Caleb's Corner: Colorado City now getting the attention it deserves

Originally Published: February 6, 2004

 

Something is finally being done about Colorado City.

Recent news that the Mohave County supervisors approved funding for a building that will be jointly used by various county and state agencies represents some of the best news in a long time about the northern Mohave County community.

All three supervisors deserve credit for voting for this funding as does state Sen.Linda Binder, who has been on top of this issue for some time. Although this issue is probably one of the few things I agree with the Lake Havasu legislator about, the soon-to-be-departing state senator deserves credit for keeping this issue on her agenda.

Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff has also been very active lately in pressing this issue legally.

His recent remarks that he intends to bring charges against FLDS prophet Warren Jeffs represent a positive sign that something is being done about the problem.

For those who don't know – and it's hard to imagine any upstanding citizen not knowing – the Colorado City area is a polygamous community known for pressing young women, i.e.early-teen girls, into pre-arranged marriages against their will.

The merits or demerits of polygamy can and will be debated well into the future, as the recent Supreme Court decision approving another court's striking down of state anti-sodomy laws could very well bring this issue to the forefront.

As Justice Antonin Scalia noted is his dissent on that decision, the court's rationale logically could lead the court to strike down state anti-polygamy laws.

At least, that is, if the court retains the same logic it used in the anti-sodomy law case.

Be that as it may, there is nowhere in civilized American society today for a religious group that forces underage teenaged girls into marriages against their will.

There are other problems associated with the lifestyle of this Mormon offshoot group, and those will be brought to light in the future as well.

Flora Jessop escaped from the Colorado City area some years ago, and she had quite a story to tell.

Some of it has been profiled on the pages of the Miner and other newspapers, and I'm sure more will be forthcoming.

Mohave County Sheriff Tom Sheahan says he is keeping on top of the issues with daily contacts made to the offices of the governor and attorney general.

This is a good thing.

The sheriff has dispatched deputies to the area on a rotational basis for several weeks following the excommunication of 21 men from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

During last year's election, independent gubernatorial candidate Richard Mahoney made Colorado City's polygamy and its associated issues a major part of his campaign.

Mahoney was reviled in the major media for this as he targeted Republican candidate Matt Salmon for what he likely wouldn't do as governor because of his Mormon religion, and and Democrat Janet Napolitano for what she didn't do as attorney general.

I think Mahoney was hurt because he was telling the truth.

Sometimes the truth hurts.

I have observed that the American public generally doesn't like its political candidates telling the cold, hard truth.

No matter what we say, most of us want to hear smooth-sounding platitudes from our candidates.

Sometimes one has to "go negative" in order to get the truth out.

I will say this, however. There is no doubt Mahoney's campaign put the Colorado City issue on the front burner like no political candidate or politician since former Arizona Gov. Howard Pyle in the 1950s.

Pyle had numerous polygamous men from Short Creek arrested in "Operation Seagull" and transported to Kingman, according to Utah historian Will Bagley. The public pressure brought to bear against Pyle was great, however, and the polygamous men were later returned to their Arizona Strip homes.

I remember reading about Pyle's aspirations for national office when I was looking through some back issues of the Wickenburg Sun a few years ago, when I was employed as a reporter in that northwest Maricopa County community.

Pyle's bold move likely cost him any chance he had to run for president.

Where Pyle failed, maybe Mahoney and others will succeed.

We can only hope this is the case.

The lives of many young women, young men and their children are at stake.

Caleb Soptelean is the Miner's law enforcement reporter.

https://kdminer.com/news/2004/feb/06/calebs-corner-colorado-citybrnow-getting-attentio/

Polar bears, late UM professor featured in FLIC film

POLSON — Local filmmaker Frank Tyro got emotional while working on “Walking Bear Comes Home.”

“There were times I just had to walk away and come back to it,” he said, referring to the 57-minute documentary about the life of his mentor and friend, the late Charles Jonkel, a wildlife biologist and University of Montana environmental studies professor.

Much of the film, which was shown Saturday afternoon at Showboat Cinemas as part of the Flathead Lake International Cinemafest, was about Jonkel’s work with polar bears in the Arctic Circle. 

Jonkel began his work with polar bears in 1966 in Canada with the Canadian Wildlife Service. 

