thedenverpost--2020-07-12--Batter, batter, batter! Community baseball, softball return to Colorado

Graham Baughn was driving near his home in Aurora when he saw it .
Like a beautiful mirage in a baseball desert .
The game he loves , finally , returned to grace .
Baughn , a former Division I pitcher and now the head baseball coach at Thomas Jefferson High School , pulled into the parking lot of a community diamond with a game already in progress .
He didn ’ t know any of the players .
He didn ’ t care .
His months-long baseball blues started to fade .
“ I stopped , sat in my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two , ” Baughn said .
“ I ’ ve missed it so much .
This is the first time in 10 years that I didn ’ t have baseball in the spring .
It was really weird.
” Listen close the next time you ’ re near a baseball or softball field .
The sound of bat-on-ball is echoing up and down the Front Range — and not just at the Rockies ’ workouts at Coors Field .
Recreation and club leagues are in full swing after the coronavirus pandemic led to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The National Adult Baseball Association ’ s Denver chapter is home to 82 teams that combine for more than 1,500 participants ; ranging in age from 18-and-under to 48-and-above .
Their season had been slated to start March 29 , but only in recent weeks have games resumed .
The lack of available fields , though , has created time constraints and shortened most games to seven innings .
Many municipal-owned diamonds are still closed over pandemic health-and-safety measures .
“ We ’ re using some parks that we don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t the typical baseball field with the grass infield , ” said Joe Collins , Denver NABA league president .
“ We never normally do that , but we ’ re doing that this year to get started .
The guys have been awesome .
They don ’ t care .
They just want to get out , say hi to their teammates , and play some catch.
” Baughn plays in a competitive NABA division against others with college and varsity high school baseball backgrounds .
Baughn relishes the chance to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but said he takes it all “ pretty lightly.
” Then again , Baughn said as he laughed , “ We ’ ve got some guys that talk trash and yell at umpires .
In the heat of the moment , you forget it ’ s a Sunday men ’ s league.
” Baughn ’ s first game back amid the pandemic was cause for celebration — with a different look .
“ Some guys wear masks in the dugout and some in the field .
Some of us are more mindful @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We ’ re reducing high-fives .
In between innings , I ’ m sanitizing my hands and not licking my fingers all the time.
” Health-and-safety measures are magnified for youth leagues ’ returning to play .
Triple Crown Sports , a Fort Collins-based company that organizes roughly 200 youth sports tournaments nationally , is home to club baseball and softball teams that would typically travel across the country .
Now , games are played regionally .
Erica Judge is an assistant coach for the TC Stars 18 Gold softball team made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Their team has already played in more than 28 games since mid-June with specific health guidelines — socially-distanced dugouts , no shared softballs or handshakes , and masks for coaches .
“ On the ballfield , we ’ re close to people , so we needed to learn to talk through a mask when it ’ s 95 degrees out , ” Judge said .
“ It was difficult breathing when you wanted to talk to your pitcher from first ( base ) .
Those changes took a while getting used to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ normal to us .
We ’ ve got our routines down and we ’ ve played so many games in a small amount of time .
We just adapted.
” Hannah Hollander , a TC Stars 18 Gold outfielder and Valor Christian High School graduate , said those precautions give players comfort to resume play and stay safe .
“ It was a way for us to get out there and just forget what was going on for an hour or two , ” Hollander said .
“ It felt like things were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s favorite pastime is on the comeback trail .
“ I love being able to go to the field and see a group of guys who maybe haven ’ t even played high school baseball , but they ’ re playing against each other and loving the game , ” said Collins , the Denver NABA league president .
“ Then I can go to another field and see guys who played college or minor league ball .
Then a group of older guys that are out there playing and holding on to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what they want to do .

Graham Baughn was driving near his home in Aurora when he saw it. Like a beautiful mirage in a baseball desert. The game he loves, finally, returned to grace.
Baughn, a former Division I pitcher and now the head baseball coach at Thomas Jefferson High School, pulled into the parking lot of a community diamond with a game already in progress. He didn’t know any of the players.
He didn’t care. His months-long baseball blues started to fade.
“I stopped, sat in my car, and watched an inning or two,” Baughn said. “I’ve missed it so much. This is the first time in 10 years that I didn’t have baseball in the spring. It was really weird.”
Listen close the next time you’re near a baseball or softball field. The sound of bat-on-ball is echoing up and down the Front Range — and not just at the Rockies’ workouts at Coors Field. Recreation and club leagues are in full swing after the coronavirus pandemic led to the postponement or cancellation of spring play.
The National Adult Baseball Association’s Denver chapter is home to 82 teams that combine for more than 1,500 participants; ranging in age from 18-and-under to 48-and-above. Their season had been slated to start March 29, but only in recent weeks have games resumed. The lack of available fields, though, has created time constraints and shortened most games to seven innings.
Many municipal-owned diamonds are still closed over pandemic health-and-safety measures.
“We’re using some parks that we don’t normally use, which means they aren’t the typical baseball field with the grass infield,” said Joe Collins, Denver NABA league president. “We never normally do that, but we’re doing that this year to get started. The guys have been awesome. They don’t care. They just want to get out, say hi to their teammates, and play some catch.”
Baughn plays in a competitive NABA division against others with college and varsity high school baseball backgrounds. Baughn relishes the chance to play infield after a lifetime of pitching, but said he takes it all “pretty lightly.”
Then again, Baughn said as he laughed, “We’ve got some guys that talk trash and yell at umpires. In the heat of the moment, you forget it’s a Sunday men’s league.”
Baughn’s first game back amid the pandemic was cause for celebration — with a different look.
“Some guys wear masks in the dugout and some in the field. Some of us are more mindful than others,” Baughn said. “We’re reducing high-fives. In between innings, I’m sanitizing my hands and not licking my fingers all the time.”
Health-and-safety measures are magnified for youth leagues’ returning to play. Triple Crown Sports, a Fort Collins-based company that organizes roughly 200 youth sports tournaments nationally, is home to club baseball and softball teams that would typically travel across the country. Now, games are played regionally.
Erica Judge is an assistant coach for the TC Stars 18 Gold softball team made up of 16 elite high school seniors. Their team has already played in more than 28 games since mid-June with specific health guidelines — socially-distanced dugouts, no shared softballs or handshakes, and masks for coaches.
“On the ballfield, we’re close to people, so we needed to learn to talk through a mask when it’s 95 degrees out,” Judge said. “It was difficult breathing when you wanted to talk to your pitcher from first (base). Those changes took a while getting used to, but now it just feels almost normal to us. We’ve got our routines down and we’ve played so many games in a small amount of time. We just adapted.”
Hannah Hollander, a TC Stars 18 Gold outfielder and Valor Christian High School graduate, said those precautions give players comfort to resume play and stay safe.
“It was a way for us to get out there and just forget what was going on for an hour or two,” Hollander said. “It felt like things were going back to normal.”
America’s favorite pastime is on the comeback trail.
“I love being able to go to the field and see a group of guys who maybe haven’t even played high school baseball, but they’re playing against each other and loving the game,” said Collins, the Denver NABA league president. “Then I can go to another field and see guys who played college or minor league ball. Then a group of older guys that are out there playing and holding on to the dream, because that’s what they want to do.
“It’s just awesome.”


thedenverpost--2020-07-12--Post Premium: Our best stories for the week of July 6-12

Across the United States , meatpacking plants were an early source of coronavirus outbreaks , including the JBS USA beef processing plant in Greeley .
As the first cases of the virus were being reported in Seattle , officials at the plant and in Colorado were slow to prepare and to react when workers started showing symptoms .
As of July 9 , 286 of the 3,200 workers at the plant have tested positive for COVID-19 , and six have died .
A seventh JBS employee at the company ’ s corporate offices in Greeley also died .
Pulitzer Prize-winning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how the company and public health officials responded and how their responses impacted the lives of workers .
She filed requests via the Colorado Open Records Act and the federal Freedom of Information Act to obtain more than 500 pages of emails , letters , memos and other records to see what took place as the virus took hold inside the plant .
Please take time to read about the impact coronavirus has had on the people who help feed the United States .
Thanks for reading The Denver Post .
Five of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ More Colorado families consider online education as COVID-19 risks loom over upcoming school year As districts across the state unveil plans to reopen schools , more Coloradans are considering foregoing traditional education and instead enrolling in online academic programs .
The risks associated with sending kids back to school for in-person instruction are too great , parents said , even with new mask , distancing and sanitation protocols .
Read more from Tiney Ricciardi .
RELATED : Online or in-person education ?
Undecided Denver parents say they don ’ t have enough information @ @ @ @ @ @ @ brash and unapologetic about seeking change in Denver Over the past month and a half — as historic protests engulfed the Mile High City , prompting sweeping police changes as part of a national reckoning on race — Tay Anderson has become one of Denver ’ s most recognizable faces .
A man who only this year could buy a beer legally is building a fervent following and a national audience as he inserts himself into hot-button issues .
Read more from Sam Tabachnik .
Rocky Mountain Gun Owners announced a change to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after many candidates backed by the group lost their primaries , Saja Hindi reports .
The hard-right gun advocacy group says the leadership change has been in the works since February and had nothing to do with the primaries .
But some Republicans believe the group ’ s losses indicate voters want to see a different kind of GOP candidate in office and that a change is needed satisfy those voters .
Denver artist Raverro Stinnett ’ s career was taking off ; then he was beaten by Union Station security — The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ say .
Here ’ s something else they say in the metro area : Raverro Stinnett may be Colorado ’ s best unknown artist .
But there is no way to talk about Stinett ’ s art without acknowledging a harsh reality .
A little more than two years ago , Stinnett was sitting at Union Station after attending an art gala .
When Stinnett left Union Station three hours later , he had suffered a traumatic brain injury after being beaten in a bathroom by one of the Allied guards , according @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and suspected of no crime .
Read more from John Wenzel… A year after Senate Bill 181 was OK ’ d , regulators are poised to tackle heart of sweeping oil-gas changes State regulators writing new oil and gas rules have carried on through a global pandemic and massive turmoil in the industry .
That might have been the easy part for the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission , now poised to plunge into the heart of the law that mandates sweeping changes .
Soon , a new , full-time commission will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to take on what ’ s being called “ mission change.
” Read more from Judith Kohler .
+ Crowds grow at Denver International Airport : “ Surprising how full the planes are ” + Political ads for Gardner-Hickenlooper Senate race drop this week , months before election + Details are out on the biggest Paycheck Protection Program borrowers in Colorado + Denver mayor to council members : Where do you want to put a homeless camp in your district ?
+ “ Your freedom bumps up against my freedom : ” Bandimere @ @ @ @ @ @ @ events planned for this weekend + United Airlines will slash nearly 36,000 jobs as COVID crushes air travel + Colorado ’ s international students face uncertainty after ICE says they must leave country if schools go online-only again + 10 of the coolest spots around Colorado for kids ( and adults ) obsessed with dinosaurs — The Know + CHSAA still optimistic for fall season despite other states ’ decisions See more great photos like this on The Denver Post ’ s Instagram account .

