by Mark Smiley | Mar 1, 2018 | Feature Story Bottom Left
by Ruthy Wexler
Home Delivery: Part of what makes Longmont Dairy unique is the positive, loyal and individual way they treat employees, who tend to remain with the company. Workers are rewarded and celebrated for good performance; e.g., if route drivers have very low errors, they’ll earn free days off. Promotions are almost always done from within. LDF’s operation manager began as a route driver 14 years ago and worked his way up.
Co-Owners: Katie Herrmann and Dan Boyd, co-owners of Longmont Dairy Farm, pose with a variety of glass bottles, which their customers swear make the milk taste more delicious. Step-siblings, Katie and Dan, grew up working at Longmont Dairy. Both left Colorado to try their wings in other states and other jobs. Then, at coincidentally the same time, both decided to return home and enter the family business. In 2015, they bought in.
In the good old days, doctors made house calls, businesses answered phones and milk got delivered. Glendale itself was long called “Cowtown” due to the many dairies that used to be located there. But wait! Longmont Dairy — one of two remaining farms in Colorado that sells milk directly to customers — has just expanded into Cherry Creek, Glendale and Wash Park. Now residents in those neighborhoods can sign up to have bottles of fresh milk (and other products) delivered straight to their door.
Tradition!
“We’re very proud it’s only 48 hours, roughly, between the time our 550 cows are milked, and drivers get that milk to customers,” says Katie Herrmann, who, along with stepbrother Dan Boyd, is the third generation to run this family business.
Longmont Dairy began in 1965 when three fellows with experience in the dairy industry — Jim Boyd, Reese Boatman and Karl Obluda — bought a small herd of cows and built a processing plant behind the Boyds’ home in Longmont, Colo. By then, science had made milk from faraway dairies safe to drink, so increasing numbers were buying it in supermarkets. But the trio decided to create what they loved: an old-fashioned dairy.
By 1988, when Reese Boatman and Jim Boyd (remaining partners) retired, certain traditions had been established: producing the best possible product by feeding cows with the best quality grain and “serving customers beyond their expectations.”
Jim’s son David, along with his wife Susan (Herrmann’s mother), took over next. Although the couple modernized and grew the business substantially — reorganizing it as Longmont Dairy Farm, Inc. (LDF) — they kept what mattered, including home delivery, which had been almost entirely phased out across the country.
In 1991, a crisis arose: only one manufacturer of glass milk bottles remained in the U.S. Reluctantly, David and Susan began to explore other containers. Then — just as they were running out — their bottle cap supplier decided to produce the bottles.
Local
Herrmann and Boyd are aware they are carrying on a legacy.
Both grew up working at the dairy. Both left Colorado to figure out what they wanted from life — which, it turned out after some years, was to circle back home and buy into the business.
Despite opposite skill sets — Herrmann oversees marketing and customer service; Boyd’s in charge of the plant and trucks — they share one vision: to run Longmont Dairy with that same combination of business acumen and old-fashioned values.
Not the easiest balancing act — especially in a world where Amazon Fresh can deliver all your groceries almost immediately.
Longmont Dairy’s Own Cows: To maintain quality, they decided to offer milk produced by only their own cows and bottled in their plant. The cows are milked around the clock, the milk is sent from the farm to their processing plant where it is bottled within 24 hours. Then, at 10 p.m., the deliveries start, and milk is on the customers’ doorsteps before breakfast.
“Our hope,” says Herrmann, “is people will continue to support a local business that provides a premium product.”
Understanding Milk
“There are misconceptions about milk and labels,” Herrmann explains. “We give our cows high quality feed from local farmers. Our milk is very clean and natural. But since the herd’s feed is not ‘certified organic,’ and we do treat them with antibiotics when they’re sick, we can’t call our milk organic. However, we do not use supplemental growth hormones or steroids.
“People think if it’s not labeled organic, milk might contain antibiotics. Not possible. Because any residue of antibiotics in milk is illegal. Every day, we do a ‘snap test’ — and if there’s even a smidgeon of antibiotic residue, the entire tank is disposed of.”
Caps For Sale!
