Christina Poole, 14, of Grand Junction walks toward the back end of a UHaul truck filled with food that she has gathered for those without this Christmas.

Paige Noe, left, of Grand Junction looks for a toy at K-Mart for one of the five other children in her family with the help of volunteer Mary Irvine during a shopping spree for 81 needy area children sponsored by the Fraternal Order of Eagles #595 Saturday.

Snuggled into a beanbag chair in the children’s section of the Mesa County Public Library’s main branch, Nathan Bittle, 10, of Grand Junction concentrates as he reads “Horace the Horrible” this afternoon. Nathan was at the library with his family.

Snuggled into a beanbag chair in the children’s section of the Mesa County Public Library’s main branch, Nathan Bittle, 10, of Grand Junction turns the page as he reads “Horace the Horrible” Friday while his 7-month-old brother Jacob sleeps at his feet.

Palisade’s Levi Hoaglud soars past the Montezuma-Cortez High School defenses to racket up the Palisade score by another two points. Photo by Charles Pearson

Out-going Mesa County Commissioners Craig Meis and Janet Rowland sit in the pews in the commissioners’ hearing room at the old Mesa County Courthouse.

Dan Weaver with Desert Bloom Hydroponics, 445 Pitkin Ave. in Grand Junction working in one of the gardens at Desert Bloom.

A small herd of deer forage for food in a snow-covered pasture in the 700 block of 26 Road on Friday.

Breccan Sparks, 7, of Grand Junction hangs an ornament on a Christmas tree bearing the name of 7-year-old Daniel Barden, one of 26 victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings, as his sister Baylea , 8, heads to the next tree in the park at First Street and Grand Avenue on Thursday. Twenty-six Christmas trees decorated with lights, ribbons and bows have been placed in the park in memory of those who died at the school, and the public is invited to hang ornaments on the trees.

Two Mesa County Sheriff’s deputies with guns in hand yell at the driver of a truck to keep his hands off a gun in the cab of the truck after it rolled into a canal at 31 and D Roads at 5:00 p.m. Thursday afternoon.

Thomas Thompson, left, speaks to film crews and concerned citizens during a tour of natural gas development operations near his home southwest of Rifle. A gas pad sits behind him. Some wore gas masks after Thompson warned of others becoming ill from fumes on previous tours. Among those taking the tour were Demi Garner, center left, and Sarah Hutchinson, center right, who are worried about proposed oil and gas development in the Mesa area, where they live.

Michael Bolton plays to his fans at the Avalon Theater Wednesday night (12/19/12)  with a big band, a horn section, backup singers. They played his hits and some Christmas tunes.

Eleven-year-old Celest Baker will play the part of Oliver Twist in Showtime Productions/Monumental Events’ production “Oliver!” The musical will feature more than 60 amateur actors and several professional actors, including Raymond McLeod from New York City, who will have the role of Bill Sikes.

Fruita’s city manager Clint Kinney was one of the many contestants that entered the ugliest Christmas sweatshirt contest at the Hot Tomato restaurant in Fruita. Photos by Charles Pearson

Winged signs topped by a halo with the name of each of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting crown twenty six Christmas trees that are on display in the park at First Street and Grand Avenue. Each of the trees is decorated with lights, ribbons and bows.

Twenty-six Christmas stockings hang in a pine tree in the medium between Ute and Pitkin Aves at 15th Street, one for each of the persons killed in the Newtown, Conn. shootings. A sign under the tree says to please write a letter to the families and put them in the stockings.

This is the sign under the pine tree in the medium between Ute and Pitkin Aves at 15th Street.

Five-year-old Weston Hildebrandt puts his weight behind the snow shovel as he helps his father Teddy clear several inches of fresh snow off of his next-door neighbor’s driveway on North Sherwood Drive Wednesday.

Weston Hildebrandt, 5, of Grand Junction helps shovel his neighbor’s walk.

Curtis Lyons from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Canada flips out on the half pipe at Copper Mountain Resort. Lyons was in Colorado to visit family.

The Highway 50 Christmas trees is decorated for Christmas in red, white and blue along with an American flag and a Santa. The tree is on the west side of Hwy 50 between mile markers 56 and 57. For years locals have decorated this and another tree in the area before that tree died.

Jim Garner with Colorado Parks and Wildlife is shown sifting through seeds Tuesday at the Seed Warehouse in Delta. Parks and Wildlife has a new seed storage facility, Escalante SWA, for holding native grass and other seeds used in regenerating growth in treated and burned areas. Citizens are welcome to visit the new warehouse during an open house Dec. 20 at 5297 Sawmill Mesa Rd. in Delta.

Jerry Stehman, left, owner of Jerry’s Outdoor Sports, 2999 North Ave in Grand Junction, shows hand guns to Skip Fleming of Rifle. The store was packed today with people looking to buy guns.

This quilt, named “Heidi"by Grace Cramer, is hanging in the Mesa County Central Library, 655 N. 1st Street. This quilt and more will be sold at auctionat 6 p.m. Thursday at The Center for Independence, 740 Gunnison Ave. as part of the Solidarity Not Charity fundraiser. Each quilt represents a homeless citizen who passed away living on the streets in the past few years.

BLM Grand Junction Regional Office Manager Katherine Robertson with her dog Gus hiking in Devil’s Canyon in the McInnis Canyon National Conservation Area. Robertson is retiring as manager of the Grand Junction Regional Office of the Bureau of Land Management.

Curt Maki with Grand Valley Skating Center puts down a thin sheet of water and soon to be ice on the rink at skating center, 1130 North 3rd Street in Grand Junction Sunday afternoon.

Terry Berg with the Grand Valley Model Railroad Club sets up a Challenger engine this morning on the Leadville upper level, one of several new additions to this year’s 24th annual Christmas Train Show at Cross Orchards Living History Farm, 3073 F Road.

Tracii Gustafson and her 4-year-old son Sean of Grand Junction watch the cars on a model train chug past through the Glenwood Springs section of the Grand Valley Model Railroad Club’s 24th annual Christmas Train Show held at Cross Orchard Living History Farm, 3073 F Rd., on Sunday.