Pueblo's Neon Alley

Over the last couple of years Pueblo has been known for lighting up but now when night falls and Pueblo lights up there is a new spot that is attracting attention. Between Union and Victoria downtown Pueblo sits an alley, while it for years it has served as just that, an alley, it is now getting a new life thanks to neon. One mans initiative is bringing the light and has established Neon Alley. While not all the signs are up and working here is a glimpse of Neon Alley.

Sunset Flowers

With all the rain from this spring the prairie is flourishing with sunflowers and cactus flowers. This is the first attempt at capturing the flowers. This along with the lightning is an evolving process but I am intrigued.

Walking Stick Cactus silhouetted by the sunset. 

Walking Stick cactus with flowers.

Walking Stick cactus flowers.

Sunflower in the sunset.

Sunflowers being silhouetted by the sunset.

A Storm Rolling Through Pueblo West

Once again, as it has done for the last month and a half, a storm rolled in over Pueblo West. Tonight I finally got out and got some decent pictures of it. Shooting sky's and especially longer exposure night shots is not something I do very often, so bear with me, as there is definitely a learning curve, and I will get better with time and practice, I promise!

Looking south-east North Purcell.

Same direction 15 minutes later.

Looking south-west from North Purcell.

Looking west from North Purcell.

Same storm 30 minutes after the previous picture was taken looking south-east, same place the rainbow picture was taken.

Looking south-east still.

Looking south-east still.

The People of Pueblo

Pueblo is known as The Home of Heroes because of the four Medal of Honor Recipients that are from Pueblo. While this a fact that cannot and should not be disputed, it is also representative of Pueblo as a community.  Home of Heroes, everyday heroes, heroes that get up everyday, head to work to provide for themselves, their families and contribute to the community. I intentionally left out our firemen and police officers because they are a different kind of hero that receives recognition in a different way. This portrait series is about lesser known and appreciated heroes, business owners, business professionals and the everyday working person. We have them all, and the following is just a small cross-section of the diverse working population of the everyday heroes of Pueblo.

Mike is the owner/operator of Mike's Top Tire Spot on 4th Street.

Tonya is the owner/operator of Slug & Chug food-truck.

Phyllis is the owner/operator of Tumbleweed Books on Union.

Dawn is the owner/operator of Karmic Konnection on Union.

John works in the wind energy industry.

Kevin is the Chief Information Officer at Pueblo Bank and Trust.

Kelli and Olivia are nurses at Parkview Medical Center.

Naul is a sanitation worker with Waste Connections.

Jason is a service technician at American Furniture Warehouse.

Jullian, Deven, Noah and Christian arecar wash attendants at the Octopus Car Wash on Elizabeth.

Donny, Jarred and Jeff are sales associates at Vapor Source on Elizabeth.

Yago is a bartender at The Downtown Bar at City Center Plaza.

Michelle is an attendant at a Heritage Organics, a recreational marijuana store in Pueblo West.

Michael is a liquor store attendant at Warehouse Liquor.

Sam is a tattoo artist at Tattoos Unlimited on Union.

Strengthening The Chain

Today the restaurant chain got stronger here in Pueblo as Dunkin' Donuts opened their doors for business. With a ribbon cutting ceremony with members of the Pueblo Chamber of Commerce Dunkin' Donuts is back after a 20 year hiatus. Located in the former Del Taco building on the corner of Elizabeth and Highway 50, Dunkin' Donuts is in a prime spot for pulling in morning commuters headed to work or school and will be opening another store on Northern Avenue later this summer.

People steadily poured into Dunkin' Donuts since 7am.

Rain, Rain Go Away?

A storm rolls in over Pueblo West.

Debris lays along the newly formed edge of Fountain Creek.

Southern Colorado had been suffering from drought conditions for almost ten years, then May 2015 arrived.

Sediment covers a bike trail along Fountain Creek in Pueblo.

According to the National Weather Service, parts of El Paso county have received anywhere from 8-10 inches of rain during the month of May. There have only been seven days in May that measurable precipitation has not fallen in Colorado Springs. With the years of drought like conditions and abnormally high amount of rain in Colorado Springs and Pueblo, Fountain Creek, which originates in the mountain town of Woodland Park, pushes its way south through Colorado Springs, then further south to Pueblo and serves as a tributary to the Arkansas River. With the quick hitting storms and 24 days of rain Fountain Creek has overflowed its banks, eroded land, changed the course of the creek and created a clean-up problem for Pueblo. The complete impact the flooding and changing course of Fountain Creek may not be determined for months after the water recedes and the clean-up has taken place, but the one thing that is for certain, is that habitats have been altered, the landscape along the creek has been changed and work needs to be done to protect the integrity of the creek and it's surrounding areas in the future.

Memorial Day In Pueblo

Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for the fallen soldiers of our nation. With the designation as the Home of Hero's with four Medal of Honor recipients and many soldiers of Fort Carson and their families calling Pueblo home it is only fitting that the city of Pueblo and the Pueblo Veterans Council held a Memorial Day Ceremony at the Veterans Bridge along the Pueblo River Walk.

Pueblo native, retired Air Force Colonel and current Pueblo County District Attorney Jeff Chostner opened the Memorial Day Ceremony.

 

Fort Carson's 4th Infantry Division Marching Band's Staff Sergeant Manford sang the National Anthem as the band members were on hand to provide music for the ceremony.

Formers service members of the Army, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard and current Members of the Pueblo Ritual Team provided a 21 Gun Salute.

Paul Browning

Paul Browning is 2014 Mass Communications graduate of Colorado State University-Pueblo. He was a four year starter for the ThunderWolves and is the all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns. He is a Colorado native that went to Widefield High School before choosing to attend CSU-Pueblo. During his tenure with the ThunderWolves Paul was part of four Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championship teams and won a National Championship. In December of 2014 he capped off his Senior season with the only touchdown reception in the ThunderWolves 13-0 defeat of Minnesota State University, Mankato for the Division II National Championship. In May of 2015 Paul was invited to participate in the Cleveland Browns Rookie Mini-Camp and earned a contract with the Cleveland Browns.

 

Paul's focus, determination and hard work ethic have been the catalyst that made him a huge success in college and landed him a roster spot with the Cleveland Browns in the NFL, where he will continue to display the attributes that have made him a success off and on the field and represent Pueblo in the national spotlight.

    Paul watches the defense before taking the field again in the 

2014 quarterfinals game against Ohio Dominican University.