2020 INC Awards

Youth Awards

Spring Institute’s, Yosemite Youth Cohort in East Colfax

Winner of a $1,000 Youth Grant

2020 brought a new level of activities for the Yosemite Youth Cohort with the consistent engagement of students involved in community programming. These activities consisted of the Asian Round Table Census Initiative, where students were active in educating and assisting their community to complete the Census paperwork. Members were also available to hand out food and deliver groceries during the pandemic creating partnerships with Hope Communities, Denver and Aurora Public Schools lunch programs, and Street Fraternity.

Interpretation services were invaluable to at-risk families requesting assistance from the “Family, Friend, Neighbor” network. Students managed the Spring Institute Community physical activity library which made sports equipment available to the neighborhood.

The variety of programs that these youth assisted with have continuously impacted their community. With their help, families have an increased sense of community, having been introduced to resources available to them, and as a result, have been more interested in joining future programming with their neighbors.

George Washington High School’s Eye to Eye Project

Winner of a $500 Youth Grant

The mission of Eye to Eye’s National Organization is to “Unlock greatness in the 1 in 5 who learn differently.”

George Washington’s Chapter of Eye to Eye has partnered with the Denver Green School. Eye to Eye joins high school aged students with learning disabilities to middle school aged students who are similarly identified. Mentors were trained by the national organization to provide social-emotional interventions with high impact results. While working on art projects students engage in conversations about their learning differences and how they are impacted academically and socially. Mentors took on leadership roles while mentees learned new skills to support social-emotional growth, and built stronger friendships with their peers.

As each of the participants move through the phases of this program they gain the confidence and skills necessary to be more productive, effective, self-aware, and joyful members of their school communities and neighborhoods.

Youth Employment Academy’s, Arts Street EnvironMENTAL Project

Winner of a $500 Youth Grant

 

These youth represented and worked in Mar Lee, West Colfax, Montclair, Clayton, Virginia Vale, Park Hill, East Colfax, Central Park, Montbello, Athmar Park, Ruby Hill, and Westwood neighborhoods.

The Arts Street program rose to another level beyond Job Training for Youth in 2020.

Their year-long virtual programming resulted in EnvironMENTAL, projects that created outlets for youth to research, confront and combat environmental disasters and begin to bring relief on some of the anxiety created by everyday environmental issues.

A new website artsstreetenviornmental.weebly.com presented photography, individual up-cycled product inventions with hands-on tutorials, traditional art pieces completed by students at home, and a Sun Valley neighborhood public art accomplished by a team working under COVID safety protocol. These projects empowered the youth to think about their trash and how water consumption can be used differently.

These youth also presented their neighborhood EnvironMENTAL findings to the Denver City Council. Throughout these uplifting and character-building processes, youth participants and audiences shared experiences as concerned citizens during this very difficult year of politics, ethics and health conditions.

Consumption Literacy’s Spiral Garden in Montbello
Winner of a $500 Youth Grant

This group engages and supports students, communities, and educators to innovate ways of changing waste and consumption patterns. The Spiral Garden was the brainchild of Montbello residents who aim to do just that.

A vacant, weedy, sandy and dry space in the community has been transformed into a composting organic waste garden bed. Planning began a year ago. Installation was the work of three principal artists, the helping hands of 6-8 young folks and their parents making The Spiral Garden a community effort. As one student put it “the garden is constructed of basically any compost we can collect.”

Their crew is planning their first planting this year! Work continues by adding more compost to build outer spiral arms. 2021 includes the planning of perennial food producing plants and placement of two fruit trees. Efforts are being made to expand participation in the whimsical Spiral Garden too.

Neighborhood Star Awards

Kathleen (Cass) Cronan with Earth-Links Colorado &

Cole Chandler with Colorado Village Collaborative

Nominated by Capitol Hill United Neighbors, Inc.

The Colorado Village Collaborative and Earth-Links Colorado both work to support the unhoused. In 2020 a coalition of Denver community groups outlined steps to support the unhoused. At this time two temporary safe outdoor sites (SOS) were proposed. The pilot sites would be at First Baptist Church operated by Earth-Links Denver and Denver Community Church operated by Colorado Village Collaborative. Both organizations have worked extensively with the host properties and the surrounding neighborhoods, up to and including developing a Good Neighbor Agreement, to guide their operations. Since their launch last year, both programs have boasted a significant amount of progress and positive, measurable outcomes. 

