Tuesday, April 30

Meet and Greet With Town Manager Finalists. The town of Green Mountain Falls will host a meet and greet with the two finalist for the town manager position on April 30 at 5:30 p.m. The meet and greet will be held at the GMF Town Hall, and will allow residents to meet the finalists in an informal fashion. The finalists are Kyle Coleman of Florida and Emily Katsimpalis of Colorado (see related story). The board of trustees will then met in executive session, following the meet and greet and other interviews. A final decision is expected in late April or early May.

Free Museum Admission. The Money Museum in Colorado Springs, operated by the American Numismatic Association, is celebrating National Coin Week with free admission to the museum April 23-27. On Saturday, April 27, we also will host an Open House event for the public that includes lots of family activities, prizes and drawings to win 30-seconds in our “cash tornado.” For more information, call 719-482-9871.  

Wednesday, May 1

The Ute Pass-Woodland Park Kiwanis Club will meet on Wednesdays at 6:45 a.m. in the Crystola Roadhouse in Crystola.   

TSC (Teller Senior Coalition) Transit is excited to announce our bus service on Wednesdays and Fridays in Woodland Park and the lower Ute Pass area. TSC also offers a joint venture with Cripple Creek Transit on Wednesdays to provide much needed transportation service between Cripple Creek and Woodland Park. TSC Transit will be picking up from the Senior Center and will be making stops at Pikes Peak Family Medicine, Pikes Peak Regional Hospital, City Market, Safeway, Walgreens, Walmart and the Department of Social Services upon request. In addition, new ride services are available on a limited basis to Green Mountain Falls, Cascade and Manitou Springs. Call 719-687-0256 for more details or visit the TSC website at www.tellerseniorcoalition.org. for a full schedule of pick up and drop off time   . 

Teller County Assessor Listens (TCAL).  On a monthly basis, Teller County Assessor, Colt Simmons breaks bread with Teller County folks to listen to county issues and concerns.  For April and May 2019, the TCL program will focus on the upcoming Teller County Property Reevaluation Programs as prescribed by Colorado law.  In addition, we’re teaming up with the Rampart Library System, led by Rampart Library Director Michelle Petrazzoula, to highlight all of the wonderful library programs at the Woodland Park and Florissant libraries.  Interested citizens can attend our TCL. A series of meetings at the Woodland Park Library’s large meeting room concludes on Wednesday May 1st from 5 – 7 pm.  The WP Library is located at 218 E. Midland Ave., in downtown Woodland Park.  For more information, please contact the Assessor’s office at 719-689-2941 or the WP Library at 719-687-9281. Additional meetings, dealing with the revaluation of properties, and this overall process, will be held at the Centennial Building in Cripple Creek on May 7 and May 14 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

The Cripple Creek City Council will meet on May 1 at 5:30 p.m. in the council chambers at city hall.

Thursday, May 2

Tops, Take Off Pounds Sensibly. The original nonprofit weight-loss group is an educational support group providing weekly weigh-ins and programs to help members to make positive changes in the role food plays in their lives. The local chapter meets every Thursday at 9 a.m. in Green Mountain Falls at the Church in the Wildwood. Call Evelyn at 719-748-8383 for more information.

Cripple Creek Job Fair. Held at the Aspen Mine Center, 166 E. Bennett Ave., Cripple Creek on May 2 from 11a.m.-3:30 p.m. Veterans are entitled to priority service. Open to veterans and eligible spouses starting at 11 a.m. Open to general public starting 11:30. For more info, visit www.ppwfc.org. Sponsored by Pikes Peak Work Force Center.