After Herrmann and Boyd began a Park Hill route two years ago, they began getting calls: when will you be in other Denver neighborhoods? That’s when they made plans to expand in this direction. “It’s much easier to open up a route next to an existing route,” explains Boyd. “But there are challenges. Our drivers are out at night. These new neighborhoods are denser than suburban areas, making that a bit tricky. But our drivers are tenacious, skilled and dependable.”
“Another challenge is that residents in new neighbo
Generations: Longmont Dairy Farm began as an “old fashioned dairy” with clear values: giving customers the best possible product along with service beyond expectation. Those values have been handed down and honored by family members. Here are three generations together: left to right, top row: Katie Herrmann, Dan Boyd, David Boyd (Dan’s father, Katie’s stepfather), Susan Boyd (Katie’s mother); front row: Jim Boyd (who has since passed away), one of the three men who started the business in 1965.
rhoods aren’t familiar with what makes us different,” adds Herrmann. “Like our core values, protecting the environment with reusable bottles and recyclable caps. And giving back to communities.”
Longmont Dairy not only partners with local charities and organizations and gives milk to two Ronald MacDonald houses, they help hundreds of schools with their Milk Caps for MOOOLA program.
Any school within LDF’s delivery area can sign up. They set up a box for all the LDF bottle caps students collect and Longmont pays five cents for each cap. To date, 5 million caps have been turned in and Longmont has given schools over $250,000.
“It’s the easiest way to earn money for your school,” enthuses Jenny Kahn, secretary at the William Roberts K-8 School in Stapleton. “With Longmont’s check, we created a scholarship fund for the 8th grade trip. Plus, the kids were aware they were helping the environment.”
Local Goodness
Former Cowtown: Glendale throughout much of its history has been a booming town by adopting whatever Denver rejects. At the beginning of the 20th century Denver regulated out of business many of its dairy operations which Glendale welcomed with such open arms that the city became known as Cowtown.
Caps can be returned from any LDF bottle, including half & half, chocolate milk, eggnog and “protein milk.” Longmont’s products have grown in variety, but the emphasis remains local — or natural. “Eggs, from a farm north of Fort Lupton,” lists Herrmann. “Granola and oatmeal from Wheatridge. Cheese from Oregon. Mary Mountain Cookie Dough from Fort Collins …”
Several “new, really exciting” products will soon be added, “after our plant expansion,” says Herrmann. “But we’re not revealing what they are until early summer. We want our customers to be surprised.”
For more information, call 303-776-8466 or visit www.longmontdairy.com.
by Mark Smiley | Mar 1, 2018 | Feature Story Middle Left
by Monica Heinrichs
Meat continues to rank at the top of America’s choices for protein; however, more and more people are considering plant-based proteins as a real option for their health. Plant-based nutrition, also known as vegetarianism or veganism, has been on the forefront of nutrition studies for several years now. Time and time again, these studies are showing that plant-based diets, specifically protein sources, are exceeding the benefits of those proteins that are animal-based. Plant-based nutrition can maximize intake of essential nutrients, often missing from a meat-based diet. Vitamin E, heart-healthy omega-3 fat, folate, and maybe most important, dietary fiber are all increased with a plant-based diet.
If you have ever considered adding in more plant-based proteins and limiting meat-based proteins, here are some things you should consider.
- Take things gradually. Although there are many benefits to adding more plant-based choices into your diet, it is important to take it slow. This same tip goes hand-in-hand with working out. If you are new to working out, you should start slow and increase difficulty as you see progress. When it comes to nutrition, it is important to consider how your body is reacting to any dietary changes. Don’t eliminate meat out of nowhere, and then load up on salads for a week. Allow your body time to adjust, and adapt, to the new foods you introduce.
- Focus on Health. It should be noted that plant-based diets also include things like potato chips and dark chocolate. This is not to say that these things cannot be eaten, but the goal of a plant-based diet is to increase foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes. Eating only potato chips is technically eating plant-based, but it won’t give you the strength to hit the gym.
- Be prepared to eat more. Working out requires taking in enough calories. If you typically eat meat and breads, you don’t have to eat very much before you reach your daily calorie limit. This is because oil and fat are calorically dense. On the other hand, vegetables, fruits, nuts and legumes are high in nutrients but low in calories. This means, if you choose to add more plant-based proteins into your diet, and remove meat, you will need to eat more plant-based foods throughout the day!
