Good morning, Colorado!
I am either the best seat neighbor on a flight you’ll ever get or the worst. As much as I love asking people questions for my job, when I’m suspended tens of thousands of feet off the ground, I’m, well, pretty standoffish. Earbuds in, eyes forward, minimal chitchat with anyone around me. Flying, after all, is the one time I can (mostly) ignore my phone notifications and unapologetically take a break from reality.
But Monday night, as my plane landed in Denver after a sun-filled respite in Phoenix, the woman to my left turned toward me, presented me with her palm and asked if I wanted a rock painted as a ladybug.
*Blink blink.*
I silently groaned. I didn’t want a random rock from a random woman, much less one disguised as a bug. But I also didn’t want to be rude, so I plastered a smile on my face and accepted a pink ladybug from her. Back on the ground, the reporter in me returned. I asked this blonde- and purple-haired stranger how long she had been painting rocks and why she gave them away. She told me she started about a year-and-a-half ago, turning ordinary pebbles most of us would never notice into fun-size works of art. Ladybugs. Bees. Gnomes. Colorado’s state flag. She carries many of her stones with her, gifting them to people she comes across. Their smiles electrify her, she said, and motivate her to keep decorating rocks and doling them out.
After hearing a little more of her story, my smile turned to a genuine one. I didn’t even catch her name (bad reporter!), but I did walk away from our momentary encounter reminded how the simple warmth of a total stranger can mute the chaotic world around us, sparking a little joy that often feels harder and harder to find.
And that, maybe next time I fly, I could try talking to someone beside me. (OK, but not for the WHOLE flight.)
Here’s my newest and cutest pal. Taking suggestions for her name.
The only cute bug I’ve ever seen. (Erica Breunlin, The Colorado Sun)]*Now let’s crawl our way down to today’s top stories, shall we?
Erica Breunlin
Education Reporter
THE NEWS
EQUITY
Two Colorado historic sites fear they could become anti-diversity targets amid federal firings
Glenn Minoru Tagawa, an Amache descendant, hands a flower to Dale Hamilton, an Arapaho and Cheyenne descendant of the Sand Creek massacre, to place on the memorial monument at the Amache cemetery during the annual pilgrimage at the Amache National Historic Site in Granada on May 20, 2023. (Hugh Carey, The Colorado Sun)“The broad directive that agencies are supposed to look at anything that might be related to diversity certainly puts us in the bull’s-eye.”
— David Inoue, executive director of the Japanese American Citizens League
Federal cuts trimmed staff at Colorado’s Amache and Sand Creek Massacre historic sites. But advocates fear the impact could be felt beyond staffing shortages at these two sites, as they each deal with preserving the stories describing difficult junctures in American history and could become anti-DEI targets. Kevin Simpson spoke with people connected to both sites.
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EDUCATION
Dozens of school leaders urge Colorado House speaker to adopt new funding formula despite error
Students participate in classroom lessons Feb. 20 at Alice Terry Elementary School in Sheridan. (Jeremy Sparig, Special to The Colorado Sun)More than 50 Colorado school district leaders are urging House Speaker Julie McCluskie to plow forward with the state’s new school funding formula next year, despite a longtime funding miscalculation that threatens to upend the formula. Erica Breunlin explains.
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ENERGY
Xcel’s $155M plan to fix potential gas shortages in Colorado mountains will get a closer look by regulators
An Xcel Energy natural gas pipeline marker in Boulder County. (Dana Coffield, The Colorado Sun)Facing questions over its cost, efficiency and environmental impact, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission decided Wednesday to hold hearings on Xcel Energy’s proposed $155 million Mountain Energy Project, Mark Jaffe reports.
