Dear Editor,

I grew up in suburbia and spent my working life in “urbia.”  When I retired, I sought a simpler life in a country setting. A place with big skies, mountains and streams. I made a list of all the things I never had time to pursue and passions I held that I wanted to do more frequently.  Among those were skiing, fitness, tournament poker, and community involvement.

The Community Center was an obvious choice to meet my fitness needs. It was peak Covid-era and when summer came around, I heard about the Gilpin County Fair. The County Fair was not on my “to do” list but my new friends told me it was fun and it fit well with the countryfied, community-based lifestyle I was seeking.

So, I spent Saturday and Sunday of that year’s fair walking about the vendors, watching the rodeo and meeting more new people. I made a few friends that day who I see regularly now.  But mostly, I was taken by the way almost everyone smiled throughout the day.

In each year since then, the fair has grown in size, quality and attendance. The staff at the Community Center, led by Gabrielle Chisolm, has consistently shown that they can manage (and improve upon) a major regional event. There is more music, crafts, exhibits, contests, food, and local breweries each year.

And there are more smiles, too.

Phil Gibbs

Gilpin County