Across the United States, meatpacking plants were an early source of coronavirus outbreaks, including the JBS USA beef processing plant in Greeley. As the first cases of the virus were being reported in Seattle, officials at the plant and in Colorado were slow to prepare and to react when workers started showing symptoms.
As of July 9, 286 of the 3,200 workers at the plant have tested positive for COVID-19, and six have died. A seventh JBS employee at the company’s corporate offices in Greeley also died.
Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Shelly Bradbury took a look at how the company and public health officials responded and how their responses impacted the lives of workers. She filed requests via the Colorado Open Records Act and the federal Freedom of Information Act to obtain more than 500 pages of emails, letters, memos and other records to see what took place as the virus took hold inside the plant.
Please take time to read about the impact coronavirus has had on the people who help feed the United States. Thanks for reading The Denver Post.
— Noelle Phillips, breaking news editor
RELATED: Employees stage work interruption at JBS plant in Greeley
Five of our best stories from the past week
As districts across the state unveil plans to reopen schools, more Coloradans are considering foregoing traditional education and instead enrolling in online academic programs. The risks associated with sending kids back to school for in-person instruction are too great, parents said, even with new mask, distancing and sanitation protocols. Read more from Tiney Ricciardi.
RELATED: Online or in-person education? Undecided Denver parents say they don’t have enough information to choose
Over the past month and a half — as historic protests engulfed the Mile High City, prompting sweeping police changes as part of a national reckoning on race — Tay Anderson has become one of Denver’s most recognizable faces. A man who only this year could buy a beer legally is building a fervent following and a national audience as he inserts himself into hot-button issues. Read more from Sam Tabachnik.
Rocky Mountain Gun Owners announced a change to its top leadership Wednesday — a week after many candidates backed by the group lost their primaries, Saja Hindi reports.
The hard-right gun advocacy group says the leadership change has been in the works since February and had nothing to do with the primaries. But some Republicans believe the group’s losses indicate voters want to see a different kind of GOP candidate in office and that a change is needed satisfy those voters.
Art is subjective, creative professionals say. Here’s something else they say in the metro area: Raverro Stinnett may be Colorado’s best unknown artist.
But there is no way to talk about Stinett’s art without acknowledging a harsh reality. A little more than two years ago, Stinnett was sitting at Union Station after attending an art gala. When Stinnett left Union Station three hours later, he had suffered a traumatic brain injury after being beaten in a bathroom by one of the Allied guards, according to a lawsuit. Stinnett was unarmed and suspected of no crime. Read more from John Wenzel…
State regulators writing new oil and gas rules have carried on through a global pandemic and massive turmoil in the industry. That might have been the easy part for the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, now poised to plunge into the heart of the law that mandates sweeping changes.
Soon, a new, full-time commission will take the hand-off from a volunteer commission to take on what’s being called “mission change.” Read more from Judith Kohler.
A few more important stories
+ Crowds grow at Denver International Airport: “Surprising how full the planes are”
+ Political ads for Gardner-Hickenlooper Senate race drop this week, months before election
+ Colorado sues e-cigarette maker Juul for deceptive marketing practices that target youths
+ Details are out on the biggest Paycheck Protection Program borrowers in Colorado
+ Supreme Court unanimously sides with Colorado in faithless electors case
+ Denver mayor to council members: Where do you want to put a homeless camp in your district?
+ “Your freedom bumps up against my freedom:” Bandimere Speedway restraining order still in place as events planned for this weekend
+ United Airlines will slash nearly 36,000 jobs as COVID crushes air travel
+ Colorado’s international students face uncertainty after ICE says they must leave country if schools go online-only again
+ Emily Howell Warner, National Aviation Hall of Fame inductee, dies at 80
+ Denver museum repatriates sacred carvings to Kenyan tribes
+ Black bodies, white spaces: Denver’s yoga scene faces a reckoning — The Know
+ 10 of the coolest spots around Colorado for kids (and adults) obsessed with dinosaurs — The Know
+ CHSAA still optimistic for fall season despite other states’ decisions
Photo of the week
See more great photos like this on The Denver Post’s Instagram account.


thedenverpost--2020-07-12--How coronavirus spread through JBS’s Greeley beef plant

