Denver-The Honorable Mayor John Hickenlooper served as the Honorary Chair of Historic Denver, Inc.'s Annual Dinner and Awards Ceremony last night at the Brown Palace Hotel & Spa.The event was co-chaired by
Holly Kylberg and Tom Lorz, with help from the event committee of Wendy Aiello and Walt DeHaven, Jennifer Connelly, Judy Geller, Martha Kelce, Melissa Nelson, Katie Ortiz, Valere Harris Shane, Sandra Hagen Solin and Nate Williams.
With nearly 400 guests in attendance the Annual Dinner and Awards Ceremony celebrated the wonderful historic places that make Denver a vibrant and diverse community.Mayor John Hickenlooper was recognized as this year's winner of Historic Denver's Ann Love Award, which honors persons who have made significant contributions to local preservation, but do not consider themselves preservationists.The group's Molly Brown Award, given to a woman who has shown a Molly Brown sense of spirit and civic involvement for the betterment of the community, was presented to Georgianna Contiguglia, the former President and CEO of the Colorado Historical Society and Colorado State Historical Preservation Officer.The late Peter H. Dominick Jr. was recognized with the Keystone Award for his lifetime of contributions to historic preservation in Denver.Five projects received Community Preservation Awards for excellence in restoration, rehabilitation or reuse, including the Aromor Building, Clayton Campus, Dry Ice Factory, Rocky Mountain Seed Company Building, and Wazee Exchange. To view a film about the award-winners visit www.historicdenver.org.
During the event, it was announced that Annie Levinsky, previously Historic Denver's Deputy Director and Director of the Molly Brown House Museum, had been elevated to the role of Executive Director.Levinsky has worked at the organization for more than six years, and has experience not only running the organization's flagship property, but also launching the Denver Story Trek program and securing several prestigious federal grants.
In making the announcement, outgoing Executive Director Robert E. Musgraves, who will return to the Board of Trustees as Chair, said, "The organization is very fortunate to have Annie taking the helm as Executive Director at this point in its history.I am confident she will bring an important youthful energy and enthusiasm to Historic Denver at it moves into its 40 th year in 2010."
Levinsky noted, "I am excited about the coming year and the opportunity for the organization to use its 40 th birthday to refocus on our core mission and get creative about how we ensure that the places that inspire us and give our city character remain a vital part of our future."
The Annual Dinner is also the organization's opportunity to announce new members of its Board of Trustees.Newly
appointed Trustees include local architect Dennis Humphries and community volunteer Holly Kylberg.Musgraves, Humphries and Kylberg join 22 other business and civic leaders who volunteer their time as Trustees to support the cause of historic preservation.
Historic Denver is a private, non-profit organization and the proceeds from last night's event support its on-going community efforts to advocate for irreplaceable historic resources.For more information about the organization visit
www.historicdenver.org or call (303) 534-5388. About Historic Denver
Formed in 1970, Historic Denver is one of the nation's premiere historic preservation organizations, with a focus on preserving, advocating and educating about the places that matter to our community.As an organization, we provide resources and technical assistance for those who own or live in historic structures, support to neighborhood groups interested in local preservation, and promotion of the value of our cultural heritage as a key element of economic growth, community revitalization, and sustainability through a series of successful programs:
- The operation of the
Molly Brown House Museum, which serves 45,000 visitors and school children each year.
- Denver Story Trek, a heritage tourism initiative that draws out the special stories of Denver's buildings and shares them in a free, cell-phone platform.
- The
Partners in the Field Initiative, which provides resources, educational activities and technical assistance to the owners of historic structures in central Denver and the historic first-ring suburbs.
- The
Sacred Landmarks program, dedicated to working with churches, synagogues and temples to complete necessary stewardship projects that prolong the life and use of the structure and free up their resources to focus on their important neighborhood and community service programs.
- A series of publications, including 24 unique
Historic Denver Guidebooks that tell the stories and highlight the architecture of our city's historic resources, both large and small.