Our first trip to the Fort Collins area was in 1994 when Sara was a doctoral student in Wildlife Ecology at Colorado State University. She and Jim were living modestly in a second-floor apartment in Laporte, a small town about five miles northwest of Fort Collins, close to the point where Cache la Poudre River comes out of Poudre Canyon onto the Prairie. Many memorable trips to the Northern Front Range Foothills have followed, each enhancing our affection for the area. The primary reason for this Spring’s visit was Ian’s graduation from the University of Colorado, but it was only one of numerous enjoyable experiences.
The drive down to Boulder (forty-five miles and about an hour), replete with views of the Foothills and of the snow-capped Rockies, always is a treat for me. It skirts a series of nearly contiguous prosperous communities – Loveland, Berthoud, Longmont, etc. – separated by a rural landscape that contrasts dramatically with the dry prairie/desert just a few miles to the East. I am struck by the absence of run-down farmhouses and buildings that are so common in our part of Appalachia. Apparently this part of Colorado was developed so recently that such relics don’t exist.
The graduation ceremony was held in the Roe Green Theater on the CU campus, a venue where Ian has performed and is the site of many memorable productions. It was a department level ceremony, supplementing the University-wide Commencement exercises the next day. This is a process that I strongly endorse. In 1991 we attended Sara’s Commencement at Michigan in ”the Big House”, along with thousands of students and spectators. At some point the seniors were instructed to move the tassels on their mortar boards from right to left to symbolize their graduation. Much too impersonal to suit me. I have always preferred the departmental ceremonies we adopted at Pitt a few years later in which each graduate is individually recognized, presented with a diploma, and congratulated by numerous faculty members. Beth presided at s similar event with her department at Pitt last week.
Following the ceremony we went to “The Hungry Toad”, a transplanted English pub from Surrey, near London, to continue the celebration. I have never had the opportunity to experience a real English pub, but this one certainly was a reasonable facsimile. The décor was perfect, the service was friendly and courteous, my beer (a golden lager) was fine, and the food was excellent. This facility is well over three decades old and appears to be prospering; Boulder is an impressive community, with a dual reputation as an academic venue and as a center for environmental awareness. No wonder Ian enjoyed his time there.
We continued our celebration two days later in Fort Collins with a large family party at his grandmother’s house. In addition to her, and Jim’s brother Steve and sister Jennifer, I had the opportunity to meet many other family friends. One of them was Hans Sieber, who had driven up from Golden with his wife Julie. Hans was the overall winner of our Iditarod Prognostication Pool this year, so we made a big deal out of presenting him with his Brag’n Rights certificate (suitable for magnet mounting on a refrigerator). I enjoyed seeing Bill Ito, another long-time family friend, and discussing his upcoming trip to Japan with him. Jenny Fike and Brian Sanchez brought their seven-year-old son Max; he immediately became the center of attention. It was a perfect party, just right for the occasion.
Saturday evening we went to Rocky Mountain High School for their Spring Arts Festival. We have been impressed with their music program for years, dating back to Ian’s first participation playing trumpet in the Jazz Band. This year we arrived in time to enjoy an excellent presentation by the current version of that oeganization, followed by two fine sets by jazz choral groups. The Sirens are a triple quartet, twelve young women, with Claire performing as one of three Sopranos. Their rendition of progressive arrangements for three pieces, including “Fly Me to the Moon”, was outstanding, and very well received. Next came the Echos, a coed choir with eight boys and eight girls. Again, Claire sang as a Soprano. Vocal jazz is usually limited to small groups; hearing these young people sing as a choir makes me want to explore choral jazz by professional musicians.
Friday afternoon Sara gave me a tour of her office and laboratory. They are located in the Fort Collins Science Center, a facility housing one hundred and twenty senior scientists dedicated to understanding and managing the massive ecosystems of which we are a part. The inter-relationship between the human race and our environment — animals, plants, air, water, and soil – is complex and sensitive. Some of us believe that the science associated with it is our society’s most valuable asset, and we are grateful that the federal government has recognized the necessity to support its research for well over a century. The current administration’s announced intention to terminate this research completely is a source of concern to us and a potential tragedy for the thousands of eco-scientists whose life work is being discarded. It is a sad sight to see these brilliant men and women struggling to ensure that the science they have created is somehow preserved somewhere. They are contemporary versions of the Benedictine monks who carefully hid and preserved scientific knowledge when the barbarians finally defeated the Romans and initiated the Dark Ages. We can only hope that our imminent scientific Dark Ages will not last as long as theirs.
It is a real blessing for me to be able to visit Sara’s family in Fort Collins and to have a taste of life in this dynamic area. It was a fortunate circumstance that brought Sara and Jim west (initially to Colorado State University); they have taken full advantage of the many opportunities for rearing their children here.