This story starts with 12 years in a Thai refugee camp and ends with an anguished phone call from an Aurora hospital .
In between , it stops at the JBS USA Greeley beef plant , the site of the state ’ s second-largest confirmed novel coronavirus outbreak .
It pauses on the lines where the nation ’ s beef is slaughtered and sliced and packaged , where Tin Aye spent years on the job before falling ill this spring from COVID-19 .
Aye moved to the United States to work , to get her family out of the refugee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ My mom was working until she died , ” said Aye ’ s daughter , San Twin .
The coronavirus spread among JBS employees in March — just as confirmed cases in Colorado were climbing out of the hundreds and into the thousands .
By the end of the month , nearly 200 employees and dependents had been checked out for confirmed or suspected COVID-19 .
The outbreak peaked on March 27 .
Yet Weld County health officials and JBS leaders emailed only occasionally in March , and the virus was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , on-paper effort to protect workers ramped up in April with a flurry of emails , public health orders and a plant closure followed by new safety protocols , according to a Denver Post review of more than 500 pages of emails , letters , memos and other records obtained through the state ’ s open records law and from the plant ’ s union .
“ Want you to know my colleagues are not reassured by what I ’ m sharing about measures being implemented , ” Mark Wallace , then-director of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Environment , wrote to JBS ’ s head of human resources in an April 7 email .
“ ‘ The cat ’ s out of the bag , ’ is what all the health care providers are saying — too many sick people already , too much spread already.
” Nationwide , more than 16,200 workers in meat and poultry processing plants in 23 states contracted the novel coronavirus by the end of May , and 86 died , according to a Tuesday report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have confirmed outbreaks at seven meat processing plants , with 447 infected workers and 10 deaths .
Nearly two-thirds of Colorado cases are among JBS Greeley plant employees .
To date , 286 JBS plant employees have tested positive for COVID-19 ; six plant workers died along with a seventh person who worked at the company ’ s corporate offices in Greeley .
“ JBS ’ s response to COVID was late and inadequate , ” Kim Cordova , president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 7 said .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a detrimental impact on workers.
” Aye was one of those workers .
She fled her home country of Burma in the 1990s after advocating for women ’ s rights and facing threats to her life .
She ended up in a refugee camp in Thailand , where she married and started a family .
In the camp , the family lived in a wooden hut with a roof made of leaves , surrounded by barbed wire and soldiers , unable to leave the complex .
Twin grew up there and remembers rebuilding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ destroyed the structure .
Each year , she accepted two school books , two pens and two pencils from the United Nations .
The family immigrated to the United States as refugees in 2007 , and Aye started working at JBS .
She always dreamed of returning to her old village to start a temple and an orphanage , Twin said .
For years , Aye saved up money for the “ big donation.
” “ We started to work very hard for our kids , ” Aye ’ s husband , Aung @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very hard for our dream.
” On March 17 , a few days after the first positive COVID-19 case was confirmed in Weld County , a JBS employee emailed the county health department to ask whether the company ’ s corporate cafe could stay open , and health officials advised it could , with some precautions .
That was one of just a handful of emails JBS and county health officials exchanged about COVID-19 during the entire month of March , according to records obtained under the state ’ s open record law @ @ @ @ @ @ @ communication between the company and county health officials , JBS was nevertheless working diligently to respond to the pandemic , JBS head of corporate affairs Cameron Bruett said in a statement Wednesday .
“ We have followed and often exceeded the CDC and OSHA-issued guidance , and reacted quickly to identify ways to enhance plant safety , many times with no official guidance , ” he said in the statement .
Still , employees got sick , and quickly .
The first employees reported symptoms in late February , according to the Colorado @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but those cases appear to be outliers ; most other employees reported experiencing symptoms after March 11 .
JBS employee Saul Sanchez came home sick on March 19 and was hospitalized on March 24 .
A day after that , JBS employee Daniel Avila Loma was sent home from work with COVID-19 symptoms ; he was hospitalized on March 28 .
Around that same time , in mid-to-late March , Aye started coughing and became feverish .
One night , she stopped working and went to the on-site JBS medical clinic to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ She told me she went to the clinic at work , and they said she just had a normal cold , and so they sent her back to work , ” Twin said .
But Aye kept getting worse , Twin said .
She called off sick for a day or two , then went back to work .
Then , on March 28 , Twin , who was pregnant , started having contractions and went to the hospital .
There , the doctors became alarmed — neither Twin nor the baby were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ C-section was needed .
The doctors tested Twin for COVID-19 and it came back positive .
She knew right away she must have gotten the virus from her mother , the only person she ’ d visited with since the pandemic began .
Twin called her mom and told her to get to a hospital .
Aye was admitted to intensive care on March 29 .
Meanwhile , hundreds of workers at JBS were calling off and refusing to go to work even as a Facebook page for the JBS plant was urging @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a post on March 25 that the statewide stay-at-home order “ DOES NOT apply to us.
” The company also promised to hand out free five-pound rolls of beef to employees at the end of their shifts , according to the posts .
About 3,200 people work at the plant .
That Facebook page has since been deleted or made private ; Bruett did not answer questions about it .
“ Unfortunately , Colorado and Weld County were impacted early by COVID-19 , and the virus spread very quickly throughout our region @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ We have coordinated with local and state health departments throughout the outbreak and we will continue to do so.
” But the families of some JBS employees who got sick in March said JBS did little to nothing to promote social distancing or safety precautions at that time .
“ On March 23 , my dad was telling my mom that there were lots of people beginning to miss work , ” said Olivier Avila , Loma ’ s son .
“ But she didn ’ t get the impression that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in place.
” Normally , his father would share that kind of information with his mother , Avila said , because she previously worked at JBS and was interested in the day-to-day goings on .
“ At that time , no one had to wear a mask , ” Twin said .
“ JBS did not take COVID-19 seriously .
They didn ’ t ask employees to work at a distance .
They don ’ t check if employees have a fever or not .
They don ’ t even care .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no matter what .
And if they don ’ t like to work , then they can quit.
” The United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 7 filed a grievance March 27 alleging that JBS failed to provide appropriate protective gear to employees and asked the company to provide hand sanitizer , gloves and masks to all workers .
Bruett said in the statement that JBS made the decision to have all employees wear masks on March 19 , several days before the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention encouraged the use @ @ @ @ @ @ @ answer a question about when JBS actually started providing masks to its Greeley plant workers .
“ Securing the supplies for our more than 60 facilities and more than 62,000 team members took time given the global demand for masks , but we acted as quickly as possible to ensure our workforce had appropriate PPE and masks , ” he said .
Bruett on Wednesday also did not answer several questions about when JBS implemented various other precautions at its Greeley plant , but he previously told the Denver Post , on March @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for weeks ” been doing extra disinfection and sanitation in the plant .
JBS began to stagger shifts and breaks to encourage social distancing in the plant on March 30 , he said then , and the company hoped to be able to temperature test all employees as they arrived for their shifts by April 3 .
State epidemiologist Rachel Herlihy said Wednesday that JBS ’ s response to the pandemic improved over time .
“ It ’ s certainly been an evolution in the response , ” she said .
“ In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ control measures in place , but JBS since that time has been very responsive to implement public health recommendations.
” The Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment opened an investigation into JBS on March 26 ; the state health agency was alerted April 2 and confirmed an outbreak at the plant on April 3 .
Herlihy said there is a “ significant delay ” from when a person begins experiencing symptoms to when that person seeks care , is tested , receives the results and the results are reported to public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ widespread community transmission occurring in Weld County , ” Herlihy said .
“ And it did take time to identify that one particular location where transmission was occurring was JBS.
” On April 1 , Wallace emailed JBS and asked to set up a time to discuss health providers ’ concerns about the “ high number of JBS employees ” seeking care for coronavirus symptoms .
“ Their concern , and mine , is far too many employees must be working when sick and spreading the infection to others , ” he wrote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ efforts JBS has implemented thus far.
” On April 4 , the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment sent JBS a letter in which Wallace raised the alarm about the coronavirus ’ spread at the plant , warning that the company ’ s “ work while sick ” culture was exacerbating the spread — nine of 14 coronavirus patients at the time had gone to work while sick .
Wallace ordered JBS to screen employees for sickness , put social distancing in place and take other steps to slow the spread @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 7 .
Two other employees , Tibursio Rivera Lopez , 69 , and Eduardo Conchas de la Cruz , 60 , died April 9 and April 10 .
Wallace and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment ordered the plant to shut down on April 10 , saying that continued spread among employees could overwhelm local healthcare facilities if not stopped .
“ It is our understanding from the telephone conversation that the Governor did not want this letter sent , ” JBS ’ s director of human resources , Chris Gaddis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Please confirm it was properly sent.
” A spokesman for Gov .
Jared Polis on Wednesday said Polis did not ask , instruct or encourage health officials to keep the plant open .
“ Of course the Governor wanted the health order sent , ” spokesman Conor Cahill said in an email .
“ The Governor has been clear that JBS needs to be more transparent with their staff and the public about the situation at their plant.
” Subscribe to bi-weekly newsletter to get health news sent straight to your @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at JBS — and similar outbreaks at meatpacking plants across the country — ballooned in April .
President Donald Trump discussed the Greeley plant on April 10 , telling reporters that the outbreak was a “ spike ” with “ many ( sick ) people , very quickly.
” Later that month , he signed an executive order aimed at ensuring meat processing plants stayed open .
The day after Trump ’ s Greeley comments , on April 11 , Jill Hunsaker Ryan , director of the state ’ s health agency , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she ’ d received a call from the director of the CDC about the Greeley plant .
“ JBS was in touch with the VP who had Director Redfield call me , ” she wrote in the email , referring to Vice President Mike Pence and CDC Director Robert Redfield .
“ They want us to use the CDC ’ s critical infrastructure guidance , ( sending asymptomatic people back to work even if we suspect exposure but they have no symptoms ) even with the outbreak at present level .
Are you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you are.
” Wallace approved in a response .
Hunsaker Ryan and Wallace , who retired as the county health director at the end of May , did not return requests for comment on this story .
Ian Dickson , spokesman for the CDPHE , said in a statement that Hunsaker Ryan had a lengthy discussion with Redfield about his request and “ decided to comply , anticipating that the state would need the CDC ’ s continued partnership to mitigate the outbreak at JBS.
” “ In the end , we did @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CDC guidance and JBS ultimately closed the facility , ” the statement said .
On April 13 , JBS wrote in a letter to the union that it was developing a COVID-19 training program for employees that covered social distancing , face masks , hand washing , symptoms and the need to stay home if sick .
All employees would be trained in the practices by the end of the month , the letter said .
JBS also listed steps it had taken to increase safety in the plant , including adding plexiglass @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to workers , increasing signage about best practices in the plant and adding new hand sanitizing stations .
CDC inspections at the plant on April 14 and April 16 confirmed those measures — though the CDC team found some plant workers were using balaclavas as face coverings and said that practice should stop as balaclavas were not effective masks , according to an April 20 memo summarizing the visits .
The CDC also recommended JBS take a variety of additional measures , including reducing how many cattle the plant processed each day and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ workers from coming to work , and avoiding incentives — like a free roll of beef — that were tied to attendance .
By April 19 , 183 COVID-19 cases had been confirmed among JBS employees , and another 25 cases confirmed among those employees ’ households .
There were 50 people hospitalized .
The Greeley plant reopened April 24 , nine days after it shut down .
JBS employee Way Ler , 61 , died from coronavirus on April 26 .
About a week after Aye was admitted to the hospital , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mother likely wouldn ’ t survive .
The medical team was about to take Aye in for a last-ditch procedure , and she took the phone to talk to her daughter for the last time .
“ My mom said , ‘ The doctors will try to save me , but don ’ t worry for me , worry for yourself , because you have a newborn and a C-section , ’ ” Twin said .
“ ‘ The doctor already explained to me that I am not going to make it anymore @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I couldn ’ t see my grandson , I really want to see him.
’ And she cried , and hung up .
She didn ’ t have time .
They were rushing the surgery for her because she couldn ’ t breathe anymore.
” Aye went on a ventilator , and then died May 17 .
She never met her first grandchild , and Twin is navigating life as a new mother without her own mother .
She and her father hope to one day carry out her mother ’ s dream @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now is recognized as Myanmar , and opening up a temple and orphanage in Aye ’ s village .
“ Our dream is broken right now , ” Toe said in June .
Two weeks later , on a hot Sunday afternoon , he stood over his 3-month-old grandson ’ s stroller with about 100 other people in a parking lot outside the union ’ s Greeley offices .
A poster-sized laminated picture of Aye was taped to the top of the stroller .
The group had gathered to memorialize the six JBS @ @ @ @ @ @ @ One by one , their family members took the microphone and remembered their loved ones .
“ I was there the day we had to shut off the ventilator for my father , ” said Patricia Rangel , Sanchez ’ s daughter .
She spent Father ’ s Day at the cemetery .
Avila took the microphone too , and told the crowd about his father , Loma , an avid baseball player and coach who ’ d take vacation every year to return to and volunteer in the Mexican town he ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one month for COVID to take my dad , ” Avila said .
“ He worked for JBS for over 30 years.
” Twin spoke about Aye ’ s work ethic , about how she always cooked and cared for the family .
“ I want to say thank you to my mom for working so hard , ” she told the crowd .
The outbreak at JBS has slowed .
It ’ s still classified as active by the state , but the plant saw only one new case in June , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state confirmed a small outbreak among JBS ’ s corporate summer interns , with five infected .
During a surprise inspection on June 22 , state and county health officials found that JBS was following most of the recommended practices for protecting workers , Herlihy said .
A Thursday memo summarizing the June 22 inspection noted that nearly all employees in the plant were wearing masks during the visit , and that many also wore face shields .
Inspectors found that JBS had installed a new UV light sanitizing system and observed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had been promoted solely to enforce coronavirus safety precautions .
“ The greatest continued issue we identified was individuals clustering outside the facility while awaiting screening to go inside for the day , ” Herlihy said .
Cordova still has concerns about workers ’ safety , particularly that social distancing guidelines aren ’ t being followed .
Workers may be at risk again if the state is hit with a second wave of infections , she said .
“ We ’ re not done , ” she said .
“ We ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Investigative journalism is time-consuming and difficult to produce .
Please support The Denver Post .
Become a subscriber for only 99 cents for the first month .

