1. COVID Community Response Fund Launched in Golden

2. Virtually Golden "Lunch & Learn" Series Launches

3. What To Do If You Are Exposed to COVID-19 or Have Symptoms

4. COVID Resources

5. Staying Connected in Golden

6. Golden City Council Ward 4 Virtual Candidate Forum: April 7

7. Future of the Astor House

8. Props to Jeffco Schools

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1. COVID Community Response Fund Launched in Golden

I'm very excited to share news about the new COVID-19 Community Response Fund, a partnership of the Golden Civic Foundation, the City of Golden, and local nonprofits including the Golden Backpack Program, the Christian Action Guild, and the Neighborhood Rehab Project.

If you want to contribute generally to the critical community support work happening here in Golden, this is a powerful, centralized way to do so. The Civic Foundation will then allocate grants to the nonprofits doing the work. Of course if you want to contribute to any particular individual organization, you should, but if you want to help the overall effort this is an efficient and effective option.

Donors can make tax-deductible donations online through the Golden Civic Foundation or mail checks (including from Donor Advised Funds) to Golden Civic Foundation, Attn: C-19CRF Fund, P.O. Box 1538, Golden, CO 80402.

2. Virtually Golden "Lunch & Learn" Series Launches

Golden United today launched a virtual lunch & learn series, hosted on Zoom and scheduled for Tuesdays and Thursdays. Barb Warden kicked things off as the inaugural speaker today, offering a fascinating tour of Golden’s early settler history. City Councilor Paul Haseman is slated to be Thursday’s guest with a talk on “Golden - The Stolen Capital of Colorado.”

You might use this as an excuse to order takeout or delivery lunch from a local Golden restaurant. Anything you can do to support local businesses right now will give them a fighting shot at surviving the downturn.

To participate in the Lunch & Learn, join the meeting via Zoom (if you haven’t used Zoom before, it’s fairly self-explanatory but it takes a few minutes to set up so I’d suggest giving yourself a little extra time). You can also skip the computer and just call in to one of the numbers below.

https://zoom.us/j/187269193
Meeting ID: 187 269 193

Or call:
669-900-6833 (call ID: 187269193#)
or
346-248-7799 (call ID: 187269193#))

3. What To Do If You Are Exposed to COVID-19 or Have Symptoms

One question I heard in response to last week's newsletter is what to do if you think you might have been exposed to COVID-19.

What to do if you think you might have COVID-19:

According to CDPHE, if you have symptoms that might be COVID-19 (potentially including a combination of cough, body aches, fatigue, and chest tightness, with or without fever), you should self-isolate and use over-the-counter medications to treat your symptoms -- like you would for a cold or other respiratory illness.

If your symptoms become more severe or more definitively COVID-19 (fever, cough, shortness of breath) you should self-isolate, use over-the-counter medications, and contact a health care provider (consider a telehealth visit or nurseline advice before seeking in-person care).

What to do if you think you might have been exposed to someone with COVID-19:

If you don't have symptoms but think you have been in close contact with someone who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 or has symptoms (fever, coughing, shortness of breath), you should quarantine yourself.
 
4. COVID-19 Resources

I put together a list of resources for folks who want to track the latest information, folks who might need some support, and folks who want to offer support. Bill Fisher is maintaining a very similar list as well.

Here are a few new resources since my newsletter last week:
 
If you need some help:

Golden resident Koko Cragg put together a spreadsheet connecting folks who are available to help out and those that could use some help. Text Koko (720-628-2901) directly if you have any needs (picking up groceries, errands, etc.) or are available to help with any of these.

If you are currently uninsured or have lost coverage due to COVID-19 you can now get health insurance on the exchange. The special enrollment period is open through April 3rd.

Colorado Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP) provides assistance for energy costs and equipment repairs for individuals and seniors. Call 1-866-432-8435 for more information.

The Colorado Restaurant Association and the Bartender Emergency Assistance Program may be able to help if you work in the restaurant and bar world.

Colorado was approved for the Small Business Administration Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program, which means a wide range of resources are now available for small business owners. Visit the SBA website or call 303-860-5881.

If you can offer some help:

You can donate through the new COVID-19 Community Response Fund I described above.

The spreadsheet I mentioned above, coordinated by Golden resident Koko Cragg, is for helping connect folks who are available to help out and those that could use some help. Text Koko (720-628-2901) or are available to help with any of these.

If you are looking for information:
 
RTD information.

The Colorado COVID-19 Business Resource Center has resources for state and federal COVID-19 announcements, programs, and information relevant to Colorado businesses and workers.

5. Staying Connected in Golden

I started this newsletter when I ran for City Council the first time back in 2005, and I’m pleased that so many people continue to subscribe and find it useful. I generally try to stay focused on bigger picture and higher profile issues, and I expect as we navigate our way through this crisis I’ll scale back to once a month or so.

Barb Warden has a great daily email that is focused primarily on the events happening in Golden and the more day-to-day work of the city and City Council, with a regular healthy dose of Golden's colorful history.

At least three other folks have email newsletters I want to mention: City Councilor JJ Trout (representing District 1, also known as roughly the southern half of Golden), Mayor Laura Weinberg, and former City Councilor (and current candidate for City Council) Bill Fisher. These are a good way to see what your elected officials (and aspiring elected official, in Bill’s case) are thinking about, their priorities, and their reasons for voting the way they do. [Disclosure: I’ve endorsed Bill in his special election race for the open City Council seat. I’ll write more about that later.]

You can sign up for several of the city's email newsletters as well.

Finally, the Mayor and City Manager Jason Slowinski will be hosting a second virtual community briefing tomorrow (Wednesday) 3/25 at 6pm. You can ask questions during the briefing if you are participating via Facebook Live, or you can email your questions in advance (by 5pm tomorrow) to COVID19@CityofGolden.net.

6. Golden City Council Ward 4 Virtual Candidate Forum: April 7

Golden United and Leadership Golden are hosting a virtual forum for the two Ward 4 City Council Candidates - Bill Fisher and Stacy Fowler. City Council elections are always important, but this seat has now taken on added weight as the impacts of the pandemic continue to grow and as we slide into what may be a protracted economic downturn.
6:30pm – 8:30pm
April 7

If you have a candidate question or two you think would be great for the forum, submit them by March 31 for consideration (benioffron@gmail.com).

You’ll have the option to participate by computer or phone. You can get the details for calling/logging in by registering.

Ward 4, which Laura represented until she was sworn in as Golden’s mayor, generally includes the northwest quarter of Golden. Here is more information about the special election and a map of the wards and districts.

7. Future of the Astor House

I think Barb Warden did a nice job of summing up the Astor House situation:

“The Astor House ceased to be a museum several years ago. The building was closed for structural work, which was followed by asbestos remediation and in the end the building was left empty, wall-less, bathroom-less and uninhabitable. City Council is at a loss as to what to do with it, and have asked the public for ideas. The Golden Landmarks Association, which saved the building from becoming razed 50 years ago, has offered to solicit ideas from the public.”

If you have ideas or opinions, the city's current survey would be a good opportunity to share them.

8. Props to Jeffco Schools

I’ve been hearing a consistent theme from Jeffco Schools parents that I wanted to share: They have been doing a terrific job under very challenging circumstances. They were one of the first (maybe the first?) to have their online school up and running. Their well-designed and extremely useful coronavirus landing page was up quickly, and Superintendent Glass and other school district representatives have been doing a great job of communicating frequently with parents and students. And if you haven't seen it yet, check out their terrific Jeffco Makes page.