One of the residents said “I feel like I’m presented with an opportunity to advance myself.” Earth-Links Denver and Colorado Village Collaborative you are both Neighborhood Stars. 

 

Ryan Cox: Curtis Park Neighbors

Nominated by: Curtis Park Neighbors & Curtis Park Neighbors Homelessness Solutions Committee

Ryan Cox, a volunteer leader of the Curtis Park Neighbors Homelessnes Solutions Committee, has accomplished meaningful change in addressing Denver’s crisis of homelessness. Ryan rapidly learned about the complex issues of homelessness and has won the respect of the Mayor’s office, the city council and the homeless community.

Ryan advocated for the Safe Outdoor Space initiative. Ryan helps lead a team of volunteers to conduct outreach to those experiencing homelessnes in that neighborhood and works to connect them with services and alternatives to the street. Ryan can be found picking up trash, helping install landscaping, repairing damaged public spaces after encampments move, and planning events to activate park and public spaces for housed and unhoused neighbors. Here he is setting up for concert at Sonny Lawson Park.

Wanting to gain an understanding of why people are on the street, Ryan is on a first name basis with many of those who are currently or formerly homeless. Ryan is truly a steward of Curtis Park and offers counsel and comfort to all he meets. He is a neighborhood Star.

John DeLisa – Inspiration Point

Nominated by: Robert Lorenz

John has served as Inspiration Point Neighborhood Association’s treasurer during two neighborhood administrations for 17 years. His knowledge and experience acquired as an expert fiscal civil servant in income tax has benefited our Registered Neighborhood Organization with an honest and trusted volunteer. He keeps excellent financial and
membership records and does the expenditures and banking accurately. He regularly attends all membership and board meetings to report in detail how we are doing financially and where we stand in terms of voting members.

Last year on Arbor Day along with Mayor Hancock, John and others planted “experimental” cypress trees in Inspiration Park.

John’s long, volunteer service and dedication to the Inspiration Point Neighborhood Association has made a difference in our neighborhood.

Ann Nguyen, La Alma Lincoln Park Neighborhood Star

Nominated by: Roger Callender

Ann has been a valuable asset to the La Alma Lincoln Park community for many years. She is committed to providing safe streets and building awareness of how the design of landscape and structures communicate important stories and connect people to a place. Ann leads the Equity & Inclusion program at Bicycle Colorado. Ann is the Neighborhood Chair of the 5280 Trail, which works with the Downtown Denver Partnership to implement community driven programming, events and improvements along the trail in La Alma Lincoln Park.

She is the La Alma Lincoln Park Planning and Development Committee Chair leading the effort to create Design Overlay for areas zoned as Main Street to preserve and enhance the Art District on Santa Fe. Ann could be found cooking meals for Denver Health this past summer. She is a stakeholder in the Santa Fe Streetscape Project and in the Neighborhood Transportation Management Program.

She has also worked on tree canopy implementation along Santa Fe Drive and is truly a neighborhood star.

Paul Vranas, Lowry United Neighborhoods

Nominated by: Sally Kurtzman

Paul is making Lowry a better neighborhood by bringing neighbors together.  Inspired by his lack of awareness to the economic, racial and ethnic diversity that exists, his advocacy work focused on:

1)      Identifying systems that are enabling oppression amongst our most vulnerable neighbors

2)      Removing roadblocks Lowry residents face looking to escape generational poverty

3)      Improving educational outcomes for children who need it the most

So, he identified what neighbors face and implemented grassroots solutions. Last year he:
-Increased membership and diversity of the Lowry RNO.
-Started the Lowry Coronavirus Help Group of 75 volunteers to respond to the unique challenges of COVID-19.
-Created the “SNAP Benefits in a Pandemic” Facebook Group after hearing a Lowry neighbor was having difficulty using “food stamps.”
-Advocated against the use of Tax Increment Financing to allow $33million of DPS funding to renovation of the 16^th St. Mall.
-Joined Lowry Elementary Collaborative School Committee to inspire greater collaboration between the school and the wealth of neighborhood resources.