This story starts with 12 years in a Thai refugee camp and ends with an anguished phone call from an Aurora hospital.
In between, it stops at the JBS USA Greeley beef plant, the site of the state’s second-largest confirmed novel coronavirus outbreak. It pauses on the lines where the nation’s beef is slaughtered and sliced and packaged, where Tin Aye spent years on the job before falling ill this spring from COVID-19.
Aye moved to the United States to work, to get her family out of the refugee camp, away from the bamboo huts.
“My mom was working until she died,” said Aye’s daughter, San Twin.
An early hit
The coronavirus spread among JBS employees in March — just as confirmed cases in Colorado were climbing out of the hundreds and into the thousands. By the end of the month, nearly 200 employees and dependents had been checked out for confirmed or suspected COVID-19. The outbreak peaked on March 27.
Yet Weld County health officials and JBS leaders emailed only occasionally in March, and the virus was already entrenched by the time a serious, on-paper effort to protect workers ramped up in April with a flurry of emails, public health orders and a plant closure followed by new safety protocols, according to a Denver Post review of more than 500 pages of emails, letters, memos and other records obtained through the state’s open records law and from the plant’s union.
“Want you to know my colleagues are not reassured by what I’m sharing about measures being implemented,” Mark Wallace, then-director of the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment, wrote to JBS’s head of human resources in an April 7 email. “‘The cat’s out of the bag,’ is what all the health care providers are saying — too many sick people already, too much spread already.”
Nationwide, more than 16,200 workers in meat and poultry processing plants in 23 states contracted the novel coronavirus by the end of May, and 86 died, according to a Tuesday report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Colorado, state health officials have confirmed outbreaks at seven meat processing plants, with 447 infected workers and 10 deaths. Nearly two-thirds of Colorado cases are among JBS Greeley plant employees.
To date, 286 JBS plant employees have tested positive for COVID-19; six plant workers died along with a seventh person who worked at the company’s corporate offices in Greeley.
“JBS’s response to COVID was late and inadequate,” Kim Cordova, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 7 said. “That’s why there was such a detrimental impact on workers.”
Aye was one of those workers. She fled her home country of Burma in the 1990s after advocating for women’s rights and facing threats to her life. She ended up in a refugee camp in Thailand, where she married and started a family.
In the camp, the family lived in a wooden hut with a roof made of leaves, surrounded by barbed wire and soldiers, unable to leave the complex. Twin grew up there and remembers rebuilding their hut several times after strong storms destroyed the structure. Each year, she accepted two school books, two pens and two pencils from the United Nations.
The family immigrated to the United States as refugees in 2007, and Aye started working at JBS. She always dreamed of returning to her old village to start a temple and an orphanage, Twin said. For years, Aye saved up money for the “big donation.”
“We started to work very hard for our kids,” Aye’s husband, Aung Kyaw Toe said. “We tried very hard for our dream.”
Kevin Mohatt, Special to the Denver Post A photo of Tin Aye, who died of complications from COVID-19, is placed on at a table in her memory as Monk U Ni Ma La leads family members in prayer during Aye's funeral in Denver on May 21, 2020.
Courtesy of San Twin San Twin holds a picture of her mother, Tin Aye, and a book that her mother used to study English.Tin Aye, a JBS employee, died in May after contracting the novel coronavirus.
Courtesy of San Twin The hut that Tin Aye and her family lived in during their 12-year stay in a refugee camp in Thailand. Tin Aye, a JBS employee, died in May after contracting the novel coronavirus.
Courtesy of San Twin Tin Aye holds her daughter, San Twin, around 1994, before the family immigrated to the United States. Tin Aye, a JBS employee, died in May after contracting the novel coronavirus. (Courtesy of San Twin)
Kevin Mohatt, Special to the Denver Post Tin Aye, 59, rinses rice before cooking it in her home in Aurora on March 7, 2020.
Kevin Mohatt, Special to the Denver Post Husband and wife, Aung Kyaw Toe, 51, and Tin Aye, 59, drive to Sam’s Club to stock up on food in Aurora on March 7, 2020.
Kevin Mohatt, Special to the Denver Post Workers at Fairmount Cemetery load the casket of Tin Aye, who died of complications from COVID-19, into a hearse on May 21, 2020.
Kevin Mohatt, Special to the Denver Post Zar Ni Lin, the niece of Tin Aye, who died of complications from COVID-19, is comforted by a family member as she prays at her aunt's casket during funeral services in Denver on May 21, 2020.
Coronavirus spread quickly
On March 17, a few days after the first positive COVID-19 case was confirmed in Weld County, a JBS employee emailed the county health department to ask whether the company’s corporate cafe could stay open, and health officials advised it could, with some precautions.
That was one of just a handful of emails JBS and county health officials exchanged about COVID-19 during the entire month of March, according to records obtained under the state’s open record law.
But despite the lack of written communication between the company and county health officials, JBS was nevertheless working diligently to respond to the pandemic, JBS head of corporate affairs Cameron Bruett said in a statement Wednesday.
“We have followed and often exceeded the CDC and OSHA-issued guidance, and reacted quickly to identify ways to enhance plant safety, many times with no official guidance,” he said in the statement.
Still, employees got sick, and quickly.
The first employees reported symptoms in late February, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, but those cases appear to be outliers; most other employees reported experiencing symptoms after March 11.
JBS employee Saul Sanchez came home sick on March 19 and was hospitalized on March 24. A day after that, JBS employee Daniel Avila Loma was sent home from work with COVID-19 symptoms; he was hospitalized on March 28. Around that same time, in mid-to-late March, Aye started coughing and became feverish. One night, she stopped working and went to the on-site JBS medical clinic to be checked out, Twin said.
“She told me she went to the clinic at work, and they said she just had a normal cold, and so they sent her back to work,” Twin said.
But Aye kept getting worse, Twin said. She called off sick for a day or two, then went back to work. Then, on March 28, Twin, who was pregnant, started having contractions and went to the hospital. There, the doctors became alarmed — neither Twin nor the baby were taking in enough oxygen; an immediate C-section was needed.
The doctors tested Twin for COVID-19 and it came back positive. She knew right away she must have gotten the virus from her mother, the only person she’d visited with since the pandemic began. Twin called her mom and told her to get to a hospital. Aye was admitted to intensive care on March 29.
Meanwhile, hundreds of workers at JBS were calling off and refusing to go to work even as a Facebook page for the JBS plant was urging workers to keep showing up, saying in a post on March 25 that the statewide stay-at-home order “DOES NOT apply to us.” The company also promised to hand out free five-pound rolls of beef to employees at the end of their shifts, according to the posts. About 3,200 people work at the plant. That Facebook page has since been deleted or made private; Bruett did not answer questions about it.
“Unfortunately, Colorado and Weld County were impacted early by COVID-19, and the virus spread very quickly throughout our region,” Bruett said in the statement. “We have coordinated with local and state health departments throughout the outbreak and we will continue to do so.”
But the families of some JBS employees who got sick in March said JBS did little to nothing to promote social distancing or safety precautions at that time.
“On March 23, my dad was telling my mom that there were lots of people beginning to miss work,” said Olivier Avila, Loma’s son. “But she didn’t get the impression that there was any PPE or social distancing in place.”
Normally, his father would share that kind of information with his mother, Avila said, because she previously worked at JBS and was interested in the day-to-day goings on.
“At that time, no one had to wear a mask,” Twin said. “JBS did not take COVID-19 seriously. They didn’t ask employees to work at a distance. They don’t check if employees have a fever or not. They don’t even care. They just want employees to go to work no matter what. And if they don’t like to work, then they can quit.”
The United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 7 filed a grievance March 27 alleging that JBS failed to provide appropriate protective gear to employees and asked the company to provide hand sanitizer, gloves and masks to all workers.
Bruett said in the statement that JBS made the decision to have all employees wear masks on March 19, several days before the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention encouraged the use of face coverings. He did not answer a question about when JBS actually started providing masks to its Greeley plant workers.
“Securing the supplies for our more than 60 facilities and more than 62,000 team members took time given the global demand for masks, but we acted as quickly as possible to ensure our workforce had appropriate PPE and masks,” he said.
Bruett on Wednesday also did not answer several questions about when JBS implemented various other precautions at its Greeley plant, but he previously told the Denver Post, on March 31, that the company had “for weeks” been doing extra disinfection and sanitation in the plant. JBS began to stagger shifts and breaks to encourage social distancing in the plant on March 30, he said then, and the company hoped to be able to temperature test all employees as they arrived for their shifts by April 3.
State epidemiologist Rachel Herlihy said Wednesday that JBS’s response to the pandemic improved over time.
“It’s certainly been an evolution in the response,” she said. “In the beginning there were limited public health control measures in place, but JBS since that time has been very responsive to implement public health recommendations.”
The Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment opened an investigation into JBS on March 26; the state health agency was alerted April 2 and confirmed an outbreak at the plant on April 3. Herlihy said there is a “significant delay” from when a person begins experiencing symptoms to when that person seeks care, is tested, receives the results and the results are reported to public health agencies.
“There was certainly widespread community transmission occurring in Weld County,” Herlihy said. “And it did take time to identify that one particular location where transmission was occurring was JBS.”
On April 1, Wallace emailed JBS and asked to set up a time to discuss health providers’ concerns about the “high number of JBS employees” seeking care for coronavirus symptoms.
“Their concern, and mine, is far too many employees must be working when sick and spreading the infection to others,” he wrote, adding he appreciated “the prevention efforts JBS has implemented thus far.”
Death, politics and a closure
On April 4, the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment sent JBS a letter in which Wallace raised the alarm about the coronavirus’ spread at the plant, warning that the company’s “work while sick” culture was exacerbating the spread — nine of 14 coronavirus patients at the time had gone to work while sick. Wallace ordered JBS to screen employees for sickness, put social distancing in place and take other steps to slow the spread.
Then JBS employees began to die.
Sanchez, 78, died April 7. Two other employees, Tibursio Rivera Lopez, 69, and Eduardo Conchas de la Cruz, 60, died April 9 and April 10.
Wallace and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment ordered the plant to shut down on April 10, saying that continued spread among employees could overwhelm local healthcare facilities if not stopped.
“It is our understanding from the telephone conversation that the Governor did not want this letter sent,” JBS’s director of human resources, Chris Gaddis wrote in response to the shutdown order. “Please confirm it was properly sent.”
A spokesman for Gov. Jared Polis on Wednesday said Polis did not ask, instruct or encourage health officials to keep the plant open.
“Of course the Governor wanted the health order sent,” spokesman Conor Cahill said in an email. “The Governor has been clear that JBS needs to be more transparent with their staff and the public about the situation at their plant.”
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The politics surrounding the outbreak at JBS — and similar outbreaks at meatpacking plants across the country — ballooned in April. President Donald Trump discussed the Greeley plant on April 10, telling reporters that the outbreak was a “spike” with “many (sick) people, very quickly.” Later that month, he signed an executive order aimed at ensuring meat processing plants stayed open.
The day after Trump’s Greeley comments, on April 11, Jill Hunsaker Ryan, director of the state’s health agency, wrote in an email to Wallace that she’d received a call from the director of the CDC about the Greeley plant.
“JBS was in touch with the VP who had Director Redfield call me,” she wrote in the email, referring to Vice President Mike Pence and CDC Director Robert Redfield. “They want us to use the CDC’s critical infrastructure guidance, (sending asymptomatic people back to work even if we suspect exposure but they have no symptoms) even with the outbreak at present level. Are you okay with that? I am if you are.”
Wallace approved in a response. Hunsaker Ryan and Wallace, who retired as the county health director at the end of May, did not return requests for comment on this story.
Ian Dickson, spokesman for the CDPHE, said in a statement that Hunsaker Ryan had a lengthy discussion with Redfield about his request and “decided to comply, anticipating that the state would need the CDC’s continued partnership to mitigate the outbreak at JBS.”
“In the end, we did not amend the order to match the CDC guidance and JBS ultimately closed the facility,” the statement said.
The plant closed temporarily on April 15.
On April 13, JBS wrote in a letter to the union that it was developing a COVID-19 training program for employees that covered social distancing, face masks, hand washing, symptoms and the need to stay home if sick. All employees would be trained in the practices by the end of the month, the letter said.
JBS also listed steps it had taken to increase safety in the plant, including adding plexiglass dividers between lunch tables, providing masks to workers, increasing signage about best practices in the plant and adding new hand sanitizing stations.
CDC inspections at the plant on April 14 and April 16 confirmed those measures — though the CDC team found some plant workers were using balaclavas as face coverings and said that practice should stop as balaclavas were not effective masks, according to an April 20 memo summarizing the visits.
The CDC also recommended JBS take a variety of additional measures, including reducing how many cattle the plant processed each day and modifying sick leave policies to discourage sick workers from coming to work, and avoiding incentives — like a free roll of beef — that were tied to attendance.
By April 19, 183 COVID-19 cases had been confirmed among JBS employees, and another 25 cases confirmed among those employees’ households. There were 50 people hospitalized.
The Greeley plant reopened April 24, nine days after it shut down.
JBS employee Way Ler, 61, died from coronavirus on April 26.
Loma, 65, died April 29.
An anguished call
About a week after Aye was admitted to the hospital, the doctors called Twin and said her mother likely wouldn’t survive.
The medical team was about to take Aye in for a last-ditch procedure, and she took the phone to talk to her daughter for the last time.
“My mom said, ‘The doctors will try to save me, but don’t worry for me, worry for yourself, because you have a newborn and a C-section,’” Twin said. “‘The doctor already explained to me that I am not going to make it anymore. But I feel really bad that I couldn’t see my grandson, I really want to see him.’ And she cried, and hung up. She didn’t have time. They were rushing the surgery for her because she couldn’t breathe anymore.”
Aye went on a ventilator, and then died May 17. She never met her first grandchild, and Twin is navigating life as a new mother without her own mother.
She and her father hope to one day carry out her mother’s dream of traveling back to Burma, which now is recognized as Myanmar, and opening up a temple and orphanage in Aye’s village.
“Our dream is broken right now,” Toe said in June.
Two weeks later, on a hot Sunday afternoon, he stood over his 3-month-old grandson’s stroller with about 100 other people in a parking lot outside the union’s Greeley offices.
A poster-sized laminated picture of Aye was taped to the top of the stroller.
The group had gathered to memorialize the six JBS plant workers who died from coronavirus. One by one, their family members took the microphone and remembered their loved ones.
“I was there the day we had to shut off the ventilator for my father,” said Patricia Rangel, Sanchez’s daughter. She spent Father’s Day at the cemetery.
Avila took the microphone too, and told the crowd about his father, Loma, an avid baseball player and coach who’d take vacation every year to return to and volunteer in the Mexican town he’d immigrated from.
“It took one month for COVID to take my dad,” Avila said. “He worked for JBS for over 30 years.”
Twin spoke about Aye’s work ethic, about how she always cooked and cared for the family.
“I want to say thank you to my mom for working so hard,” she told the crowd.
The outbreak at JBS has slowed. It’s still classified as active by the state, but the plant saw only one new case in June, Bruett said. On July 3, the state confirmed a small outbreak among JBS’s corporate summer interns, with five infected.
During a surprise inspection on June 22, state and county health officials found that JBS was following most of the recommended practices for protecting workers, Herlihy said.
A Thursday memo summarizing the June 22 inspection noted that nearly all employees in the plant were wearing masks during the visit, and that many also wore face shields. Inspectors found that JBS had installed a new UV light sanitizing system and observed several new managers roaming the plant who had been promoted solely to enforce coronavirus safety precautions.
“The greatest continued issue we identified was individuals clustering outside the facility while awaiting screening to go inside for the day,” Herlihy said.
Cordova still has concerns about workers’ safety, particularly that social distancing guidelines aren’t being followed. Workers may be at risk again if the state is hit with a second wave of infections, she said.
“We’re not done,” she said. “We’re not out of the woods yet.”
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thedenverpost--2020-07-12--Before World War II and seat on Supreme Court, Colorado’s Byron “Whizzer” White had iconic football