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Another $1.2M awarded to help replace thirsty grass, leaky sprinklers in Colorado. There is an additional $474,000 left from the last go-round, but money is flowing out fast as a 2028 spending deadline looms. Jerd Smith has more.MORE NEWS
Crisanta Duran, a former Colorado House speaker, jumps into 2026 race for attorney general. Duran is a graduate of the University of Colorado Law School. She worked as a lawyer for the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 union, where her father was the longtime president. Thieves nab pricey bulldogs from Colorado pet store after faking seizure, sheriff says. The man who allegedly faked a seizure was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit a felony, theft and drug possession. Investigators are looking for two other men and the getaway driver. The Temperature ☀️ Colorado’s $64,709,268 hospital price question. Plus: A Colorado doctor could be in RFK Jr.’s sights— John Ingold and Parker YamasakiKevin Jeffers | Product Team
COLORADO REPORT
Colorado to slash care to young children with developmental disabilities. Care providers who spoke to The Post said they were caught off-guard by the cuts, which they said were significant enough to affect the development of Colorado’s most vulnerable children.— The Denver Post ? Elon Musk’s DOGE cuts have reached Colorado. The pseudo-government agency claims to have saved over a million dollars through canceled contracts and terminated leases in the state, but the claims have been hard to verify.— 9News Woman with incendiary devices arrested following vandalism at Tesla dealership in Loveland. A 40-year-old Colorado woman has been arrested after a Tesla dealership was vandalized several times, with incendiary devices discovered at the scene, according to police.— CNN Here’s where Colorado’s gray wolves traveled in February. The majority of Colorado’s gray wolves continued to explore the northwest corner of the state while a lone wolf continued in the southwest.— Summit Daily? = source has article meter or paywall
Kevin Jeffers | Product Team
THE OPINION PAGE
COMMUNITY
Suncor refinery continues to violate its air pollution permits. Colorado isn’t keeping them in check. Colorado Air Pollution Control Division must listen to EPA and demand more from Commerce City plant when dealing out permits.— Olga González, executive director for Cultivandoand Ean Thomas Tafoya, vice president of state programs for GreenLatinosThe Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at [email protected].
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What’s Happening
Feb. 27-March 5
Laura Rautjoki’s “Getting Ready for School” (left), Phillip Toledo’s “Another America,” and Todd Cobbs’ “September 5,” three works on display at the Colorado Photographic Arts Center during a new exhibition about AI in photography. The three artists are participating in a panel discussion Sunday to talk about their photography practices and what to expect in AI-assisted photography. (Photos courtesy of the Colorado Photographic Arts Center)Month of Photography. What you see is what you see during the 10th annual Denver month of photography, which kicks off this weekend at the Colorado Photographic Arts Center.
Photography in all forms — from analogue photomaking to AI generation — are exhibited in 75 gallery and event spaces along the Front Range, complemented by a sampling of workshops, panel talks, portfolio reviews and harder-to-classify events, like the Beers and Cameras free photo walk, which meets at noon on Saturday at Union Station (for the beers), before heading out on a walking tour of lower downtown (for the cameras).
A few more highlights include a portfolio walk and book fair, an expansive show of Colorado photography from 1945-1995, a food photography exhibit, and an AI exhibition with accompanying panel discussion.
Various prices; March 1-31; Front Range
The People’s Atlas of the Future. The arts loving, music playing, cooking slinging, civic engagement promoting nonprofit, Warm Cookies of the Revolution, is back with another community event. This one centers on education in all its formal and informal forms. There will be food, dance, photography and a little bit of pirate radio. Free; 1 p.m., March 2; D3 Arts, 3632 Morrison Rd., Denver Winter Wondergrass. Break out your retro ski onesie or toss on some thick nordic wool, because even though we’re a few months away from peak music festival fashion, the Winter Wonderland organizers aren’t waiting around. Expect heavy hitters in folk, bluegrass and Americana at this annual, family friendly festival. $300 3-day pass; Feb. 28-March 2; Upper Knoll Lot, 2160 Mt Werner Circle, Steamboat Springs Trash the Runway. A design competition and fashion show for middle and high schoolers, challenged to create garments entirely out of nonrecycleable, found materials (aka trash). $28.52; 7 p.m., Feb. 27; Macky Auditorium Concert Hall, 1595 Pleasant St., BoulderParker Yamasaki | Reporter
Take a second to exhale. We’ve made it to the end of today’s Sunriser — AND nearly to the end of February. We’ll see you back here tomorrow and, together, begin counting down the 21 days until spring.
— Erica & the whole staff of The Sun
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