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The Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved a contract for services with St. Thomas More Hospital to open the Fremont County Sobering Center. The center will open the first week of November.

Four public hearings brought little citizen comment as the Board of County Commissioners approved a quarry, an outfitter business, a fire protection garage, and a zone change during the May 23 meeting.

Yevoli Cobblestone Pit, located southeast of Florence, received a Conditional Use Permit to quarry and haul stone. A maximum of 10 trucks per day are allowed during the operating hours of 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Tom Massey, deputy executive director for the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Finance, right, presents a certificate to Steve Clifton, Fremont County Department of Human Services Director. (Photo courtesy Carie Canterbury, Cañon City Daily Record)

Long-time Fremont County Department of Human Services Director Steve Clifton recently received high recognition from the state.

Joining a national effort to raise awareness about this important issue, the Fremont County Commissioners proclaimed April 2017 as Fremont County Child Abuse Prevention Awareness Month during the regular Board meeting on Tuesday, March 28.

Mick Stumph of the Fremont County Department of Human Services appeared before the Board to read the proclamation and ask for Commissioner support.

Fremont County Department of Public Health & Environment (FCDPHE) began distributing Naloxone to the local community on Feb. 8. Distribution and screening is on a confidential, appointment only basis. Naloxone (also known as Narcan®) is a safe and effective prescription medicine that reverses an opioid overdose, which can be caused by prescription analgesics (e.g., Percocet, OxyContin), and heroin. Naloxone will only reverse an opioid overdose, it does not prevent overdose deaths caused by other drugs such as benzodiazepines (e.g.

Four Fremont County elected officials met with Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman and members of her staff to discuss addiction issues in rural communities. The Feb. 7 meeting also included other community leaders from the court system, treatment agencies, and medical personnel.

General Coffman said they were on a “listening tour” and asked to hear local concerns and successes surrounding addiction, particularly the rise in opioid and other prescription addiction.