Near the beginning of the film, Jonkel and a co-worker are interviewed about a helicopter crash on Ellesmere Island, Canada where they went “way off course,” crashed, pitched a tent and slept on the seats from the helicopter until another chopper just happened to fly by. 

In the film, polar bears are described as “big pussycats compared to grizzlies and a lot of black bears.” However, on one occasion Jonkel helped pull a coworker out of a polar bear den after he was grabbed by a mama bear and pulled into the den. The man had been walking over the den on about 10 inches of snow so that the sow could see him. He and the bear swatted at each other inside the den — her cubs were also there — until the bear threw the man up and out of her lair. Jonkel heard the man’s cries and just happened to be at arm’s length when he was ejected. 

Jonkel said he took an Inuit native along whenever he traveled in the Arctic Circle because they knew the geography. He had a special rapport with the natives, a coworker said. 

Jonkel spent hours capturing, drugging and tagging polar bears for his research. At times this involved helping them breathe when they were sedated. This artificial respiration included pushing down on their rib cage, pulling their skin and lifting a foot. 

He described polar bears as curious about people. They would sometimes interact with groups of four or five humans. “They would look and sniff, look and sniff and turn around and walk away,” he said. 

In 1981, Jonkel helped found the Great Bear Foundation to benefit North American grizzlies and other bears. Eventually eight species of bears would be helped by the non-profit organization that has offices in Missoula and Haines, Alaska. 

Although he first studied pine martens as an underclassman at the University of Montana, Jonkel began a black bear study in 1959 while pursuing his master’s degree. At first he didn’t want to do it because they had interfered with his pine marten study, but it was either that or a summer job raking leaves so he chose the black bear study even though it paid less. 

Jonkel then worked with bears for more than 50 years. He also studied arctic ecology, taught conservation-based field courses to the general public and wildlife research techniques. 

He brought a woman coworker to the Arctic and received some “nasty” feedback about that, Jonkel said. The woman was apparently the first non-native woman to work in the Canadian Arctic. 

Jonkel was instrumental in getting the U.S., Canada, Denmark (Greenland), Russia and Norway to establish quotas for polar bear hunting through the International Union for Conservation of Nature (Oslo 1973) and also helped guarantee indigenous hunting rights.

He was a founder of the International Wildlife Film Festival and worked for ethics and accuracy in wildlife media. Tyro worked with Jonkel at the Missoula festival before getting involved in FLIC. 

Tyro said it took about 10 years to complete the film with the last five or six years “in earnest.” 

In a brief question-and-answer following Saturday’s film showing, Tyro said Jonkel was “the best wild game cook in the world.”

Tyro, who has worked on about 150 films, said he hopes Walking Bear Comes Home inspires others to visit the Arctic and other ecosystems. 

Jonkel, who was born July 16, 1930 in Chicago and raised on his grandparents’ farm in Wisconsin, retired in 2012. He died April 12, 2016. 

Walking Bear Comes Home DVDs, which include bonus footage, can be purchased at greatbear.org for $20. 

http://www.valleyjournal.net/article/19126/Polar-bears-late-UM-professor-featured-in-FLIC-film

Man gets 43 days in jail for assaulting convicted rapist

Issue Date: 1/24/2018

POLSON — A 27-year-old Polson man was convicted at trial Tuesday, Jan. 16 of misdemeanor assault of convicted rapist Vaughn James. 

Kasey Pier was tried for felony assault with a weapon for allegedly stabbing James outside the Pier 93 downtown Conoco gas station on July 22, 2016. The six-man, six-woman jury was unable to reach a decision on the assault with a weapon charge — Pier denied stabbing James with a knife — but convicted him on the lesser offense because Pier said he punched James. 

Since it was a misdemeanor, Judge James A. Manley sentenced Pier at the conclusion of the one-day trial to six months in jail with all time suspended except for 43 days served. Pier was then released. 

During the trial, prosecuting attorney Ben Anciaux displayed several photos of three injuries to James’ cheek, forearm and arm. 

Dr. Ken Galewyrick of St. Joseph’s Medical Center testified that he treated James for 8 mm and 2.5 cm cuts that he called superficial wounds which he closed with glue. 

