1468 Dayton Street, Aurora, CO. 80010
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| Current List of Board of Directors Occupations and Community Affiliations |
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Valeria Howard, President Valeria graduated from Winthrop College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. Completed her Associate in Claims and is currently completing her CPCU and CIC designations. She is currently Vice President of Claims for Van Gilder Insurance Corporation. Valeria spent over 23 years as Aetna/Travelers' Claims Manager. In addition to her insurance career, Valeria works in the production business and has produced shows such as Roberta Flack and Mary Wells and many others concerts and plays. She is instrumental in the production of the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo circuit across the United States along with the MLK Jr. African American Heritage Rodeo of Champions. Carla Denise Ladd, Vice-President Carla Ladd is the president of IIMS, L.L.C. d.b.a Denver Black Pages. The mission of the Denver Black Pages is to enhance, enrich, and empower the African American Community through personal, professional and business development. In October 2003, Ms. Ladd was appointed to Governor Owens' Microenterprise Development Advisory Council. She also sits on the East Denver YMCA Advisory Board. Since 2001, Carla has served on the Rising Star Missionary Baptist Church Deaconess Board and has served as the Vice Chairperson for the Debutantes & Beaus for Christ Scholarship Program. She has been employed as a Systems Engineer for Lockheed Martin Company since 1996. Ms. Ladd was recently honored as an African American's Who Make a Difference by the Urban Spectrum. Wil Alston Wil is the past president of Shadow's Board of Directors and is currently the deputy communications director for Colorado Governor Bill Ritter. Prior to joining the staff of the governor, Wil served as vice president of the Colorado Black Chamber of Commerce, and as the founder and president of The PR Shop, LLC, a public relations contracting firm. In addition, he has served as the executive director of the East Denver YMCA and the regional public affairs director for the US Department of Health and Human Services'—Health Care Financing Administration. Wil has also held management and marketing-related positions at the University of Denver, Regis University, Community College of Denver, and the University of Colorado's School of Nursing. A product of Washington, DC, Wil came to Denver on a basketball scholarship at Regis University, where he graduated with a degree in Communications and Business. Fredric Lewis Fred is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross and Columbia Law School. He currently practices law with the firm Fisher, Sweetbaum & Levin, P.C.. For many years he has utilized his expertise to assist numerous nonprofit organizations with real estate and other legal matters. Fred is devoted to the theatre and frequently participates as an actor in community theatre productions. James A. Wheeler James is a Master Electrician and owner of Wheeler & Sons A-Lectric, Inc. James serves as the Chairman of Deacons and on the Board of Directors for the Mt. Gilled Baptist Church. James has been a supporter of the STC for the past five years and is a very enthusiastic member of the board. Gwendolyn Brewer Gwen was born in Washington, D.C. but because her father was a career soldier she spent the majority of her youth traveling throughout the United States with her family. She received her B.A. in Speech/Language Pathology from the University of Connecticut and her M.A. in Speech/Language Pathology from the University of Denver. Gwen spent the majority of her career in the Boulder Valley Public Schools where she worked with preschool through high school students. She also served as chairperson of the Speech/ Language Department and supervised 14 speech/language specialists. Gwen is active in a variety of civic and social organizations. She is currently the Chair-elect of the Board of Directors of Mental Health America of Colorado and is a member of the Board of Directors of College Summit. She is also a member of the Denver Associate Group of Jack & Jill of America, Inc., a member of the Owl Club of Denver Scholarship Committee; a member of the American Speech, Language and Hearing Association and past president of the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Guild. Gwen and her husband Moses live in Centennial, Colorado and are the parents of 2 grown children, Marques and Maya. Steve Hoffman Steve grew up in Nebraska and graduated with a degree in sociology from Nebraska Wesleyan University. Steve worked in the field of mental retardation as a social worker and later as a supervisor of adult services for a 17-county region. Later, Steve joined his family in the retail shoe business in Cozad, NE and became president of the corporation. He was active in Jaycees, president of the Chamber of Commerce, organized a soccer league for elementary aged girls and boys, was on the organizing committee of the World Entertainment Series and served on the board of the Robert Henri Museum. Responding to a call to ministry, Steve and his family moved to Aurora, CO. He graduated from Iliff School of Theology in 1995, and was called to Parkview Congregational Church, UCC in Aurora, ordained there, and has served as Co-Minister since then. In addition, Steve has been involved in a variety of local and interfaith ministries, serving the Metropolitan Denver Association, UCC; the Rocky Mountain Conference, UCC and DAICC, the Denver Area Interfaith Clergy Conference. He has helped to organize a Housing Partnership with Colfax Community Network; ECHO, an ecumenical coalition of churches working to build Habitat homes; The Interfaith Alliance; and has served on the board of RAIN Colorado, Regional AIDS Interfaith Network. He also has served as a co-ordinator of youth programs held locally, regionally and nationally. Recently he has been involved in helping to create an after-school ministry called Song CAMP. His passions include reaching out to persons living in poverty and those in need of affordable housing. Steve has a keen interest in the arts and has supported Shadow Theatre since it was founded by Jeffrey Nickelson. Kenneth Johnson Ken graduated from