Features

Twenty-five years have gone by since the Mountain Peace Shelter opened its doors, and it has grown into a place that operates with the heart of a nonprofit but the business savvy of a corporation.

Kathy Mastroianni, the MPS’s chief executive officer, said the facility’s mission to foster peace has greatly expanded in the nine years she’s been there.

The various animals at the blessing service at Deer Park United Methodist Church on Sunday were relatively unconcerned, but for their owners, the blessing bestowed on their furry companions was a precious gift.

Pastor Laura Hehner presided over the small congregation, which was almost doubled if you counted the beloved pets.

“I’ve looked forward to this all week,” Hehner said.

About two dozen dogs, several cats, two ferrets and one hamster were blessed with wishes for a long and healthy life, and plenty of love.

Whether they were in Colorado or New York on Sept. 11, 2001, people came to Red Rocks on Sunday to walk the stairs and remember the first-responders, friends and family who died on that tragic day.

Approximately 3,000 firefighters and community members from 22 states participated in the Colorado 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. People climbed the amphitheater’s stairs nine times to commemorate the 110 flights that New York City firefighters climbed to try to save the occupants of the World Trade Center.

The river through Boxwood Gulch outside Bailey is the perfect place to experience both healing waters and fly-fishing.

For wounded veterans, who come to the river through the nonprofit Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, the burbling stream can soothe their anxieties and provide a chance to focus on flowing water, abundant fish, and the tranquil, beautiful surroundings.

Project Healing Waters helps the physical and emotional rehabilitation of disabled and active GIs through fly-fishing outings and flying-tying education.

The Rhubarb Festival in Pine Grove on Saturday cooked up a red-and-green festival of food and fun.

The 24th annual festival, held in the happy hamlet of Pine Grove, drew hundreds to sample a pancake breakfast, taste prize-winning rhubarb recipes submitted for the annual baking contest, watch the colorful parade, listen to live music, and hope for success in the annual duck race.

In his beaver-felt hat with silk lining, John Voehl is a page of history come to life as he lives and breathes the stories of Abraham Lincoln.

Voehl, a Littleton resident who looks more than just a little like the 16th president, said portraying Lincoln is a passion.

“It was scary for me,” Voehl said, “how much I look like Lincoln, and when I walk by a mirror, I jump like I’ve seen a ghost.”

Some people used the words “relocation center” to describe Camp Amache in southeast Colorado, but Kittredge resident Robert Fuchigami calls it what it was to him: a concentration camp.

Today, his memories of the World War II internment center no longer hold Fuchigami captive; he’s made peace with what happened during the war, when thousands of Japanese-Americans were imprisoned by hatred and suspicion. Today, he’s fascinated with the camp’s history, not bound by his memories of the three years his family spent there.

Editor’s note: As our country fights its way out of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, the High Timber Times is remembering those who fought for their very survival through the days following Black Tuesday into the winds of the Dust Bowl and onto the beaches of the Second World War.

Two-year-old Tyson Igel soon will have a permanent reminder of his dad’s love: a scar on his abdomen from a kidney transplant that is expected to save Tyson’s life.

Tyson is too young to sit still, let alone comprehend his father’s sacrifice. Pete Igel will donate a kidney to Tyson early in February, a lifesaving gesture that will be difficult to endure but hard to forget. Pete hopes his son won’t remember the ordeal, and for Pete, this is a scary undertaking and the ultimate act of love.