Colorado Springs

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- It stands to reason that Kimmie Meissner's unconventional rise to the top of women's figure skating might include some unplanned stops. After winning the U.S. title two weeks ago, the Bel Air teen said she didn't know if she would perform at the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, a competition that has attracted few of the top American women skaters since its start in 1999. Four Continents Championships Through Saturday, Colorado Springs, Colo. TV: ESPN, Feb. 18, 8 p.m.-11:30 p.m.

Thirty-one years ago this month, Dorothy Hamill felt the weight of Olympic gold around her neck as she stood on the podium in Innsbruck, Austria. Her mind raced. Her emotions soared. Silently, she gave thanks to her parents, her coaches and her teammates. Four Continents Championships Today through Saturday, Colorado Springs, Colo. TV: ESPN, Feb. 18, 8 p.m.-11:30 p.m.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Long before the first tissue boxes were passed down the aisles for mopping tears, and before the first guitar chords were struck to begin the worship, many of the thousands of people who gathered yesterday morning at the New Life Church knew that it would be a service unlike any other in their lives. Some were curious outsiders, drawn by the moment and the frisson of history. Even church leaders weren't fully sure what to expect. "We're living this in real time," said Rob Brendle, an associate pastor, as he bustled through the giant, 14,000-member church making last-minute preparations for the 9 a.m. service.

On June 26, 2006, ESTHER C. CLARK, 88, of Bel Air died at Upper Chesapeake Medical Center, devoted mother of Thomas Clark and wife Brenda of Pylesville, MD, Roberta Ackerson of Colorado Springs, CO, and Timothy Clark and wife Jane of Mayfield, KY, loving grandmother of Kerrie Williams of Pylesville, MD, Edward Day of Colorado Springs, CO, Jacob Clark of Mayfield, KY, Rebecca Day of Shelby, NC and Kelley Clark of Edgewood, MD, loving great-grandmother of...

On May 8, 2006, GERALDINE M. CUNNINGHAM, beloved mother of Arnold Fowkes, Nathaniel Shlomo, Geraldine Queen, all of Maryland and Evelyn Turner of Colorado Springs; sister of Florence Smith of Petersburg, VA; grandmother of Quentin, April, Marcia, Jerome, Jamal, Sarya; great grandmother of Yeisha and Kamryn. Memorial service will be Friday, May 12 at Gary P. March Funeral Home, 270 Fred Hilton Pass, Baltimore, MD. For more information call 410-496-5454.

Louis A. Leitz, a retired bank teller and former Brooklyn Park resident, died of heart failure Jan. 26 at a nursing home in Colorado Springs, Colo. He was 96. Born in Baltimore and raised on Arsan Avenue, he was a graduate of city public schools. He was a bank teller for many years at the old American National Building and Loan Association until retiring in the 1970s. Mr. Leitz was a former longtime member of St. John Lutheran Church in Brooklyn Park, where he sang with the choir. He moved to Colorado Springs in 2000.

A few weeks ago I devoted a column to what readers told me were their best (or worst) saving and spending decisions. Responses worth sharing are still coming in. Let's hear from Dan Crann, of Colorado Springs, Colo. He used to work in Northern Virginia; his wife, Jill, worked in Washington. They seemingly had it all, but. ... "We were a two-income family with a 17-month-old-son in day care in Washington, D.C. We had not a financial worry in the world," Dan Crann said. "However, we had little time to enjoy our firstborn, except in the car during the madness of D.C.'s rush hours or the seemingly endless number of days one of us called in sick to care for our son. ... During our son's hospitalization due to a respiratory illness, my wife and I looked at each other one night and read each other's minds: There must be more to life than this."

Colorado Springs, Colo. -- The nervous bride cried. The groom forgot the ring. In most ways, Courtney Reynolds and Christopher Bowden's wedding, with its mix of tender and light-hearted moments, was like any other. The difference was about 7,000 miles and 10 time zones. Staff Sgts. Reynolds and Bowden, both of the 21st Security Forces Squadron at Peterson Air Force Base, were married via teleconference Friday. Reynolds recited her vows from a conference room at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs and Bowden from a similar room in Qatar.

IRMA LOUISE (Jeff) VAN SICKLE, age 84, died on July 29, 2005 at Sunrise Assisted Living of Colorado Springs, Colorado. She was born on August 12, 1920 in Greenwich, Connecticut, the daughter of the late Newton and Hattie Fulton. After graduating from Danbury State Teacher's College in Danbury, Connecticut she taught for several years. She enlisted in the U.S. Navy WAVES during World War II, and was stationed at the War Department in Washington D.C. where she met her husband, Max Van Sickle.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The Pentagon is planning a new round of base closings that will create economic trauma nationwide next year, but this city teaming with more than 30,000 service personnel sees potential opportunity in the coming turmoil. Local leaders are lobbying for even more military jobs, expected to come from bases shut down in other states, notably California. The city, for example, just spent $200,000 for a study by a Washington, D.C., defense consulting company that promotes the region as the best place to receive jobs from the Los Angeles Air Force Base.