testing events in communities to ensure everyone has access to tests. The state will continue to work with local partners to meet community testing needs in a manner that best serves their residents. As CDPHE aims to bring more accessible testing sites to communities in Colorado, we hope to have more community testing events like this one in the future. 

    Anyone who gets tested because of symptoms or because of a possible exposure should be in isolation/quarantine while waiting for the test result. All individuals who believe they may have been exposed to COVID-19 should quarantine for a full 14 days, even if they have testing done and that testing is negative. 

    While testing is an important tool in the COVID-19 response, the state cautions that a negative test doesn’t mean it’s ok to meet in large gatherings or ignore other public health orders, like wearing a mask. All Coloradans need to mask up, physically distance, avoid large gatherings, and stay home while sick.

    Continue to stay up to date by visiting covid19.colorado.gov.

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  • Governor Polis Declares
November as “Hire a Veteran First Month”

    Governor Polis Declares
November as “Hire a Veteran First Month”

    (DENVER) — Governor Jared Polis has declared November “Hire A Veteran First” Month. With Veterans Day on November 11, the entire month of November has long been a time to honor Colorado veterans and ensure they have opportunities to succeed in a post-military life.

    Although the national unemployment rate for veterans is 6.4 percent, a deeper dive into unemployment statistics for this population reveals that unemployment remains a key issue facing veterans. This year, with the COVID-19 pandemic raging across the country, the unemployment rate for younger veterans stands at 9.4 percent and the unemployment rate for Black veterans is 7.8 percent, notably higher than the rate for white veterans (6.1 percent).

    Military Times reports that “while veteran unemployment is trending down in recent months, we shouldn’t necessarily take comfort.”  It is concerning that veterans are often employed in jobs that are below their qualifications. A recent study by LinkedIn tells us that veterans are 37 percent more likely to be underemployed than nonveterans.

    This November, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, its Veteran Employment Specialists and a coalition of other resources and service providers throughout Colorado are joining forces to offer a variety of workshops, job fairs and other events over the next four weeks. Among the upcoming events.

    • November 4; 10 am – 3 pm

    USAA Community & Veterans Job Fair

    Open to the general public, transitioning military, Guard and Reserve members, veterans and their spouses and family members, this event is proudly sponsored by USAA with input from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment and the Pikes Peak Workforce Center. Chat virtually with representatives from more than 80 companies that hiring now.  To register for this event, go towww.connectingcolorado.com. For a full list of participating companies, go towww.ppwfc.org/usaa-job-fair.

    • November 12; 11:00 am – 12:00 pm

    Panel Discussion Serving Weld County Veterans

    Presented by Employment Services of Weld County, this panel discussion provides an overview of the many services available to veterans. Participants include representatives from the University of Northern Colorado, Aims Community College, the Northern Colorado Veterans Resource Center, the Larimer County Workforce Center and Employment Services of Weld County. To register, go tohttps://bit.ly/318v8E4.

    • November 17; 9:30 am – 12:00 pm

    Virtual Networking Event for Veterans and Spouses

    This event is sponsored by Arapahoe-Douglas Works! (A/D Works!) Workforce Center and the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. Among the participating companies for this hiring event will be Lockheed Martin, Allied Universal, Xcel Energy, Wells Fargo, Amazon Web Services and many others. In attending, you will have an opportunity to meet employers and to network with fellow veterans and spouses. It all takes place on Zoom. To register and for more information, go to http://bit.lv/adw-Vets.

    These and many other virtual resources fairs and hiring events will be taking place during November. For a full list, see the calendar at www.hireacoloradovet.gov/. Veterans can also use this website to tap into a jobs database and connect with service providers.

    But connecting veterans with employment opportunities isn’t restricted to November.  Shortening the transition period for those leaving the military and joining the civilian workforce is a year ‘round effort. The State Veterans Program, administered by the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, provides services at Workforce Centers across the state. Over the last twelve months, Workforce Centers have worked with 25,496 veterans, assisting them in acquiring skills and planning for the future.

    Colin Schneider is the State Veterans Program Coordinator. “Veterans have a priority of service in all Workforce Centers,” he says. “I extend an open invitation to all Colorado veterans to use our online resources or make an appointment to meet with a Career Coach at their nearest Workforce Center for assistance.”

    “As the Governor’s Proclamation emphasizes, veterans bring a sense of leadership that has been forged through the challenges and demands they faced in military service, and they have the ability to adapt and learn quickly,” says Department of Labor and Employment Executive Director Joe Barela. “Our best employers will tell you they have made a real investment in their business with each veteran they hire. We are proud of our long-standing commitment to the men and women of the Armed Forces. Our approach is veterans helping veterans.”

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  • Election Day math: New study probes how people make decisions

    Election Day math: New study probes how people make decisions

    Just in time for Election Day, a new study by a team of mathematicians has examined how large social networks, such as blocs of U.S. voters, navigate making tough decisions—especially when time is of the essence. 

    The team, which includes Zachary Kilpatrick from the University of Colorado Boulder, has discovered that a mix of decision-making strategies might be the secret to success: Groups that are made up of both hasty and more deliberative choosers, he said, seem to have the best odds of coming to the right conclusions. 

    “We wanted to look at how you can tune a group to have a good amount of these hasty decision-makers so that they’re providing a bump of information to the group, but not so much that they’re ruling the decisions of everyone else,” said Kilpatrick, an associate professor in the Department of Applied Mathematics at CU Boulder.

    Kilpatrick noted that the research, which will be published soon in the journal Physical Review Letters, doesn’t delve into the behavior of actual voters. Instead, it tackles a mathematical concept called “rational agents”—hypothetical figures that always make the right selection based on the evidence they have on hand.  

    But, he said, scientists can still learn a lot by examining how these more idealized predictions line up—or don’t—with the decisions of flesh-and-blood humans. 

    Using numerical simulations, the team set up scenarios under which groups of rational agents, which ranged in size from 100 agents to nearly 100,000, had to pick between two options. As the simulations progressed, the agents received data that pushed them toward one choice or another. 

    “We have a continuous update, almost like a stock ticker, of their bias in favor of one choice or another,” Kilpatrick said. “They only make a decision when that stock ticker hits an upper bound or a lower bound.”

    There was just one twist: Like voters, Kilpatrick’s agents did not all have the same threshold for making a choice. Some of them didn’t require a lot of information before landing on the option they preferred. Others needed to take their time and weigh a lot more evidence before deciding.

    The balance between those two kinds of decision-making strategies seemed to make a big difference, Kilpatrick said.

    Pretend your own social network contains a lot of hasty deciders. These seat-of-their-pants people are decisive, but that decisiveness can lead them, and the people who listen to them, into jumping into wrong choices. With too few hasty decision makers, however, the members of a group can get mired in indecision—failing to make any kind of choice at all. 

    “The hasty decision-makers are sniffing out the environment, and they pass that information on to the more deliberate decision makers,” Kilpatrick said.

    The team calculated that networks that contain roughly 2 to 3% hasty decision makers were the most effective: These groups consistently made the best majority decisions in the least amount of time. 

    Kilpatrick sees a lesson in his study for U.S. voters agonizing over their own upcoming choices.

    “There’s a lot of novices out there posting things on social media and they have not used a lot of evidence to come to their conclusions,” Kilpatrick said. “People who listen to them value them as experts, and it can really cloud the decision making of a group.”

     

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