When Ron and Kathie Braun moved to Niwot five years ago from New York, their twins Mark and Kim were entering high school. "At the time I realized there was not a career room at the high school," Kathie said. "We as parents should be planting seeds for our children’s college education even as freshmen [in high school]. We need a place to guide and direct students to resource material." That place turned out to be the Future Center. 

The Future Center, a resource area for post graduate information at Niwot High School, is the direct result of the Brauns’ concerns. The center has hundreds of college catalogs, videos and view books along with computers for easy access to college and university information, scholarships, testing services, careers and more. 

The Discover software program is also available to help those students who are not sure about what they want to do after graduation. This program provides an "interest inventory" and offers information on career pathways. 

Work on establishing the center started in the fall of 1995 with four volunteers, Sandi Searles, Ginny Kelly, Janet Freytag and Kathie. The women visited other schools for ideas, sent hundreds of letters to colleges and universities requesting videos and catalogs, contacted construction companies for labor and material donations for renovation; they also went through the district warehouse gathering supplies and getting computer donations. The only funding for the center was a grant from the Niwot High School Education Foundation to purchase a monitor and computer peripherals. 

This year the center hopes to have 20 plus volunteers working in the newly renovated room. If you are interested in the future of our children please call volunteer coordinator Beth Payne at 303-652-8831

Besides starting the Future Center, Ron Braun established the first chapter of the Safe Rides Program in Colorado. On Friday and Saturday nights, between the hours of 10:30 p.m. and 1:30 a.m. during the school year, any student in the area that is in an unsafe situation can call Safe Rides and receive a ride home; no questions asked. 

Safe Rides is a national program and is part of the Boy Scouts of America’s Explorer Program. The Explorers provide experience, printed guidelines and insurance. 

According to Ron, "The hotline is manned by student volunteers to help other students in need. Confidentiality is paramount. The student is picked up, no questions asked and taken to their home." Safe Ride will only take students home; they will not be dropped off anyplace else. 

The program has very strict guidelines. A call comes in and the volunteer fills out a form as to where the caller is, where their home is and first name of the caller. There are always two people in the car. The volunteers have a cell phone with them and check in with the base three times during the pick-up. Volunteers never get out of the vehicle when making the pick up.

Mountain View Fire District Niwot Station is the home for Safe Rides. There is a minimum of five students plus one parent each evening. The parent volunteer is there for support but does not go out on any calls. "The emphasis is on the students making the decisions," Ron continued. The room is used at no charge. We plug in the phones, watch videos and eat pizza while waiting for calls. The number of calls vary from week to week." 

The program is not just for alcohol related situations and it is not just for the driver. If a student is left at a party, instead of putting themselves into a dangerous situation by walking home or getting into a car with an impaired driver, he/she can call Safe Rides. 

"We don’t condone teenage drinking by any means. We just know that it’s going on and we need to keep the drinking kids off the roads," said Kathie. 

"That’s right, parents can’t put their heads in the sand," Ron said. 

Safe Rides meet every second Sunday night each month to set up schedules. The meetings are at the Niwot Fire Station. Non-drivers are welcome to man phones and ride along on calls. Volunteers are welcome as many or as few times a month they are willing to donate. Please call Ron Braun at 303-652-3733 or Elaine Perry at 303-652-2304. It’s an opportune time to spend time and communicate with the kids!!! 

Besides Safe Rides, Ron has been instrumental in starting up after school clubs. He took an extensive survey of the high school students to determine what clubs were of interest. Studies show that children who are involved in extra-curricular activities succeed at a higher rate than those without any focus. 

As a result of the survey there has been a photography club, computer club, and ski club. The ski club is the only club still in existence. 

Finally, the Brauns were also instrumental in bringing musical plays back to Niwot High School. Last year’s performance of Music Man was the first musical in 12 years at the high school. 

Even though the twins are in college, the Brauns are still actively involved in issues that affect Niwot High School. The Courier and community thank them for their generosity to the students of NHS. Their efforts are greatly appreciated.