Every five minutes this morning, someone has rung one of the many bells at the reception desk here at The Community Foundation. There are a couple dozen of them on display in our lobby – representing just a fraction of our President Josie Heath’s prized collection.
I finally got up from my desk and walked down the hall to see if someone needed help up front. Then I remembered what all the clanging was about: Today is Boulder’s 150th birthday.
City leaders encourage everyone in town to go outside at noon today and ring a bell, 150 times – one ring for each year that’s passed since the city’s founding. Or at least go outside and hear the peals from the towers of First United Methodist Church, Macky Auditorium, St. John’s Episcopal Church, Sacred Heart of Jesus Church and St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church.
If you’re near Pearl Street at noon, you can walk to the Boulder County Courthouse for the mass bell-ringing. Or come see us at the Foundation, 1123 Spruce Street. Josie has plenty of spare bells to ring.
Later tonight, from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., the city’s elected officials, past and present, host a birthday party for the city at the Municipal Building, 1777 Broadway.
If you’re reading this from some place far away from Boulder, go find a bell and ring it 150 times at noon MST today. If anyone asks why you’re doing it, tell them your favorite Boulder memory.
While you’re reminiscing about this fair city, click on this Daily Camera story from Sunday for a great story about the city’s incredibly unique history: http://www.dailycamera.com/news/specialreports/boulder150/
There went that bell again.