Melissa Sotelo – Montbello 20/20

Nominated By: Ann White

Melissa was born in Denver, graduated Montbello High School and received her BA in Sociology, from CSU with a concentration in Criminal Justice. Throughout her college she committed to understanding diversity, cultural immersion, political and economic differences. She worked for Environmental Learning for Kids a nonprofit that works with culturally diverse, low-income youth in teaching science education, outdoor recreation, and career exploration, and is an ELK alum.

Melissa has been a neighborhood shining star. When COVID-19 began she ensured that older adults had household essentials and called community members daily to make sure they were connected to city services. She went above and beyond to get residents connected virtually so they could continue to participate and engage in meetings. She was a key advocate and organizer in getting COVID-19 testing locations in Montbello and Green Valley Ranch. These testing centers were critical to helping majority Latino and African Americans in District 11 neighborhoods.

Judy Hopper, Christine Gust and Lisa Olsen
– Uptown on the Hill
Nominated by: Judy Trompeter

In 2019 as president of the Turnverein Judy spearheaded Greenverein, a project to replace the barren, asphalt-covered, treeless right-of-way with a xeric garden. Christine and volunteers began planting trees and perennials but work was extremely difficult due to the compacted soil. They got Front Range Wild Ones got involved whose president, Lisa, designed a garden that addressed soil compaction, water runoff, and intense heat.

In 2020 Front Range Wild Ones and Judy worked untold hours to solicit financial support, build berms, dig trenches, add boulders, and plant. They obtained unwanted materials, such as broken concrete, tree stumps, pea gravel, and native plants. Using Lisa’s design the result is a beautiful garden on the site, one that already lures bees, butterflies, and even a rabbit or two, saves water, and draws appreciative comments from passersby.

It’s a better place to live, by dramatically showing the benefits of using native plants in city gardens.

Honorary Awards

Delegate of the Year Award Winner –

Adrian Brown – Baker Historic District

Adrian Brown has been a Baker INC delegate since 2014. In these years, he has worked on many projects including, but not limited to, under-grounding utility wires, homelessness, the I-70 trench project, and stormwater. As a professional engineer and a small business owner, Adrian brings a wealth of knowledge and a lifetime of experience to everything he does. He even came up with the concept of the “Denver Dam” to decrease river-polluting run-off and improve ground water stores. During this past year, Adrian focused on ensuring that INC take an anti-racist approach to everything it does — pushing the organization to think beyond its non-discrimination policy, noting how some “neighborhood preserving” positions can actually be discriminatory and not at all anti-racist. It’s always interesting and exciting to learn what the next non-conventional solution to a problem Adrian will have.

Climate & Sustainability Award Winner

Gertie Grant ––West Washington Park

 

The program “Denver Digs Trees” got its start in 1983 when Gertie saved 50 unwanted trees by distributing them in her neighborhood.  The popularity of the idea grew quickly and spread to other neighborhoods. By 1986 The Park People voted to sponsor the program, paying half the cost of trees if planted in the public right of way.

Called “The Park People’s Neighborhood Tree Distribution Program”, distribution sites were neighborhood garages. The 1989 bond money made it possible in 1990 to distribute a record number 1,000 trees in 10 neighborhoods.

Gertie gladly became the “Denver Digs Trees” staff member helping write the proposal for the first program in April 1991 resulting in the distribution of 3,000 free street trees.

This year using COVID protocols 500 trees will be distributed to Denver neighborhoods.

Gertie has been a very active member of her West Washington Park neighborhood serving as President and Zoning Committee Chair. She is an annual Patron member of INC. Thanks to Gertie for her dedication to her neighborhood, INC and the growing of Denver neighborhood canopies.

Lifetime Achievement Award Winner

Larry Ambrose – Sloan’s Lake Neighborhood Association &

former INC president

Larry, a Colorado native, has been involved in the formation and advocacy of Denver neighborhood groups since 1973, when he and his wife, Jane, started one of Denver’s first RNO’s, Northwest Neighbors.

In the early 1980’s he co-founded Sunnyside Highland Jefferson Park Neighborhood Association. He and Jane helped pioneer the LoHi Business District on 15th Street where they both had businesses and in 2004, they were founding members of Sloan’s Lake Neighborhood Association, where he serves today as Vice President.

