La Plata County, Colorado

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"My vision of the role of a rural sheriffs department," says Gardner, "is to be an integral part of the community—a law enforcement cliché, perhaps, but nonetheless something I believe in—and to help the community maintain its quality of life. My deputies and I try to embody the concept of true peace officers who both reside in and reflect the values of our community.

"As a small, rural county, La Plata enjoys a far lower crime rate than the majority of urban and suburban areas I'm familiar with. This is a fine, safe place to live. But it requires nurturing and constant vigilance to keep it that way. We still have the tragedies of domestic violence, sexual assault, bur glary, narcotics—you know, this is the United States in the late 1980s. Any growth or sudden change in this county will be something I'll be very concerned about in terms of protecting the lifestyle we now enjoy."

The Thies family numbers six: Jason (Jay), 37; Christie, 34; their children, Ben, Jennie and Karen; plus Zeb, the fat dog. Jay is maintenance supervisor for a sprawling vacation-home subdivision near Bayfield. Chris works at a carpet store in Durango. Both have degrees in psychology. During a recent evening of fireside conversation the Thieses offered the following observations on their views of the quality of life in La Plata County today.

(Jay) "When we first arrived in Durango, in July of '78, rental housing was totally unavailable, so Chris and I had to stay with friends—four of us stuffed into a one-bedroom cabin. Eventually, I landed a caretaker job that included housing. We worked and saved, and finally, three years ago, were able to buy a home.

"Having once been a caretaker for a wilderness preserve, I have mixed feelings about my present job, working for a land developer. But then, having left our home in central Illinois because times were so hard, I've seen the other side of it; where there's not enough activity in the economy you have high unemployment, welfare and lots of people with bad attitudes. So I feel that a certain amount of development is good."

(Chris) "We need a second income, so I'm working full-time now. But after day care, food and transportation, there's not much left of my paycheck. We often wonder if we wouldn't be able to provide better for ourselves and our kids if we lived in or near a bigger city."

(Jay) "But we've lived in La Plata County for 11 years now; it's hard to think about leaving."

(Chris) "This is such beautiful country, and such a great place to raise children. Growing up in an environment like this, I think kids develop a sense of wonderment, learn to appreciate nature and other things that might get overlooked in a more populated place. We can step out our door and go for a walk in the woods. Even commuting to work every day—it's a beautiful road. And the schools are good. We try to appreciate those things; that's why we've been willing to sacrifice so much in order to live here.

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