Shelf Life – The Durango Herald

In tough times, books and stories can provide connection

I don’t know about you, but so far 2022 has not been the fresh start I was hoping for. My year started with a bout of COVID-19 and a canceled mini-vacation. I lost my mum after a long illnes...

DATE: Apr 29, 2022 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

What exactly does a library district do, anyway?

I’m Liz vonTauffkirchen and I have the great honor and privilege of serving as the newest director of the newest library district in Colorado, Southwest La Plata Library District. Many folks...

DATE: Feb 25, 2022 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

How can we help find books that interest you?

When I first started working at the Ignacio Library, one of the fun tasks of the staff was creating displays. I enjoyed pulling books and other materials on a particular topic and adding fun...

DATE: Jan 28, 2022 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

Pine River Library can help make ‘adulting’ a little more fun

Adulting can be hard, and often it isn’t very much fun. Oxford Languages named “adulting” its word of the year in 2016: “Adulting (noun): The practice of behaving in a way characteristic of ...

DATE: Dec 31, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

It’s all here at your Durango Public Library

Hi, Durango. As the new Durango Public Library interim director, I’ve been asked to contribute these rotational articles about local libraries. I’ll begin by saying what a wonderful communit...

DATE: Nov 26, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

Good books can be mirrors and windows

Have you ever experienced that wonderful moment of recognition while reading? I love it when I read something that I feel but have not been able to express adequately, when I get that moment...

DATE: Oct 29, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

October a perfect time to check out local library

“There is no season when such pleasant and sunny spots may be lighted on, and produce so pleasant an effect on the feelings, as now in October.” – Nathaniel Hawthorne As summer wanes, it is ...

DATE: Sep 24, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

A real value card – sign up for yours at the library

Do you carry a handful of little plastic cards with you, either in your wallet or on your keyring? It seems that we all carry these “value cards” with us every day. I was thinking about the...

DATE: Aug 27, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

Library a place to reassemble our community

As we emerge from the pandemic, I am hearing a common thread from our community – the need for connection and access. The Durango Public Library is well-versed in offering services that prov...

DATE: Jun 25, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

Library district has many programs, offerings in the works

It is an exciting time for the Southwest La Plata Library District. We have so many wonderful programs and offerings in the works, and I am delighted to share some of them with you in this m...

DATE: May 28, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

Can a library do that? Sure, your library can do that!

Recently, I was reminded of the benefits of reading; the solace, the information, the escape or the sense of finding oneself. And I thought, too, of all the things the library can do as well...

DATE: Apr 30, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

Let’s continue to build on library’s wonderful legacy

Over 90 years ago, the Bayfield Study Club was founded by a group of Bayfield women who wanted to have a wider range of reading material available. Six of those women formed the first board ...

DATE: Mar 26, 2021 | CATEGORY: Shelf Life

Photos: Parade launches 2024 Connie Mack World Series in FarmingtonFans line street as players march on Main Damp, overcast weather cooled off the crowd lining Main Street on Friday morning for the 2024 Connie Mack World Series Parade. The hourlong parade began shortly after 10 a.m. in front of an enthusiastic crowd.

Fans line street as players march on Main

Photos: ‘Mini Takes the States’ tour stops in DurangoHundreds of Mini Cooper vehicles occupy Fort Lewis College on Sunday; Participants began the journey in Albuquerque and will finish in Seattle

Hundreds of Mini Cooper vehicles occupy Fort Lewis College on Sunday; Participants began the journey in Albuquerque and will finish in Seattle

Photos: Boxing returns to DurangoAnimus on the Animas: 1st Annual Durango Boxing Classic at the Durango Main Mall on Saturday

Animus on the Animas: 1st Annual Durango Boxing Classic at the Durango Main Mall on Saturday

Photos and video: Going for the gold by devouring piesContestants try their best to win the Oscar’s Pie Eating Contest on Friday in Durango

Contestants try their best to win the Oscar’s Pie Eating Contest on Friday in Durango

Photo: Fireworks light the sky in DurangoDurango celebrates Independence Day on Thursday night

Durango celebrates Independence Day on Thursday night

Photos: Working with woodLocal craftsman uses wood joinery, rather than nails or screws to construct homes and other structures

Local craftsman uses wood joinery, rather than nails or screws to construct homes and other structures

2024 Fourth of July Parade draws crowd Thursday in downtown Durango

Photos: Downtown Durango hosts Fourth of July ParadeDowntown sidewalks were full for Thursday’s celebration

Downtown sidewalks were full for Thursday’s celebration

Durango Rotary Club, Parks and Recreation department host Independence Day events

Law enforcement conducts active threat training at Park Elementary SchoolResidents may see and hear police activity Thursday and Friday

Law enforcement agencies across Southwest Colorado sent officers to participate in active threat training this week at Park Elementary School in Durango. Those in the neighborhood can expect police vehicles parked on the premises, officers in tactical gear conducting exercises inside and outside the school, and signs advising that training is in progress. The sounds of shouting, airsoft weapons and the popping of a starter pistol will also be audible near the school, said Karla Sluis, spokeswoman for Durango School District 9-R.Sluis said that members of the school district’s safety department have gone door-to-door with flyers notifying residents around Park Elementary School about the training.

Hosted by the Durango Police Department and the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office, this week’s voluntary training invited officers from law enforcement agencies across a five-county region of Southwest Colorado encompassing La Plata, Archuleta, San Juan, Montezuma and Dolores counties.

La Plata County Sheriff’s Office deputy Durango Police Department Deputy Mike Latham, lead instructor for this week's training, said Wednesday and the first half of Thursday were mostly preparatory, teaching officers the school’s layout and devising scenarios, whereas the latter half of Thursday and Friday residents should anticipate some noise as active threat scenarios play out.

Latham said active threat training teaches officers proper protocol during active threat scenarios, especially in densely populated areas where they have become increasingly common.Park Elementary School is not the only Durango School District facility law enforcement has conducted active threat training. Latham said schools lend themselves well to this sort of training because, “It gives us all kinds of doors to work on, different rooms, different scenarios we can run. We can pretend it’s a mall with nice big corridors, we can even pretend it’s an outdoor area in the gymnasium.”Latham has participated in active threat training multiple times in the past and described the drills as exhilarating and nerve-wracking. He said one of the training’s main goals is teaching officers how to manage stress and remain calm with lives on the line.

“I take a pulse oximeter in the morning and get a baseline on their heart rates,” Latham said. “And sometimes, just before they’re about to engage a threat, I say ‘Timeout.’ Put it (the oximeter) on there, and their heart rate’s skyrocketed to 140, 150, 160 just in training.”

Latham said throughout his career active threat training has evolved to become safer for officers and fall in line with increasingly professional police standards.“When I first started we were just running into halls and rooms hoping for the best,” Latham said. “Now the tactic is still to get there, still stop the taking of lives, but tactics are much better than they were 20 years ago.”

Residents may see and hear police activity Thursday and Friday

In tough times, books and stories can provide connection

What exactly does a library district do, anyway?

How can we help find books that interest you?

Pine River Library can help make ‘adulting’ a little more fun

It’s all here at your Durango Public Library

Good books can be mirrors and windows

October a perfect time to check out local library

A real value card – sign up for yours at the library

Library a place to reassemble our community

Library district has many programs, offerings in the works

Can a library do that? Sure, your library can do that!

Let’s continue to build on library’s wonderful legacy

Videos & Photos

Most Popular

Most Recent

Ballantine Communications, Inc.

Contact Us

Find Us

Log In