Freshman Sen. Scott Renfroe, R-Eaton, finds himself awed by the sheer size of Colorado’s General Assembly and the responsibilities that come with representing Senate District 13.

After his successful fall election, Renfroe took the reins from retired GOP Sen. Dave Owen, of Greeley, in January.

“After (legislative) orientation, I just could not believe how big our government is and how every department is set up to protect itself,” the senator said.

Renfroe’s Senate campaign focused on his promise to run an abortion-ban bill a promise he kept once elected. The senator’s pro-life bill failed on a party-line vote earlier this

session.

“Family values and small government are two of my most important issues,” said Renfroe, who seems to approach politics like a business.

“I'm always looking to make the smart business decision,” he said of his voting style.

The senator appears as a very rational and fact-driven person who has been surprised by some of the emotion he has encountered during his first 10 weeks on the job. 

“I try to inject business perspective and common sense into a debate,” Renfroe said.

Unlike many of the other politicians that are found on Capitol Hill, Renfroe was never very much into politics while growing up. He prides himself on being a conservative businessman, and all through college he was too focused on athletics to concern himself with political ideology.

Renfroe is married to his high school sweetheart, Pamela, and the two are the proud parents of five children. The family is very tightly knit, he said, and they enjoy taking ski vacations whenever time permits.

For fun, the senator enjoys spending time with his family, and he even participates on a bipartisan basketball team.

During his college career, the senator played baseball and attended four colleges in four years, starting at Iowa State and eventually graduating from Colorado State University in Fort Collins.

On his time so far in the Legislature, the freshman lawmaker noted that he has enjoyed and learned from all the people he’s met this session.