Good Morning, Golden! We made it through the spring snowstorm—and now it’s onward to bluer skies, greener lawns…and okay, maybe a few thunderstorms too. This week, we’re tipping our (recycled) hats to Earth Day—so go ahead and recycle those pesky hard-to-recycle materials, snag some secondhand garden gear, or lend a hand with Jeffco Open Space. There are plenty of ways to celebrate, and stick around to the end for a sweet slice of Golden history. (Spoiler: 🍬 it’s Jolly!)

In today’s issue:

• 🌎️ Celebrate Earth Day

• 📌 Bulletin Board

• 🍻 Weekly Trivia

• 🚸 Kids Corner

• 📆 Events This Week & Upcoming

• 🎵 Live Music

• 🔎 Around Golden: The Birthplace of Jolly Ranchers

🌎️ Celebrate Earth Day

While not all in Golden, here are some local-ish ways to reduce, reuse, and give back!

REUSE

• Resource Central Earth Day Sale: Landscaping Stones, Planters, Garden Tools, & More (4/22 @ 9am-5pm) - Head to their materials reuse facility for deals on your garden supplies.

• Movement Golden’s Earth Day Rendezvous Event (4/22 @ 4-8pm) - Don’t just climb…come repot plants and exchange plant cuttings and used clothing/gear. Some light refreshments, snacks, some gardening pots, & a few plant cuttings will be available, but BYOS (bring your own soil)!

RECYCLE

• Free Earth Day Electronics Recycling at Leevers Locavore (4/22 11am-2pm) - Bring in your televisions, computers, monitors, and small electronics (iPod, iPad, hard drives, etc) to be responsibly recycled by a certified and secure end-of-life electronic waste specialist.

• The City of Golden has an entire list of Hard-to-Recycle Materials with links to places you’re able to recycle them!

VOLUNTEER

• Earth Day Volunteering with Jeffco Open Space (4/26 @ 9am-1:30pm) - Volunteer Project at Van Bibber Park.

📌 Bulletin Board

🌳 CITY FEEDBACK: SimCity Edition - The Heart of Golden project wants your feedback on the East End and Lions Park amenities: playgrounds, bathrooms, “sportsball” zones (a highly technical term), event spaces, and more. It’s like real life SimCity, where you have a say on where to place that new crosswalk to ensure the safety of Sim residents! Place your pins on the map by April 30th!

🐈️ Foothills Animal Shelter is in urgent need of donated blankets! - Machine washable, used or new, but no comforters. Anything purchased via Amazon or Chewy can be shipped to 580 McIntyre Street, Golden, CO or brought into the shelter during business hours (10am-5pm).

🥚 Egg Cartons Needed for BGOLDN food pantry! - Drop off your used egg cartons at BGOLDN pantry located at 17455 W 16th Ave, Golden (Tues 12-4, Wed 11-3, Thurs 9-1 & 3:30-6:30, Fri 11-4).

🌱 Replace your lawn & get entered to win - Submit your lawn removal application by 4/30 & get entered to win a $200 Garden in a Box gift card.

🎓️ OnTap Credit Union College Scholarships - Dream big…but with less debt. Students must apply by May 5.

🧖 The sauna at the Golden Community Center is back up and running! Back to turning yourself into a human dumpling! 🥟

🍻 Weekly Trivia

• Tues - The Golden Mill @ 6:30pm

• Tues - Buffalo Rose Sky Bar @ 6:30pm

• Tues - Atomic Cowboy @ 7:00pm

• Wed - Over Yonder @ 6:00pm

• Wed - Holidaily @ 6:30pm

🚸 Kids Corner

Kid friendly events (more details in Upcoming Events below):

• 🖊️ Crafting Your Story in Art for Teens at Foothills Art Center (4/25 @ 6pm)

• 🏃 SOAR 5K Run (4/26 @ 8-10am)

• 🎟️ Free Admission to the Golden Community Center (4/26 @ 9am-1pm)

• 🌳 Celebrate Arbor Day with City of Golden’s Forestry Team (4/26 @ 11am-1pm)

• 🎨 JeffCo Nature Journal Club: Intro to Watercolor (4/26 @ 1pm)

📆 Events This Week & Upcoming

MONDAY (4/21)

• 🧠 The Brain-Body Connection: Metabolism and Mental Wellness (4/21 @ 6pm) - “Discover how your metabolic health shapes your energy, focus, and mood—and learn simple steps to take control.” FREE food from Sherpa House, but must RSVP for the event ➡️ here.

