Columnists - The Durango Herald

Locals supporting locals – An idea to embrace this holiday season

A few weeks ago, I read a Letter to the Editor in The Durango Herald questioning the almost fanatic adoration that many Durangoans hold for our little neck of the woods, especially as compar...

DATE: Nov 24, 2023 | CATEGORY: Local First

In retirement, what to do with so many books?

We’ve all heard the oft-repeated cliches of retirement: • Retirement is just a never-ending vacation. • Think about retirement as being two six-month holidays per year. • Why do retirees smi...

DATE: Nov 24, 2023 | CATEGORY: Opinion

There’s so much to be thankful for

Can you believe that Durango School District 9-R has hosted public libraries for almost half a century? In 1981, in conjunction with the expansion of Fort Lewis Mesa Elementary School, the F...

DATE: Nov 23, 2023 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

Alzheimer’s moved up home deconstruction

It’s funny how one small action can carry a mountain of meaning. I was caught off guard by my reaction to tossing out little drawings done years ago by our grandchildren. Tears rolled down m...

DATE: Nov 22, 2023 | CATEGORY: Opinion

‘Commodification of college campuses’

Public universities in the U.S. are largely a relic of the past. Today, higher education is mainly a private venture, but not without consequence. It’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment when...

DATE: Nov 22, 2023 | CATEGORY: Opinion

The crucial role of planned giving in nurturing nonprofit sustainability

What legacy will you leave? Currently, the baby boomers are passing down more than $53 trillion to their heirs, marking one of the most significant transfers of generational wealth in histor...

DATE: Nov 22, 2023 | CATEGORY: From the Humane Society

A musical tribute

The heart of last week’s Southwest Civic Winds concert was “American Elegy,” by American composer Frank Ticheli. It was more than an appropriate choice. The concert, “Legacy,” paid tribute t...

DATE: Nov 22, 2023 | CATEGORY: Culture Gulch

Holiday songs can be fun

December holiday music can be obnoxious. Especially when the canned music that scores your grocery and other shopping experiences starts flooding your ears sometime around Halloween, with ma...

DATE: Nov 22, 2023 | CATEGORY: Downtown Lowdown

‘See bigger picture of our careless lives’

Guides in the outdoor industry inevitably come up with collective nicknames for customers. On horseback they’re “dudes,” on the river they’re “mers” –short for customers – and they’re “stick...

DATE: Nov 22, 2023 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Teen’s wardrobe choices too much for one mom

DEAR ABBY: I am a fairly laid-back mom of a wonderful 13-year-old daughter. Her friends are nice kids, but some of them dress pretty provocatively. I have seen them wear super-short shorts t...

DATE: Nov 21, 2023 | CATEGORY: Dear Abby

Grazing deal offers promise for bighorns

It might surprise many that bighorn sheep were perhaps the most abundant big game species in Colorado before European settlement. Or maybe not so surprising, given the preponderance of bigho...

DATE: Nov 19, 2023 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

A thousand miles from nowhere

Anyone who knows me knows that I have an uncanny knack for meeting colorful characters in my life, usually at the most serendipitous of times. From old prospectors and Explorers to shamans a...

DATE: Nov 18, 2023 | CATEGORY: Sports