Dave Perry
Verified
Editor of the Sentinel Colorado newspaper in Aurora, Colorado
Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Dave Perry
PERRY: No need to wait for punditry on voters and Election Day, time for Donnie to go
President Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during a campaign rally at the Five Flags Event Center, Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026, in Dubuque, Iowa. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) At this point, the future of the nation and all of us in it abused by Donald Trump, his cult followers and toadies is crystal clear: Donnie’s gotta go.
DOING 90 IN AURORA: City’s advocate, Barbara Shannon-Banister, makes the mark
Barbara Shannon-Banister, left, at a community celebration in Aurora for her 90th birthday Oct. 9, 2026, joined by her daughter Guardia Bannister. PHOTO VIA GRAND DESIGNS Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news AURORA | We’re making a mistake, Barbara Shannon-Banister said last week.
PERRY: No standard time like the present to offer more time in the future as a present
Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. Nov. 1 AP FILE PHOTO And I thought the election insanity plaguing the nation and listening to the U.S. president assess people’s buttocks was tough stuff. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news And few things right now sound better than an extra hour’s sleep. But, I don’t know. If it means that I find myself agreeing with President Donald J.
Services for Ron Wright of Wright Creative Branding & Labels set for Monday in High Point
HIGH POINT A memorial service for Ronald “Ron” Edward Wright, who spent years working in his family’s printing business, will be held Monday in High Point, North Carolina. Wright, 62, died October 19 at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center after he was involved in a three-vehicle traffic accident a day earlier in High Point, authorities said.
PERRY: Over the top. We have the solution to candidate policy overload. Roll with it.
OVER OR UNDER? AP FILE PHOTO (AP Photo/Michael Phillis) Yeah, yeah, yeah. Enough with the deep-dive questions about how best to navigate the defense and disdain for data centers, or whether you should offer your vote to the candidate who takes campaign contributions from billionaires. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Are you actually willing to spend your vote on someone who doesn’t like dogs?
PERRY: Over the top. We have the solution to candidate policy overload. Roll with it.
OVER OR UNDER? AP FILE PHOTO (AP Photo/Michael Phillis) Yeah, yeah, yeah. Enough with the deep-dive questions about how best to navigate the defense and disdain for data centers, or whether you should offer your vote to the candidate who takes campaign contributions from billionaires. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Are you actually willing to spend your vote on someone who doesn’t like dogs?
PERRY: Oh, brother. Can you spare a couple billion so I can save the state and vote right on ballot props?
Screen shot from the starting page of the Colorado Tradeoffs portal page. I am looking for about $2 billion, and I need your help. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news It’s not for me or for the Sentinel. Although you’re welcome to send a few or many bucks to this non-profit news org to keep our reporters at city hall marathons or at blustery court hearings.
PERRY: Oh, brother. Can you spare a couple billion so I can save the state and vote right on ballot props?
Screen shot from the starting page of the Colorado Tradeoffs portal page. I am looking for about $2 billion, and I need your help. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news It’s not for me or for the Sentinel. Although you’re welcome to send a few or many bucks to this non-profit news org to keep our reporters at city hall marathons or at blustery court hearings.
PERRY: Why pay to Whack-A-Mole when you can Whack-A-Scammy-Ballot-Prop for free
Voters can drop their ballots before 7 p.m. on Election Day. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel) Few things have historically been as good for Colorado and as bad as the state’s ballot initiatives.
PERRY: If Santa Syndrome doesn’t explain city council’s reality disconnect, click thrice for more
Aurora Councilmember Stephanie Hancock on the council dais Sept. 28, 2026. SENTINEL SCREEN GRAB Let’s start easy. Who believes that Santa drops into your house once a year to leave off presents, which were often made in China before Donald Trump took back the White House? Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Well, that’s a good start. So, how many of you non-believers set out cookies and milk on Christmas Eve? Yup.
PERRY: Journalism ensures you decide who to vote for, not the candidates or the money behind them
CNN Senior White House Reporter Betsy Klein, holding up an empty credential holder, reports near the White House complex after having her credential confiscated following President Donald Trump’s ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) Here they come. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Get ready for 14 statewide ballot questions. Yup, 14. Oh, there’s more.
PERRY: Wheel life turns by itself in a Waymo and turns up too often in the national news
As the wheel turns, by itslef, in a Waymo driverless car in Denver , Spet. 12, 2026. SENTINEL PHOTO Life is so rich, if not overwhelming and exhausting, these days. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news I took my first Waymo ride last week. I survived it. If you have a real life and don’t pay attention, Waymo are the odd-looking driverless cars in Denver that actually went driverless while being rider-full last week.
