May 12, 2026: How do you break the cycle of homelessness if someone doesn't want help?

Summary

Colorado Matters – May 12, 2026: Breaking the Cycle of Homelessness for Those Who Refuse Help, New Solar Laws, Water Reuse, Senior Fitness, and More

Episode Overview

This episode of Colorado Matters, hosted by Chandra Thomas Whitfield and featuring reporting from CPR journalists, explores a spectrum of pressing topics relevant to Colorado today. The centerpiece story investigates the persistent cycle of homelessness through the personal lens of Suzanne McKinney, a woman living in her car for a decade in Denver who consistently refuses assistance. The episode then expands to cover new legislation on portable solar for renters, a legal fight over gray water systems in Colorado Springs, highlights from CU Boulder’s 2026 Commencement speech by actress Kristin Davis, an introduction to CPR’s new Morning Edition host Bazi Kanani, and practical advice on fitness for Colorado’s aging population.

---

Breaking the Cycle of Homelessness When Someone Refuses Help

[00:06–09:08]

Suzanne’s Story

• Suzanne McKinney is a 63-year-old former attorney, nurse’s aide, and Colorado College graduate who has lived in her aging yellow Mitsubishi Eclipse for over ten years.
• Despite her professional background, Suzanne’s life dramatically shifted following alleged retaliation and harassment at the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, where she worked as an attorney.
• She claims to have been the victim of stalking and even a shooting (unconfirmed by reporters); her experiences led to deteriorating mental health, a dismissed lawsuit, and eventual disbarment in Colorado.
• Suzanne says she began living in her car to stay safe.

“She’s an attorney, a former nurse’s aide. She’s 63 years old, and her home is an aging yellow Mitsubishi Eclipse crammed full of stuff, trash bags, blankets...” — Kyle Harris, [01:31]

Neighborhood Tensions

• Suzanne predominantly parks in Denver’s affluent Washington Park neighborhood; some neighbors express frustration and have harassed her.
• She’s experienced everything from derogatory comments to property damage.
• She acknowledges her car’s smell, explaining that removing belongings to clean would risk theft. Her vision has deteriorated, leaving her largely blind in recent years.

The City’s Response

• Suzanne has accumulated over $3,500 in parking tickets; police threatened to impound her car, hoping it might encourage her to enter a shelter.
• District 3 Commander Joel Bell has tried to connect her with services while still enforcing the law.

“Just being patient with her and listening to her and trying to get the resources that may help her in the long run. I think that’s how you approach it.” — Commander Joel Bell, [05:02]

Systemic Challenges

• Unlike many experiencing homelessness, Suzanne refuses nearly every offer of assistance—citing a deep mistrust of government programs.
• Cole Chandler (Denver's homelessness response) notes that most people accept help, but rare, persistent cases like Suzanne’s challenge “one-size-fits-all” approaches.

“We’ve talked about how do we meet that exact person’s needs on calls that I’ve been on. And it’s been a challenge for the whole community.” — Cole Chandler, [06:14]

• The city’s multi-pronged approach to homelessness (shelters, housing, addiction/mental health services, enforcement) has yielded some success—over 8,000 people indoors, 5,300 in stable housing—yet overall homelessness is on the rise.

Legal and Practical Limits

• Enforcement options are limited: she’s not an immediate threat to herself or others, so mental health holds aren’t justified.
• Impounding the car, jail, or public nuisance charges are unlikely to change her situation.

Recent Developments

• A friend’s GoFundMe paid her backlogged tickets, preventing the car’s impoundment.
• Surgery on her eyes (funded by the campaign) aims to restore vision and independence.

“For her part, McKinney says she might drive up to the mountains for a few days to get away from the tension in the Washington park neighborhood.” — Kyle Harris, [08:24]

---

Key Segment Timestamps

• Homelessness feature/story: [00:06–09:08]
• Portable solar for renters: [14:27–16:55]
• Gray water and drought in Colorado Springs: [16:55–22:29]
• Kristin Davis commencement highlights: [22:51–26:46]
• Meet new host Bazi Kanani: [27:13–35:48]
• Senior fitness & aging in Colorado: [35:48–48:16]

---

Other Episode Highlights

New Law: Portable Solar Panels for Renters and Homeowners

[14:27–16:55]

• New Colorado law clears barriers for renters and homeowners to use plug-in portable solar systems.
• HOA and most landlord restrictions will be overridden (with landlord notification).
• Key safety certification will be required for most systems. Few products currently meet the new standard.
• These panels help supplement, but not replace, utility power—practical for modest bill reductions. Payback is 4–5 years depending on cost.
• Law takes effect next year.

“It’s a solar panel setup that’s as easy to install as plugging something into a wall and then laying out some panels in a sunny spot.” — Sam Brash, [14:27]

Gray Water Reuse Legal Battle in Colorado Springs

[16:55–22:29]

• Homeowner Bradley White installed a system diverting laundry water to irrigate his landscape—a practice he does professionally in California.
• Colorado Springs prohibits this; city says water may only be used once unless otherwise exempted.
• State law now allows gray water systems unless a municipality opts out (as Colorado Springs has done).
• White has filed lawsuits challenging the city’s stance, arguing for conservation and sustainability.
• Cost savings are modest, but environmental stewardship motivates users.

“A simple change in how you look at water makes a big difference.” — Bradley White, [17:24/18:29]

Kristin Davis’ Inspiring CU Boulder Commencement Speech

[22:51–26:46]

• Actress Kristin Davis (Charlotte York on Sex and the City) returned to Boulder for CU Boulder’s 2026 commencement.
• Advised new graduates to “bet on yourself,” avoid self-imposed limitations, and be persistent even in the face of adversity.
• Shared experiences of career challenges and her philanthropic work.