Before World War II and seat on Supreme Court, Colorado’s Byron “Whizzer” White had iconic football career

Editor ’ s note : Last in five-part series profiling Colorado football icons .
Floyd Little , Darian Hagan , Andy Lowry and Sonny Lubick were previously profiled .
J.C. Derks couldn ’ t believe what he was watching when the Colorado football team visited Utah on Nov. 8 , 1937 .
A writer for the Salt Lake Tribune , Derks became smitten with Buffs running back Byron “ Whizzer ” White .
“ An assemblage numbering well towards 20,000 persons Saturday saw the finest exhibition of football playing that has yet been witnessed on a Utah gridiron.
” Those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ posted a 17-7 win via White ’ s tour de force .
According to news reports , White rushed 23 times for 187 yards ( including a 95-yard touchdown run ) , completed two passes , averaged 25 yards per punt return , 39 yards on punts and made two kicks .
White was a Colorado football icon and , really , a Colorado icon .
After retiring from pro football in 1941 , he served his country in World War II , earned a law degree from Yale , campaigned for John @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deputy attorney general under Robert Kennedy and was the first Coloradan appointed to the Supreme Court ( 1962 ) .
White retired from the high court in 1993 and passed away in Denver on April 15 , 2002 , at age 84 .
“ He was like Joe Namath , ” former Pittsburgh player-coach Johnny Blood told football historian Dan Daly in a story for The Washington Times after White ’ s death .
“ People who weren ’ t necessarily football fans would come to the park not so much to see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ White.
” Exhibit A : After White ’ s final college game , a 28-14 Cotton Bowl loss to Rice in which he threw a touchdown , ran for another and had an interception , Colorado state highway engineer Arthur Fant returned home from Dallas and his son was born .
He named him Byron Arthur Fant , “ because I wanted him to have the same first name as White.
” They all came to see White during his three years ( 1935-37 ) with the Buffaloes .
In the record book @ @ @ @ @ @ @ media guide , White ’ s name appeared 105 times .
White , who was born in Fort Collins and attended high school in Wellington , was CU ’ s first football All-America selection ( ’ 37 ) when he led the Buffs to an 8-1 record and set national records with 1,221 rushing yards and 122 points .
White ’ s No .
24 is one of only four numbers retired by CU .
After finishing his Colorado career , White was drafted fourth overall by the NFL ’ s Pittsburgh Pirates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this happening in any of the following eras : White hedged on signing a contract .
White turned down a $ 15,000 offer in January 1938 and the Pennsylvania newspapers that year were full of updates .
On July 31 , once Oxford agreed to postpone his enrollment until 1939 , White signed with the Pirates .
Oxford was temporarily out and pro football was momentarily in .
According to Daly , the Pirates played two non-league games on the West Coast to maximize White ’ s celebrity .
In 11 games for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in rushing attempts ( 152 ) and yards ( 567 ) and completed 29 of 73 passes for 393 yards ( two touchdowns and 18 interceptions ) .
He debuted in a loss at Detroit … and played again two days later against the New York Giants .
The Pirates went 2-9 and White ’ s time in Pittsburgh was over .
“ Everything was a one-year deal , ” said Daly , who has written two books on football history — “ The Pro Football Chronicles ” and “ The National Forgotten @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to let him go — not because he hadn ’ t played well , but because ( the Pirates ) lost a ton of money that year and he started dumping contracts late in the season.
” One player Rooney sold was Frank Filchock to Washington .
Filchock was later the Broncos ’ first coach ( 1960-61 ) .
According to Daly ’ s book , at one point during White ’ s rookie year , the Pirates had only 20 players ( 10 below the limit ) .
After the season , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t play in 1939 and while in New York in March 1940 , he said : “ No more pro football for me .
… I intend sticking close to the old textbooks.
” But football called when White returned to the United States because of World War II and he signed with the Lions .
White showed no rust in ’ 40 , leading the NFL in rushing attempts ( 146 ) and yards ( 514 ) .
After the season , he volunteered for the Marine Corps , but was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The following year , he rushed 89 times for 240 yards and just like that , White was done with pro football at age 24 .
On May 5 , 1942 , he joined the Navy ’ s intelligence division .
“ A lot of guys had short careers back them , ” Daly said .
“ Of course , none of them went on to be a Supreme Court justice .
Tom Harmon was another very famous back who played a few seasons and then went onto other things .
Harmon was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and had lost several seasons to the war.
” White was stationed in the Pacific and earned two Bronze Stars .
Daly said White was aboard the USS Bunker Hill in 1945 when it was hit by two kamikazes that killed 346 men and wounded 264 others .
White isn ’ t in the Pro Football Hall of Fame because he didn ’ t play long enough , period .
Daly said White did travel to Canton , Ohio , to present Blood and former Pirates teammate Walt Kiesling for induction .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In Daly ’ s story after White ’ s death , Hall of Famer Ace Parker called White , “ the greatest player I ever saw .
… White couldn ’ t pass or kick with some of the rest of them , but he was the best all-around player in my opinion .
”