PERRY: Who’s on first? The ‘pioneer’ and ‘native’ schtick is getting old in Colorado
Colorado’s Pioneer speciality license plate. To understand why Colorado’s “NATIVE” bumper sticker and “Pioneer” license plate shtick is universally despised and coveted, you have to look no further than first grade.
Ballot box going in at Oro Valley library lot
A 24/7, “official ballot drop box” is slated for installation on the south edge of a parking lot at the Oro Valley Public Library. At its Aug. 12 meeting, the Oro Valley Town Council granted permission to the Pima County Recorder’s Office to install and operate the box in a lighted, surveilled spot within the library’s west parking lot. Voters can begin dropping in ballots starting Wednesday, Oct. 7, the first day of early voting ahead of the Nov.
New medallion honors Purple Heart recipients
Dozens of people braved the elements Aug. 7 to witness the unveiling of the Purple Heart Medallion at the Arizona Heroes Memorial in Oro Valley. Each guest knew a half-hour in Naranja Park heat paled in comparison to the sacrifices of American veterans wounded, injured or killed in action. Some guests, in fact, were themselves Purple Heart recipients.
PERRY: My mom taught me that when life really sucks, it’s time to order more straws
It’s hard to believe that after all these years and all this gray hair, I’m an orphan now. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news My mom, Colleen Fern Perry, came to the end of a remarkable 90-year run last week and died peacefully. Keenie, as she was known to my dad, friends and family — and “Queenie” by her father — had a great sense of humor, and no qualms about asking for what she wanted.
PERRY: My mom taught me that when life really sucks, it’s time to order more straws
It’s hard to believe that after all these years and all this gray hair, I’m an orphan now. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news My mom, Colleen Fern Perry, came to the end of a remarkable 90-year run last week and died peacefully. Keenie, as she was known to my dad, friends and family — and “Queenie” by her father — had a great sense of humor, and no qualms about asking for what she wanted.
PERRY: Reality doesn’t care whether you believe. Science, however, needs you now
This image taken from video shows a charred neighborhood following wildfires Saturday, Aug. 22, 2026, in Reno, Nevada. (Tim Walton via AP) Here in Colorado, and across the country, we’ve got to get our OCD on to save the planet. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Back when I was in the first grade, when we hunted wooly mammoths for fun, a few of us got to sit in on the science class with the big kids.
PERRY: The road trips to Hell are paved with family good-time intentions
Once again, I’ve discovered the problem with family summer road trips. It’s not the road, it’s the family. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news For 60-some years, I’ve tried my damnedest to figure out a way to have a good time either strapped into the back seat of a car among those who swim in your gene pool, or behind the wheel of a car, griping.
New medallion honors Purple Heart recipients
Dozens of people braved the elements Aug. 7 to witness the unveiling of the Purple Heart Medallion at the Arizona Heroes Memorial in Oro Valley. Each guest knew a half-hour in Naranja Park heat paled in comparison to the sacrifices of American veterans wounded, injured or killed in action. Some guests, in fact, were themselves Purple Heart recipients.
PERRY: US gets a double dose of stupid from the guys pimping the Golden Age of Quackery
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks as President Donald Trump listens during a meeting to sign an executive order about vaccines, Monday, Aug. 10, 2026, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) President Donald Trump has now turned his dangerous and unfounded suspicion about childhood vaccines into federal policy.
New Oro Valley Police Department building to meet longstanding need
The Oro Valley Police Department has needed a new headquarters building “for two decades now,” Deputy Chief Curtiss Hicks said. OVPD’s current 15,800-square-foot headquarters at 11000 N. La Canada Drive was too small in 1994, when the department first moved in. Today, OVPD has more than twice the personnel, and has expanded into substations on Magee Road, at Oro Valley Marketplace and in Sun City Oro Valley. A physical plant solution has become more pressing every year.
PERRY: The heat is on for real. So is the Trump chicanery linked to climate change denial
FILE – The suns sets behind the Rocky Mountains after daytime high temperatures reached above 100-degrees Fahrenheit, 32 Celsius.. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File) Hot enough for ya? Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news That used to prompt a smile when I was a kid picking melons and tomatoes in Manzanola.
Bearly mid-summer, major ursa sightings are sky high in the metro area, but not in Aurora
A black bear wanders along the Highline Canal July 30, 2026, near the 6000 block of South Franklin Street. Photo VIA Arapahoe County Sheriff Department. A black bear wanders along the Highline Canal July 30, 2026, near the 6000 block of South Franklin Street. Photo VIA Arapahoe County Sheriff Department. A black bear wanders along the Highline Canal July 30, 2026, near the 6000 block of South Franklin Street. Photo VIA Arapahoe County Sheriff Department.