“Do not set limitations on what you envision for yourself... And when you go out into the world and the doors start to open—and they will open—walk through them... Bet on yourself.” — Kristin Davis, [23:24, 24:01]

“If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams and endeavors to live the life he has imagined, he will meet with his success unexpected in common hours.” — Quoting Thoreau, [25:52]

Meet Bazi Kanani, CPR’s New Morning Edition Host

[27:13–35:48]

• Kanani grew up in rural Wiggins, Colorado, daughter of a Colorado teacher and a Tanzanian father.
• Journalism became her calling thanks to her upbringing and curiosity about the wider world.
• She emphasizes the similarities between journalism and teaching.
• Kanani’s journalistic path has taken her from local TV to ABC News’ Africa bureau, and back to Colorado.
• Her full first name, Bazimana, reflects her Tanzanian heritage.

“I think being a journalist is a chance to be a student and a teacher every day.” — Bazi Kanani, [29:31]

Senior Fitness: Staying Active as You Age

[35:48–48:16]

• Centennial-based fitness instructor Davita Wright Galvin offers practical advice for people 65+ to maintain physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing.
• Her “consistency rule” for sticking to workouts: find a buddy, hire a trainer, or become an instructor yourself.
• Stressing community, she suggests walking, group classes, and even getting a dog as simple ways to stay active.
• Yin yoga is highlighted as a restorative class for older bodies.
• Flexibility and functional movement (e.g., getting up from the floor) is emphasized as critical.
• Resources like SilverSneakers programs and YouTube are recommended to make fitness accessible.

“Better the gym than the doctor’s office... I would rather hear about all the different people at the gym.” — Davita Wright Galvin, [43:01]

“Do not stop getting down on the floor.” — Davita Wright Galvin, [44:32]

---

Notable Quotes by Segment

On Homelessness

• “Every time we get a call, it’s an opportunity to have those conversations once again and see if today’s the day… she is going to accept help?” — Joel Bell, Police Commander [05:02]

On Solar Access

• “Your HOA can’t tell you you can’t install them. Your landlord, you have to notify them, but they can’t stop you from putting them up…” — Sam Brash [14:49]

On Gray Water

• “Really what we’re kind of doing is laying out a menu of options for local governments and water providers to use.” — Kevin Reedy, Colorado Water Conservation Board [20:10]

On Fitness for Aging

• “Once you go and find your thing, you start to make friends with the people who are doing it and then you look forward to seeing them.” — Davita Wright Galvin [43:01]
• “And then stretching is good. A lot of the seniors that I work with, they can’t lift their arms up… so keep doing that so that you’re not hunched over.” — Davita Wright Galvin [44:09]
• “Do not stop getting down on the floor.” — Davita Wright Galvin [44:32]

---

Conclusion

This episode weaves together the intimate and complex reality of homelessness in Denver, innovative approaches to energy and water conservation, personal stories of resilience and achievement, and actionable health advice. Through narrative depth and policy discussion, the show demonstrates how individual stories illuminate statewide issues, leaving listeners with both practical insights and a sense of community engagement.

Transcript

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

From CPR News, this is Colorado Matters.

How do you help someone break the

cycle of homelessness if they don't want help?

[Kyle Harris]

Suzanne is maybe not exactly what you'd expect. She's an attorney, a former nurse's aide. She's 63 years old, and her home is an aging yellow Mitsubishi Eclipse.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

We'll share one woman story, which raises bigger questions about finding solutions to an issue that's been divisive across communities.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

Then a new state law opens the

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

door for people, especially renters, to start

[Davita Wright Galvin]

using portable solar panels.

[Sam Brash]

It's as easy to install as plugging something into a wall and then laying out some panels in a sunny spot.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

And as drought pressures grow across the west, one homeowner is fighting Colorado Springs ban on gray water systems.

[Bradley White]

A simple change in how you look at water makes a big difference.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

This is Colorado Matters from CPR News and krcc. I'm Chandra Thomas Whitfield. She's lived in her car for a decade. Many of the neighbors on the street in Denver where she parks want her gone. Her story raises important questions. In a city that says it's trying to end homelessness, how do you help someone out who doesn't want to be helped? Denverite's Kyle Harris joins us now to explore some potential answers. Hi, Kyle.

[Kyle Harris]

Hi, Chandra.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Tell us about Suzanne.

[Kyle Harris]

Elaine McKinney, well, Suzanne is maybe not exactly what you'd expect. She's an attorney, a former nurse's aide. She's 63 years old, and her home is an aging yellow Mitsubishi Eclipse crammed full of stuff, trash bags, blankets. It's decorated with frayed bumper stickers for tattered cover and wax tracks. On the day we spoke, she had a note scrawled on a lined college ruled notebook paper, and it read, please do not. Most days, she parks on Marion Parkway in the historic Washington park neighborhood, where homeowners are at odds and increasingly frustrated about how to get her to leave.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

I'll ask about that note on her car in a bit. But first, how did she start living in her car, or perhaps why?

[Kyle Harris]

Well, her journey there is complicated. We do know that she graduated from Colorado College, worked as a technical editor, teacher and a nursing assistant. She later ended up getting a law degree from the University of Denver, practiced at private firms and then eventually at the Department of Veterans Affairs. That's when things took a big turn. She alleges the Veterans Benefits Administration was sharing private health information with external entities and was involved in forgery after raising those concerns to her bosses. Her mental health really took a toll in a lawsuit. She claims she was the victim of retaliation harassment. She was shot in the head, according to the complaint. We were not able to independently confirm that shooting. A judge ended up dismissing a federal lawsuit she filed that accused VBA employees of both shooting and stalking her. Another judge ended up barring her from practicing law in Colorado because of an unspecified disability. She contests that as all of this played out, she ended up moving into her car 10 years ago, she says to to stay safe.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

So she's been parking on the street in a Washington park neighborhood. How have homeowners responded?

