A couple of quick items for you this week: Centennial area projects that will get American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds and the 2009 Centennial Relay for Life update.
ARRA
First, CDOT and DRCOG have approved several projects for funding via the ARRA. These are just the projects that are in Centennial or very close by.
- C-470 from Santa Fe to I-25 – Concrete restoration ($33.1 million)
- University – Resurfacing between C-470 and Arapahoe Rd. ($2.8 million)
- Dry Creek Bike/Ped Bridge Extension – Construct 12 ft bike/ped bridge crossing Inverness Drive West south of Dry Creek Rd ($1.4 million)
- C-470 and Yosemite – New ramp metering ($0.125 million)
In addition, Littleton Public Schools will get about $3.9 million and the Cherry Creek School District will recieve $10.3 million. Of course, the whole state is in line to get other money associated with ARRA. For example, Colorado can get $128.3 million for unemployment insurance if it meets certain conditions. It is all very complicated and you can follow the money at these websites: http://www.recovery.gov (for federal info), http://www.colorado.gov/
RFL
On a different note, I attended the kickoff meeting for the Centennial Relay for Life on Tuesday. Centennial is working with the American Cancer Society to host a Relay for Life event at Arapahoe High School on the night of June 12th. Please consider forming a relay team, joing a team, or making a donation at http://www.CentennialRFL.com. This event is very near and dear to my heart. I am sure that for many of you, you have somehow been touched by cancer – either personally or by someone you love. This is a great event that celebrates those who are fighting cancer as well as their loved ones.
At Tuesday's kickoff, a young man whose mom is fighting cancer read the following passage about the Relay for Life that sums it up beautifully:
RELAY FOR LIFE starts at dusk and ends at the next day’s morning. The light and darkness of the day and night parallel the physical effects, emotions, and mental state of a cancer patient while undergoing treatment.
The RELAY begins when the sun is setting. This symbolizes the time the person has been diagnosed as having cancer. The day is getting darker and this represents the cancer patient’s state of mind as they feel that their life is coming to an end.
As the evening goes on it gets colder and darker, just as the emotions of the cancer patient do. Around 1:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. represents the time when the cancer patients start treatments. Some become exhausted, sick, not wanting to go on, possibly wanting to give up. As a participant, you have been walking and feel much the same way. You are tired, want to sleep, maybe even want to go home, but you cannot. You cannot stop or give up, just as the cancer patient cannot stop of give up.
4:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. symbolizes the coming of the end of treatment for the cancer patient. Once again, they are tired, but they know that they will make it.
The sun represents the end of treatment for the cancer patient. They see the light at the end of the tunnel and know that life will go on. The morning light brings on a new day full of life and excitement for new beginnings for the cancer patient. As a participant, you will feel the brightness of morning and know that the end of RELAY is close at hand.
When you leave RELAY, think of the cancer patient leaving their last treatment. Just as you are exhausted and weak, so is that person after treatment. But there is hope in the new day! The money raised at RELAY will support patient services, lifesaving research, prevention education and advocacy efforts…and that is why we RELAY!!!
