– Hi, I’m Isabella Janney with the Colorado Springs Daily and today is July 21st, 2020. Our first segment today, we’ll talk about El Paso County’s coronavirus cases. Our second story today is about a local teenager who started a non-profit striving to bring equality to baseball.. And, our last story of the day is about the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s success.
– Our first story today is about coronavirus cases in El Paso County. Time is running out for El Paso County to get its coronavirus cases down — or risk losing its current variances. The health department submitted a mitigation plan to the state on July 13th, giving the county two weeks to reduce the presence of COVID-19. Tuesday, the state announced El Paso County remained in the “red zone” for high transmission levels and was one of 15 counties at risk of seeing stiffer restrictions reimposed. The state’s threshold for a high-transmission county is a two-week period of over 100 cases per 100,000 population. In a county board of health meeting, El Paso County Public Health Director Susan Wheelan said the county had the second-highest count of cases after Denver County in the last 14 days — and the highest in the last seven. The county is currently at about 133 cases per 100,000. Keeping with statewide trends, younger people are leading the pack with the most infections. The health department and the mayor called on the public Wednesday to do their part to curtail the cases before they got out of hand.El Paso County’s two weeks ends on July 27th On that date, the county health department will check in with state health department regarding its progress.
– [https://www.kktv.com/2020/07/22/el-paso-county-at-risk-of-reverting-back-to-safer-at-home-order/](https://www.kktv.com/2020/07/22/el-paso-county-at-risk-of-reverting-back-to-safer-at-home-order/)
– Our second story today is about a local 16-year-old , Josh Kates, who founded a non-profit organization that strives to bring equality to baseball. Kates plays baseball at Air Academy High School. He umpires local leagues and also coaches young kids. Kates says, “Through my years of playing, I’ve begun to notice the overwhelming influence that money plays in baseball. To be good, you had to have and spend way too much money, and money separated the good leagues from the bad.” So, the teenager started [Equality at the Plate Foundation](https://www.equalityattheplate.org/). The organization provides funds to help solve racial and socioeconomic inequality in baseball. Funds go toward promoting equal opportunities for all kids playing the sport of baseball. They collect and distribute funds in order to help provide equipment, registration fees, uniforms, field maintenance, travel, and any other costs associated with baseball.
– [https://krdo.com/news/2020/07/22/local-teen-pioneers-organization-to-solve-racial-and-socioeconomic-inequality-in-baseball/](https://krdo.com/news/2020/07/22/local-teen-pioneers-organization-to-solve-racial-and-socioeconomic-inequality-in-baseball/)
– Our last story today is about The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in gaining national attention after ranking as one of the top 5 zoos in the entire nation. Not only was the zoo ranked 4th in the nation, but one of its exhibits, Rocky Mountain Wild, came in as the number 2 best exhibit nationwide. Animal Care Manager Rebecca Zwicker said, “All of the animals that are here are ones that you could see in the Rocky Mountains and it’s pretty exciting to be able to come see them up close and then literally just drive not that far into the mountains and be able to see their natural habitat.” The Rocky Mountain Wild section of the zoo features grizzly bears, mountain lions, and a brand new nine-week-old moose who is still getting adjusted to its surroundings. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is one of only eight accredited zoos in the United States to house moose, which is a big reason why Rocky Mountain Wild is so popular. Zwicker says, “Our animals are pretty excited to see pe