[Kyle Harris]

Well, she says, people have banged on her windows, they've broken her side mirror, they've tried to pry open her door with a crowbar and have made derogatory comments accusing her of drinking, using drugs. They've complained on and on about her cigarette smoking. And one woman says her car smells like feces. McKinney acknowledges the smell. She says she can't clean her car because she thinks her stuff will get stolen if she puts it outside. Complicating matters, she's been slowly losing her vision, and over the past three years she's been largely blind. One of her long term friends, Terry Berkeley, lives in the neighborhood, and in February she let her park on a small concrete patch in her yard. Over the years, other neighbors have helped Suzanne move her car to avoid parking tickets.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

And I understand the city has ticketed her repeatedly. Which gets us back to the note she has on her car. It says please do not tow. This car is not abandoned.

[Kyle Harris]

Yes, by the beginning of the year, McKinney had racked up more than $3,500 in tickets. Police have dubbed her car a junker and by February threatened to impound it if she didn't pay her tickets and they booted her car. The thinking is if they take away her car, maybe she'd go to a shelter. At the same time, the District 3 Police Commander, Joel Bell and his team have been trying to connect McKinney with resources even while giving her tickets over the years.

[Joel Bell]

Just being patient with her and listening to her and trying to get the resources that may help her in the long run. I think that's how you approach it. Do we ticket every time we get a call? No. But every time we get a call, it's an opportunity to have those conversations once again and see if today's the day. Is this the day she is going to accept help?

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Now, arguably, this speaks to the bigger issue. Denver Mayor Mike Johnston has made ending homelessness a top priority. But is it fair to say McKinney's case seems unique.

[Kyle Harris]

Absolutely. It's really different than most. It's unique because she has refused nearly every offer of service since moving into her car. That includes shelter, Medicaid, Social Security, disability insurance, and mental health treatment. She basically believes anything associated with the government is going to be monitored. Even so, the city keeps trying Cole Chandler's with the city's housing and homelessness efforts. He says that among the tens of thousands of people who use metro homelessness services, the vast majority want to come inside and are quick to accept shelter.

[Cole Chandler]

I hope we can keep working every single day to find the right services that meet her needs. And we certainly have been at it. I mean, we've talked about how do we meet that exact person's needs on calls that I've been on. And it's been a challenge for the whole community.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

And this underscores that finding solutions isn't just a sweeping blanket policy. It needs to be individualized.

[Kyle Harris]

Absolutely. Visible homelessness has troubled voters and befuddled Denver politicians. Since the city's founding, mayors have been promising to end homelessness, cycling through this familiar rotation of fixes, shelters, housing, addiction treatment, mental health care and punishment again and again and again with little change. Mayor Johnston promised to end street homelessness in his first term. The city under him has spent hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars on homelessness solutions, bringing in more than 8,000 people indoors from the streets and placing more than 5,300 people in stable housing. Even so, overall homelessness has grown. That's according to the most recent federal data.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

Kyle.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Some might applaud the city for its humanitarian approach with McKinney, while others might push back and say it's time to get tough. And to be clear, she hasn't committed any crimes, but perhaps she's violated civil policies. What are the city's options? Even if she paid the tickets, could the city condemn her car as a health hazard and and force her to go to a shelter even though she doesn't want to? Or could they arrest her for being a public nuisance because she yells at people who approach her car? Kyle, help us understand the complexities.

[Kyle Harris]

Sure. So Commander Bell says that Suzanne's neither an immediate threat to herself or to others, and that immediate threat is the standard that it would take to put her on what's called a 72 hour mental health hold. Even impounding the car, though, would not necessarily convince her to go to a shelter. She could decide to stay outside. And Belle and others say jail isn't really an appropriate solution. Even if she were arrested, she couldn't be forced into a shelter after she left the jail.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

So what happens now?

[Kyle Harris]

Earlier this year, a friend launched a GoFundMe campaign for McKinney and paid off the $3,500 in tickets to prevent police from taking her car. That campaign is also paying for McKinney to get eye surgery. The hope is to restore her vision, her depth perception. She underwent surgery on one eye in April, and the other eye procedure is scheduled for this month. Friends hope this will allow McKinney to safely move her car to avoid additional tickets. For her part, McKinney says she might drive up to the mountains for a few days to get away from the tension in the Washington park neighborhood where she normally parks.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Wow, Kyle, thanks for this perspective on a very complex issue.

[Kyle Harris]

You're welcome.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Read Kyle's reporting on this story and see [e-mail].

Colorado's 5th congressional district has never chosen a Democrat for the seat, but the district currently centered around Colorado Springs has shifted towards Democrats in recent elections. That puts it on a list of races to watch this fall. CPR's Caitlin Kim reports.

[Bazi Kanani]

Just everybody grab your food, your drink, find a place to sit. We're going to hear from the candidates.

[Caitlin Kim]

The Good Troubles Supper Club in Colorado Springs is doing more than digging into some delicious food. They're hearing from a candidate in the Democratic primary, Joe Reagan.

[Joe Reagan]

I decided to run for office because after leaving the military, I saw an opportunity to serve, no longer in uniform, but by serving the community as a nonprofit leader tackling tough problems. And that's what we need in Congress today, is someone that's willing to stand up and look at what is not the Democratic solution or the Republican solution, but what is the solution that's going to work for our community.

[Caitlin Kim]

Reagan served in the US army for seven years, deploying to Afghanistan twice and leaving with the rank of captain. After the military, he worked in business and then nonprofits like Easter Seals and Wreaths Across America, and currently at a veterans nonprofit in Colorado Springs.

[Joe Reagan]

And I see this administration making the same exact mistakes that we made 20 years ago and putting another generation of service members back into a pointless war that has been driven by lies and greed that is not serving the American interests.

[Caitlin Kim]

And at the gathering, he was peppered with some tough questions.

[Bazi Kanani]

How are you going to win? Because if we don't win right, it doesn't matter.

[Caitlin Kim]

The odds are stacked against any Democrat in the 5th Congressional District. Registered Republicans outnumber registered Democrats about 2 to 1. Still, unaffiliated voters make up the largest block at 54%. And Reagan points out in the last election, a majority of voters in El Paso county supported marriage equality and women's reproductive rights, even as they voted against federal candidates that held those positions.