During testimony, Pier said he knew James as someone who had sexually assaulted one of his friends. Manley told the jury to disregard the comment, and Anciaux later said Pier was not referring to a woman that James was convicted of raping. 

Pier said he came upon James outside Pier 93 pumping gas and called him a derogatory term after which James shoved him and he shoved back. 

“He swung his backpack at me twice,” Pier said. “He slapped the right side of his face and said, ‘Go ahead. I’ll give you one free shot.’ I thought he was drunk,” Pier said. “I swung at him and hit him. He dropped. I raised my hands and walked into the store.”

Anciaux asked Pier if he was wearing a ring, and he said no. 

Pier testified that he had been sharing a jail cell with Brandon Bagnell, who kept rattling the door to annoy James in an adjacent cell. 

“One time I said it could be bad for my case,” Pier said. “He (Bagnell) doesn’t care. He doesn’t like Vaughn.” 

James also testified, and under questioning by defense attorney Ted Chester, said he didn’t want to testify because he had been mentally ill and for other reasons. (Anciaux had him subpoenaed.) 

James said he didn’t feel safe in the jail because he was suffering ongoing intimidation from Pier, who he accused of yelling threats at him and kicking the door of an adjacent cell. 

Under questioning from Anciaux, James said he wasn’t mentally ill during the trial but had been diagnosed with a mental illness previously.

James said he came out of Pier 93 and said Pier came toward him and attacked him. 

“I was shocked because I barely know the young man,” he said, adding that he was going to say “hi” to him. 

Jack Miller, who worked as a cashier at Pier 93, testified that he called 911 after someone said a fight was going on. 

“He came in and was bleeding. He had a slash on his arm,” Miller said, referring to James. 

Miller said he reported a stabbing but didn’t see it happen. 

Polson Police Officer Michael Wharton testified that he interviewed James at the hospital and that James told him he was stabbed in three places and described a 4-inch, black and white knife. 

Pier testified that Wharton searched him for a knife but didn’t find one. 

Judge Kim Christopher dismissed charges of felony burglary and misdemeanor theft against Pier on Jan. 11 without prejudice after Anciaux made a motion to that effect. In his request, Anciaux said he was not able to locate items taken in a July 22, 2017 burglary from a home in the 400 block of Main Street in Polson. According to a court document, Pier had pawned a punching bag at Depoe Junction on July 24, 2017 and a boxing glove was found at his residence. Total value of the items was less than $500.

Pier pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault in a June 5, 2014 incident in which he admitted to walking into a house and punching a man in the face. That conviction came as part of a plea agreement in which the original charge of burglary was amended. He was given a six-month jail sentence with all time suspended. 

James, 45, who was convicted of rape at trial last July, had his sentence postponed in October so he could get a mental health evaluation. He had defeated the same rape charge at a June trial and two others in unrelated cases in 2011. His sentencing is pending. 

http://www.valleyjournal.net/article/19074/Man-gets-43-days-in-jail-for-assaulting-convicted-rapist

Former lifeguard alleges unjust firing, seeks four years of back pay

POLSON — A Polson-area woman has filed a complaint with the 20th Judicial District Court in Polson seeking four years of lost wages and benefits based on alleged wrongful discharge from her job at the Mission Valley Aquatics Center. 

In the complaint, DV 17-50, Tristen Flagen said she started working for the MVAC as a lifeguard in April 2013 and was promoted to head lifeguard shortly thereafter. 

Flagen said she received permission from then-MVAC Director Ali Bronsdon to attend a certified pool operator training course in early February 2016. Flagen said she paid for and attended the course on Feb. 22-23 that year, but was fired on Feb. 23, 2016 for allegedly being absent from work. 

Flagen’s complaint states that her firing violated the state’s Wrongful Discharge from Employment Act because it was not for “good cause.”

Flagen, who is represented by the MSJohnson law firm of Missoula, is also pursuing claims against MVAC for violation of the Montana Human Rights Act and federal Civil Rights Act. A hearing in regard to those claims was held in the large conference room of the Lake County Courthouse three days last week before Montana Department of Labor and Industry hearings officer Chad Vanisko.

A source who did not want to be identified said that latter claims involved sexual harassment. 

