Image from the Scholastic Art Awards of Colorado website. Click to follow link.

Ralston Valley, as per usual, joined in the Scholastics Statewide Art Competition and, also as per usual, we did pretty well.

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is coordinated by The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, a not-for-profit organization.

Since 1923, program has fostered the creative development of teenagers across the country. This is done by identifying emerging artists for college scholarship consideration and by showing their work to a national audience.  So the kids named here are eligible for scholarships, I suppose.

Honorable mention goes to Brooke Lee with a drawing and Shannon Baker with a photo.

The Silver Key was won by Alyssa Schwartz and Allison Leitz for jewelry pieces, and Kelly Euser won two for a drawing and a painting respectively.

Sam Rucker and Chelsea Triolo both had outstanding drawings that won Gold Keys and will go on to participate in the National Championship in New York.  Good luck you two, and nice work!

While small donations do come in every day, it’s still not enough.  The root cause of the lack of donations this year has yet to be discovered, what’s important now is donating to this wonderful cause. These families are counting on the Colorado community to pull through. The organization has extended the deadline for delivery of toys from December 16^th to the 23^rd. To help or donate, call 303-801-0168 or to reach our local chapter and see what you can do visit http://www.macs23toysfortots.50megs.com/.

Falcon, Bradford, Ryo and Mayumi Heene arriving at their lawyer's office on Oct. 28. Photo courtesy of the Associated Press.

     The father of the 6-year-old “balloon boy”, Richard Heene, is going to plead guilty to attempting to influence a public servant. That’s a felony. His wife, a citizen of Japan, will plead guilty to reporting falsely to authorities. That’s a misdemeanor, and anything more would result in Mayumi Heene being deported.

     Criminal charges against Richard and Mayumi were announced today, the result of the Oct. 15 scare. Said charges do not include removing the couple’s three children (Bradford, Ryo and Falcon) from their custody. They do, however, include up to 90 days of jail time for Mr. Heene and 60 for the Mrs.

     Without this deal, Richard’s sentence could be anywhere from two to six years in prison and a fine of up to $500,000. Mayumi’s could have been six months in the county jail and up to $750. She is expected to serve jail time in a work-release program that would involve some detention and some time at home.

     On top of all the rest, the Federal Aviation Administration will be investigating the Heenes for another potential fine.

     The trial of Richard and Mayumi will be held tomorrow.

Written all over his face: Siebers's handiwork is very much visible.

Obviously, no one likes to go to work everyday, expecially on a Monday.  However, Aaron Siebers of Edgewater, Colorado, opted to stab himself instead of going to work at a Blockbuster video rental on Sheridan.

On the evening of November 2nd, Siebers stabbed himself in the leg in order to disguise a rip in his uniform pants caused by an earlier skateboarding accident.  He also lacerated his abdomen and face.  He then proceeded to go into work.  The police were called in and questioned Siebers, who stated that he had been attacked by three men wearing black.  The attack allegedly took place near a Target.

He was admitted to the hospital whilst police men from five different departments and police dogs searched for the attackers.  Upon reviewing Target security tapes, the police concluded the “victim” had falsified his story as there was no attack to be seen.

Siebers admitted to making up the violence so he wouldn’t have to attend work with a hole in his uniform or go without the pants and possibly be fired.  (Obviously he would wear different pants.)  He was charged with false reporting, which can be defined simply as lying to a police officer, and obstructing the police, as in the police could have been doing something important like pulling over speeders.

From left to right: Falcon, Richard, Mayumi, Bradford, and Ryan Heene. Photo courtesy of Reuters.

     NOTE: The views expressed in this piece are mine alone. This is an editorial, not to be confused with the opinion of the paper.

     What a petty act of insecurity. The Heene family got the nation sick over nothing.

     When six-year-old Falcon Heene made the comment that “we did this for a show,” everyone got suspicious. It didn’t help that he kept getting sick when the matter was brought up during interviews. Now the family is facing criminal charges.

     Sheriff Jim Alderden said that Falcon’s parents “put on a very good show for us, and we bought it.” He also said that they found evidence that the Heenes were trying to make themselves look like better marketing candidates for future television shows.

     While charges haven’t been filed yet, Alderden is expected to recommend several, among them being conspiracy and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Did you know that some of those charges could be up to six years in prison and a $500,000 fine? I didn’t. I hope Alderden enforces whatever he can.

     The Heenes are also looking at having child protective services taking away their kids. Nice.

     What I’d like to know is, was it really worth it? Richard and Mayumi Heene are potentially looking at thousands of dollars in fines, years in prison, and the loss of their three sons. Just what was so important that you had to risk it? Fame? Money? If you ask me, family is much more important than either of those. There must be something seriously wrong with this family.

     As for six-year-old Falcon and his brothers . . .  Some thing’s gotta give. We’ll see how the rest of this plays out.

The boy, Falcon Heene, who was thought to have been trapped in a balloon for two hours, with his father. Photo courtesy of the Associated Press.

     Could the two hour scare that swept through Colorado news be a fraud? Falcon Heene, a kid famous for his family’s appearances on Wife Swap, is being hard pressed to find out.

     The six-year-old, who was thought to be in his family’s homemade helium balloon yesterday, is being milked for answers about whether or not the event was staged. Richard Heene, the boy’s father, says that the accusations are “extremely pathetic.”

     People were suspicious when the story ran, but today things are only getting worse. The six-year-old at the center of all the drama said “we did this for a show,” and now he’s got everyone wondering.

     During the episode, Falcon said he had heard his family calling for him, but he wouldn’t come down because his father told him that the whole thing was “for a show.” Investigators say they don’t believe the ordeal to have been a fake, but they’re still asking questions just in case.

     Heene’s comment was made after hours of media pestering him, points out the Sheriff on the case. Investigators say that the Heene family looked to be truthful during the questioning.

     Heene told ABC that he was hiding “for a show” upon which he said he felt sick and could be heard throwing up in another room. During NBC’s Today, Heene did the same thing when his father was asked that question.

     Expect more soon.

This boy was thought to be riding in an experimental helium balloon. Photo courtesy of the Associated Press.

     A six-year-old from Boulder led police on a wild goose chase today: He was hiding in his family’s attic after being thought to have taken off in a helium balloon.

     When a homemade balloon exited the back yard of the home of the Heenes (the storm chaser family from ABC’s Wife Swap), DIA was temporarily shut down and military helicopters joined in the search for the little boy trapped in the balloon. The boy, Falcon Heene, was apparently at his house the entire time.

     Heene’s father, Richard, said the family had been working on the balloon prior to the scare. He had just gotten in trouble for climbing into the balloon, too. It would be easy to assume a six-year-old could still be in there, so that’s why there was such a frenzy.

     The balloon crashed to a landing in an open field. When Heene wasn’t found, the boy’s home was taped up as the scene of a crime.

    Six-year-old Heene was in the garage during the whole two hours of the scare. This is one crisis that didn’t end in tragedy, but rather in comedy.