[Joe Reagan]

How do you bring in that fiscally conservative crowd that's fed up, equally fed up with MAGA as the rest of us are, and give them an alternative and saying, hey, the Democratic Party actually is offering and putting forth policies that better match with what you're talking about?

[Caitlin Kim]

Reagan ran for Congress last cycle, narrowly losing in the Democratic primary, and he faces that chance once again. Democrat Jessica Killen, also an army veteran, made the primary ballot. She got top line out of the Assembly, a feat she celebrated with her supporters.

[Jessica Killen]

I just wanted to gather everyone, first and foremost. There's a lot of familiar faces here, but some new ones too, to thank everyone who was part of the caucus and assembly process and helped me be victorious. And get this.

[Caitlin Kim]

Killin is a fourth generation Coloradan. She moved away for college, served in the US army for eight years. Also left with the rank of captain and worked at USAA and for a few Congress members. She then became chief of staff for Doug Emhoff, then second Gentleman of the United States. She came back to Colorado Springs and launched a campaign for Congress.

[Jessica Killen]

I've been back and forth my entire life. I've never lost touch with this community. And so I want to give back. This is the community that raised me.

[Caitlin Kim]

Policy wise, there's not much daylight between Killen and Reagan. They're both focused on cost of living, increasing housing supply, the national debt and not putting troops in harm's way. She calls herself part of Team Normal. She wants stuff to work and is tired of all the chaos and division.

[Jessica Killen]

We often hear from the very loud left, the very loud right. I'm going to work for the silent majority that is in this community that just wants a government and a representative that actually works for them and actually listens to them.

[Caitlin Kim]

Some Republicans have held House parties for her, including Bruce Barron. He voted for Republican incumbent Jeff Crank two years ago. But this cycle he went looking for a candidate who will restrain the Trump administration. It led him to Killin.

[Bruce Barron]

First, she's very competent in policy. Second, she's clearly willing to work hard, as demonstrated by her full time campaign commitment. Third, which was very important to me, she's able to raise money because if you can't raise money, you can't win a congressional race.

[Caitlin Kim]

And here's the major difference between Killin and Reagan. She's outraised Reagan and Also Crank now, money isn't everything, but it does mean outside Democratic groups may get involved in this race, making it more competitive. That's still far from being a toss up race. Crank outperformed Trump in the district, winning the seat by 14 points in 2024. In Washington, D.C. i'm Caitlin Kim, CPR News.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Colorado's primary election is June 30th. Ballots go out in the mail on May 29th. I'm Chandra Thomas Whitfield. This is Colorado Matters from CPR News and krcc. Welcome back to Colorado Matters from CPR News and krcc. I'm Chandra Thomas Whitfield. A new state law opens the door for people, especially renters, to start using portable solar panels.

[Sam Brash]

It's a solar panel setup that's as easy to install as plugging something into a wall and then laying out some panels in a sunny spot.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

That could mean hanging them off a balcony or leaning them against a fence in a yard. CPR climate and environment reporter Sam Brash has been following the plug in solar policy, which Governor Jared Polis signed last week.

[Sam Brash]

What it basically says is that anybody in Colorado, you know, renters, homeowners, should have access to these products. Essentially, your HOA can't tell you you can't install them. Your landlord, you have to notify them, but they can't stop you from putting them up on your property. So it just clears a path to make sure that consumers have access to the products with a really big caveat.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

The caveat is that the law requires most portable arrays to carry a specific safety certification that ensures they won't damage the electrical grid or your home's wiring.

[Sam Brash]

Those guidelines just came out in January. Companies are still producing products that would follow those requirements. So there's apparently not a lot of products available yet, or any available yet that meet those standards. But once they are, you can buy them and you can know you can buy them without having to deal with restrictions from a property manager.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

The arrays that fall under the new state law range in price from a few hundred dollars to a couple thousand. And they're meant to supplement a house's energy needs, not replace, replace your utilities.

[Sam Brash]

It doesn't really work for these products to be off the grid. They're designed to work with the grid. They're plug in solar, right? They plug into an outlet. You know, you could do clever things like get your own little battery and charge that battery with one of these systems and then use that power for outdoor lights or an outdoor projector or something like that. But when it comes to cutting your utility bill, you're basically feeding power back into your home. That reduces the amount of power you're using from your utility. And you can, you know, cut your electricity bill a little bit as a result. So it provides a really practical way for people to save money on their power bills. But, you know, keep in mind, these systems are still usually costing upwards of $1,000. That means the payback period in terms of when you're like, making money is going to be four to five years. So it's one of those things where you got to weigh that, you got to calculate it. But it's another option that Colorado lawmakers, bipartisan groups of lawmaker and Governor polis want to make sure that people have.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

The new law goes into effect next year. What if you could use the water from your washing machine to water your trees and shrubs, Especially now with watering restrictions in place. In Colorado Springs, that idea has sparked a legal fight for one resident over reusing water. CPR's Haley Sanchez looked into it for Colorado Wonders.

[Haley Sanchez]

Inside Tamar Lalania's laundry room in Colorado Springs, a washing machine drains into a simple pipe and lever system.

[Tamar Lalania]

So when we're doing landscape, we have it turned this way, and then if we do want to do load with bleach, we're going to switch it to drain, and it's that simple.

[Haley Sanchez]

Generally, gray water systems reuse household water from things like washing machines, showers, and sinks to irrigate, landscaping, or flush toilets instead of sending it straight into the sewer. In Lalania's yard, the laundry water drains into mulch basins around bushes and trees.

[Tamar Lalania]

Yeah, all you do is deal with that lever inside, and we don't have to water these things at all. They're certainly getting a lot of water and growing quite big.

[Haley Sanchez]

The system was installed by her partner, Bradley White. Ironically, White wasn't home during my visit because he was in California for work.

[Bradley White]

Oh, I'm actually installing a gray water system right now.