- Expect better recovery. Vitamin E aids in disease prevention of the heart and blood vessels as well as improving physical and muscular endurance. Vitamin E can increase your energy and reduce levels of stress on your muscles after you exercise. Less soreness, yay! Nuts and seeds are some of the best sources of vitamin E. Mangoes, avocados, and butternut squash are also great sources. Adding these plant-based foods into your eating habits surrounding your workouts can aid in faster recoveries and help your muscles and joints feel stronger.
- Be flexible. If you choose to add more plant-based foods, and remove meat, you will need to be flexible and alter your diet as you go to keep feeling your best. Experiment with what you eat, when you eat, and how it affects your performance. You may find you have more energy for workouts in the morning, or you may be at your best before or after a snack. Remain open to different solutions and make adjustments as needed.
Combining more plant-based foods and your workouts can be done effectively, with these considerations. Protein rich nuts, seeds, and legumes are great options for improvements in muscle growth and provide additional vitamins and minerals. Overall, eating more plant-based foods can help you rethink your approach to food. The trick is to listen to your body and eat nutritiously.
Monica Henrichs is the Health and Wellness Director at the Glendale Sports Center. She is originally from Wisconsin and is a Green Bay Packers fan. She is a certified Personal Trainer, Health Coach, and Group Fitness Instructor with eight years of experience working with all types of people toward their health and fitness goals.
Monica Heinrichs
by Mark Smiley | Mar 1, 2018 | Uncategorized
Are you Irish, me lads and me lassies? Well, the saying goes everyone is a little Irish on St. Patrick’s Day (March 17). More than 34 million Americans are of Irish descent. That’s almost nine times the population of Ireland! The Spring Vernal Equinox brings days and nights in equal proportions just three days following St. Paddy’s Day.
From the West’s biggest Irish parade to shamrock and leprechaun symbols, the Valley becomes the Emerald Isle for a weekend celebrating Irish custom and traditions.
Here are our fairytale and folklore choices for shopping, dining and entertainment to keep you marching toward spring without soothsayers or winter holding you back:
3 Following a week of events beginning March 1, the highly anticipated Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art’s new building in the Golden Triangle opens to the public March 10. Information: 303-832-8576.
3 Catch Amy Dickinson’s speech at Florence Crittenton’s 125th dinner in the Hilton City Center March 8, 5:30 p.m. Information: 720-423-8913.
3 Treat the kids to the Denver Children’s Theatre fairytale production of Sleeping Beauty March 8-May 4 at the JCC. Information: 303-316-6360.
3 If you missed the DYAO Spectacular at Gates the Young Artist Orchestras play again at Boettcher March 12, 2:30 p.m. Information: 303-871-7720
3 Make fitness fun this year at Glendale’s JCC Fitness-Wellness Center newly outfitted with an array of equipment, a small group-training studio, plus renovated locker rooms. Open to everyone. Information: 303-316-6300.
3 Lamb historically is the Easter-Spring meat of choice. Enjoy the classic fresh flavor of spring lamb slowly roasted outside on rotisseries at the Monaco Inn Restaurant April 1, 12-8 p.m. Information: 303-320-1104.
3 Vote for best dish at Great Chefs of the West EXDO Center event March 15, 6 p.m. benefiting the Kidney Foundation. Information: 720-748-9991.
3 Journey to the Hyatt Regency Convention Center for Junior League of Denver’s fundraiser on March 23, 6 p.m. Information: 303-692-0270.
3 Hoop it up for March Madness at National Jewish Health’s Hoops & Hoopla March 31, 3:30-9:30 p.m. Watch both games of the Men’s College Basketball Semifinals in Glendale’s Infinity Park Event Center with wrap-around screens. Attendees enjoy a gourmet buffet, open bar, silent auction plus Basketball Pop-A-Shot and casino-arcade games. A benefit for the Morgride Academy for chronically ill kids. Information: 303-728-6576.
