CBCA Celebrates 12 Honorees at Sold-Out Business for the Arts Awards Luncheon

By Meredith Badler, CBCA Deputy Director

700 Attend Dynamic Event Featuring Diverse Local Entertainment and Artists

Denver – Colorado Business Committee for the Arts (CBCA) recognized 12 honorees at its 2024 Business for the Arts Awards, presented by MSU Denver and U.S. Bank. This sold-out event was attended by 700 corporate, cultural and civic leaders at the Seawell Ballroom, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, as well as livestreamed to attendees. CBCA’s largest annual fundraiser and celebration, this event is the only statewide gathering to honor companies and individuals for their outstanding partnerships and engagement with the arts.

­­Founded in 1985, CBCA has been producing this inspiring, arts-infused event for over 35 years, featuring exemplary honorees and a variety of homegrown entertainers and Colorado artists. CBCA has honored over 200 organizations and individuals in that time.

“The 2024 Business for the Arts Awards honorees demonstrate the mutual benefits when arts and business collaborate,” said Christin Crampton Day, executive director of CBCA. “These outstanding business and arts partnerships exemplify how art is essential to our lives, strengthens our communities and drives our economy.”

The Awards luncheon program was co-emceed by Michelle Griego with CBS Colorado, and Betty Hart with Local Theater Company and Colorado Theater Guild. The program was punctuated with four live performances featuring local artists, sponsored by Moye White. The program kicked off with a performance by Northern Colorado funk/rock/folk band, Graham Good and The Painters. Town Hall Art Center gave the audience a sneak peek musical theater performance of the upcoming Colorado premier of Raisin. The talented all-female Marichi ensemble, Las Dahlias, performed a medley of songs. Bboy Factory closed out the event with a youth hip-hop and break-dancing ensemble.

Before the event, guests mingled at a networking reception, featuring engaging performances by Circus Foundry. Honorees and sponsors attended a VIP Reception, sponsored by Anythink Libraries, with live music by an ensemble of the Colorado Jazz Repertory Orchestra. The original Award Artwork presented to each honoree was commissioned by Denver-based artist Jamie Gray and sponsored by HealthONE. Each of the illuminated mixed-media table centerpieces were crafted by PlatteForum and sponsored by East West Partners.

2024 Arts & Business Partnership Award Honorees

The Arts & Business Partnership Award honorees are exemplary organizations that have gone above and beyond to support the arts and creative industries.

  • Black Cube Nomadic Art Museum exhibits site-specific art installations across Denver and Colorado with unique partnerships, such as FEMA and the Frontier Drive-Inn in the San Luis Valley, plus numerous business, civic and cultural partners.
  • Colorado Resiliency Arts Lab (CORAL) is a collaborative research initiative between Children’s Hospital Colorado, CU Anschutz Medical Campus and Lighthouse Writers Workshop to evaluate creative arts therapies to build resiliency for healthcare workers.
  • Frasier Life Plan Community partnered with Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art (BMoCA) to establish an extensive, high-quality art program with curated exhibits and a permanent art collection to benefit their senior residents, staff and guests.
  • Fuel & Iron Food Hall is a visionary culinary arts hub in Pueblo, Colo., featuring a creative restaurant incubator, apprenticeship program, commissary kitchen, workforce housing units, a visual arts gallery and dedicated public art program.
  • Jubilee Roasting Co., with a mission to “create well and be good neighbors,” is dedicated to building community and supporting local creatives, including offering artist studio spaces in their main location in Aurora.
  • Klein Makerspace, based in La Junta, Colo., is fostering creativity and innovation for the betterment of their entire community through education, tourism, economic development, inspiration and local pride.
  • The Aurora Highlands is a new master-planned community going above and beyond to integrate a substantial, meaningful and accessible public art program that features nationally renowned artists.
  • The Underground Music Showcase (UMS) is a three-day music festival in Denver that is strengthening the music sector through thriving wages, mental health, accessibility, career development and harm reduction programs.

MSU Denver Next Wave Leadership Award

The MSU Denver Next Wave Leadership Award honors rising professionals who are leading the future of our cultural community.

  • Clelyn Chapin, Artistic Director,Denver Women’s Chorus (DWC) under the Rocky Mountain Arts Association and affiliated with the Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses (GALA), has stewarded impactful collaborations with nonprofits and businesses whose values align with DWC’s mission to promote social change through music.

U.S. Bank Cultural Leadership Award

The U.S. Bank Cultural Leadership Award recognizes an outstanding graduate of CBCA’s Leadership Arts program who has made an impact on arts and culture in Colorado.

  • Donald Rossa, Owner, DazzleJazz, Inc. has supported an inclusive local music scene for over 25 years. A 2015 Leadership Arts alum, Donald facilitated vital resources for struggling musicians during the pandemic, such as transforming Dazzle into a food pantry and a livestreaming venue.

Volunteer Attorney Impact Award

The Volunteer Attorney Impact Award recognizes an outstanding attorney who has provided pro bono legal services to Colorado creatives and advanced CBCA’s Colorado Attorneys for the Arts (CAFTA) program.

  • Liz Hartsel, Partner, Fortis Law Partners, LLC, leverages her employment law practice to provide legal assistance to CAFTA clients and recruits her Fortis colleagues to get involved. Liz is also active in Colorado Symphony’s Crescendo Society, a 2016 graduate of Leadership Arts and a former CBCA board member.

John Madden, Jr. Leadership Award

Named for CBCA’s founding chairman, the John Madden, Jr. Leadership Award recognizes a lifetime of extraordinary leadership and a legacy of support for the arts.

  • Jandel Allen-Davis, MD, CEO and President, Craig Hospital, has infused creativity into every aspect of her life as a physician, healthcare executive, board member, philanthropist and renowned fiber artist. Jandel has stitched a professional and artistic legacy guided by equity and community service.

Watch all of the 2024 Award Honoree videos and the award artist profile on CBCA’s YouTube channel.

CBCA thanks our generous sponsors who made this event possible. The 2024 Business for the Arts Awards are presented by MSU Denver and U.S. Bank. Generous support is also provided by HealthONE, Anythink Libraries, East West Partners, Moye White, Bellco Credit Union and PNC Bank. In-kind and media partners are CBS Colorado, Philosophy Communication, Moxtopia and The Publishing House.

Colorado Business Committee for the Arts (CBCA) advances Colorado’s creative economy by connecting business and the arts through arts engagement, advocacy, training, research, and volunteerism. CBCA is a 39-year-old 501c3 nonprofit membership organization of leading Colorado companies who recognize the link between cultural vitality and economic success.  Learn more at www.cbca.org.

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