CONEJOS COUNTY — On Veterans Day, Conejos County Veterans Service officer Robert Lockwood said these words of tribute at the memorial service for Clinton Betenbough.

SOUTH FORK – The parking lot and lawn outside of the South Fork Visitor Center was lined with vendor booths throughout the day on July 17 for the third annual South Fork Friends Foundation’s Arts and Craft Fair.

SOUTH FORK – Cheers from spectators mingled with the rip-roaring sound of chainsaws on Saturday, July 20, as the 30th Annual Logger Days Festival kicked off in South Fork.

CREEDE – Join in the fun and support Mineral County Search and Rescue. The 39th annual Snowshoe Shuffle 5K run and walk will be held at 9 a.m. on Aug. 3.

CREEDE – Rockhounds from around the globe will be venturing to Creede next weekend for the annual Creede Rock and Mineral Show on Aug. 2-4.

DEL NORTE – With the Downtown Revitalization Project getting underway in Del Norte, the Rio Grande County Museum and Del Norte Public Library partnered on another project and saved two cherished monuments that would have been without a home.

DEL NORTE – As this busy summer begins to slide toward fall in the Valley, Del Norte is gearing up for its annual Covered Wagon Days and the four-day event is set to be a grand time for all.

SAGUACHE – The Town of Saguache is busy preparing for its signature annual event, the Saguache Arts Walk, Hollyhock Festival and Fairy House Tour to take place on July 27 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

CENTER – On Saturday, July 20, a beautiful benefit lunch was held to help Cora Martinez with her medical and transport costs. Martinez was diagnosed with Medulloblastoma Cancer.

LA JARA – The 2024 La Jara Glory Days celebration will take place on Saturday, July 27.

LA JARA – The Conejos Peak Ranger District announced Wednesday, July 17, that construction on the Stunner Bridge Replacement Project on Forest Service Road No. 250 will begin soon. The project is located approximately 5 miles northwest of Platoro. Equipment was scheduled to begin moving into the Alamosa Canyon as early as this week.

MONTE VISTA - The Faith Hinkley Veteran’s Memorial Park Fundraiser is being held from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 27, at Chapman Park in Monte Vista. The event will raise funds toward the completion of the Memorial Paver Installation Project, at Faith Hinkley Veteran’s Memorial Park. This is sure to be a memorable event and will honor local fallen heroes and all the brave women and men who have served.

MONTE VISTA – The 102nd annual Ski-Hi Stampede brought crowds of people to downtown Monte Vista for colorful parades and to the Ski-Hi Complex for thrilling PRCA action.

MONTE VISTA – In 1949, a group of forward-thinking farmers formed the Monte Vista Coop to pool resources to buy in bulk. Today, 75 years later, the Monte Vista Coop has more than 8,000 members and offers farming and ranch necessities.

ALAMOSA – On Saturday, June 22, a graduation ceremony was held for San Luis Valley children ages 3-4 who completed the HIPPY Program. Tiny smiling tots with their colorful caps and gowns, nice outfits, and pretty dresses, lined up to march at the Alamosa Rec Center, where the ceremony was held.

MONTE VISTA – Approximately 40 people gathered at the Church Project for its ribbon cutting and official opening on Friday, July 5. Church Project owner Madeleine Ahlborn was joined by her parents from Wisconsin, her Godparents from Wyoming, and fellow artists to christen the building at 256 South Broadway.

COSTILLA COUNTY — The Town of San Luis has been awarded $544,777 from the Colorado Department of Local Affairs and $181,000 from the Colorado Department of Transportation to improve its Town Plaza.

SANFORD — A fire resulted in the total loss of a house on Willett Ranch near Sanford in Conejos County on Monday afternoon. People were occupying the house but fortunately, according to Conejos County Sheriff Garth Crowther, no one was home at the time, so no injuries, either to people or animals, were reported.

LA JARA — La Jara had a town hall meeting on Feb. 8. Among the topics discussed was the current state of the city's fresh and wastewater systems.

There are 13 of Colorado's 26 byways designated by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation as America's Byways, which gives Colorado more national designations than any other state.