[Haley Sanchez]

White has spent more than a decade professionally installing residential gray water systems. He says he got into this line of work during California's severe drought years ago. He wrote to us through Colorado Wonders. He wants to know why he's not supposed to recycle his water like this in his backyard.

[Bradley White]

A simple change in how you look at water makes a big difference.

[Haley Sanchez]

Most of the systems he installs are known as laundry to landscape. Water from a washing machine gets diverted directly into outdoor mulch basins.

[Bradley White]

It's just like pouring water in a hole. It's that simple.

[Haley Sanchez]

But in Colorado, Springs. It's not legal. Colorado Springs Utilities says city code prohibits greywater use. In an emailed statement, the utility said customers can only use water once unless the city specifically allows otherwise. Utilities says installing state compliant greywater systems in existing homes can be expensive, and few Colorado communities have widely adopted greywater programs. Plus, the city wants more time to study how home systems would fit into its larger water reuse strategy. Right now, the utility already captures and reuses water through a larger centralized treatment system. Over the last decade, greywater rules have shifted statewide. For years, cities and counties had to opt in to use greywater systems, but lawmakers passed House Bill 1362 in 2024, which flipped that process. Now gray water is allowed statewide unless local governments specifically opt out. And Colorado Springs did just that. Still, even in places that allow gray water, it's hard to measure how much water or money they actually save.

[Kevin Reedy]

You know, on its own, I'd say that greywater is not the most impactful solution.

[Haley Sanchez]

Kevin Reedy is a water efficiency specialist with the Colorado Water Conservation Board. He says greywater could still play a role in conservation, particularly when it's paired with drought tolerant landscaping and efficient irrigation

[Kevin Reedy]

systems in our water plant. It's kind of important to highlight these alternative water sources. Not every solution is off the table. Really what we're kind of doing is laying out a menu of options for local governments and water providers to use.

[Haley Sanchez]

Greywater adoption around Colorado is patchy so far, so measuring how much water it actually saves statewide is difficult because policies and systems vary so widely from place to place. Take the CSU Spur campus in Denver, where treated shower and sink water gets reused to flush toilets inside the building. Cybill Charvel is a Colorado State University professor who has studied gray water Systems for nearly 30 years. Although this initiative is in a commercial building, she says, it's hard to pin down the exact savings. Even here.

[Cybill Charvel]

I don't even actually want to put a guess on it. It's hard to quantify because we don't always know the number of people showering in that building. And if there's not enough gray water, we supplement with potable water. I can say with confidence that we are substantially reducing the amount of water we're using to flush those toilets by using the gray water in that building, she says.

[Haley Sanchez]

The bigger motivation is sustainability.

[Cybill Charvel]

Honestly, I can tell you, though, that the cost of water is so low, it's pretty hard to recover the costs from these kind of systems. We just don't pay very much for our water. So a lot of times the motivation to do these kinds of things are more around green building initiatives and being stewards of our land and water.

[Haley Sanchez]

And that's exactly the why for Bradley White, our question asker back in Colorado Springs.

[Bradley White]

It's just like kind of common sense. I want to conserve any resources we have and water is a great resource and why not try to conserve it more?

[Haley Sanchez]

Court records show that White has filed both a civil case and a water court petition challenging Colorado Springs 1 use water rule.

[Bradley White]

My intent with this lawsuit is just to try to get the city to let us reuse some of our water. Maybe not all of it, but some of it.

[Haley Sanchez]

White says he wants to follow the rules and go about gray water systems the right way. And he says he expects the utility could eventually issue a formal notice for violating the city's water policy. But he wants to see progress from the city on gray water, especially as drought and climate pressures continue across the west. In Colorado Springs, I'm Haley Sanchez, CPR News.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Do you have a question about life in our state? Send it to [e-mail] ColoradoWonders and we may answer it on air and online.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

I'm Chandra Thomas Whitfield.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

This is Colorado Matters from CPR News and krcc.

This is Colorado Matters from CPR News and krcc. I'm Chandra Thomas Whitfield.

You may know her as Charlotte Yorke

from Sex and the City. Actress Kristin Davis gave CU Boulder's commencement speech this year.

[Kristin Davis]

I was indeed born here in Boulder at Boulder Community. Yes. And my mom who is here today with me, Dorothy. She graduated in 1967, you guys.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

She couldn't help but wonder what advice they did she need to hear as a grad.

[Kristin Davis]

So I really had to dig deep and think about, you know, what would have been helpful for me to hear on the day that I graduated from college in 1987. Do not set limitations on what you envision for yourself when you go out into the world and the doors start to open and they will open. Walk through them. Some of the doors may not look how you had imagined, and you'll need to rely on your instinct to know if what is behind that door is what is right for you.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

The actress reflected on her acting career,

including the hit show she's most known for.

[Kristin Davis]

And some of the doors will inevitably lead to situations that will test you. And that is exactly what happened to me with Sex and the City. During the filming of the pilot, a producer knocked on my door one day and asked me to sign this little tiny two page contract. It said that Charlotte York would only be a recurring character, not a series regular, and that I would make about 1/7 of the salary that I thought I was going to make. So I was really scared. I didn't know what to do. And I asked my lawyer and he said, do not sign that contract. So I had to lie, like every day and say, like, oh, I'm so sorry, I forgot. But I did it. And I did it because I believed in myself. I believed that Charlotte's voice was important. And this one time that I bet on myself changed my entire life. You need to dig deep. Bet on yourself. When you're out there in the world, if you feel that something is for you, do what it takes to keep that thing. Do the work, show up, do your best, and it's going to work out for you. One of the doors that opened for me with the global success of the show was that I was able to pursue my interest in philanthropy. I'm inspired every single time I visit a refugee camp by the incredible resilience of the human spirit. People who have been forced to flee their homes with nothing are able to find joy and connection and to help each other to reinvent their lives and move forward. They remind me of what we are all capable of.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

And just like that, Davis wrapped up her speech and walked off the stage to Cheers.

