A prayer ceremony for the Animas River will be held at sunrise (about 6:30 a.m.) Sunday at Santa Rita Park.

The Native American ceremony will be dedicated to the cleansing of the Animas River.

Participants are asked to bring a bottle of water, and after the ceremony the water will be poured into the river to help cleanse it. Others in the region will also have similar ceremonies at the same time.

For more information, call 759-3069.

Rotary club to hear about illegal whaling

Sarah Burris and her husband, Eric Burris, will give a presentation about their efforts to stop illegal whaling while volunteering in Australia with Sea Shepherd.

They will speak at the Durango Daybreak Rotary Club’s meeting from 6:45 to 8 a.m. Wednesday at the Durango Community Recreation Center, 2700 Main Ave.

Ponderosa expert to spotlight forests

The Center of Southwest Studies will conclude its 2015 summer lecture series, “Imagining the West,” with Syl Allred’s talk, “Blackjacks and Yellowbellies: Walking in Western Ponderosa Pine Forests,” at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in the center’s Lyceum Room.

Allred is a retired biology professor from Northern Arizona University. He spent almost three decades researching the tassel-eared squirrel and its only home, the ponderosa pine forests of the Southwest.

Allred will discuss and show examples of ponderosa pine forests in terms of age, health, threats and management issues.

A book signing will be held after the talk with copies of Allred’s book, Ponderosa, available for purchase.

For more information, call 247-7456 or visit http://swcenter.fortlewis.edu.

Wolf Creek Pass tunnel to be closed

The Colorado Department of Transportation will have work underway Thursday to scope the U.S. Highway 160 Wolf Creek Pass tunnel for future fiber optics installation.

CDOT has installed cable from Walsenburg to South Fork, excluding the tunnel. Next summer, crews will complete installation through the tunnel, improving remote monitoring and traffic operations.

To enable crews to survey the area, the tunnel will be closed from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday. Travelers will detour around the tunnel onto the old U.S. Highway 160 alignment. The fiber-optic installation project is expected to begin next summer.

For more information, visit www.codot.gov and search “Programs & Projects.”

Ecology of rivers to be discussed

Chris Rasmussen will present “Ecology of Southwestern Rivers: Form and Function, Restoration and Resilience” at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center, 23390 Road K, Cortez.

Rasmussen will talk about the form and function of river bottomlands from unique perspectives. From this context, she will address river restorations, common alterations of rivers and what the past means for the future.

Rasmussen will review the concepts of ecosystem resilience and how to prepare rivers and communities for a time of increased change.

For more information, call 564-4362.

Free school clothes, supplies offered

A “Back-to-School Giveaway” to help families get ready for the school season will take place from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday at Faith Community Church, 1400 Colorado Highway 172.

The church’s Twice Blessed clothing ministry will be open to the general public. Free, gently-used clothing and shoes will be available. Backpacks and school supplies will be available to the first 50 families that come to the event. Free food will be served.

After the giveaway, the church will host an outdoor movie night, showing the film “Wall-E” on an outdoor wall.

For more information, call 764-5027.

Elks Lodge to serve veterans breakfast

A veterans breakfast will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. Sunday at the Elks Lodge, 901 East Second Ave.

The cost is $5 for veterans and $6 for non-veterans. Participants should use the East Ninth Street entrance.

High Noon Rotary talk to focus on oral health

The Durango High Noon Rotary Club will meet from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday at the DoubleTree Hotel, 501 Camino del Rio.

The cost for lunch is $15. Kari Plante will talk about oral health in the area.

Herald Staff