MVAC was represented by the Marra Evenson & Bell law firm of Great Falls in last week’s hearing. Attorneys from that firm said that Vanisko’s pending decision likely will be appealed to the Montana Human Rights Commission by whichever side loses, and that the commission’s decision would then likely be appealed to district court. 

Lake County’s deputy attorney Brendan McQuillan, who typically prosecutes sex crimes, said the state does not have a crime against sexual harassment so any such alleged incidents could be pursued through civil court actions. 

Former lifeguard alleges unjust firing, seeks four years of back pay

‘The Food and Feasts of Jesus’ A smorgasbord of First Century food

By Caleb Soptelean Journal Staff Writer

Friday, Aug. 31, 2012

The Holy Trinity of Food.” That's what The Rev. Douglas Neel and co-author Joel Pugh offer readers of “The Food and Feasts of Jesus.”

Menu items from the “Food Feasts of Jesus’

Hummus
Olives
Barley and wheat bread
Spicy split peas
Lentil and chick pea soup
Chick peas and wheat berries
Roasted chick peas
Beef and barley stew
Braised cucumbers with dill
Bulgur and parsley
Stuffed dates
Apricots and yogurt

Read More

Neel, 58, an Episcopal priest in Pagosa Springs, presented his recently published book along with a meal smorgasbord from the First Century, A.D., on Sat., Aug. 25, at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Cortez. The event made $1,132 for the church’s food ministry, Grace's Kitchen. 

The Holy Trinity of Food is a theme Neel came up with to describe the three essential ingredients of meals during the time of Christ. 

In order, these are: bread, wine and olives. 

Bread would have been made by someone in the household every day of the week, Neel said, noting that households at that time consisted of three to four generations and at least 15 people. 

Bread would be made in an outside domed bread oven in the morning. Bread that had been set aside from the previous day for its yeast content would be mixed with water and olive oil to start the process all over again. 

Jesus used bread references often in his sermons, including one popular reference to Himself as “the bread of life” (John 6:35). Neel noted that the themes Jesus used often included bread, wedding feasts and agriculture in general. 

“In the First Century, if you did not have bread, you had nothing,” Neel said. Bread was likely the only thing eaten in two of the day’'s three meals.

Bread was very utilitarian at that time. For example, people used it to wipe their hands and then threw it on the floor. 

The second food staple was wine, a stronger, more flavorful product than normally produced today. 

A popular wine in Palestine at the time of Jesus was Shiraz, Neel said, explaining that the seeds came from grapes grown in Shiraz, Iran. 

Water at that time could contain bacteria, so people would add wine to make it safe to drink, since alcohol kills bacteria. The end product would be 50 to 60 percent water.

Wine made in the Mediterranean Sea area during that time was exceptionally strong flavor-wise, and had a little bit more alcohol content than today. It was consumed during at least two meals of the day: lunch and dinner.

People would use their bare feet to stomp the grapes in hollowed-out rocks, Neel said.

Wine was considered to be a very healthy drink.

The third part of the Holy Trinity of Food is olives.

Almost all of the olives grown in the Holy Land were used to make olive oil.

The oil was used in cooking, flavoring, medicine, makeup and as a lighting fuel.

It was considered absolutely essential to life, Neel said.

People would rub it on their hands, face and neck as a skin protectant and conditioner.

A tarp would be placed under an olive tree for harvesting, and someone would shake the branches and then whack the tree. The dark ripe olives were preferable, but green ones would also fall. The latter were bitter and had to be placed in ash, salt or saltwater to draw out the moisture and a bitter chemical, Neel explained.

While doing research for his book, which took five and a half years to write, Neel ordered 20 pounds of green olives from California. “"We bashed or cut them, and soaked them for 14 days in brine (saltwater),"” he said, joking his wife Sally didn't always appreciate her kitchen sink being full of olives during that time.

The Neels then stored the olives in a mixture of saltwater and various seasonings, including lemon, thyme, rosemary and garlic. Seeing what they tasted like was fun, Neel said.

During the First Century, olives were pressed up to four times, with the first press usually saved for special occasions. The final batch was often placed around olive trees as fertilizer.

Neel noted that olive oil was also used for anointing, which he defined as setting something aside for special use. It would also be mixed with different things and applied to the skin as part of the healing process.

