This year is a year full of milestones and celebrations of the past, present and future.
It’s also a great year to celebrate community — both our small communities and the larger communities that help make our state and nation what they are.
This week is, unfortunately, even more reason to celebrate community and the fact that our community shows up big when times get tough.
When the Rio Blanco Fire broke out Tuesday afternoon, responders quickly sprung into action, seeking out the best route to get to and battle the fire. Bystanders called it in, helping fire crews pinpoint it. When evacuation and pre-evacuation orders were issued, neighbors, friends, families and businesses made their support and available resources known.
Not a single person stayed overnight at the evacuation shelter, we’re told. We see that as a testament to a community that cares.
That’s something to be celebrated, and something we’re adding to our list of celebrations from this year.
In July, we celebrated America’s 250th.
Saturday, Aug. 1 — Colorado Day — we’ll celebrate Colorado’s 150th.
While much of our area’s celebration took place on July 4 with the Sesquisemiquincentennial Party in the Park that celebrated both the United States’ and Colorado’s anniversaries, Aug. 1 won’t go by without local acknowledgement.
As History Colorado reminds us, Colorado’s statehood on Aug. 1, 1876, was not without effort.
“On August 1, 1876, Colorado became the Centennial State—but we almost didn’t. It took five tries and more than fifteen years for Colorado to become a state,” the organization states.
At 10 a.m., the Pagosa Springs History Museum and Pagosa Springs Main Street will be taking a final step in preserving some of Pagosa Country’s past and present for the future with the closing of the history vault after months of collecting histories and pieces that will help tell future generations about the area, its people and the community it’s become over time.
That morning, before it’s sealed, you’ll have the opportunity to peek inside and see the numerous items being preserved for those in our community to see in the future. While there to check out the vault, you can take in the museum’s standing exhibits and multiple special exhibits in celebration of the Sesquisemiquincentennial.
You can also check out www.colorado150southwest.org to find additional ways 150 years of Colorado is being commemorated in the region.
And we’ll have another opportunity to celebrate community past and present this week at the 75th annual Archuleta County Fair.
The fair is one of Archuleta County’s longstanding traditions. It’s the biggest event of the year for 4-H’ers, and is also a time to celebrate parts of Archuleta County’s past and present, as well as the talent of our community. It’s also another chance for fun as summer draws to a close.
Year-round, 4-H’ers (and their families) work hard and, undoubtedly, pour their blood, sweat and tears into their projects, which range from cake decorating and sewing to research projects and raising livestock.
Throughout the weekend you’ll find showmanship competitions for youngsters and a range of animals, from alpacas to poultry, swine and beef, and more.
The showmanship competitions lead up to some of the biggest and most humorous parts of the fair: Saturday’s 4-H Chuckwagon Dinner and the 4-H Livestock Auction, and Sunday’s parent showmanship competition.
But, as usual, the fair isn’t all 4-H, and there’s something for everyone.
For generations, community members of all ages have worked hard to create and grow items they later submitted to be judged at the fair, whether as part of 4-H or the open class exhibits.
It’s always fun to see what our community’s talented artists, bakers, brewers, gardeners and more put forward. We leave the Exhibit Hall with more ideas for our ever-growing list of projects and new things we’d like to try.
But outside of the animals and exhibits, the fair is set to include some fun entertainment, with this year’s fair slated to include some returning favorites and some new entertainment, including exotic animals, BMX stunts, pie-eating contests, Wild West shootouts, Smokey, rodeos, live music, dancing and much more.
We plan on making multiple trips to the fair this year, as we do every year, and hope to see many in our community do the same. It’s time to celebrate.
Randi Pierce
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