Welcome to the 20th anniversary issue of Colorado Central Magazine. This is the 238th copy to roll off the presses, and with a little luck, we’ll be in the 400s in another 20 years.
But who would have thought, back in 1994, that news delivery would be impacted to such a degree by computers and electronic media? Back then, I was discovering the wonders of a Mac Centris 610 computer, but I never would have conceived that 20 years later, a small handheld device called an iPhone would have thousands of times more processor speed – and function as a camera, cell phone, internet device, etc.
Now I work on a 27” iMac with a 2.9 gigahertz processor and often start my day by perusing news websites from all around the world. Back in 1994, I had just moved back to Colorado from Seattle, and had set up shop running a custom photo processing lab, earning a modest living. That business model is now nearly obsolete, thanks to digital technologies. (The Kodak Company filed for bankruptcy in 2012.)
On the other hand, Colorado Central has gained nearly 60 new print subscribers in the past several months, which tells me it’s premature to be writing obituaries for the print publishing business, at least at this end. We do have a website, www.coloradocentralmagazine.com, one we hope to overhaul this coming year, and on it is nearly 16,000 pages of content – every article published since 1994, with new content added all the time. Although we have no intention of turning away from a print product, it would be unwise to ignore the electronic publishing revolution.
1994 was the year President Bill Clinton delivered his first State of the Union address, calling for health care reform, a ban on assault weapons, and welfare reform. Well, he got his welfare reform, but it took another 20 years before President Obama was able to sign into law the Affordable Care Act. At the Winter Olympics in Norway, an overzealous skater named Tonya Harding arranged to have a rival clubbed on the knee. U.S. troops were withdrawn from Somalia … and later invaded Haiti. A former NFL star runningback led L.A. police on a low-speed chase in his infamous white Ford Bronco. Closer to home, fourteen firefighters lost their lives in a tragic wildfire on Storm King Mountain in Garfield County, Colorado.
We decided to reproduce and revisit some of the content from that March 1994 issue, including the whimsical cover depicting Colorado pyramids, inspiring us to turn to our favorite surrealist painter in the region for our anniversary cover.
Both Martha Quillen and Peter Anderson revisit her first article about the efforts by some to construct a large pink pyramid near Crestone. We’ve also reprinted some of the early notes and commentary from that year. Former State Senator Linda Powers, whom Ed Quillen wrote about in the first issue, returns with an updated interview about her days as a legislator and what she’s up to now.
To us, those new subscribers mean we must continue the mission: to provide an informative and interesting magazine, while helping to build a sense of community for the Central Colorado region. And we plan to do just that. Thanks for reading! — Mike Rosso
