Author: reporter

Three months after Raphael Velin was shot to death in Aurora, his friends stopped by his home to celebrate what would have been his 16th birthday. They brought cake. And memories. And love for their lost friend. Raphael’s parents welcomed them, and tried to be happy, but their son’s loss was close and hard. As the gathering wound down, Raphael’s mother, Nancy Velin, collected 16 balloons and walked out into her front yard to release them. “When I let go, oh my God, it was like taking my heart away,” she said, crying during an interview with The Denver Post.…

Dear Amy: I married my high school sweetheart. We’ve been together for 50 years. We had a great sexual relationship until five years ago. My husband has a serious drinking problem which I have tolerated for decades. He has called me nasty and vulgar names, and now does nothing but watch TV and drink. When my father died last year, he didn’t offer an ounce of compassion — instead he made a cruel remark that still hurts so much. We are both retired now, and I found out that I have an illness. I would like to travel while I…

AUSTIN, Texas — Every sports fan adores the premise of a galvanizing team meeting. There might not be a more universally beloved trope than the players and coaches of your favorite team coming together in a time of adversity to lift up one another — as long as it turns the tide of a high-stakes game or series. What was the biggest story (not directly involving Taylor Swift) in the last 24 hours before this year’s Super Bowl? Travis Kelce’s emotional speech to the Chiefs the night before the game. And that one was actually a slight anomaly; media reports…

Colorado’s new voter-approved universal free school meals program is already tens of millions of dollars short, jeopardizing some of the auxiliary programs tied to the ballot measure as lawmakers scramble to keep the initiative solvent and meals paid for. The state faces a combined shortfall of about $50 million to pay for students’ food under the Healthy School Meals for All program in the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, and in the next. It’s a sign of the program’s popularity in its maiden voyage, advocates say. But the funding gap also presents a steep financial hurdle within a…

At the beginning of Wendy Koenig’s storied running career, her achievements were met with a flower. This was shortly before Title IX changed female athletics forever in 1972, and a few years prior to the inception of Sportswomen of Colorado, for which Koenig was an original honoree in 1975. John Beard/The Denver PostWendy Koenig won long jump, hurdles and 440 in the Junior Olympics in July 1971. “After we ran, we were given a flower, sometimes a rose,” Koenig recalled. “And the men got medals, and even competed for prizes like TV sets. After Title IX, a lot of that…

By MIKE CATALINI and RON TODT (Associated Press) TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — A man suspected of fatally shooting three family members in their Philadelphia-area homes Saturday was arrested in New Jersey after evading law enforcement for hours as police mobilized across two states, shutting down a parade and an amusement park and ordering some residents to stay in their homes. Steve Wilson, police director for the city of Trenton, New Jersey, said the man was arrested near a house where officers had believed he was barricaded inside. He apparently left the home before the police cordon was erected, Wilson said.…

The L-Line light rail in Denver will close beginning Monday for five days of maintenance, officials announced Friday. From Monday to Friday, L-Line services will be suspended so work crews can make safety improvements along the alignment, according to a news release from RTD. L-Line customers who can’t reach their destination on other light rail lines are encouraged to use Bus Route 43 during the closure, the release stated. All D- and H-Line trains will continue to operate and serve downtown stations, and the 30th-and-Downing light rail station will remain accessible for Bus Routes 12, 28 and 38, according to…

Jimmy Garappolo? Meh. Carson Wentz? Nah. Ryan Tannehill? Why? I mean, hear the Grading The Week crew out here, Broncos Country, but … what if Jarrett Stidham is your “bridge” quarterback? What if he always was? The guy’s a bridge to nowhere, granted — unless there’s a rookie with upside on the other side of that gorge. With the biggest names in NFL free agency off the board, the tea leaves are kind of lining up, aren’t they? Sure, the Broncos could still theoretically trade for a young QB1 — Zach Wilson with the Jets, Justin Fields with the Bears…

While the snowstorm has moved out and temperatures are rising, icy road conditions are still posing challenges for Denver area drivers. “Morning shift is in and honestly folks, roads seemed subjectively more dangerous today with a lot of black ice,” the National Weather Service’s Boulder office posted on X Saturday morning. “Be sure to take it very slow for your morning commute, and be gentle on those breaks and the gas.” At least seven cars were involved in an early morning crash on southbound Interstate 25 Saturday that closed down the highway for more than an hour and sent at…

Legislation promotes construction of data centers. Not everyone supports the idea. Here’s why. A bill that would provide state tax rebates to draw data centers to Colorado has run into opposition from critics who warn of the facilities’ large demands for energy and water and potentially higher costs for other electric customers.The legislation would offer state sales and use tax rebates for construction materials and equipment starting in 2026. Senate Bill 24-085 declares that investing in projects such as data centers “is crucial for the economy of the future” and Colorado, considered a growing high-tech hub, is falling behind in…