SUMMIT COUNTY - Gov. Bill Ritter on Wednesday announced the appointment of Mark Duncan Thompson of Breckenridge as Fifth District Court judge, according to a press release from Ritter's office.
Thompson, who's a shareholder of Breckenridge law firm West, Brown, Huntley and Thompson, was selected among three finalists to fill the seat Judge Terry Ruckriegle vacated Aug. 31.
Thompson has been with the firm since 1999 and his practice has consisted of construction litigation, property litigation and general civil litigation. He is the co-author of Chapter 27 of the Practitioner's Guide to Colorado Construction Law, according to Law Week Colorado at www.lawweekonline.com.
He received his bachelor's degree from Bates College in Maine in 1989 and his law degree from the University of Denver in 1992, when he began practicing law.
Ruckriegle served on the bench for 26 years before retiring.
For a district court judge, the initial term of office is two years. Afterward, voters dec

Today, the Colorado Coalition for Genocide Awareness and Action [CCGAA] 'Ride Against Genocide' will be in Breckenridge at 2:15 p.m. at the Blue River Plaza.

The Ride Against Genocide educational tour is stopping in more than 20 towns throughout Colorado to increase awareness of, and promote advocacy against genocide. Tour volunteers will offer tools for people to take action against crimes in Darfur.

The four-day tour will cover more than 1,500 miles, beginning in Denver, traveling through Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Trinidad, Walsenburg and Alamosa the first day. The second day included brief stops in Durango, Ignacio and Montrose.

The third day the van continued on to Gunnison, Grand Junction, Rifle, Glenwood Springs and Aspen. The fourth day included stops in Vail, Breckenridge, Evergreen, Golden and Denver.

BRECKENRIDGE - The man accused of burglarizing Mountain Outfitters three times earlier this year has accepted a plea bargain with the District Attorney's office and awaits sentencing.
Jason Roger Oberg, who was 23 when the events occurred, was arrested in March early one morning near the scenes of burglaries at both Primo Outdoors and Mountain Outfitters in downtown Breckenridge.
He was taken to a local hospital after he ran from police and had a violent encounter with a sheriff's office canine.
The original charges against Oberg included four counts of burglary and two counts of theft - each class IV felonies punishable by two to six years in prison and fines of $2,000 to $500,000.
Misdemeanors against him included cruelty to animals, theft, resisting arrest, obstructing a law animal and two counts of criminal mischief, District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said.
The plea agreement has Oberg facing a Sept. 20 sentencing on one count of burglary and two coun

SUMMIT COUNTY - The newly formed Summit Education Foundation wasted no time in pursuing its mission to support local schools: The local parent-led nonprofit, formed in May, made its first donation last week, totaling $24,000.
Summit School District officials will divide the inaugural contribution among all its schools on a per-student basis, at the organization's request.
Breckenridge resident Chris Renner founded the organization in the spring, when the school district was in the process of cutting the 2010-2011 budget due to declining revenues. Renner said parents and other community members have so far either pledged or donated a total of $40,000, with many donating by monthly subscription.
Money from the recent donation will primarily fund classroom supplies.
"What Chris and the foundation worried about was teachers having to spend money out of their own pockets for supplies in their classrooms," Summit Schools superintendent Millie Hamner said.
When Re

BRECKENRIDGE - Town officials are looking for local volunteers for a committee of marketing experts to advise town council on promotional strategy.
"This is rolling up sleeves and getting into the marketing plan - into the spend," town Councilman Mike Dudick said Tuesday.
The marketing committee is to help guide the council on advertising, events and promotion of the town as a year-round resort with the intent of preserving the community's economic vitality.
Applicants for the seven-member committee must be electors or hold business licenses in town, and have previous marketing experience.
Three members must be owners, operators or employees of lodging businesses in town; one must own, operate or be employed by a local restaurant or retail business, and two members are to be selected at-large. The final member will be chosen from town council.
Town spokeswoman Kim DiLallo said the council member will help give committee members an idea of council

SUMMIT COUNTY - Rep. Jared Polis, who represents Summit County, will make stops at two local coffee shops Wednesday to meet with constituents.
While residents are welcome to discuss their views on any topic, economic issues have top billing.
"Anybody who comes in can talk about anything they want, but jobs and the economy have been the hot topic lately," Polis spokeswoman Lara Cottingham said.
Both meetings will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 1 - 9 a.m. at Abbey's Coffee, 720 Main St., Frisco; and 3:30 p.m. at Clint's Bakery and Coffee, 131 S. Main St., Breckenridge.
Among Polis's job-creation efforts is legislation that would encourage investment in small-scale solar energy projects across the U.S.
"The Solar EDGE Act will boost the American solar industry, maintain America's leadership in a technology we created, and promote a surge of new clean energy investment that will fuel job creation and drive down consumer energy pric

SUMMIT COUNTY - Kindergarten, a rite of passage for local kids and their parents, started last week, marking 5- and 6-year-olds' first step at independence. And in celebration, parents community-wide gathered at schools to take pictures of their kids marching into class.
"It's amazing how fast it has gone," said parent Valaurie Tatro, a parent of Breckenridge Elementary kindergartner Sophia. "They're ready, though, to go out and explore the world a little bit more."
At Breckenridge Elementary School, principal Peg Connealy said parents started showing up well before school started Wednesday, already in tears. Breck Elementary even provided coffee and Kleenex for the first day - a table managed by parent volunteers - to help with the stressful situation.
"It's hard to let those little ones go," she said.

Kids feel proud, nervous
Though there's lots of stress associated with entering kindergarten, teachers say kids also feel