Editor’s note: Last in five-part series profiling Colorado football icons. Floyd Little, Darian Hagan, Andy Lowry and Sonny Lubick were previously profiled.
J.C. Derks couldn’t believe what he was watching when the Colorado football team visited Utah on Nov. 8, 1937.
A writer for the Salt Lake Tribune, Derks became smitten with Buffs running back Byron “Whizzer” White.
“An assemblage numbering well towards 20,000 persons Saturday saw the finest exhibition of football playing that has yet been witnessed on a Utah gridiron.”
Those were Derk’s words after Colorado posted a 17-7 win via White’s tour de force. According to news reports, White rushed 23 times for 187 yards (including a 95-yard touchdown run), completed two passes, averaged 25 yards per punt return, 39 yards on punts and made two kicks.
White was a Colorado football icon and, really, a Colorado icon.
After retiring from pro football in 1941, he served his country in World War II, earned a law degree from Yale, campaigned for John F. Kennedy in 1960, served as deputy attorney general under Robert Kennedy and was the first Coloradan appointed to the Supreme Court (1962). White retired from the high court in 1993 and passed away in Denver on April 15, 2002, at age 84.
“He was like Joe Namath,” former Pittsburgh player-coach Johnny Blood told football historian Dan Daly in a story for The Washington Times after White’s death. “People who weren’t necessarily football fans would come to the park not so much to see a game, but to see Whizzer White.”
Exhibit A: After White’s final college game, a 28-14 Cotton Bowl loss to Rice in which he threw a touchdown, ran for another and had an interception, Colorado state highway engineer Arthur Fant returned home from Dallas and his son was born. He named him Byron Arthur Fant, “because I wanted him to have the same first name as White.”
They all came to see White during his three years (1935-37) with the Buffaloes. In the record book section of last year’s Colorado media guide, White’s name appeared 105 times.
White, who was born in Fort Collins and attended high school in Wellington, was CU’s first football All-America selection (’37) when he led the Buffs to an 8-1 record and set national records with 1,221 rushing yards and 122 points.
White’s No. 24 is one of only four numbers retired by CU.
After finishing his Colorado career, White was drafted fourth overall by the NFL’s Pittsburgh Pirates (now Steelers). But imagine this happening in any of the following eras: White hedged on signing a contract.
White turned down a $15,000 offer in January 1938 and the Pennsylvania newspapers that year were full of updates. On July 31, once Oxford agreed to postpone his enrollment until 1939, White signed with the Pirates.
Oxford was temporarily out and pro football was momentarily in. According to Daly, the Pirates played two non-league games on the West Coast to maximize White’s celebrity.
In 11 games for the Pirates, White led the NFL in rushing attempts (152) and yards (567) and completed 29 of 73 passes for 393 yards (two touchdowns and 18 interceptions). He debuted in a loss at Detroit … and played again two days later against the New York Giants. The Pirates went 2-9 and White’s time in Pittsburgh was over.
“Everything was a one-year deal,” said Daly, who has written two books on football history — “The Pro Football Chronicles” and “The National Forgotten League.” “Art Rooney was happy to let him go — not because he hadn’t played well, but because (the Pirates) lost a ton of money that year and he started dumping contracts late in the season.”
One player Rooney sold was Frank Filchock to Washington. Filchock was later the Broncos’ first coach (1960-61). According to Daly’s book, at one point during White’s rookie year, the Pirates had only 20 players (10 below the limit).
After the season, White headed to England.
White didn’t play in 1939 and while in New York in March 1940, he said: “No more pro football for me. … I intend sticking close to the old textbooks.”
But football called when White returned to the United States because of World War II and he signed with the Lions.
White showed no rust in ’40, leading the NFL in rushing attempts (146) and yards (514). After the season, he volunteered for the Marine Corps, but was turned away because of color blindness. The following year, he rushed 89 times for 240 yards and just like that, White was done with pro football at age 24. On May 5, 1942, he joined the Navy’s intelligence division.
“A lot of guys had short careers back them,” Daly said. “Of course, none of them went on to be a Supreme Court justice. Tom Harmon was another very famous back who played a few seasons and then went onto other things. Harmon was older (28), though, and had lost several seasons to the war.”
White was stationed in the Pacific and earned two Bronze Stars. Daly said White was aboard the USS Bunker Hill in 1945 when it was hit by two kamikazes that killed 346 men and wounded 264 others.
White isn’t in the Pro Football Hall of Fame because he didn’t play long enough, period. Daly said White did travel to Canton, Ohio, to present Blood and former Pirates teammate Walt Kiesling for induction.
But he was revered for his play.
In Daly’s story after White’s death, Hall of Famer Ace Parker called White, “the greatest player I ever saw. … White couldn’t pass or kick with some of the rest of them, but he was the best all-around player in my opinion.”


thedenverpost--2020-07-12--On Philanthropy: Lack of accountability and transparency put philanthropy at an inflection point

An inflection point is a time of significant change ; a turning point .
Right now , the very way philanthropy works in the U.S. is being critically examined by a growing chorus of experts and scholars who are challenging some of the basic assumptions that underlie giving .
The tax code , lack of accountability and transparency , scant government oversight , the outsized opportunity to influence public policy , media adulation of megadonors and more are causing many to question whether a major restructuring of the philanthropic sector is warranted .
Here are two striking examples : In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ giving , $ 128.17 billion , went to religious institutions .
Those donations were tax-deductible , resulting in billions of dollars of lost federal and state tax revenue .
Unlike nearly all other nonprofits , however , religious nonprofits are not required to file annual tax returns revealing how the donations were spent .
Those expenditures may include leaders ’ salaries , benefits and other perks , property holdings , investments , sources of revenue and other facets of the nonprofit ’ s operation and management .
Although most of us believe that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the U.S. follow the law and are doing good work in , and provide value to , their communities , there is no way to factually evaluate that claim .
With little government oversight and zero transparency , religious giving has led to some stunning abuses .
For example , televangelists raise millions of dollars for their churches without any clear tax code definition of what a “ church ” means , and no requirement to report how the money is spent , including on enormous salaries , extravagant lifestyles and homes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Moreover , in most cases , religious institutions are exempt from paying property taxes , depriving local governments of badly needed income to provide essential services such as public education , law enforcement , fire protection , etc .
Studies estimate that American churches own approximately $ 300- $ 500 billion in untaxed property .
New York City alone loses nearly $ 627 million in annual property tax revenue because of exempted churches in the city .
The triple whammy of deductions for contributions , exemption from paying taxes , and no reporting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dark about why these organizations deserve such favorable tax treatment .
Donor Advised Funds are the fastest growing form of charitable spending in the U.S .
In 2018 , over $ 121 billion was held in more than 700,000 such accounts .
Donors who contribute to DAFs receive a tax deduction in the year in which the funds are donated and then can “ advise ” the fund holder which charities should receive a donation .
In addition to receiving a tax deduction on the contribution , DAF donors incur zero capital gains @ @ @ @ @ @ @ observers argue that DAFs are a flawed charitable vehicle , costing billions of dollars in lost tax revenue without any required payback to the public good .
Once the funds are placed in a DAF ( and the tax benefits are taken by the donor ) there is absolutely no payout requirement , ever .
Although the annual average payout rate of such funds is in the low 20 % range , that number is skewed because some donors direct 100 % of their funds to charity , and others none at all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contend that in some cases , philanthropy may actually be doing more harm than good .
Rob Reich ’ s “ Just Giving , Why Philanthropy is Failing Democracy and How it Can do Better , ” argues that philanthropy undermines democratic values and interferes with aspirations of justice , as wealthy individuals influence public policy without any accountability .
Anand Giridharadas ’ “ Winners Take All , The Elite Charade of Changing the World , ” asserts that ultra-wealthy donors ’ efforts to “ change the world ” actually help preserve the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ creating the problems they later seek to solve .
And Edgar Villanueva ’ s “ Decolonizing Wealth : Indigenous Wisdom to Heal Divides and Restore Balance , ” argues that contemporary philanthropy has evolved to mirror colonial structures and posits hierarchy , ultimately perpetuating and creating more problems than it solves .
When government entities , including cities , states , schools , universities and law enforcement , are slashing budgets because of decreased tax revenues , it ’ s time to evaluate philanthropy ’ s role in our society , and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ensure that there is transparency and accountability in all philanthropic donations , and that they result in an actual public benefit .
Rocky Mountain MicroFinance Institute creates the space for communities and people of all backgrounds to realize their unique potential through the power of entrepreneurship .
RMMFI is a community-based lender viewing entrepreneurship as a system of people , businesses , and community .
Since 2008 , this inclusive business incubator and microlender has offered entrepreneurs experiencing significant barriers to economic and social mobility a proven path to increased individual and community @ @ @ @ @ @ @ //www.rmmfi.org Bruce DeBoskey , J.D.
, is a philanthropic strategist working across the United States with The DeBoskey Group to help families , businesses , foundations and family offices design and implement thoughtful philanthropic strategies and actionable plans .
He is a frequent keynote speaker at conferences and workshops on philanthropy .
Visit deboskeygroup.com or @ BDeBo .