[Kristin Davis]

You have worked hard and I'm pretty sure that you have played hard as well. Know that you are ready for the next chapter. I'm going to share with you one of my favorite quotes. I used to have this on my refrigerator for many years is Henry David Thoreau. If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams and endeavors to live the life he has imagined, he will meet with his success unexpected in common hours. I believe in all of you. I believe in your unique gifts. Congratulations to the class of 2026.

[Haley Sanchez]

Go Buffs.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Thank you. Kristen Davis is an actress and philanthropist best known for her work as Charlotte in the TV show Sex and the City. She gave CU Boulder's commencement speech for

the class of 2026.

It's graduation season, so we're highlighting commencement

speeches across the state.

Wise words from speakers that we all could benefit from.

A little girl growing up in northeastern Colorado dreamed of one day becoming a teacher. She chose journalism instead, and it's taken her from the Centennial State to Washington D.C. to Sub Saharan Africa. Now she's the voice of your weekly mornings here on CPR News.

[Bazi Kanani]

It's good to be with you on this Wednesday as a late spring storm continues to move through Our state. It's a snow day. 9 Hospitals in Colorado may cut back on care or close their doors altogether due to federal rollbacks. Colorado's housing market has slowed, but even so, people are flooding the market with new listings.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Bazi Kanani is our new senior host of Morning Edition. She spoke with my co host, Ryan Warner.

[Ryan Warner]

Bazi, congratulations.

[Bazi Kanani]

Thank you. Ryan. I'm so pleased to have this opportunity and to be here with you.

[Ryan Warner]

I'm so glad you chose the news business. Although there have to be classrooms of children missing out, what happened to those aspirations to be a teacher?

[Bazi Kanani]

You know, my mom was a teacher and she loved her job. My mom was a really hardworking teacher who would stay late after school every day grading papers. Therefore, I as a kid and my sister and my brother spent a lot of time hanging out in her classroom. It was sort of our second home.

[Ryan Warner]

What grade did she teach?

[Bazi Kanani]

She bounced around in mostly the elementary levels.

[Ryan Warner]

Okay.

[Bazi Kanani]

Her mother was a teacher and my grandmother's mother was a teacher. So I think if you'd asked me when I was 12 what I wanted to do with my life, I would have said, I guess I'm going to become a teacher. As I got into high school, I got a chance to get involved in the high school newspaper, in the yearbook, and I just really found that I loved doing that. I had a lot of exposure to broadcast news, especially television, when I was a kid, because my dad was just a really dedicated TV news fan. He would walk into the living room at 5 o' clock every night and it didn't matter what we were watching, it was time to turn on the news. So we saw the news at 5 o' clock and again that night at 10 o'. Clock. And so I had an understanding of the importance of the news as a window to the world for people. And so by the time I graduated high school, I knew that I wanted to go to school and study journalism and attempt to do.

[Ryan Warner]

And they're not wholly different professions. I mean, there's a part of me that thinks this is a classroom of the air.

[Bazi Kanani]

You know, I would agree. I think being a journalist is a chance to be a student and a teacher every day.

[Ryan Warner]

Oh, that's well done, really.

[Bazi Kanani]

Right. I think we show up and we're learning from the people around us, and then we stop and take time to try to figure out how we translate that knowledge and that information to the others around us.

[Ryan Warner]

Oh, that's, that's beautifully put. Both student and teacher in journalism. You grew up in Morgan County, Wiggins, on The Eastern Plains. What was that like?

[Bazi Kanani]

Wiggins was the type of place when I was a kid. At that time it was about 800 people. I think it's more now. I'm the second of five kids and so whenever my parents got tired of us, they could shoo us out of the house and say, just be back by dark. So that was a really different experience. It was a great place to grow up in that way. A very different experience than I think my kids are getting. Now that we live in the city and they're growing up here, I can't just shoo them out of the house in quite the same way.

[Ryan Warner]

I'm always curious, when people grew up in small towns, what was the big city to you? Did you guys get. Where did you go?

[Bazi Kanani]

We, you know, Wiggins is only about an hour driving away from the metro area, which was good because we had friends and family in the metro area, so we had many opportunities to come up and visit them. I have always loved and still really appreciate the dynamism of the big city, the opportunities. There's a lot going on here and that's really fun. But my parents were both raised in rural areas and they really loved being able to raise their kids in a place that was just quieter, that was more manageable. Life can be more manageable in many ways. Affordability, easier to get, places to see the people that you know. And so, you know, that aspect of living in a small town was really great too.

[Ryan Warner]

I understand you are asked a lot about your name years ago. In fact, when you were a new reporter in Denver, Westward gave you an award for your name. You have an award winning name. Would you share anything about your name? Bazi?

[Bazi Kanani]

A Westward writer said many years ago that my name sounded like a Japanese anime superhero. And you know, I can see that.

[Ryan Warner]

Bazi Kanani.

[Bazi Kanani]

But the two questions that I get about my name most often are, is it my real name? They wonder if it's a radio name or a TV name. And that is in fact the name that my parents call me and that most people call me throughout my life. It is. My full first name is Bazimona, but I've always just shortened it to Bazi. And I'm really grateful for that now because working in radio, I find that we do introduce ourselves quite a bit because listeners are coming and going throughout their day. And so even I appreciate having a shorter version of my own name at this point.

[Ryan Warner]

Will you just say, but say the full name just once for me. First and last.

[Bazi Kanani]

Bazimana Kanani. Is my full name.

[Ryan Warner]

Yeah, I just wanted to hear you say it.

[Bazi Kanani]

The second question that I get a lot of is just the origin of my name.

[Ryan Warner]

Yes, yes.

[Bazi Kanani]

And so, no, it is not Japanese. It is, in fact, East African. It's a name from Tanzania, which is where my dad is from. Tanzania is known as the home of Mount Kilimanjaro, a place where many people may go if they're looking to go on safari. So my father's from there. My mother was from here in Colorado, but she went there to be a teacher in the 1970s, and that's how then they came back to Colorado at some point to spend a little more time with her family. They had several more kids, and they just ended up staying here. So that's how we came to Colorado.

