The golden age of Colorado cider is now

Good morning, Colorado.

We’re barreling toward the end of 2024, so we are officially in the time of year that is somehow hectic and restful at the same time. It’s also the perfect time to reflect. What impacted us most this year? What are we grateful for? What are our hopes for next year and into the future?

If trustworthy, high-quality news is important in your life, I’d encourage you to consider a gift to The Colorado Sun today. When you donate to The Sun, you’re helping us continue to be the news Colorado needs. With our community’s help, we’re bringing you local, reliable and independent journalism that matters.

If you value our work, we would love your help! Please consider making an early Colorado Gives Day donation today to keep this important journalism going strong. Plus — your support will help us unlock a $5,000 matching grant from The Colorado Media Project, making your impact stretch even further.

The Colorado Sun simply couldn’t exist without all of you. We are grateful for the support of our members, donors, readers and community partners. Thank you!

Happy Giving NEWSday!

Olivia Prentzel

Reporter

THE NEWS

HEALTH

Kids living in Colorado’s poorest counties are more likely to experience a parent, sibling death

Children who live in Colorado’s lowest-income counties are 131% more likely to experience the loss of a parent or sibling than their peers in the state’s highest-income counties, according to a new report by Judi’s House and JAG Institute in Aurora. The lowest income counties also happen to be Colorado’s most rural. Tracy Ross breaks down the details of the study.

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BUSINESS

Colorado craft cideries squeeze top-shelf flavor from local history

Sure, apples have been growing in Colorado for the last century and a half. But the golden age for cider is right now. Cidermakers around the state are now tapping into a small revitalization of the state’s once-proud apple market to create flavorful batches, Gabe Toth writes.

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MORE NEWS

• Some Democrats — including Colorado’s Jared Polis and Michael Bennet — are frustrated over Biden reversing course and pardoning his son Hunter. The president pardoned Hunter Biden late Sunday evening, reversing his previous pledges with a grant of clemency that covers more than a decade of any federal crimes his son might have committed.

Section by Olivia Prentzel | Reporter

THE COLORADO REPORT

• Cash for Caring: How millions in tax money has failed to deliver a change to Denver’s mental and behavioral health needs. Six years after a sales tax increase was passed in Denver to create a stream of funding for nonprofit mental health and drug treatment programs, CPR’s investigation found that funds have gone to programs with no history of providing care — while overdoses and untreated mental illness continue to rise in the city.
  — Colorado Public Radio
• “Always scary”: Dozens of avalanches reported Thanksgiving weekend as Colorado officials warn of persistent slab problem. Since the holiday, dozens of avalanches have been reported at popular Colorado backcountry areas in Summit County and along the Front Range, including Loveland Pass and Berthoud Pass.
  — Summit Daily
• Former Denver Mayor Michael Hancock is now a lobbyist for companies that made hundreds of millions during his tenure. Hancock Global, the former mayor’s new lobbying firm, now counts among its clients construction and transportation companies, hospitality groups and engineering firms that benefitted from contracts during his time as mayor.
  — Denverite
• Democrat Matt Salka won reelection — but not among voters in his district. Salka defeated his opponent by 11 percentage points in the countywide vote, but residents of District 3 voted for his opponent 62% to 38%, prompting local Republicans to push for district-exclusive elections for county commissions.
  — The Durango Herald ????

???? = source has article meter or paywall

Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler

THE OPINION PAGE

COLUMNS

• Trump’s plan to upend NOAA could decimate Colorado’s economy. Project 2025 threatens to reorganize, privatize and cut funding to the NOAA, jeopardizing Colorado jobs, weather forecasting, aviation and more.
  — Trish Zornio

COMMUNITY

• Charter schools are helping increase integration across Colorado as student diversity and public school choice flourish. The argument that school choice automatically goes hand in hand with racial and economic segregation is false in Colorado.
  — Kevin Hesla, director of data strategy at the Colorado League of Charter Schools

The Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at opinion@coloradosun.com.

SunLit

REVIEW

In “WYONATION,” an environmental group makes the case to transform a state

In a fictional Senate hearing, author Dallas Jones imagines an environmental group arguing to essentially depopulate Wyoming so its vast lands can return to their natural state and benefit a greater good. Can the U.S. really expel a state from the Union? Jones uses the book’s theoretical effort to drive a narrative featuring a diminishing fossil fuel industry and fictitious forces advancing a reimagined nation without the Cowboy State as we know it.

READ AN EXCERPT

• Interview with the author. Amid an economic downturn in 2019, Jones pondered just how much his sparsely populated home state could endure. That led him to the question of whether Wyoming — or any state — could be booted out of the Union. 

Section by Kevin Simpson | Writer

Thank you for starting your Tuesday with us! See you tomorrow.

— Olivia & the whole staff of The Sun

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Corrections & Clarifications

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