An inflection point is a time of significant change; a turning point.
Right now, the very way philanthropy works in the U.S. is being critically examined by a growing chorus of experts and scholars who are challenging some of the basic assumptions that underlie giving. The tax code, lack of accountability and transparency, scant government oversight, the outsized opportunity to influence public policy, media adulation of megadonors and more are causing many to question whether a major restructuring of the philanthropic sector is warranted. Here are two striking examples:
Religious institutions don’t file tax returns
In 2019, 29% of all U.S. giving, $128.17 billion, went to religious institutions. Those donations were tax-deductible, resulting in billions of dollars of lost federal and state tax revenue. Unlike nearly all other nonprofits, however, religious nonprofits are not required to file annual tax returns revealing how the donations were spent. Those expenditures may include leaders’ salaries, benefits and other perks, property holdings, investments, sources of revenue and other facets of the nonprofit’s operation and management.
Although most of us believe that the majority of the 300,000 religious institutions in the U.S. follow the law and are doing good work in, and provide value to, their communities, there is no way to factually evaluate that claim.
With little government oversight and zero transparency, religious giving has led to some stunning abuses. For example, televangelists raise millions of dollars for their churches without any clear tax code definition of what a “church” means, and no requirement to report how the money is spent, including on enormous salaries, extravagant lifestyles and homes, fancy cars and private jets.
Moreover, in most cases, religious institutions are exempt from paying property taxes, depriving local governments of badly needed income to provide essential services such as public education, law enforcement, fire protection, etc. Studies estimate that American churches own approximately $300-$500 billion in untaxed property. New York City alone loses nearly $627 million in annual property tax revenue because of exempted churches in the city. The triple whammy of deductions for contributions, exemption from paying taxes, and no reporting requirements, leaves us all in the dark about why these organizations deserve such favorable tax treatment.
Donor Advised Funds require no public benefit
Donor Advised Funds are the fastest growing form of charitable spending in the U.S. In 2018, over $121 billion was held in more than 700,000 such accounts. Donors who contribute to DAFs receive a tax deduction in the year in which the funds are donated and then can “advise” the fund holder which charities should receive a donation. In addition to receiving a tax deduction on the contribution, DAF donors incur zero capital gains tax on contributed appreciated assets.
Many observers argue that DAFs are a flawed charitable vehicle, costing billions of dollars in lost tax revenue without any required payback to the public good. Once the funds are placed in a DAF (and the tax benefits are taken by the donor) there is absolutely no payout requirement, ever. Although the annual average payout rate of such funds is in the low 20% range, that number is skewed because some donors direct 100% of their funds to charity, and others none at all … for years.
Recently published books contend that in some cases, philanthropy may actually be doing more harm than good. Rob Reich’s “Just Giving, Why Philanthropy is Failing Democracy and How it Can do Better,” argues that philanthropy undermines democratic values and interferes with aspirations of justice, as wealthy individuals influence public policy without any accountability. Anand Giridharadas’ “Winners Take All, The Elite Charade of Changing the World,” asserts that ultra-wealthy donors’ efforts to “change the world” actually help preserve the status quo and obscure their role in creating the problems they later seek to solve. And Edgar Villanueva’s “Decolonizing Wealth: Indigenous Wisdom to Heal Divides and Restore Balance,” argues that contemporary philanthropy has evolved to mirror colonial structures and posits hierarchy, ultimately perpetuating and creating more problems than it solves.
When government entities, including cities, states, schools, universities and law enforcement, are slashing budgets because of decreased tax revenues, it’s time to evaluate philanthropy’s role in our society, and the tax laws that support it, to ensure that there is transparency and accountability in all philanthropic donations, and that they result in an actual public benefit.
Nonprofit of the Month
Rocky Mountain MicroFinance Institute creates the space for communities and people of all backgrounds to realize their unique potential through the power of entrepreneurship. RMMFI is a community-based lender viewing entrepreneurship as a system of people, businesses, and community. Since 2008, this inclusive business incubator and microlender has offered entrepreneurs experiencing significant barriers to economic and social mobility a proven path to increased individual and community wealth through business ownership. http://www.rmmfi.org
Bruce DeBoskey, J.D., is a philanthropic strategist working across the United States with The DeBoskey Group to help families, businesses, foundations and family offices design and implement thoughtful philanthropic strategies and actionable plans. He is a frequent keynote speaker at conferences and workshops on philanthropy. Visit deboskeygroup.com or @BDeBo.


thedenverpost--2020-07-12--Ask Amy: Daughter wants to clean up after messy mom

Dear Amy : My Mom is 90-years-old and has had a hoarding/messy home problem , gambling addiction , and money issues for the past 25 years .
She is a compulsive shopper and was shopping almost every day when she was driving .
Last year she had a minor car accident that totaled her car , so she does not drive anymore and depends on me to take her for groceries , errands , doctor appointments , etc .
I had to clean out her car , which was so full of stuff that it took me five hours to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ large garbage bags of trash and 12 boxes of stuff .
I have had to “ clean up her mess ” many times over the years , sometimes at my insistence , and sometimes because she needs to let someone into her apartment and they can ’ t get in because of the mess .
Clothes are piled on the bed , groceries on the counters , and boxes on the floor .
My daughter , who has helped me clean in the past , has very good organizational skills and works quickly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this weekend .
( I have a sister who lives locally but isn ’ t very helpful . )
In the past , Mom has told me that my cleaning makes her anxious .
Should I insist she let us do this ?
Mom ’ s apartment makes me sick and I feel so overwhelmed when I am there because it is so bad .
I have trouble sleeping because it bothers me so much .
I have tried to get her counseling help in the past , but she only went to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now , it would be on my terms , but if I don ’ t force it now and something comes up with her apartment or health , I would be forced to clean it immediately .
She procrastinates until things become urgent with her ; then she makes me deal with this urgency .
I want to honor my mother and also be the responsible daughter .
Any advice ?
Dear Daughter : At the age of 90 , your mother is probably not going to make dramatic steps to change .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ able to deal with her hoarding disorder in any truly substantial way .
( Hoarding seems to be related to anxiety , and — longer-term — you should ask her primary care physician about appropriate anti-anxiety medication that might help . )
Because you seem to be her primary caretaker , I suggest that you take this on – on your terms .
Ask your sister if she can take your mother on errands/outings for the day .
Tell your mom that you and her granddaughter are going to handle this for her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ returns , her home will be much easier for her to navigate .
If your mother isn ’ t in the space and is instead distracted during the day , she might feel less anxious .
Dear Amy : In the past two years , I have given monetary gifts for graduations , birthdays , a bridal shower and a wedding .
I have not received any acknowledgment or thanks for any of these gifts .
At this point , I would settle for two words in a text message : “ thank @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entitled that acknowledging a gift is not necessary ?
One of the recipients is now pregnant and her mother-in-law is throwing a baby shower .
Of course , I ’ ll be invited .
I don ’ t want to go .
Friends have told me that I am being petty .
Am I ?
Dear Petty : You don ’ t seem petty , as much as worn out .
And I don ’ t blame you .
A natural consequence of this lack of appreciation is that you will be less @ @ @ @ @ @ @ caution here is that baby showers are intended as celebrations centered on a new baby , who is obviously innocent .
I think it is also time to contact the recipients of these gifts to tell them , “ I believe I ’ ve been generous to you , and I ’ ve always been happy to celebrate your milestones with gifts .
But you have never acknowledged or thanked me for a gift .
I ’ m not sure why this is , but it is quite discouraging.
” Dear Amy : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expressed extreme distress in where this country is headed .
I have to say , I was shocked ( pleasantly ) by your response .
Your first line got me : “ I think you should celebrate the freedom we each have to either launch an insurrection , or go to the movies.
” Dear Fan : Thank you .
I ’ m a huge movie buff – but I also love a good insurrection .
Onward !

Dear Amy: My Mom is 90-years-old and has had a hoarding/messy home problem, gambling addiction, and money issues for the past 25 years.
She is a compulsive shopper and was shopping almost every day when she was driving. Last year she had a minor car accident that totaled her car, so she does not drive anymore and depends on me to take her for groceries, errands, doctor appointments, etc.
I had to clean out her car, which was so full of stuff that it took me five hours to clean it out. I filled five large garbage bags of trash and 12 boxes of stuff.
I have had to “clean up her mess” many times over the years, sometimes at my insistence, and sometimes because she needs to let someone into her apartment and they can’t get in because of the mess. Clothes are piled on the bed, groceries on the counters, and boxes on the floor.
My daughter, who has helped me clean in the past, has very good organizational skills and works quickly. She has agreed to help me this weekend. (I have a sister who lives locally but isn’t very helpful.)
In the past, Mom has told me that my cleaning makes her anxious.
Should I insist she let us do this? Mom’s apartment makes me sick and I feel so overwhelmed when I am there because it is so bad. I have trouble sleeping because it bothers me so much.
I have tried to get her counseling help in the past, but she only went to a few sessions.
If I clean now, it would be on my terms, but if I don’t force it now and something comes up with her apartment or health, I would be forced to clean it immediately.
She procrastinates until things become urgent with her; then she makes me deal with this urgency.
I want to honor my mother and also be the responsible daughter. Any advice?
— Loving Daughter
Dear Daughter: At the age of 90, your mother is probably not going to make dramatic steps to change. She might not be physically and emotionally able to deal with her hoarding disorder in any truly substantial way. (Hoarding seems to be related to anxiety, and — longer-term — you should ask her primary care physician about appropriate anti-anxiety medication that might help.)
Because you seem to be her primary caretaker, I suggest that you take this on – on your terms.
Ask your sister if she can take your mother on errands/outings for the day. Tell your mom that you and her granddaughter are going to handle this for her, and reassure her that when she returns, her home will be much easier for her to navigate. If your mother isn’t in the space and is instead distracted during the day, she might feel less anxious.
Dear Amy: In the past two years, I have given monetary gifts for graduations, birthdays, a bridal shower and a wedding.
I have not received any acknowledgment or thanks for any of these gifts.
At this point, I would settle for two words in a text message: “thank you.”
Do young people feel so entitled that acknowledging a gift is not necessary?
One of the recipients is now pregnant and her mother-in-law is throwing a baby shower.
Of course, I’ll be invited. I don’t want to go.
Friends have told me that I am being petty. Am I?
— Petty in Maryland
Dear Petty: You don’t seem petty, as much as worn out. And I don’t blame you. A natural consequence of this lack of appreciation is that you will be less inspired to keep giving.
My only caution here is that baby showers are intended as celebrations centered on a new baby, who is obviously innocent.
I think it is also time to contact the recipients of these gifts to tell them, “I believe I’ve been generous to you, and I’ve always been happy to celebrate your milestones with gifts. But you have never acknowledged or thanked me for a gift. I’m not sure why this is, but it is quite discouraging.”
Dear Amy: “Tom, in Los Angeles” expressed extreme distress in where this country is headed. I have to say, I was shocked (pleasantly) by your response. Your first line got me: “I think you should celebrate the freedom we each have to either launch an insurrection, or go to the movies.”
— A Fan
Dear Fan: Thank you. I’m a huge movie buff – but I also love a good insurrection. Onward!
(You can email Amy Dickinson at askamy@amydickinson.com or send a letter to Ask Amy, P.O. Box 194, Freeville, NY 13068. You can also follow her on Twitter @askingamy or Facebook.)


thedenverpost--2020-07-12--U.S. Navy welcomes 1st Black female Tactical Aircraft pilot

KINGSVILLE , Texas — The U.S. Navy has welcomed its first Black female Tactical Aircraft pilot .
“ MAKING HISTORY @ @ @ @ @ tweeted Thursday in response to a post that Lt. j.g .
Madeline Swegle had completed @ @ @ @ @ later this month receive the flight officer insignia known as the “ Wings of Gold.
@ @ @ @ @ Command tweeted that Swegle is the Navy ’ s “ first known Black female TACAIR @ @ @ @ @ and Stripes , Swegle is from Burke , Virginia , and graduated from the U.S @ @ @ @ @ .
Officials said she is assigned to the Redhawks of Training Squadron 21 in Kingsville @ @ @ @ @ s milestone comes more than 45 years after Rosemary Mariner in 1974 became the first @ @ @ @ @ fighter jet , according to news outlets .