The Fearsome Foursome
I coach high school sports. It’s among the most fun and rewarding things I’ve done in my entire life. I’ve been blessed to have worked with some great student-athletes over the years. I somehow managed to coach girls to four state championships in the high jump and, Lord knows, I’m not demonstrating the technique myself. I enjoy all of the sports that I coach, but my favorite is probably girls’ basketball.
PERRY: Another Colorado gubernatorial Odd Is He epic heats up for the remaining GOP voters
Rep. Greg Lopez, R-Colo., arrives before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at the Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) So, if you’re down in the dumps because you live in a country where one of the craziest and corrupt people in the nation runs the country, and a few million people really think that’s cool, you can take a breath.
After years of planning, UN Heritage for Korean War Memorial unveiled in Aurora
AURORA | Few cities around the world could create and celebrate a Korean War memorial reflecting the nuance of the conflict that in so many ways matches the character of the U.S city home to the site. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Aurora did.
PERRY: Time’s up, America. Ditch the daylight saving time switch while we have the chance Original
In this Thursday, Nov. 3, 2016 photo, Dan LaMoore sizes hands for an 8-foot diameter silhouette clock at Electric Time Co., in Medfield, Mass. (AP File Photo/Elise Amendola) If everything works out in the Senate over the next few weeks, March 14, 2027 could be the beginning of something great. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news I know, I know.
PERRY: Hail, no. We can’t keep paying those car and house insurance rates around here
A high-powered storm swept over the Aurora area and dumped large amounts of marble-sized hail and heavy rain, snarling traffic in densely-populated parts of the metropolitan area in 2022. (AP File Photo/David Zalubowski) Now that the 2026 campaign races are on for real, candidates for the state legislature, statewide offices and congress will all be talking the talk about lowering the cost of living.
Aurora teacher of the year semi-finalist inspires students to learn, win and pass it on
AURORA | For Viviana Martinez, teaching has never been just about helping her students learn Spanish or English. It’s about helping young people understand who they are, where they come from and what responsibilities come with opportunities. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Her philosophy is simple. “Passing the good on,” Viviana said in an interview last week with the Sentinel.
Aurora teacher of the year semi-finalist inspires students to learn, win and pass it on
AURORA | For Viviana Martinez, teaching has never been just about helping her students learn Spanish or English. It’s about helping young people understand who they are, where they come from and what responsibilities come with opportunities. Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news Her philosophy is simple. “Passing the good on,” Viviana said in an interview last week with the Sentinel.
PERRY: Stop, you’re killing me — and thousands of other Colorado victims of the Big Beautiful Bill
President Donald Trump greets Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz after en event about TrumpRx in the South Court Auditorium in the Old Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Washington.
With some reductions, Oro Valley adopts tourism plan
A first-ever Oro Valley leisure travel management plan has been accepted by the Oro Valley Town Council, with specific endorsement for three of its recommendations.
Oro Valley launches tourism platform
Guests to exploreorovalley.com are instantly drawn to a photograph of stately saguaros, seemingly pointing toward sunset monsoon clouds on the flanks of Pusch Ridge. Charles Alolkoy’s rich image is among dozens of colorful pictures adorning Oro Valley’s newly launched, first-ever tourism and travel digital platform.
PERRY: State legislators run the home-school gravy train off the taxpayer tracks, finally
A student skier takes a lesson managing moguls under the watchful eye of an instructor at the Winter Park. Students enrolled in ERBOCES ski programs won’t be able to use state school funds to pay for outings like this next year after a change in state law. AP File Photo/Jack Dempsey As if there’s a shortage of jaw-clenching news about government spending, programs and weirdness, check this out.
PERRY: The need for better rental inspections and accountability is clear. So is the solution
For rent sign is posted on a fence by an apartment building at the center of an immigration controversy Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) So little comes easy these days, especially inside Aurora City Hall.
Free Sandbags in Oro Valley
The town of Oro Valley is once again offering free sandbags to help residents “protect homes and property” during monsoon, the town said in a release. Sandbags are available at Naranja Park throughout monsoon, with the program running until Sept. 30. Because supplies are limited, the offer is reserved for Oro Valley residents, who can take up to 10 sandbags per vehicle. “Pickup is designed to be straightforward, but it is self-service, so plan to come prepared,” the release continued.
Oro Valley budget at $130 million
Oro Valley is in the final stages of adopting a $130 million budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. That’s down $21 million, or 14.2%, from the current year’s $151 million budget, largely due to an $18.6 million reduction in planned capital spending.
Oro Valley launches tourism platform
Guests to exploreorovalley.com are instantly drawn to a photograph of stately saguaros, seemingly pointing toward sunset monsoon clouds on the flanks of Pusch Ridge. Charles Alolkoy’s rich image is among dozens of colorful pictures adorning Oro Valley’s newly launched, first-ever tourism and travel digital platform.