[Ryan Warner]

Is it safe to assume that you were the only Tanzanian Americans in Wiggins?

[Bazi Kanani]

Yes, we were. And I think that that is also one of the reasons I ended up becoming a journalist. I grew up in a small town, and having a parent from overseas, I knew that there was a big world out there, and I was just really curious about it. And, you know, journalism really been a great way for somebody who's curious about the world to get to explore it.

[Ryan Warner]

Well, you explored metro Denver as a journalist. You were on television at nine News, and then that broader world called you. Will you tell us about some of your foreign assignments?

[Bazi Kanani]

Sure. I was a reporter here in Denver back in 2010 when an opportunity came up to join the national network, ABC News, and based out of their bureau in Nairobi, Kenya, covering news around Sub Saharan Africa. So I did that for two years, and it was, you know, phenomenally exciting much of the time and also really hard and sometimes frightening to be, you know, getting on small planes, flying around many different countries. But I will always be so grateful that I had that experience because for me, it was the first time I had ever really lived in a developing country or spent a lot of significant. And so I feel that I was forever changed from that new perspective and that new understanding of what much of our world, if not most of our world, is like.

[Ryan Warner]

Okay, I wanna know, are you a morning person?

[Bazi Kanani]

I'm about to find out. I think there can be two types of morning people, Right. So there are morning people who. That's just their chronotype. Right. They just seem to be biologically wired to be awake early. They couldn't stay up late if they wanted to. I would say I am not a morning person by chronotype in that way. But I think the other type of morning person is just somebody who really appreciates the morning hours and loves getting up and getting at it first thing in the morning. And I am a morning person in that way. I really love even though it's hard to get up after the alarm clock rings, I really love just getting right into the workday first thing in the morning and then having a little more time for all the things outside of work on the back end of the day.

[Ryan Warner]

It almost sounds like a teacher.

[Bazi Kanani]

Bazi Kanani, it's good to know it would have worked out well in either profession.

[Ryan Warner]

In either profession. Well, I'm glad it's worked out in this one. And nice to chat with you.

[Bazi Kanani]

Nice to chat with you. Thanks, Ryan.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Bazi Kanani, our new MORNING Edition senior host. Speaking with my co host, Ryan Warner. I'm Chandra Thomas Whitfield. This is Colorado Matters from CPR News and krcc. This is Colorado Matters from CPR News and krcc. I'm Chandra Thomas Woodfield. As we age, staying active becomes even more important, not just for physical health, but for mental and emotional health, too. And that doesn't necessarily mean you have to get a gym membership. Davita Wright Galvin is a fitness expert in Centennial who's taught group fitness for more than two decades. We spoke in January for Aging Matters, our series about the state's fastest growing population, people age 65 and older.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

Davita, welcome to Colorado Matters.

Thank you for having me. I'm happy to be here to talk about something I love.

You're a pro, so I have to

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

test if you're a mere mortal like

[Davita Wright Galvin]

the rest of us, not one of those special folks like my husband who are up daily at some ungodly hour lifting weights and getting that cardio in on the treadmill. So tell us, are there any kinds of exercises that you can't stand?

I wish you didn't start with that question. And it's really about personal preference. It's not that these are unsuitable or bad choices. It's just not my preference. Some people love to get on a bike and pedal their hearts away. But for me, taking a spinning class is the longest hour ever. I'm looking at the clock every five minutes. Afterwards, I feel great sweating, I'm glowing. And it's a wonderful workout. But it is a long hour. And the other one, again, a great way to exercise, especially for older people. And not my preference is aquarobics. I did it a long time ago. I was recovering from a knee surgery and it was just too slow for me, which is Good for some people, plus, you know, just dealing with the chlorine and getting out of the water. But I'd rather do laps so you

can relate with us folks who need a bit or a lot more motivation. So there's so many kinds of places to go. There are gyms, there are rec centers, there are private classes. What do you recommend in terms of finding a good fit?

Just go out the front door and get moving. I mean, taking a walk is the most simplest, easy way to just get your body moving. I love to tell the story about my husband who not a big fan of walking. I don't know if we ever went for many walks just for the heck of it or anything like that, but we got a dog and the dog needed to be walked. And so I started manipulating so that he was the one walking the dog. And before you know it, he was walking the dog mostly and he lost 10 pounds. And once he realized that that one mile walk around the neighborhood turned into a, a daily four mile power walk, he has lost almost 60 pounds down two sizes. And he does not miss a day. I don't recommend that you need a day or two to rest, but he doesn't like to miss the dog. So having an exercise dog does help. We call him the exercise dog and he's standing at his office every at least by five looking at him like, okay, when's the walk, buddy?

Well, that sounds like a great promo for the Humane Society.

Yes.

New dog, new you. So you say there are three things that set people up for success when starting a new workout routine. What are they?

Well, consistency is the key with anything in life, right? And especially if you want to get stronger or you want to lose weight or whatever your goal is, you have to be consistent. So I have a three tips that I give. You know, you pick one that will get you to do whatever it is, either go to the gym or go for a walk or something like that. I should add the fourth. The fourth now is get a dog. But the first is find a workout buddy. Someone who won't flake on you and you won't flake on them and you're going to show up for each other on however many days you agree upon. The other way is to hire a trainer. You paid your money so you're going to show up. And the third is become the teacher. And that's what I did. And as the teacher, I have to show up. And I'm not showing up making people do stuff that I don't do or I can't do. And that consistency has led to my own success.

So what are the more popular classes right now?

Oh, the classes that are growing in popularity are Pilates and yoga with strength training. And then yin yoga is growing, especially

among people who now what makes it yin yoga?