The Woodland Park City Council will meet on May 2  at 7 p.m. in the WP city council chambers, next to city hall

Friday, May 3 Meeting Changes. The Pikes Peak Rotary Club recently changed their meeting day from the 2nd and 4th Fridays of the month to the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the month.  We still meet at the Rampart Library in Woodland Park in the lower level meeting room at 6:45 AM for breakfast, with the meeting starting at 7 a.m. For any questions, call 719-687-4151.   Shining Mountain Opening. The Shining Mountain Golf Course and Bella Vista Bar and Grill will open for the 2019 season on Friday, May 3. The Bar and Grill will be open on May 3 from 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Live music that evening will feature Eagle and Colleen. Happy hours at the bar will usually occur from 3 to 6 p.m. with drink specials. For more information, call 719-687-7587.

May 4

Wind Symphony Concert. The Woodland Park Wind Symphony presents music from the popular Jurassic Park/World movies, as well as additional Jurassic-era themed music on May 4 at the Ute Pass Cultural Center. Featuring a life-size T-Rex from the Dinosaur Brokers and hands-on activity with the Florissant Fossil Beds, in addition to a dinosaur-theme costume contest, activities begin at 6 pm on May 4 with refreshments and cash bar.  The thrilling musical themes will be enhanced by video to provide an exciting evening of entertainment for the entire family. For more information, call 719-687-2210.

Mueller Hikes. Join in a tradition of Colorado State Parks by partaking in hikes at Mueller State Park in Divide, off Hwy. 67.  Enjoy the peaceful silence in the snowy woods, watch for signs of wildlife and learn their different tracks, and see the hardiest of birds searching for food in the trees.  It’s great to explore Mueller this time of year with a naturalist, or on your own, during this beautiful time. Don’t forget to dress for the weather!  Hiking at Mueller in winter can bring a wide range of temperatures.  Check our websitecpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/Mueller or call ahead for  conditions (719) 687-2366.  The majority of these guided hikes occur during the weekend.

Fossil Beds Activities.  The Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument in Florissant is open year-round. The Monument is now open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. There also are a number of special programs, guided hikes and educational opportunities. Some of the highlights for May include: *Friday, May 3, Night Sky Program, from 8  to 10 p.m. Join park staff and members of the Colorado Springs Astronomical Society to gaze at the dark skies above Florissant Fossil Beds in search of planets, galaxies, nebulas, and more. Meet at the visitor center.  *Saturday, May 18, Kids to Park Day – Be a Scientist! Scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Celebrate Kids to Park Day (former kids welcome too). The Monument is celebrating with a fun science day.  Join us for a variety of hands-on science activities such as birding, searching for fossils in our demonstration fossil pits, making fossils, visiting the Learning Lab, hiking with your family, or earning one of three different kinds of Junior Ranger Badges. *Memorial Day Weekend, May 25 – 27, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Throughout the day, a variety of ranger-guided activities will be offered including interpretive talks, ranger-guided talks, tours of the Hornbek Homestead, and Fossil Learning lab.   For additional information about these programs, please call (719) 748-3253 or visit our website:www.nps.gov/flfo or on Facebook or Twitter at /FlorissantNPS

  

Upcoming

Ute Pass-Woodland Park Kiwanis Bingo. Join the fun at the Crystola Roadhouse during the 1st & 3rd Wednesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. Twenty dollars buys a packet for 10 games, 6 cards for each game It’s a great opportunity to have fun and socialize with your friends and neighbors. Come early and have dinner! Food and drinks will be available for purchase during the games!  This event is sponsored by the Ute Pass-Woodland Park Kiwanis club.  The proceeds benefit the children of Teller County.

Book signing. Join us Saturday May 11 from 2pm till 5pm at the Old Homestead House Museum to meet Author Marjie Porter and get a signed copy of her new book, Ties in Time based in Cripple Creek.  Marjie will have books available for purchase at the museum and will be signing books in the Entertainment room.  Light refreshment will be provided for those attending the book signing.  Marje Porter writes what she lives – with a little embellishment for flair. She married the cowboy of her dreams, a fifth-generation rancher and began a ranching lifestyle in the west. Life’s trails have led them from Colorado to the high deserts of Nevada and across the country to the rolling hills of Pennsylvania.

