How to deal with a lifetime’s worth of stuff

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Good morning, Sun friends.

One of the greatest things about Colorado is its four distinct seasons, equally spaced out. I’ve lived in Montana (winter is too long) and Texas (there is no winter), so I know that Colorado is the best. And summer is the best of all the seasons.

Here are three reasons: Caprese salad except with Palisade peaches instead of tomatoes. The Colorado Trail angels who pick you up at the end of a segment and bring you back to your car. Porch coffee, while reading the morning’s news from The Colorado Sun.

We’ve got some great reads to go with your coffee today, including the latest in our Aging in Colorado series about why we collect so much stuff. Don’t forget to send it to your friends, and probably your parents.

THE NEWS

AGING IN COLORADO

With age comes … stuff. Here’s how experts help older Coloradans downsize their possessions.

As Coloradans age — and the state sits tied for third in terms of fastest growth of the over-60 population — many find their accumulation of possessions reaching, and often exceeding, the saturation point. What do we do with all this stuff? There’s a growing industry of declutterers for hire, write Kevin Simpson and Parker Yamasaki.

READ MORE

• Tips and advice for decluttering and downsizing your possessions. Experts in organization share some of their favorite hacks and tips for making the most of your time, space and effort while you tackle your clutter.
• A lifetime of family treasures can become a burden, but some things really are priceless. Sun publisher Larry Ryckman recounts how the death of his parents sent him on a quest to find a missing heirloom and to look at his own possessions with a more critical eye.

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SOCIAL SERVICES

Medicaid could be in for big changes in Colorado. Here are 14 charts explaining who would be affected.

As Medicaid faces cuts at the federal and state level, John Ingold explains just who this will affect most. In Colorado, some counties will feel it more than others — Costilla County had the highest enrollment in the state last year at nearly 55%. Children are the largest group of people covered by the federal-state health insurance program.

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• Enrollment freeze forces Colorado child care providers to cut programs, sell property. Two major child care and early learning centers in Denver are scaling back programs because of financial turmoil, with one center shutting down a building.

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POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

No. 3 Republican in Colorado House is resigning to pursue job in Arizona

House Minority Whip Ryan Armagost of Berthoud, a fierce gun rights supporter, is leaving halfway through his second term to start a new job in which he will have the “chance to expand his work in Second Amendment advocacy” and to pursue “a meaningful personal relationship.” Jesse Paul has more.

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• Birthright citizenship is “protected” in Colorado despite Supreme Court ruling, AG says. With the court’s 6-3 decision delivered by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the U.S. can carry out an order from Trump to end the practice of birthright citizenship for children born after Feb. 19 in much of the country — but not in Colorado and other states.

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ENVIRONMENT

Latest U.S. budget bill even worse for Colorado clean energy despite pushback, advocates say

Senate negotiators working late over the weekend added a devastating tax on foreign solar parts on top of the House’s elimination of all personal and utility-scale clean energy credits. As Michael Booth reports, it is a combination that Colorado’s governor, trade groups and advocates said will essentially kill the industry.

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MORE NEWS

• Pueblo steel mill sold to U.S. private equity company Atlas Holdings. The North American holdings of Evraz — which includes the long-running Pueblo mill — have been for sale since 2022 after the company’s owners’ ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin brought scrutiny and sanctions. The Connecticut-based new owners’ portfolio includes Foster Farms chicken and other large industrial companies.
• Colorado funeral home owner who stashed nearly 190 decomposing bodies sentenced to 20 years in prison. Judge Nina Wang said that although the case focused on a single fraud charge, the circumstances and scale of Jon Hallford’s crime and the emotional damage to families warranted the maximum sentence, which is five years more than even prosecutors were seeking.
• Man pleads not guilty to hate crimes in attack on Boulder demonstration for Israeli hostages. Investigators say Mohamed Sabry Soliman told them he intended to kill the roughly 20 participants at the weekly demonstration on Boulder’s Pearl Street mall. But he threw just two of his over two dozen Molotov cocktails while yelling “Free Palestine.”
• Volunteers play music to soothe Denver shelter animals. 12-year-old Yuvi Agarwal’s nonprofit Wild Tunes has recruited 100 volunteer musicians to perform for animals at nine shelters in Denver, Houston and New Jersey.
• Fact Brief ☀️ Is Colorado the state with the most bank robberies? No. While Colorado has recently ranked among the top three states with the most bank robberies, it hasn’t led the U.S. since 2021.

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Selling off Colorado: Tech bros and conservatives have grand plans for federal lands

Don’t miss this wild story about proposals to create “freedom cities” on federal land, including in western Colorado. President Donald Trump campaigned on the concept, and some of the billionaire investors intrigued by rules-free zones have the ear of Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and other key administration influencers. Western Slope residents have questions, including: “Does the word ‘water’ mean anything to you?”

READ MORE

THE COLORADO REPORT

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

• Colorado rescue teams save slew of dogs caught in “ruff” summer conditions in the Rocky Mountains. If there is one thing that Coloradans love as much as the outdoors, it may be dogs. But sometimes, the adventures humans plan — from summiting Colorado’s 14er peaks to backpacking through the wilderness — can be a little “ruff.”
  — Vail Daily
• City worker morale plunges in Denver as layoffs loom. The Career Service Board is expected to vote Tuesday on changes to layoff rules. In a month layoffs are set to start, and city workers still don’t know the criteria their bosses will use to determine who has to go.
  — Denverite
• Fireworks vs. drones: As options grow, cities search for balance of safety and spectacle. Fast-growing drone shows, which barely existed five years ago, are challenging old school fireworks displays for big holiday events.
  — The Denver Post 🔑
• Leadville’s historic Golden Burro Cafe has new owner. The building, which dates to 1898, is a historic fixture in downtown Leadville. The new owner says the menu will be tweaked a bit, but the atmosphere and history will remain the same.
  — The Herald Democrat

THE OPINION PAGE

COLUMNS

• The birthright citizenship ruling is a direct warning that you shouldn’t expect the Supreme Court to save us. The Supreme Court says federal judges can’t issue nationwide injunctions against Trump’s unconstitutional orders.
  — Mike Littwin
  
• Political violence is killing American democracy. The appearance of a man who tried to burn his opponents in Boulder is just one instance of a rising tide of political violence in our country.
  — Mario Nicolais
  

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.

I hope your coffee is strong and your porch has shade. Happy reading!

— Jennifer and the whole staff of The Sun

Corrections & Clarifications

Notice something wrong? The Colorado Sun has an ethical responsibility to fix all factual errors. Request a correction by emailing corrections@coloradosun.com.

Type of Story: News

Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.