KINGSVILLE, Texas — The U.S. Navy has welcomed its first Black female Tactical Aircraft pilot.
“MAKING HISTORY!” the U.S. Navy tweeted Thursday in response to a post that Lt. j.g. Madeline Swegle had completed naval flight school and would later this month receive the flight officer insignia known as the “Wings of Gold.”
BZ to Lt. j.g. Madeline Swegle on completing the Tactical Air (Strike) aviator syllabus. Swegle is the @USNavy’s first known Black female TACAIR pilot and will receive her Wings of Gold later this month. HOOYAH! @FlyNavy @NASKPAO #ForgedByTheSea #CNATRA #CNATRAgrads pic.twitter.com/FKSlURWQhJ — Naval Air Training (@CNATRA) July 9, 2020
The Naval Air Training Command tweeted that Swegle is the Navy’s “first known Black female TACAIR pilot.”
According to Stars and Stripes, Swegle is from Burke, Virginia, and graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 2017.
Officials said she is assigned to the Redhawks of Training Squadron 21 in Kingsville, Texas.
Swegle’s milestone comes more than 45 years after Rosemary Mariner in 1974 became the first woman to fly a tactical fighter jet, according to news outlets.


thedenverpost--2020-07-13--5 questions about Avalanche training camp 2.0

The Avalanche , like each of the 24 teams in the NHL ’ s Stanley Cup playoffs , can officially open training camp Monday .
Colorado will do so in a fan-free bubble environment at the Pepsi Center and players will be tested daily for COVID-19 .
Here are five questions about the Avs as they prepare for their third consecutive playoff appearance : Each team can have 30 skaters and an unlimited amount of goalies .
The Avs revealed their roster Sunday night , and it features 30 skaters and four goalies .
The list includes defenseman Bo Byram @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2019 first-round draft pick ( fourth overall ) , and fellow young defensemen Conor Timmins .
What ’ s the health of the team and what are the key position battles ?
The Avs , who were a beat-up bunch when the NHL suspended the season March 12 , should be close to 100 percent — although forward Colin Wilson is still out and not on the camp roster .
Wilson has played in just nine games this season .
The main position battles will be at forward , with 2016 first-round draft @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the outside as the 13th forward .
What might the lineup look like with forwards and defensemen if games started today ?
Hart Trophy candidate Nathan MacKinnon might again start training camp with MGM Line wingers Gabe Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen .
There ’ s a good chance second-line center Nazem Kadri will play with Andre Burakovsky and Joonas Donskoi .
The third line might feature wingers Vladislav Namestnikov and Valeri Nichushkin with center J.T .
Compher .
And the likely fourth line will be Pierre-Edouard Bellemare with Matt Nieto and Matt Calvert @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are easy to predict if each is healthy : Ryan Graves-Cale Makar , Sam Girard-Erik Johnson , Nikita Zadorov-Ian Cole .
What goalie is No .
1 on the depth chart right now ?
That chart probably doesn ’ t exist .
Both Philipp Grubauer and Pavel Francouz are capable puck-stoppers and each will likely get a start when the three-game round-robin games begin Aug. 2 .
The starter to begin the traditional 16-team , best-of-seven first round on Aug. 10 will be determined at that point .
What happens if a player @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be ordered to self-isolate while taking daily tests .
If he has four consecutive negative tests , he may rejoin the team .
Monday Group 1 on ice : 9:30 a.m. Group 2 on ice : 11:15 a.m. Tuesday Group 1 on ice : 9:30 a.m. Group 2 on ice : 11:15 a.m. Future training camp sessions will be announced at a later date .

The Avalanche, like each of the 24 teams in the NHL’s Stanley Cup playoffs, can officially open training camp Monday. Colorado will do so in a fan-free bubble environment at the Pepsi Center and players will be tested daily for COVID-19. Here are five questions about the Avs as they prepare for their third consecutive playoff appearance:
What’s the camp roster size?
Each team can have 30 skaters and an unlimited amount of goalies. The Avs revealed their roster Sunday night, and it features 30 skaters and four goalies. The list includes defenseman Bo Byram, 19, the club’s 2019 first-round draft pick (fourth overall), and fellow young defensemen Conor Timmins.
What’s the health of the team and what are the key position battles?
The Avs, who were a beat-up bunch when the NHL suspended the season March 12, should be close to 100 percent — although forward Colin Wilson is still out and not on the camp roster. Wilson has played in just nine games this season. The main position battles will be at forward, with 2016 first-round draft pick Tyson Jost likely looking in from the outside as the 13th forward.
What might the lineup look like with forwards and defensemen if games started today?
Hart Trophy candidate Nathan MacKinnon might again start training camp with MGM Line wingers Gabe Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen. There’s a good chance second-line center Nazem Kadri will play with Andre Burakovsky and Joonas Donskoi. The third line might feature wingers Vladislav Namestnikov and Valeri Nichushkin with center J.T. Compher. And the likely fourth line will be Pierre-Edouard Bellemare with Matt Nieto and Matt Calvert. The pairings of the six defensemen are easy to predict if each is healthy: Ryan Graves-Cale Makar, Sam Girard-Erik Johnson, Nikita Zadorov-Ian Cole.
What goalie is No. 1 on the depth chart right now?
That chart probably doesn’t exist. Both Philipp Grubauer and Pavel Francouz are capable puck-stoppers and each will likely get a start when the three-game round-robin games begin Aug. 2. The starter to begin the traditional 16-team, best-of-seven first round on Aug. 10 will be determined at that point.
What happens if a player tests positive for COVID-19?
That player will be ordered to self-isolate while taking daily tests. If he has four consecutive negative tests, he may rejoin the team.
Avalanche training camp schedule
Monday
Group 1 on ice: 9:30 a.m.
Group 2 on ice: 11:15 a.m.
Tuesday
Group 1 on ice: 9:30 a.m.
Group 2 on ice: 11:15 a.m.
Wednesday
Group 1 on ice: 10:30 a.m.
Group 2 on ice: 12:30 p.m.
Thursday
Practice: 10:30 a.m.
Future training camp sessions will be announced at a later date.
Avs training camp roster


thedenverpost--2020-07-13--Bol Bol practicing with Nuggets in Orlando NBA bubble: “He’s special”

The sky-high potential of Nuggets rookie Bol Bol is inching closer to reality with his healthy return to team practices in Orlando .
“ He ’ s special and super talented , ” center Mason Plumlee said .
“ I can speak to certain skills that he has , but he ’ s a welcomed addition .
He ’ s had a great attitude from the time that we had back in Denver and then down here.
” The 7-foot-2 center with NBA bloodlines missed the majority of his freshman season at Oregon and his first year in Denver with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coach Michael Malone said Bol practiced with the team only a “ few times.
” Bol impressed over eight G League games , though , with the Windy City Bulls , averaging 12 points , 5.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game .
Malone would not confirm if Bol , 20 , will be available to play when seeding games begin Aug. 1 against the Miami Heat .
But it ’ s clear the Nuggets remain extremely bullish about his future .
“ To see ( Bol ) out there playing and doing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t do is really remarkable , ” Malone said .
“ He is extremely talented and skilled .
You can not teach 7-foot-2 , you can not teach a 7-foot-9 wingspan , and the soft touch that he has .
He ’ s getting stronger , he ’ s getting healthier , and right now it ’ s good to see him compete against some of the other players that we have down here .
“ I ’ m proud of Bol and he has all the potential in the world .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up right in front of our eyes.
” Jokic watch .
Nuggets All-Star center Nikola Jokic has still not arrived in Orlando as of late Sunday , Malone told reporters on a video conference call .
“ We ’ re still kind of working around all the details of getting him here , ” Malone said .
“ No real update , but I know that his arrival should be happening relatively soon.
” Masks support social justice initiatives .
The Nuggets flew to Orlando wearing masks with the team ’ s Rainbow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CHANGE and VOTE .
“ To remind people that even though we ’ re down here in Orlando and getting ready to ramp up games , let ’ s not forget about the message , ” Malone said , “ and what ’ s going on all across the country as we fight for the end of systemic racism and police brutality.
” The NBA has also allowed for players to choose league-approved phrases to replace last names on jerseys .
Malone called it an “ individual decision ” for each player .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of what ’ s going on and the messaging for reform that ’ s being pushed , ” Plumlee said .
“ I ’ m just here to support these guys and understand the best I can what they ’ ve gone through their whole lives .
”

The sky-high potential of Nuggets rookie Bol Bol is inching closer to reality with his healthy return to team practices in Orlando.
“He’s special and super talented,” center Mason Plumlee said. “I can speak to certain skills that he has, but he’s a welcomed addition. He’s had a great attitude from the time that we had back in Denver and then down here.”
The 7-foot-2 center with NBA bloodlines missed the majority of his freshman season at Oregon and his first year in Denver with a surgically repaired left foot. Nuggets coach Michael Malone said Bol practiced with the team only a “few times.” Bol impressed over eight G League games, though, with the Windy City Bulls, averaging 12 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game.
Malone would not confirm if Bol, 20, will be available to play when seeding games begin Aug. 1 against the Miami Heat. But it’s clear the Nuggets remain extremely bullish about his future.
“To see (Bol) out there playing and doing things a lot of people can’t do is really remarkable,” Malone said. “He is extremely talented and skilled. You cannot teach 7-foot-2, you cannot teach a 7-foot-9 wingspan, and the soft touch that he has. He’s getting stronger, he’s getting healthier, and right now it’s good to see him compete against some of the other players that we have down here.
“I’m proud of Bol and he has all the potential in the world. It’s fun to watch him grow up right in front of our eyes.”
Jokic watch. Nuggets All-Star center Nikola Jokic has still not arrived in Orlando as of late Sunday, Malone told reporters on a video conference call.
“We’re still kind of working around all the details of getting him here,” Malone said. “No real update, but I know that his arrival should be happening relatively soon.”
Masks support social justice initiatives. The Nuggets flew to Orlando wearing masks with the team’s Rainbow Skyline and phrases such as TIME 4 CHANGE and VOTE.
“To remind people that even though we’re down here in Orlando and getting ready to ramp up games, let’s not forget about the message,” Malone said, “and what’s going on all across the country as we fight for the end of systemic racism and police brutality.”
The NBA has also allowed for players to choose league-approved phrases to replace last names on jerseys. Malone called it an “individual decision” for each player.
“I’m a big fan of what’s going on and the messaging for reform that’s being pushed,” Plumlee said. “I’m just here to support these guys and understand the best I can what they’ve gone through their whole lives.”