Yesterday Salida School Superintendent David Blackburn sent an open letter to students and parents.

March 25, 2020
Dear Families,

Please be aware that the Governor issued “stay at home” orders this afternoon.  While it may not change the next few days inside the school buildings, it will have repercussions for many of our families.  The board recognized this growing financial need and joined with others to help seed the Chaffee County Emergency Relief Fund.  Those dollars are potentially for you and your family.  Read more about that opportunity here: https://www.chaffeecommunity.org/erf

In addition, there are 5 validated positive cases of COVID 19 in our community.  That number will grow.  I am sorry to report that our food program will be cancelled for at least Thursday and Friday.  We have to clarify what the implications are of this new stay at home order, and we have a need to clarify what additional protections are necessary beyond social distancing to protect the food workers. We will hope to have food available for pickup again, by Monday the 30th.

The noise continues to grow as we watch the news.  I wanted you to be aware of how I will be making my decisions through the remainder of the week.  Today the Governor gave the stay at home orders.  Tomorrow I have a conference call for Superintendents only with the Governor and Commissioner of Education.  I then have a leadership meeting on Friday morning.  Coming out of that meeting I hope to be able to give clear updates on what we can expect the following week.  I know I have a lot of questions, making me assume many of you do as well.  Look for an update on Friday, and I hope that I have increased clarity to share.

We will get through this.  Thanks for being a flexible and supportive community.  Be sure to extend grace to those around you.  No one has ever done this before, and some of our personalities are better attuned to managing these changes.

Respectfully,

David Blackburn
Superintendent

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Dan R

Danny “Dan R” Ridenour has been in radio and television broadcasting for over 40 years, starting as a senior in high school in Rogers, Arkansas. His radio career has had stops in Nashville, Memphis, Oklahoma, and eventually, Colorado. Dan enjoys being involved in the community, having been a member of the Upper Arkansas Service Club and is currently on the board of directors for the Salida Community Center and is a member of the Chaffee County Fair Committee. He and his wife Carrie spend their days doing everything the mountains have to offer: hiking, camping, fishing and skiing. They've raised 3 children and have 2 grandchildren.

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