Walk Through Time. The Southern Teller County Focus Group (STCFG) will be hosting its 14th annual historic mine tour Saturday, May 18. A Walk Through Time will feature a walking tour of the Vindicator Valley Trail. The cost is $15 per person with proceeds benefiting the non-profit STCFG.Victorite Gary Horton will provide history and tales of the underground mines of the 1890s, starting the Vindicator Mine and ending at the Theresa Mine. This is a walking tour (in the downhill direction) but participants can drive or shuttle between the two main mine sites to catch most of the presentation. For the tour, meet at the Victor Lowell Thomas Museum at 3^rd and Victor Avenue in Victor no later than 12:30 on May 18. This tour is very popular and advance, pre-paid reservations are recommended online at STCFG.com. Online reservations are by credit card; cash only payments will be accepted at the museum the day of the event. The cost is $15 per person, which benefits the historic preservation and community development projects of the STCFG. The organization works to preserve historic structures, develops, promotes, and maintains the Trails of Gold, and hosts other annual events such as the Victor Gem & Mineral Show, and Gold Camp Christmas Headframe Lighting. For more information on the STCFG or this event, visit VictorColorado.com, email stcfg@victorcolorado.com, or call 719-689-2675.

Cemetery Tour. The morning of May 18 at 10 a.m. the Victor Lowell Thomas Museum will host a walking tour the Sunnyside Cemetery. See VictorColorado.com for information and reservations for that tour.

Bicycle-Friendly Driver. Held on Saturday, May 18 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Ute Pass Cultural Center. This course covers laws for bicyclists and  motorists, demonstrates how to navigate on-street bicycle infrastructure and outlines common crashes between motorists and bicyclists and how to avoid them. It is sponsored by a variety of organizations, including Mountain Top Cycling Club. Register for free athttp://bit.ly/woodlandparkBFD.

Golfing for a good cause. A Spring Break-out Golf Tournament will be held at the Shining Mountain Golf Course on Monday, June 3, starting at 9 a.m. The fourth annual tournament will benefit the Little Chapel Food Pantry, which provides over 600,000 pounds of food to needy families on an annual basis. The Food Pantry is operated by many volunteers in the area. The popular tourney will feature a 4-person scramble format, and will include a golf cart and lunch. In addition, a silent auction will occur and door prizes will be given away. Get “teed off” for a good cause. For more information and to register, call Joe Joe Baumgardner at 405-488-5954.

Manitou Springs/Colorado Springs

First Friday Art Walk. The Manitou Springs Chamber of Commerce/Visitors Bureau & Office of Economic Development will sponsor the First Friday Art Walk in downtown Manitou on May 3 from 5 to 8 p.m. For more information, call 719-685-5089 or visitwww.manitousprings.org.

Heritage Center Vintage Baseball Game. Vintage Baseball game using 1864 rules. America’s Pastime as it was played in the Colorado territory 150 years ago. This classic game will be held at the Roger Maestas Field, 60 Beckers Lane, Manitou Springs on May 18. Donations, concessions and photo sales support the Manitou Springs Heritage Center. For more information, call 719-685-1454 or visit www.manitouspringsheritagecenter.org.

Classical Concert. On Sunday, May 19 at 3 p.m., First Christian Church at 16 E. Platte Avenue in Colorado Springs is presenting Peter Tuff, baritone, accompanied by Carol Wilson, piano, performing art songs by Franz Schubert and Ralph Vaughan Williams. A free will offering will be taken. For more information, contact  719-633-8888. 

Manitou Springs Wine Festival. Scheduled for June 1 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Spend your day in Manitou Springs enjoying generous tastings from 30 Colorado wineries. Stroll through Memoria Park in historic Manitou Springs listening to live music, while enjoying food and gift vendors. Gates close at 4 p.m. Ticket price includes admission to wine tasting and a Manitou Springs Wine Festival glass. For more information, contact the Manitou Springs Chamber of Commerce/Visitors Bureau & Office of Economic Development, or call 719-685-5089 or visit www.manitousprings.org.