• 🎵 Soundcheck Music Bingo at Buffalo Rose (4/21 @ 6:30pm) - Music from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, & 2000s. FREE to join & prizes every round.

TUESDAY (4/22) - EARTH DAY 🌎

• 🥃 Whiskey on Washington (4/22 @ 5:30pm) - A whiskey & food pairing experience at Buffalo Rose

• 💄 Lip Balm Formulating at Earth Sweet Boutique (4/22 @ 6pm) - Make 4 lip balms while learning the benefits of different waxes, butters, and oils.

• 🎨 Paint & Sip at Holidaily Brewing (4/22 @ 6pm) - Purchase tickets ➡️ here.

WEDNESDAY (4/23)

• 🎤 A Capella Concert at Mines (4/23 @ 7pm) - Three ensembles and several small groups will perform at Bunker Auditorium (Green Center; 924 16th St)

THURSDAY (4/24)

• 💛 BGOLDN Spring Event at The Golden Mill (4/24 @ 5-8pm) - Live music, sushi, bike tunes, drawings, and more. “This special giveback day will help feed our neighbors in Golden.”

• 🌸 Herbal Bitters for Healthy Digestion Class at Earth Sweet Boutique (4/24 @ 6pm) - “…learn how to make and use herbal bitters to improve your digestion and cleanse your liver.“

FRIDAY (4/25)

• 🖊️ Crafting Your Story in Art for Teens at Foothills Art Center (4/25 @ 6pm) - Open to all middle and high school students that want to be creative using collage

• 💃 Salsa Social Cuban Style (4/25 @ 7:45pm) - No partner. No problem. Join for a night of Cuban Salsa.

SATURDAY (4/26)

• 🏃 SOAR 5K Run (4/26 @ 8-10am) - Kids run for FREE, and there will be kids events like a 4H drop-in program and face painting. All proceeds go directly to the Welchester PTA, which helps pay for things like field trips, playground equipment, and community events for Golden’s only Title 1 school.

• 🎟️ Free Admission to the Golden Community Center (4/26 @ 9am-1pm) - A preschool open house, live Zumba and dance demonstrations, a history of Golden presentation, and a pottery demonstration. Plus the Golden Fire Dept will be there offering kids the opportunity to climb aboard. It’s a celebration of Marv Kay Day.

• 🏃 Parent Run Club (4/26 @ 10:30am) - Meet at Unite Fitness for a ~4 mile trail run.

• 🌳 Celebrate Arbor Day with City of Golden’s Forestry Team (4/26 @ 11am-1pm) - This free, family-friendly event at the Golden Cemetery is the perfect opportunity for tree lovers of all ages to connect with nature and learn from Golden’s certified arborists. Take a self-guided tour through our tree nursery and even take home a free seedling (while supplies last).

• 🎨 JeffCo Nature Journal Club: Intro to Watercolor (4/26 @ 1pm) - Bring your supplies and join this free event for all ages.

• 🍺 Shakedown Street Art Market at Over Yonder Brewing (4/26 @ 2-6pm) - Sip and shop local artists. Live music at 6pm.

• 🥃 Copper & Cocktails at State 38 Distilling (4/26 @ 4pm) - Create bracelets with metalwork while sipping cocktails

• 🧘 Spring Soundbath at PranaTonic (4/26 @ 6:30-7:30pm) - “This is a beautiful opportunity to slow down, allowing ourselves some space to rest.”

SUNDAY (4/27)

• 🌹 Free Rose Pruning Demonstration & Workshop (4/27 @ 9:30am) - Free annual workshop to learn how to prune roses. Bonus: you can snag some fertilizer while you’re there.