People of the era rarely ate meat. “It was probably eaten once a week at the Sabbath (Friday night) feast,” Neel said. The meat that was likely consumed the most was tilapia from the Sea of Galilee, along with various kinds of poultry, such as pigeon, quail and doves.

Animals, i.e. goats, sheep and cattle, were so valuable they were rarely eaten, possibly only four times a year during major feast days such as Passover (Pesach), Pentecost (Shavuot) and Tabernacles (Sukkot). On these occasions the “red” meat eaten was most likely lamb.

A cow was so valuable, it was priced the same as the “bride price,” i.e. what one would pay for a wife, Neel said.

People of that era got a lot of their protein from legumes such as beans and chick peas.

In addition to the Holy Trinity of Food, other items that were a large part of the diet included cheese, yogurt, vinegar and herbs and spices.

Hundreds of varieties of cheese were made. Farmers made something like today's Feta because it could be stored in saltwater. The Romans were fond of making a cheese something like cheddar. The cheese-making was “quite sophisticated,” Neel said, noting the Romans would put barrels of “cheddar” close to the fire. The end result was “smoked cheddar.”

Milk would often be stored in the stomachs of dead animals. The curds would then separate from the milk.

Neel, who has lived in Pagosa Springs for four years, did much of his research for the book at a library on the campus of Southern Methodist University.

The book focuses on various feasts and includes: A farmer’s feast in the field, Sabbath feast, banquet, spring and fall harvest feasts, thanksgiving Todah (sacrificial) feast, and a “picnic on the beach,” which refers to Jesus’ grilling fish as recorded in the last chapter of John’'s gospel. A chapter titled, “First Century Pantry,” is also included.

This is Neel’'s first book. He notes that Pugh, the co-author, has a financial background and included information on the taxation of food. “He's a very good amateur baker and cook,” Neel said.

The Food Feasts of Jesus can be purchased from $30 to $39 online and in bookstores.

Bats drive students out of Cortez Middle school

By Caleb Soptelean Journal Staff Writer

Saturday, Sept. 1, 2012

A nasty and creepy experience.”That's what eighth-grader Anthony Borders called an infestation of bats this week at Cortez Middle School.

After an unsuccessful effort to remove the bats earlier in the week, Montezuma-Cortez School District Re-1 officials sent students home early Thursday afternoon and called in bat control. 

The company, appropriately named Bat Control, just happened to be in the area dealing with bats in Telluride and Durango. 

School officials also cancelled school on Friday. Students will return on Tuesday the day after Labor Day. 

Borders recently moved to Cortez with his family from Minnesota. He said he observed several dead bats every day starting on Monday in the bus lanes, school entrance and the gymnasium. 

Re-1 Superintendent Alex Carter said there are “a lot of bats in Colorado” right now for some reason. “It's a protected species,” he said. “You can't kill 'em.” 

He said that after a bat flew through a hallway and another one came in contact with a student but didn't bite her, the district decided to cancel school for the rest of the week. 

Carter said the situation “wasn't an emergency, but for safety reasons” it was probably best to send the students home. 

“We think they came in above the industrial arts room next to the gym,” Carter said. Officials believe there are five different bat colonies in the school. 

“We’ve had a few bats over the years, but nothing of this magnitude!” CMS Principal Jamie Haukeness said. 

Carter believes the bats haven't been there long because “there's not a huge amount of gauno.” 

The bats will be allowed to leave through openings that they originally entered. Then the openings will be sealed, Carter said. 

Bat Control employees will completely seal the building and “place a netting around the building that bat sonar picks up.” This should keep the bats away.

Banishing the bats from the school will cost the school district $24,500 that will come from its Emergency Capital Reserve Fund, which is used for building improvements, Carter said. He added that he was able to negotiate with the company and save the district $4,000 from Bat Control’s asking price. 

The service comes with a one-year warranty, he said. 

In the meantime, as bats are being booted, the middle school continues to deal with cooling issues. 

Math teacher Tommy Thompson said his room on the third floor has been above 80 degrees every morning when he gets there. “Seventh (final) hour is 90-degrees-plus,” he said. 