Yin. You might be familiar with the term yin and yang, which Yang would balance. Balance. Right. Yang would be the move, the yoga with movement or dancing. And then yin. Yin yoga is about relaxing into these shapes. And in my class, I often say this is not a stretching class. You might feel some stretching. But what we're doing is we're targeting the connective tissue, which is a little more plastic, like so we relax in these holds for an extended period to allow gravity to help. Gravity helps the connective tissue lengthen and open and get circulation in there. And it's very healing and rejuvenating. So if you're a weakened warrior, running, biking, beating up your body like I was, hopefully, you should find your way to yin yoga. And that has been healing for me. It has really healed my body and it's also helped helped me to learn to be still and a little meditative.

So if time is not on your side and maybe you just don't have the time to actually drive and go to a gym, what can you do at home, like in your neighborhood just to stay active?

Well, first of all, it is your mindset. So if you're telling yourself you don't have time, you're not going to have time.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Oh, now it's a therapy session.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

It's an intervention, Davida, because you, you need to prioritize. You have to prioritize yourself. And when you set up your day, first of all, schedule it, make a time. And that's why your husband gets up so early. And I used to, too. I had to be to work at 8am and so I got up at 5am and went to the gym. And you know, once you get up

and get going, people are not going to convert me. So I will not say I'm a

morning person, but again, it's prioritizing. If you want to be stronger and healthier, you've got to put it in.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Absolutely.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

And if you're saying you absolutely cannot carve out 30, 40 minutes anywhere in your day, then you got to get up a little earlier.

You are so right. Well, exercise is good for everyone, but especially older adults, which is a growing demographic that we feature every month on our series here on Colorado Matters called Aging Matters. What can you tell us about senior fitness?

Better the gym than the doctor's office. We all know older people who are always talking about the people at the doctor's office and all the different doctors that they see. I would rather hear about all the different people at the gym. And it's. Once you go and find your thing, you start to make friends with the people who are doing it and then you look forward to seeing them. Let me tell you, I taught for a good 15, 17 years. Tuesday, Thursday morning, Zumba class at Club USA Rest in Peace. It closed a few years back and we had such a wonderful community. So much so that we still meet and have a Christmas luncheon.

That's awesome.

After the gym closed, people dispersed to different areas, but we still keep in touch. And that's a little part of the accountability, is when you have friends and it's enjoyable to show up. So if you're a senior, if you're a retired person, go explore some things that you're interested in and then start to talk to the people around you and develop that community or invite yourself into the community so that this becomes a part of your routine. Put it on your calendar. At 10:30am you're going to go to that class and. And see Sally and.

Sounds like a good time to me.

Have coffee afterwards. Yes.

What are some things you'd like older people to consider when they're thinking about getting more exercise?

One is movement. So again, get out the door and start moving. Stretch.

[Kyle Harris]

Stretch.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

Yeah. Flexibility is important. Get down on the floor. Don't stop getting down on the floor. I teach to seniors and I was doing the yin yoga, which just requires getting down one and getting up at the end so it's not up and down like other types of yoga. But they're too afraid to get on the floor because they can't get up. And I ask, well, what happens when you fall? You're just stuck there until somebody can come along. Besides that, getting on the floor keeps your hips open and flexible and you can get down there with your grandchildren. So don't stop getting down on the floor. And then stretching is good. A lot of the seniors that I work with, they can't lift their arms up. They have trouble with their shoulders. They're always in a flexed position because gravity is pushing us down. For, you know, these people are in their 80s and so just to have them stretch out their arms and expand through the heart is new and refreshing. So keep doing that so that you're not hunched over. Try qigong or tai chi. This is gentle movement. It's attractive to a lot of older people. There was a study that came out recently saying that jumping helps your bones to be strong. And it's that vibration, you know, when you're hitting the ground. So I have my seniors stomping their feet to take the shoes off and stomp through the heels. You want to feel that vibration in your body. So if you're sitting at home right now listening to this interview, start doing that several times a day, 30 seconds, stomp your feet.

Well, everyone, by now, most people have heard of silver sneakers. That's kind of like the popular class for seniors. It's age, you know, age appropriate. So silversneakers still exist, but in some places it's now called FitActive. And it's basically free membership at gyms and rec centers.

[Bazi Kanani]

And.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

And if you're on Medicare, you just have to call your provider and get your fitactive number and voila, you can show up at the gym and create this community that you're talking about and get healthier.

Yes. I mean, if you were not a gym enthusiast in your younger years, you can be one in your older years. I take issue with the word free. It's not free. You're paying for it through your health insurance. But do take advantage of that. Funny thing is there are a lot of seniors who now gym hop because they have access to all these gyms and so they have their friends at this gym and their friends at that gym and they have their preference for instructors. And so this is a part of their social scene is going to check out the different classes. So, yeah, take advantage of that and it makes it easy for you to explore and find that thing that's going to keep you moving.

We should also add that there's YouTube and you also have technology now, so there are plenty of apps out there that you can use to get yourself focused, especially if you want more of a solo experience.

Most definitely. The Internet is a great resource. There's anywhere from 10 minute routines up to a whole hour. And then there are apps too. And I will recommend this one. I use yoga download. I'll get on there and just do a little 20 minute, 15 minute and it all counts. Get moving. Get moving.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Well, Davita, this has been so helpful.

[Davita Wright Galvin]

I'm really inspired. Thank you again for joining us.

Thank you for having me.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

Davita Wright Galvin of Centennial teaches Zumba and yoga at Urban Sanctuary and at Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Studio in Denver. She joined us in January to talk about picking out the right workout routine and sticking with it at any age, including Coloradans. Age 65 and up who are the focus of our series, Aging Matters. On that note, this should be a great weather day to take a nice leisurely walk. Well, that's our show for today. Thanks for joining us and to the colorado matters team.

[Sam Brash]

Sandy batulga, tyler bender, carl beele, anthony cotton, pete kramer, andrea dukakis, zan huckpechone, matt herz, tom hess, michael hughes, pedro

[Caitlin Kim]

lumbragno, shane rumsey, haley sanchez, ryan warner.

[Chandra Thomas Whitfield]

And I'm chandra thomas whitfield. This is colorado matters from cpr news and kr.