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hirley Weaver Suffragist Award
For Lifetime Achievement

Sue Stark

Thinking about members who have given their time and talent to the League over a considerable period of time, I thought immediately of Susan Stark who has been an active member of the Cheesman Unit for eight years, and contributes immensely to our discussions because she is keenly interested in so many areas of justice and equity.

Susan has also stepped up in leadership roles which are vital to the strength of the Denver League: Women to Watch chair 2018-2021; Development Committee Chair 2021-2022 and Co-Director of Program 2022-2023. When she is not the chair of a group, she has always been an active member.

Women to Watch is a complex program that entails reaching out to many social service organizations and interviewing women they recommend. The actual event is the culmination of a great deal of research and human contact, so that attendees get the full picture of each woman’s struggle and triumph. Susan coordinated this effort with efficiency and compassion.

The Development Committee was strongly challenged during the pandemic when in-person events were almost impossible and seeking new sources for donations was very difficult because of the restrictions. Susan guided the committee through several successful fund-raising projects, and she was not  hesitant to try two new projects: the Sisters in Law theater event and the Non-Party 90th Birthday of the LWV Denver.

This year Susan, as Co-Director of Program, took on planning briefings and educational programs, and, along with Barbara Allen Ford, she has produced some very timely presentations which often mirrored the newspaper headlines that same week. This is a job which takes an acute awareness of current affairs.

On an historic note, Susan takes after her famous mother, Ruth Stark, who contributed a huge amount to the power of the LWV Denver, and, incidentally, won this same Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006!
Presented by Bobbie Heisterkamp.

Barbara Allen Ford

Barbara initially joined the Denver League in 1973 as part of the Cherry Creek Unit, inspired by the biography of Eleanor Roosevelt, a life-long Leaguer. Barbara was involved in some of the neighborhood tours which were the major PR and fundraising events from 1975-1984. As Chair of the City Government Committee, she was involved in the publication of one edition of Know Your Denver Government, which was funded and used by the City and County of Denver, with six editions from the early 50s to 2001 when the internet took over.

 

Barbara and her family lived in several different parts of the country until returning to Denver in 1992 and again becoming involved with the Denver League, always in Program, as chair again in 2003, as co-chair in 2009-2011, starting the Program Planning Potluck and involved as a major player in the LWV Colorado Behavioral Health Study, which was eventually adopted by LWVUS at a National Convention in 2016. Barbara’s knowledge of various behavioral health issues has always been an asset and a valuable research source. Barbara again returned to the Denver Board as Member-at-Large, serving as assistant to the Director of Program, and back as Co-Chair in 2021 to the present, serving out her term in spite of moving to Pueblo in 2022. Almost all those years leading Denver’s Program efforts, she was working full-time. She is truly an inspiration, has served the League well, and certainly deserves this “Lifetime” award.
Presented by Marty Sloven

Marty Sloven Mother Lode Award
For Outstanding Contributions in the Last Year

Anne Duncan and Jeanette Scotland

Voter Service is the heart of the Denver League, and Anne and Jeanette have been the heart of Voter Service for some time now. Highlights of their unstinting efforts include recruiting and training many volunteers to register voters in communities that are underrepresented in the voter rolls; partnering with voter registrations sites at Denver Health Clinics, technical colleges, high schools, apartment complexes housing many new citizens and the Denver Women's chorus; recruiting members to research pros and cons and distributing these booklets. 

They have reached out to diverse groups—Anne through her time-intensive work with the jails (and in marijuana stores) and Jeanette through her work with Cafecito. They've worked in the Hispanic/Latino community to engage and educate voters by promoting a Spanish translation of LWVD's Pro/Con brochures. Both Anne and Jeanette have received the Marty Sloven Motherlode Award, Anne in 2020 and Jeanette in 2018.  Together they were recognized for their work by LWVCO in 2022.  Jeanette and Anne are passionate about voter education and voter service and are most deserving of LWVD's recognition.
Presented by Elsie Haley

JEDI Award
For Efforts in Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Lisa Haddox

 

Lisa joined the League and Voter Service Committee in January 2022 and immediately took on a leadership role by committing to contact high schools about voter registration. She reached out to six high schools and got responses from three. For those, she set up successful voter registration events where she educated students on how to register electronically, answered questions on who could register and vote and also reminded them of upcoming elections. In the fall of 2022, she established a working relationship with the principal of Bruce Randolph High School that resulted in two voter registration events and an offer of additional help that resulted in a second event for the municipal election. She also offered help to teachers on voting education. Lisa twice set up voter registration events on the Auraria Campus for their Vote Early Party and Spring Fling.  At both events she responded to questions about the Pros and Cons as well as helping with registration. All of these events required repeated communication with co-chairs, working cooperatively with school personnel, and rounding up necessary materials and returning them in a timely manner. Lisa is always eager to help and we look forward to her leadership in Voter Service in the coming year.
Presented by Jeannette Scotland and Anne Duncan

Shirly White

Shirly responded to our plea for technical/design help and volunteered to develop posters for use with our Program Briefings and other important events.  Shirly uses the LWVUS designated color palate and designs unique, eye-catching posters which are being used for the website, email communications, Instagram, and Facebook.  The posters are clear, distinctly LWV-branded, and carry just enough information for either a member or non-member to register for or view an activity of the Denver League.  This saves hours of time for the Communication team including Jackie Denning who does our postings on Instagram and Facebook.  We believe that this art work has increased and improved our visibility among our members, but more importantly to a more diverse group of interested non-members.  Shirly’s daughter, Elie, is working with Frank Bennett on a video on the Denver League which we can use to introduce ourselves to new members, potential members, and partner organizations.
Presented by Bobbie Heisterkamp for Andrea Mitchell who was not able to attend. Shirly was also not able to attend.