Larry holds an MBA from UCLA and a JD from DU. As Community Relations Director of the Auraria Campus, he wrote the policies on community use of space and more notably, he saved the Golda Meir House from the wrecking ball; moved it to the Ninth Street Historic Park where it was restored and is named to the National Register of Historic Places.

Larry was a member of the Platte Area Reclamation Committee where he advocated for a major city park in Central Platte Valley and was subsequently appointed by Mayor McNichols as the neighborhood representative.

Larry and Gertie Grant co-chaired a citywide building height control initiative that was on the ballot in 1985. He was a leader in saving historic buildings in the Highlands and getting power lines buried in Highland Square business district. He was also instrumental in creating the Viking Park entryway into NW Denver and establishing Denver’s system of dog parks.

He served on numerous City planning committees and task force groups. Larry was the INC representative to the Visit Denver Olympics civic Engagement Subcommittee and was instrumental, along with Christine O’Connor, in getting the successful Olympic ballot initiative a few years ago.

Larry was a co-founder of INC Parks Committee and served on the INC board for nine years serving as Secretary, Vice President and President. He initiated the creation of INC’s website, logo and branding.  He established a record of activism and advocacy through INC Resolutions to Denver City government officials and initiated, at the behest of Kathleen Wells, the creation of Platforms for INC’s committees, starting with Parks. He formed the INC Parks Designation Committee and appointed its first members.

To raise funds for INC projects he initiated the Silent Auction at INC Annual Awards dinners, and with help from Jane Lorimer, took the dinners to a new level of success. Larry held Executive Committee retreats which for the first time, included building INC’s current mission statement to advocate for Denver citizens by bringing together, informing and empowering Denver neighborhood organizations to actively engage in addressing City issues.

He currently serves as Executive Director for Southwest Improvement Council, whose purpose is to improve living conditions for its residents through civic engagement, health and human service programs and affordable housing.

Larry Ambrose has indeed spent a “lifetime” of commitment to address the betterment of Denver’s neighborhoods.

Person of the Year – Brother Jeff Fard

It seems like everyone in Denver knows our Person of the Year, probably because Brother Jeff Fard has touched the lives of so very many people in metro Denver. He has received numerous honors and awards for his humanitarian approach to life.

He founded Brother Jeff’s Cultural Center in Five Points in 1994 a safe-space place that honors the community with Cultural celebrations and becomes a food bank overnight when the need arises. This past Christmas his volunteers helped to feed 500 individuals and delivered meals to many.

He is a native of Denver and hosts regular FaceBook interviews and YouTube video discussions with individuals involved with issues of the day from Park Hill Golf Course and Denver Public Schools to homeless sweeps and the School to Prison Pipeline debate. He faces the “hard to talk about” issues and has since the day he confronted the AIDS crisis in his neighborhood.

Ean Tafoya, I.N.C.’s zoning co-chair pictured here with Jeff, said “He uses his platform to elevate critical issues in our community. He lifted up small businesses during the pandemic. He is also a fierce advocate against police brutality and ensuring rights for the unhoused.”

He does it all with a great smile! And lives by the motto: If not Us, Who? If not Now, When?

The President’s Award –

Maggie Price

Congress Park Neighbors, Inc.

 

Words cannot express how grateful all members of INC and the Congress Park Neighborhood are for Maggie.  Her dedication to INC and her neighborhood is a full-time job.  She has single-handedly created, developed, managed and grown the INC communications and visibility for years giving all of us the benefit of her career as a professional software engineer.  The denverinc.org website is a wealth of archival history.  It is a resource of minutes, resolutions and the issues INC has brought forward to Denver citizens for over 10 years, elevating INC profile with the City of Denver.  She simply investigates facts and makes them available.

This year faced with COVID restrictions Maggie immediately managed to facilitate all INC Delegate and Committee meetings on Zoom, recording and immediately posting the meeting on the website and YouTube so the continuity of the organization was not lost.

She has chaired the INC Parks & Recreation Committee bringing attention to the use of public parks, preservation of open space and natural areas, waterways, water uses and the care of trees.

Everyone in INC relies on Maggie to be there with the answer – and she never fails!

Thank You Maggie!