Oro Valley Town Council pulls most ‘big ideas’ from tourism plan
When it gave approval to a 155-page leisure travel management plan, the Oro Valley Town Council excluded the plan’s “big ideas and action plans” for new facilities and venues.
PERRY: The Elijah McClain homicide trial process didn’t get in the way of the facts, nor the convictions
BRIGHTON, CO – JANUARY 20: Paramedics Peter Cichuniec, fourth from left, and Jeremy Cooper, fifth from left, flanked by their attorneys, left, and prosecutors, right, during an arraignment in Adams County district court at the Adams County Justice Center January 20, 2023.
PERRY: The Elijah McClain homicide trial process didn’t get in the way of the facts, nor the convictions
BRIGHTON, CO – JANUARY 20: Paramedics Peter Cichuniec, fourth from left, and Jeremy Cooper, fifth from left, flanked by their attorneys, left, and prosecutors, right, during an arraignment in Adams County district court at the Adams County Justice Center January 20, 2023.
General Plan Amendment: Only townhomes on Oracle site
Townhomes — but no apartments — could be built on a 13.94-acre parcel of land just east of Oracle Road, the Oro Valley Town Council has decided. In approving a general plan amendment and a planned area development on May 6, the council opted for 1- and 2-story townhome buildings not to exceed 30 feet in height on the land now owned by the town. The parcel, within the 141-acre Oro Valley Town Center PAD, sits east and south of the commercial center anchored by CVS Pharmacy at First and Oracle.
Pond soils hold contaminants, group asserts
Soils at the bottom of an abandoned Oro Valley golf course irrigation pond are contaminated, according to a board-certified environmental scientist. “This is hazardous waste,” Charles Stack said, gesturing toward the 2.5-acre empty pond within the Vistoso Trails Nature Preserve.
PERRY: Colorado’s lone anti-union scheme remains as a stain on state democracy, fairness Original
Union members of King Soopers went on strike across the metro region the morning of Jan. 12, 2022, including the location at 3050 S. Peoria St. in Aurora. Photo by PHILIP B. POSTON/Sentinel Colorado It takes little imagination or insight to understand how outrageous it would be for voters to have to elect candidates or approve ballot questions not once, but twice, just to “make sure” that voters were sure about their decisions.
PERRY: Attorneys for the offense — AG candidates lash out at Polis for Tina Peters clemency Original
Boulder DA Michael Dougherty, left, makes a point during the Democracy Fest Democratic primary election candidate forum at the Community College of Aurora May 23, 2026, as fellow state attorney general competitors David Seligman, center, and Hetal Doshi list. SENTINEL SCREEN GRAB. The lawyers in the room Saturday at Community College of Aurora weren’t having any of Gov.
Use tax back to Oro Valley Town Council
A first-ever Oro Valley use tax, approved on a 4-3 vote by the Oro Valley Town Council on Jan. 14, is coming back to the governing board for a second vote. The repeat is a result of what town officials described as a clerical error at the Arizona Department of Revenue. “This is an item I hoped would not be necessary to bring back to town council,” Chief Financial Officer Dave Gephart told the council on April 8.
Golder Ranch by the numbers
In 2025, the Golder Ranch Fire District: • Responded to 20,579 calls, among them 9,442 calls in Oro Valley. Most are for medical emergencies; “paramedics are on the trucks,” Chief Tom Brandhuber said. GRFD employs 116 paramedics; • Addressed 11,343 emergency medical incidents, 5,289 of them in Oro Valley. It transported 3,908 people to Oro Valley Hospital; • Replaced smoke alarm batteries, or put in new alarms, at 2,087 homes, 827 of them in Oro Valley.
Bystander CPR helped Golder Ranch Fire District save 10 in cardiac arrest
In 2025, Golder Ranch Fire District personnel helped to save the lives of 10 people in cardiac arrest. One was a 10-year-old child in Oro Valley, GRFD Chief Tom Brandhuber told the Oro Valley Town Council during his annual report earlier this year. A bystander had begun cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the child. GRFD crews arrived “and we were able to revive him,” Brandhuber said.
PERRY: Polis defies ‘timing is everything’ wisdom with invoking the Tina Peters principle Original
FILE – Mesa County, Colo., clerk Tina Peters, who was indicted in March on 11, 2022 felony and misdemeanor charges related to allegations she and others tampered with secure voting equipment and software, talks to well-wishers at a rally staged to voice concerns about free and fair elections on the west steps of the State Capitol on Tuesday, April 5, 2022, in downtown Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File) My jaw still hurts from when it dropped into my lap last week when Gov.
Show More
loading
Actions
Get in touch with Dave
Contact Dave, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack