DENVER – Every Monday morning, one Meals on Wheels volunteer and his sons do much needed work in their community. For some homebound seniors, it’s not just a hot meal, it’s a familiar face, a conversation, and a reminder that someone cares. Mel Faes is a 100-year-old World War II veteran who has volunteered with Meals on Wheels for more than four decades.

“To have these services and to have people who care about you lets you live your life out in dignity,” said Cathy Law, a project manager with Volunteers of America Colorado’s retired and senior volunteer program.

Faes was born in 1925 and raised in north Denver. He joined the Army Air Force at 19 and served during World War II before returning home to work for the U.S. Postal Service for 34 years. But for the last 40 years, Mondays have been reserved for delivering meals to neighbors who need them.

“You can donate money here and there, but donating your time is more valuable,” Faes said.

On his route, Faes is now joined by his sons, John and Jim, who began helping with deliveries about five years ago when their father stopped driving.

“My dad, he’s a wonderful man,” John Faes said. “We can see how unselfish he’s always been his whole life, always wanting to do for the other.”

Richard Butler

While his sons handle the driving, Mel still insists on taking meals to the door whenever he can.

“Doing the meals, sometimes you’re the only person they see all day,” Mel Faes said.

That personal connection is what makes the program so important, according to Volunteers of America.

“It’s nourishment for the body, but it’s also nourishment for their soul,” Law said. “Without volunteers, we couldn’t run our program.”

Volunteers of America Colorado produces and serves nearly 3,000 meals a day across seven counties, relying on hundreds of volunteers to deliver meals to seniors who might otherwise go without.

Richard Butler

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For the Faes family, volunteering has become a shared experience.

“It means a lot to them, and it means a lot to us,” John Faes said. “It’s a humbling experience. It’s good for both parties.”

At 100 years old, Mel Faes shows no signs of slowing down.

“If people ask him what his secret to a long life is, he says, ‘Keep moving,’” his son John said.

That lifetime of service is celebrated with Denver7 and Levine Law recognizing Mel as a Denver7 Everyday Hero.

“We nominated Mel because of his giving, humble, amazing spirit,” Law said. “Not just for his military service, but for the way he continues to give back to the community over and over again.”

For Faes, the recognition is appreciated but it’s never been the reason he shows up.

Richard Butler

“It’s not really work,” he said. “It’s something you love to do.”

Volunteers of America Colorado says there is always a need for more Meals on Wheels volunteers. Those interested in delivering meals or supporting other programs can learn more and sign up on their website, where information about volunteer opportunities across the state are available.

Denver7 features a different Everyday Hero each week. To nominate a hero in your life, click here.

Two people died and three others were injured in Denver crashes early Sunday morning, police said.

The Denver Police Department posted about the first fatal crash on eastbound Interstate 70 near Tennyson Street at 2:53 a.m. Sunday. The street and highway intersect just east of Berkeley Lake Park in Denver’s Berkeley neighborhood.

One person died in the single-car crash that temporarily shut down eastbound I-70, police said. All lanes had reopened as of 9 a.m. Sunday, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.

A second early morning crash involving three vehicles near Morrison Road and South Sheridan Boulevard killed one person and sent three others to the hospital, Denver police said at 3:07 a.m. Sunday.

The intersection in Denver’s Westwood neighborhood, about 6 miles south of the first crash site, sits on the edge of Lakewood.

DENVER – Forward Rieger Lorenz scored 2:17 into overtime to lead the No. 11 Denver Pioneers hockey team to a 1-0 victory against the No. 7 Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs on Saturday night at Magness Arena. 
 
Neither the Pioneers (16-11-2, 12-6-0 NCHC) nor Bulldogs (17-11-0, 8-10-0 NCHC) could get their first 49 shots into the back of the net before Lorenz’s tap-in tally during 3-on-3 play. Denver won 4-3 on Friday to earn its first weekend sweep of 2026 and fourth overall this season.
 
“I thought again we played well,” said Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle. “We played pretty disciplined, didn’t give them a ton. Really liked our first period, second period I thought was a little slow for us, but I really liked our third.
 
“We did not give them a ton throughout the night, only 19 shots. Inside the power plays we gave them early, and they didn’t have a lot of shots, the first three were on the power plays. So we did a nice job. We held their top line for zero points on the weekend—I’m not sure that’s been done yet this year. A great accomplishment, and Johnny Hicks was excellent.”
 
Freshman goaltender Johnny Hicks started his second game for the Pioneers and earned his first career shutout, denying all 19 shots that Duluth shot his way. Hicks made 29 saves on Friday night before leaving in the third period with a lower-body injury, and he now owns a 3-0-0 record, 0.55 goals-against average and .980 save percentage in two starts and seven games this season.
 
Lorenz registered his first goal in overtime and his third game-winner of his career. Junior defenseman Eric Pohlkamp stood at the faceoff dot and sent a tape-to-tape pass to the far-side of the crease for the senior alternate captain. Junior forward Kieran Cebrian also had an assist on the goal and was strong in the circle by winning 60 percent of his faceoffs (12-of-20).
 
DU outshot UMD 31-19, including by a 14-4 margin in third period and overtime. Bulldogs netminder Adam Gajan finished by stopping 30 shots. The Pioneers outshot the Bulldogs 13-6 in the first period but UMD finished the edge in the second at 9-4.
 
Minnesota Duluth’s top-ranked power play didn’t convert on its two chances in the contest, while Denver didn’t capitalize on its lone man advantage as well.
 
UP NEXT: The Pioneers stay in-state next weekend as they take on the Colorado College Tigers in a home-and-home series. DU plays at Ed Robson Arena on Friday before hosting CC at Magness Arena on Saturday. Both games begin at 7 p.m. MT and will be broadcast on NCHC.tv.
 
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• The Pios improved to 7-1-0 in their last eight games against UMD and 11-2-0 in the past 13 matchups. Denver is also now 83-40-5 on home ice in the all-time series vs. Duluth.
• DU wrapped up their four-game homestand by going 3-1-0. DU’s homestay was tied for the longest of the season, and the squad closed out January having played eight-of-10 contests at Magness Arena.
• The Pioneers have won three straight contests on home ice, a season-best streak.
• Denver posted its sixth shutout of the season.
• The Pioneers won their second overtime game of the season (Oct. 31 vs. Alaska Anchorage) and is now 2-3-2 in OT this season.
• Rieger Lorenz scored his first career overtime goal, and his second game-winner of the season (Dec. 5 vs. Mimai).
• Johnny Hicks became the third Denver goaltender to post a shutout this year.
• Denver and Minnesota Duluth were facing off for the first time with both teams ranked since the then-No.3 ranked Pios beat the No. 6 Bulldogs in the 2022 NCAA West Regional Final in Loveland, Colorado.
• Duluth was visiting Magness Arena for the first time since March 15-16, 2024 in the NCHC Playoffs when Denver swept the best-of-three quarterfinal series. 
• Cale Ashcroft (1g/2a) and Kyle Chyzowski (2g/1a) both had their three-game point streaks come to an end.
• Eric Pohlkamp leads all NCAA players in shots on goal and surpassed 400 career shots this weekend.
• The teams’ six combined penalty minutes tied a season-low in a game for the Pioneers.

 
GOAL SUMMARY
1st Period
No Scoring
 
2nd Period
No Scoring
 
3rd Period
No Scoring
 
Overtime
2:17 DU (1-0) – Rieger Lorenz tapped in Eric Pohlkamp’s pass from the right faceoff circle while stationed at the far-side of the crease.
 
 
QUOTABLES
Senior forward Rieger Lorenz
On game: “We’ve had a hard time closing out weekends here in the second half, so it was nice to see growth from our group. Obviously a good game yesterday. I thought our start was really good; [we] had a little bit of lapse in our mental game in the second and early third, but I thought we obviously pulled it out. It’s a big win for our group at this time in the season.”
 
On his overtime goal: “Obviously going against that Plante line you want to have the puck when you’re going against them. So, we got some speed, kicked out to Ceebs (Kieran Cebrian), he kicked it out to PK (Eric Pohlkamp). And I think everyone in the building thought he was going to shoot that, including me—but luckily enough he found me.”
 
On the excitement in building: “It’s unreal. The last few weekends have been tough for us at home, so it’s nice to give the fans something to cheer about, and hopefully they keep supporting us like they have been all season.”
 
On facing Colorado College next weekend: “Like I said, we’ve had a hard time stringing weekends together, so I think this will be a big weekend for us to show the strides we’ve taken so far. And the downs we’ve had this season, hopefully we’ve learned from them and can prove that to ourselves this upcoming weekend with the big rivalry.”
 
Junior Defenseman Eric Pohlkamp
On the game-winning goal he assisted on: “Yeah, I thought myself that I was going to shoot the puck, but I saw him (Rieger Lorenz) kind of get positioned on that guy and move backwards, and we made a hyper-play to tap that in. Really happy for him, and he’s been all over the puck in this game, and I know he had a lot of chances. So nice for him to get that one for sure.”
 
On this win being a boost: “Yeah, I think so. I don’t know what to say about boost, but I think we just need to be more consistent. We have CC as a big rival coming next weekend, so we are home-and-home, and those are some fun games. We played them early in the year, so I know we’re going to be eager to play them and looking forward to it.”
 
On changes in defense: “Yeah, we kind of talked about it in there, just punting the ball, like just playing football. You know, we don’t want them to regroup and attack us. I really liked our commitment, and we made plays and offense against a tough line (of UMD), me and Jamo (Eric Jamieson). It was a lot of fun playing against those guys, but obviously really good players and it was an excellent job this weekend.”
 

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