The Summer That Made Us Move

It’s been a historically hot summer in Colorado.

The kind of summer that makes you want to slow down (except you can’t), while trying to find some shade and wondering where the heck the time went.

For me, it’s also been a whirlwind, bouncing between e-bike tours and wild west walking history tours , and getting my two kids ready for their next chapters into middle and the high school. Somewhere in between the heat, the tours, the family shuffle, and everything else life throws at you, Where the West Remains has been quietly taking shape.

And now, as Golden starts trading long, hot days for crisp mornings, changing leaves, football lights, and that unmistakable feeling of fall coming down the canyon, I’m feeling something else too: It’s time to get moving!

What started as an idea has become a real project with a growing vision, a website, conversations throughout the community, potential partners, and a whole lot of stories waiting to be told.

And now, things are beginning to click.

One of the pieces I’m especially excited about is the opportunity to work more closely with the Golden Landmarks Association.

For more than 50 years, Golden Landmarks has been doing the hard, sometimes thankless work of making sure pieces of Golden’s history don't simply disappear. The organization grew out of the effort to save the Astor House in the early 1970s and has since played a role in preserving historic buildings, photographs, artifacts, collections, and stories throughout the community. And something about that feels like a natural fit.

Where the West Remains is ultimately about preservation too, but through a camera, a microphone, a website, and the voices of the people who lived it.

I’m excited about what can happen when these worlds overlap.

Imagine connecting old photographs with the people who remember them.

A historic building with the stories that happened inside it.

A neighborhood with the families who watched it change.

A photograph with a voice.

A place with a memory.

That’s the kind of storytelling I want to build.

And this is where Where the West Remains starts moving from an idea into a real community project.

This fall, we get the cameras rolling! Start sitting down with longtime residents, business owners, workers, educators, historians, artists, community leaders, families, and the people who have simply lived enough Golden history to have something worth telling.

Eventually, the digital archive will unfold creating accessible memories long after this project is gone.

There is also a lot of anticipation and preparation happening behind the scenes.

I’m working to position Where the West Remains for upcoming funding opportunities, including the City of Golden’s Thriving Communities Grant Program.

There are enormous stories here in Golden, and there's a lot of ground to cover.

So as summer gives way to fall, I'm feeling a little more urgency, and a whole lot more excitement.

If you've got a photograph, an old film reel, a box of stuff in the attic, a family story, a memory of a place that isn't there anymore, or simply something about Golden you think somebody ought to hear...

I want to hear it.

The summer is winding down.

Fall is coming.

The pieces are starting to come together.

And Where the West Remains is ready to get to work.