As March Madness teams bid and fans bet on who will play in NCAA’s Big Dance basketball playoffs consider that March 14 is National Pi Day. Pi is a mathematical concept and a number that never ends. Albert Einstein was born March 14, 1879. Perhaps the sequence created Pi Day or maybe it was the bounce of a basketball.
Nearly every day in March warms to over 40 °F. Moreover, the Valley averages three days during the month when the thermometer reaches into the 70s, or higher.
Indoors or out, no one relaxes in March due to wind and taxes. But St. Patrick’s Day is about looking forward to better days. Even if you remember to wear green on March 17, you’ll still get a “pinch” of humor from this Irish thought: What do you get when you cross a four-leaf clover with poison ivy: A rash of St. Paddy’s Day good luck!
— Glen Richardson
The Valley Gadfly can be reached at newspaper@glendalecherrycreek.com.
by Mark Smiley | Mar 1, 2018 | Editorials
Denver media recently hyped that the eating and entertainment district along Cherry Creek near Virginia Avenue known as Glendale 180 is once again right around the corner. Channel 7 News declared that the “city could break ground as early as next year.”
Deputy City Manager Chuck Line is quoted in a February 19, 2018, story in The Denver Post about the project: “Before, we were barely getting out of the driveway, and now we’re definitely driving down the interstate.”
Oh, pleaseeeeee! Members of this Editorial Board were instrumental in envisioning The Glendale Riverwalk which was later retitled Glendale 180 as far back as 2003. Since then, every few years the city has publicly announced that a groundbreaking would occur in the next 12 to 18 months.
Of course, it is not entirely the city’s fault. After an announcement that the city was envisioning building a Riverwalk modeled after the one in San Antonio, Texas, Mohammad Ali Kheirkhahi and his family who own Authentic Persian and Oriental Rugs rushed out and outbid the city for the 3.8 acres of developable land fronting Colorado Boulevard from longtime owner Jimmy O’Connor.
Grossly overpaying for the land, Kheirkhahi and his family apparently hoped to hold up the city for over three times what they paid for it. When the city declined, they went out and asserted the city was threatening eminent domain and organized potentially violent marches with the para-military groups like the Oath Keepers and others in an attempt to cow the City Council.
When that failed, the rug merchants brought a series of highly expensive lawsuits utilizing some of the most expensive lawyers in Colorado and the nation to stop any d
evelopment on land other than theirs. Having lost those lawsuits after spending hundreds of thousands of dollars, Kheirkhahi and his kin have filed numerous questionable ethics complaints with the highly dubious Independent Ethics Commission.
But the rug merchants may have finally outsmarted themselves. At their request the Kheirkhahi land was excluded out of Glendale’s Downtown Development Authority. Thus any development on their land cannot by law receive any tax increment financing. Because of that fact Kheirkhahi’s land is now worth a great deal less to any potential purchaser.
Having beaten back the rug merchant’s vicious attempts to destroy Glendale 180, the city has now entered into a Development Agreement with the highly regarded Lincoln Properties. But that is only the first step, and not the last, in getting Glendale 180 to become a reality. The next crucial step is agreeing to a “Financing Agreement” whereby the parties concur on how to pay for everything. Many a project in Colorado has died due to disagreements on who and how everything is going to be paid.
If that huge hurdle can be overcome, Lincoln Properties must submit a Site Plan for the land which would meet the public’s approval and garner a majority of the City Council. Even if that is obtained there is no assurance that the bonds and other financing instruments envisioned by the “Financing Agreement” can be successfully marketed. That will in part depend on how Colorado’s economy is doing when the city goes to the financial markets.
Thus, with all due respect to Mr. Line, we are afraid the city is hardly cruising along the highway to the destination of a completed project but rather Glendale has but simply left the driveway. When a “Financing Agreement” has been signed and a “Site Plan” approved, talk of a possible groundbreaking ceremony becomes viable, but even then, by no means assured.
We will let our readers know from time to time how Glendale and Lincoln Properties are doing regarding their goal of getting to a completed project. Excessive hype in the early stages of an actual project is not always helpful. Congratulations to Glendale and Lincoln Properties on the Development Agreement, but a great deal of hard rowing still awaits all involved.
— Editorial Board
