JOURNAL

127th Year, Number 33

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 17, 2016

MONTE VISTA, COLORADO 81144

50

Golf club presents plan for the future

B Y C HELSEA M C N ERNEY - Golf Club and the golf facilities.
Carinci expressed that the golf course
MARTINEZ

News in
Brief
Final cruise
night Saturday

MONTE VISTAA special

work session of the Monte Vista
City Council met on Monday night,
Aug. 8; first hearing community
input on a proposed retail marijuana
facility within city limits, which
was reported in last weeks Monte
Vista Journal. Improvements to the
Monte Vista Golf Club facilities were
discussed in the second part of the
work session.
Several members of the Monte
Vista Golf Club brought a more light
tone to the work session following
the marijuana discussion. President
Tony Carinci, Vice President Robbie
Clark, Secretary Shelly David and
Treasurer Marty Golden came before
the present members of council to
discuss the needs of the Monte Vista

is in dire need of a new clubhouse

and some new equipment, as theirs
is severely outdated and has been
repaired numerous times to the point
that any further repairs are no longer
practical. They noted that the bathrooms are not ADA compliant; the
back wall in the clubhouse has sunk
four inches, causing large cracks,
and the floor to the kitchen thus has
a minimal foundation, among other
problems.
Additionally, they explained how

Please see GOLF on Page 9A

Members of the Monte Vista Golf
Club Board address council about
the golf courses severe needs.
Photo by By Chelsea McNerney-Martinez

Many talents showcased at SLV Fair

MONTE VISTAThe final

Summer 16 Cruise Night is this
Saturday, Aug. 20. To finish things
off donations are being collected
for the Bikes For Kids project.
This is an outreach organized by
the Monte Vista community to refurbish and restore as many as 50+
bicycles for local kids who need
one. Donations are not required to
participate, and the whole town is
invited to Chapman Park at 6 p.m.
to join the funsodas, chips, 50s
music and great cruisers.
For more information, click
on the link at MVCruiseNight.
com or call 852-6168. See yall
there!

Register now
for fall softball
MONTE VISTAAdult fall
softball league registrations are
now open, mens and co-ed teams.
Cos is $250 per team and $25
players fee. For more information,
please call Monte Vista Recreations Department at 852-2692.

Courtesy Photos

Above: Annika Holder, 11, of Monte Vista

decorates her cake during the SLV Fair
Cake Decorating Contest last week.
At left: Senior Reserve Champion winner
Devyn Mitchell, 14, models a dress she
sewed in the SLV Fair Fashion Revue.
See related story on Page 3A.

Upward Bound
accepting students
SAN LUIS VALLEYThe
Upward Bound program is now
accepting applications for high
school students in the following
San Luis Valley Schools: Monte
Vista, Centennial, Del Norte, South
Conejos, North Conejos and Center. They provide an opportunity to
help low income/first generation
high school students prepare for
their college future.
Stop by the office for an application, 208 Edgemont Blvd. Suite
2-400, Alamosa.

This week's issue sponsored by:

Vehicles
recovered,
two arrested
MONTE VISTA On Aug. 7 at
approximately 8:12 p.m., the Monte
Vista Police Department responded
to Marks Auto Repair, located in
the 2100 block of Grand Avenue for
a report of stolen vehicles.
Investigation revealed that six
vehicles had been stolen from the
property. All the vehicles were entered as stolen. A few days later the
vehicles were recovered by Alamosa
Police Department, Walsenburg
Police Department and Monte Vista
Police Department.
Michael Hernandez, Monte Vista,
was found to be possession of
one vehicle. He was arrested and
charged with theft and released to
the Rio Grande County Sheriffs
Office.
Andrew Shafer, Las Vegas, N.M.,
was found to be in possession of
another vehicle. He was arrested
and charged with theft and released
to the Rio Grande County Sheriffs
Office.
If anyone has further information, they can contact Cpl. Robby
Martinez at the Monte Vista Police
Department.

Cross country trek takes Bramble through SLV

STAFF REPORT

ALAMOSA Somewhere west

of the San Luis Valley, headed towards Pagosa, Brett Bramble is walking along Highway 160 this week.
Every mile has a purpose for the
31-year-old from Atlanta, Georgia.
Bretts transcontinental journey from
the east to the west coast is for Brittany, his sister who died of a drug
overdose a couple of weeks after her
28th birthday in 2014.
Brett is Walking Across America
to raise overdose awareness, tell
Brittanys story and try to prevent
her experience from being repeated
in other families.

I have never had a loss like this,

Brett said as he stopped for respite in
Alamosa on Monday, Aug. 8 before
continuing westward. This was a
huge blow, the biggest loss I have
ever gone through.
Brittany had turned to Brett for
help when she was going through a
period in her life when she wanted
to make some changes. The mother
of three boys they were her life
she took pain pills for a bad back.
It led to addiction. She used them
too much, Brett recalled.
She and the man she was married
to would also use marijuana recreationally now and then, and nobody

in the family was happy about it, but

since the boys were taken care of, it
wasnt an issue.
I had gone through many years of
drug use myself, Brett said. I had
gotten out. I have been clean of all
illegal drugs for eight years.
What had worked for Brett was
getting away from the people he had
used drugs with.
Brittany, too, planned to make a
big change and divorce her husband.
The stress of that change increased her drug use rapidly, Brett
recalled, and she came to me for
help, and I tried.
Brittany began using heroin. She

survived one overdose, and her family which is a very big family
down South in Atlanta tried to
intervene.
She was scared. She wanted help
too. She didnt want to do this.
The family had never addressed
addiction before, Brett said. He had
addressed his addiction on his own.
We didnt know what to do, how
to handle it, Brett recalled. Before
we could figure it out, she overdosed
again.
This time the man she was with
did not call for help, and Brittany did
Please see TREK on Page 7A