• 🧡 Mimosa Sunday at Deep Roots Winery (4/27 @ 11am-3pm) - Because mimosas are $5, and it’s Sunday.

• 🧘 Yoga and Sound Bath by the Creek at The Golden Hotel (4/27 @ 10am) - “We will embark on a 55 minute yoga flow followed by a 20 minute sound bath experience.” Reserve your ticket for $35 ➡️ here.

Upcoming Events:

• 🐈 Celebration of Travel Cats at New Terrain Brewing (4/29 @ 5-8pm) - Bring your cat backpack, stroller, or carrier to celebrate TRAVEL CATS with some limited edition cat glassware benefiting Cat Care Society who will be on site with adoptable cats.

• 📚️ Monthly Book Club at Cannonball Brewing (4/29 @ 6pm) - Looking to meet new friends? Ladies, come join the conversation! This month’s book: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

• 🚲️ Biking the Blue Marble Talk with Ted Eliason at New Terrain Brewing (4/30 @ 6pm) - Get your ticket, support a good cause, and learn about a journey of 50,000 miles.

• 🍞 Herbal Sourdough Class at Earth Sweet Boutique (5/1 @ 6pm) - Learn how to make sourdough and understand the different herbs and foods that can be added to your loaves.

• 🛶 Outdoor Adventure Expo at The Eddy Hotel (5/3 @ 11am-3pm) - Check out 14 local outdoor vendors.

• 🎤 Golden Concert Choir Performance (5/3 @ 4pm) - Get tickets to this community choir springtime performance at Calvary Episcopal Church.

• 🎭️ Shakespeare in a Parking Lot (5/10 @ 12pm) - See Romeo & Juliet FREE in the parking lot of JeffCo Library (8485 Kipling St, Arvada, CO).

• 🐶 Watering Bowl Social at Foothills Animal Shelter (5/14 @ 5:30pm) - Drinks, music, food, shelter tours, and a silent action. Each ticket provides spay/neuter services, vaccinations, and microchipping for one shelter pet.

• ⚔️ Star Wars Family Concerts with Jefferson Symphony Orchestra (5/18 @ 1pm & 4pm) - Come in costume and save $5 to this 55-minute family concert. Located at Mine’s Green Center (924 16th St).

🎵 Live Music

• Wed @ 6pm, Miner’s Saloon - (Performer announced the day of)

• Thurs @ 5pm, The Golden Mill - Taylor Frederick

• Thurs @ 6pm, New Terrain Brewing - The Pickpockets

• Fri @ 5:30pm, Barrels & Bottles - Andy Eppler

• Sat @ 6:30pm, Goosetown Station - Riding Carpets

• Sun @ 2pm, The Golden Mill - Alibi

🔎 Around Golden: The Birthplace of Jolly Ranchers

The Harmsens, creators of the Jolly Rancher candy—yes, the ones that so famously stain your tongue—are entrepreneurs after my own heart. Bill was a Continental Airlines pilot with big business dreams, and after moving to Wheat Ridge from Minnesota, he and his wife Dorothy transformed their Colorado farm into a hub of creativity. Dorothy grew flowers and fruit, sold them around Denver, and even launched a woodworking shop in their barn before the pair opened their very first ice cream store right here in Golden.

That 1949 shop, tucked under the “Howdy Folks” arch on Washington Avenue, would become the birthplace of a candy empire. Rainy summers and melting margins led them to add boxed chocolates and a cinnamon taffy stick that became a runaway hit—later known as the Fire Stix. Candy soon outpaced ice cream, and the Harmsens converted their barn into a full-fledged candy factory, launching what would become Jolly Rancher. Though production moved away long ago, the brand’s roots—and the Harmsens’ resourceful, sugar-fueled spirit—remain a proud part of Golden’s history.

Source: Golden History Museum

THANKS!

And that’s a wrap on this week’s roundup! As always, if you spot something quirky, cool, or community-worthy around town—hit reply and send it my way OR fill out this form!

Until next time! ✨

Answer: A. Neil Armstrong landing on the moon in 1969 (source)