Under the sponsorship of Dan Noble of Norwood, the Colorado Senate has passed Memorial No. 1 requesting Congress to appropriate funds for several Colorado Water Projects. The Memorial especially requests "write-in" funds to begin the Dolores Project.

A group of dedicated area residents, working on a shoe string budget and in the dark, are preparing a Montezuma County Fair, the first one in Montezuma County in many a year, for next August. The idea apparently has come from a needed expansion of the Montelores Junior Fair, heretofore reserved for 4-H members to show their projects and qualify for the Colorado State Fair.

A special meeting will be held Monday, March 31, at 6 p.m. to review the names on the petitions of school board candidates to determine if they are all legally on the petitions and if the candidate has enough names to qualify. A fifth candidate's name was added to the list Friday when Ernie Nunn turned in his petition to the school office. This makes five petitions to be reviewed at the special meeting; Stanley Willbanks, Lee Squires, Aryol Brumley and Bill Fischer in addition to Nunn.

A meeting to discuss Centennial Bicentennial plans and projects will be held Wednesday, April 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the Community Room of the Dolores State Bank.

Retail sales in Montezuma County reached a total of $18,170,000 during the fourth quarter of 1974 according to figures released this week by the Business Research Division of the University of Colorado. This is an increase of 20.5 percent over the fourth quarter of 1973.

"I don't know what to say," said Coach Bill Estes regarding his not being offered a contract for next school year by the Dolores Board of Education following their meeting last Thursday. Estes, who teaches social studies and is head basketball coach at the Dolores High School, recently returned with the Dolores Bears from a trip to the State Basketball Tournament.

Following strong objections from the citizens of Cortez, state highway department workers were expected in Cortez early this week to set to rights the town's bewildering traffic light situation. Last week the lights were altered so that they flashed yellow for east-west traffic on Main Street and red for the north-south traffic.

Bad weather plus a delay did not keep a large crowd from appearing for the Public Utilities Commission hearing on natural gas rate hikes at the Fairgrounds in Durango on Wednesday.

Dinner guests at the home of Hazel Smith on Sunday were Mr. and Mrs. Corky McClain and family, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Kelly from Cortez and Mr. and Mrs. Mark Sonne from Farmington. The dinner was in honor of Vaughna McClain's birthday.

Mr. and Mrs. Greg McKeever are the parents of a baby daughter, Renae Leigh, born on February 27 in Springfield, Missouri. Mrs. McKeever is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Larry Hamilton, former residents of Dolores.

About fifteen Dolores Eastern Star Members enjoyed the banquet and Grand Visitation meeting of Mesa Verde Chapter in Mancos on Monday evening of this week. About the same number traveled to Cortez on Tuesday evening to attend their Grand Visitation.

Mr. and Mrs. Kenny Williams and family, Mr. and Mrs. Pat North and family, Mr. and Mrs. Lynn Gardener and family, Mr. and Mrs. Grady Gardner and family all were dinner guests at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Gardner on Sunday. The event was to celebrate the birthdays of Kenny Williams and Wendy North and also to welcome home the Bob Gardners who have been wintering in warmer climes.

Lisa Bery was an overnight guest of Nihla Lincoln on Monday night.