Lisa Baer, a digital language arts teacher, said her fourth-floor room is at least 93 degrees from 1:40 p.m. until the end of the school day. 

One positive about the heat is that her volleyball team gets to practice on the school lawn at 7 a.m. “It's actually kind of fun that we were on the grass” instead of in the gymnasium,” she said. 

https://the-journal.com/articles/8443-bats-drive-students-out-of-cortez-middle-school

Translating the Good Book: Couple's passion is in Ute and Bolivian work

By Caleb Soptelean Journal Staff Writer

Saturday, Sept. 29, 2012

Janice Lang Gallegos, 58, has been helping translate the Bible into the Ute language since 1986. 

One can call it a family affair 26 years in the making.

Her late mother, Elizabeth Marsh, and brother, Neal Lang, previously helped with the project. 

Gallegos’ brother, Wayne Marsh, 54, said he got involved because of his mother and grandfather, John Hammond Marsh, whom he described as “a strong Christian man who used to have a Bible in his hand wherever he went.”

Jack and Nola Shoemaker, 82 and 81 respectively, have facilitated the translations since 1986. The project has evolved over the years, starting with cassette tapes and DVDs, and has progressed to include video. 

“We’ve handed out a couple hundred copies of Luke and Genesis” on Ute reservations in Fort Duchesne and White Mesa, Utah, along with Ignacio and Towaoc, Jack Shoemaker said. So far they’ve translated the gospels of Mark, Luke, and John, the Acts of the Apostles, Galatians, James, Revelation, and the first three chapters of Genesis. 

A similar project was conducted in South America.

“We did the same type of work before in Bolivia,” he added, noting the Shoemakers first moved there in 1958. They started translating the Bible into native languages two years later. 

The Shoemakers, who volunteer for Wycliffe Bible Translators, worked with 15 native tribes in Bolivia. The experience had a lasting impact.

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“I still dream in that language,” Jack said, referring to “Ese ejja.” He remembers all the words. 

The Ute translation project is a time-consuming effort.

Approximately once a week, the Ute translations are done at the Shoemakers’ home 13 miles north of Durango in the Baker’s Bridge area. 

Jack noted that Nola grew up in Granada, located in southeast Colorado. She attended Cook Indian School of the Bible in Phoenix for several years. 

One of the keys to the project is knowing the language.

“She speaks Ute fluently,” Jack said. “Nola’s an amazing lady. She writes as fast in Ute as she does in English.” 

The couple travels to Towaoc each Sunday morning for worship. It’s a long drive but one worth the effort.

“They want us to come,” Jack said. 

On a recent Saturday in the Shoemakers’ home surrounded by pine trees, Towaoc residents Beverly Cuthair, her daughter Arlene and son-in-law Phillip Laner Jr. showed up to help with the voice-over video recordings, as did Ernie Price Jr. Floyd and Helena Morris usually help too, but weren’t there this day. 

Cuthair is a lay preacher at the Ute Mountain Presbyterian Church in Towaoc. She speaks at the bilingual Ute/English service once a month. 

Cuthair enjoyed her nieces and nephews while they played, while Nola served green tomato pie with ice cream and coffee. 

With joy, Jack described the Ute translation for “Holy Spirit” as “the supernatural good power which enters into those who walk with the Shepherd.” 

He’s still enthusiastic about the project.

“Learning these new ways of expression, I get more excited about it as time goes by,” he said. 

Jack, who was raised in Durango, reflects back on his time in Bolivia, where he did “pacification work” with jungle tribes. It was a study in patience and filled with adventure.

“I very slowly tried to win their confidence. It took 12 years to make peaceful contact (with one tribe).”

He recalled traveling in a canoe on the Beni River to meet a reclusive tribe, when the Sonene chief Pedro Machuque met him going the other way. The chief wanted to be taught how to read and write, and learn about medicine and the Creator. “He wanted his people to be delivered from fear, alcohol and anger,” said Jack, who converted the chief to Christianity, along with most of the tribe. 

“We’re a missionary family,” Jack said. “Our four sons were raised in the jungles of Bolivia (in the Amazon Basin).” 

After taking a break for an interview, Gallegos, Marsh and John Byrd from Wycliffe Bible Translators went back to work.

https://the-journal.com/articles/9087-translating-the-good-book