Voices of Western Colorado: Celebrate

Sarah Shrader is the co-owner and founder of Bonsai Design in Grand Junction. Photo by Cat Mayer.

SARAH SHRADER

“For me, the word celebrate means being grateful for where we live. We choose to live in the Grand Valley because of the unsurpassed access to recreation on public lands. Each season means a new focus for our family; in the spring, we enjoy sunrise runs on local trails and look forward to the Grand Junction Off Road. Summers are spent in the high country, climbing 14ers, floating the river and camping with friends. Fall brings hunting season, rock climbing and high school mountain bike races. Ski season consumes our weekends in the winter with our local treasures at Powderhorn and the incredible Nordic trails on the Grand Mesa. We are so lucky to grow our business and our family in this incredible place. There is no better way to celebrate being alive than spending time outside with our friends and family.” 

Jessica and Scott Washkowiak own Field to Fork Farm in Palisade.

JESSICA WASHKOWIAK

“When we hear the word celebrate as organic farmers, we think about cooking good food with family and friends. During the summer months, we like to freeze and preserve as much as possible to enjoy through the holidays. My mom made pies every holiday season and we brought them to our teachers and friends. Those memories in the kitchen are so special. Now that we grow our own apples and peaches, I make those pies during the holidays. Eating a warm, fresh fruit pie and enjoying the fruits of our labor on a cold winter’s night is a well-deserved celebration. We all know the day-to-day grind can get you in a funk, but when you take time to cook for the ones you care about, even just a simple fruit pie, the grind is much easier. For us on the farm, our slowest time is during the holidays. We enjoy having this time to spend celebrating and carrying on family traditions.” 

Jeff Steele is a graphic artist, print broker and local musician.

JEFF STEELE 

“In our current culture of political tribalism, social media outrage and ever-increasing racial divides, we often forget that we are dealing with real people with real feelings and real opinions. We focus so much on what makes others different from us that we forget to celebrate the things that make us the same. We all love our children and our families. We all enjoy a good meal with close friends. We all want a better world, fewer financial worries and justice for the innocent. If we took even half the time we spend complaining about our differences and spent it celebrating our commonalities, we could heal our social wounds nearly overnight. We could have productive conversations. We could compromise. We could open our minds to the ideas of others, begin to understand their perspectives and maybe, just maybe, we could all just get along.”