Metropolitan State College of Denver with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management. He is an active member of Sigma Beta Delta — International Honor Society of Business, Management and Administration. Ken has spent the last eleven year with Kaiser Permanente of Colorado. Since that time he has held a variety of positions in the Human Resources area, specializing in Organizational Effectiveness and Community Relations. In addition, he has served as the lead of the African American Professional Association. Ken has a long history of working and volunteering with non-profits and community based organizations. LaDawn Sullivan LaDawn is a Program Officer for The Denver Foundation's Strengthening Neighborhoods Program (SNP). Previously, LaDawn had worked as a Controller and as an Assistant in the Office of Policy & Initiatives for former Colorado Governor, Roy Romer. She is a founding member and current Chair of Colorado Blacks in Philanthropy, a local chapter affiliated with the national Association of Black Funding Executives (ABFE). She has recently started a philanthropic giving circle called In My Shoes, which will support nonprofits and nontraditional programs that focus on leadership training for emerging leaders within communities of color. She is a co-chair of the Youth Ministry of the Federation of Deliverance Churches, mentor for Imani — Empowerment for Young Girls, Polaris/Ebert-PTA, and serves as Youth Director and member of the Advisory Board of her church, House of Joy. Kim Harrell Kim was born and raised in Denver, Colorado. She graduated from Colorado College with a degree in Sociology and moved to London, England where her intention was to obtain a Master's in Social Work. Kim worked for the Fulbright Commission in London and volunteered for two years with a ground breaking non-profit, London Lighthouse that assisted people living with HIV/AIDS. Taking another direction in her career path, she returned to study at London Guildhall University and obtained a degree in Silversmithing, Jewelry and Allied Crafts. Kim embarked on a successful career for seven years producing silverware and jewelry for some of the most prestigious galleries and stores in London and the UK and taught at the Camberwell School of Art. She was an active member of the Association of British Designer Silversmiths as editor of their newsletter which she redesigned. In 2003, Kim returned to her native Denver with her British husband and three daughters. Attracted to the Original Downtown Aurora area by Walt Weinberg's studios, she set up her workshop which evolved into its current incarnation, East End Applied Arts, a studio and gallery. Ever since her arrival in Aurora, she has been involved in her community. Kim is the current Chair of the Aurora Art in Public Places Commission; Secretary for the Comitis Crisis Center, recently relocated to the Fitzsimons campus; a Director on the Aurora Chamber of Commerce Board and serves on their Business for the Arts Committee. She has also served on the Aurora Housing Corporation Board of Directors and in London was Chair of the Educational Appeals Panels for the Borough of Haringey. Kim ran, unsuccessfully, for Aurora City Council in 2005 but continues to be active in politics. She founded the East End Artists Association in 2006 to formally bring together the artists in the East End Arts District to operate their bi-annual Art Walk and promote the district with aspirations to become a 501(c) 3 in the future. Janice Napper Janice Napper is a graduate of the University of Hartford in Connecticut, with a BA in Sociology and Masters of Public Administration. She has been the Assistant City Manager of the City of Aurora, Colorado since 1998, has served as the Budget Director of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and has held other budget related and administrative positions in Texas and Connecticut. Janice volunteers in several community service and faith based organizations including Trustee and Assistant Secretary of the Trustee Board of Rising Star Missionary Baptist Church; Treasurer of Jack and Jill of America, Inc. Denver Chapter; member of Aurora Gateway Rotary; volunteer/mentor of Excelsior Youth Center and member of the James Beckwourth Mountain Club. Janice is the proud mother of a 12 year old daughter, Lisa. |
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| Current Advisory Board |
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Rosalind "Bee" Harris-Diaw Rosalind "Bee" Harris-Diaw, owner, publisher and art director of the Urban Spectrum newspaper, has been "spreading the news about people of color" for more than 17 years. As an active member in the community, memberships and organization affiliations include the Colorado Association of Black Journalists, the African American Leadership Institute, and the Five Points Business Association. She serves on several boards including Black Star Communications; Girl Scouts, Mile Hi Council; the Denver Metro Convention and Visitor's Bureau; and the Denver Office of Cultural Affairs. Awards and honors received over the years include the Martin Luther King, Jr. Humanitarian Award; National Council of Negro Women Trailblazer Award; Girl Scouts 2000 Women of Distinction honoree and numerous awards from the Colorado Association of Black Journalist. In 2003, Bee was selected as a Burger King Everyday Hero and also received the Dr. Martin Luther King Social Responsibility Award. She is the founder of the Urban Spectrum Youth Foundation, a mentoring program that trains youth from ages 14 to 18 in the field of journalism. More than 100 youth have gone through the program since 2000. Her most recent endeavor is Spectrum of Hope, a nonprofit organization that focuses on displaced citizens in the Denver area. This foundation was started in light of the Katrina disaster. Reynelda Muse As a former local news anchor, Ms. Muse is no stranger to the Denver community. She has played an active role in the theatre community for several years and has been a supporter of the STC since the beginning. She is currently living outside of Colorado and consistently plays a major role on the Board for STC. Larry Bograd Larry Bograd has been active in the Denver theatre community for nearly twenty years. He was an original member of the Denver Center Theatre Company's Playwright Unit. He was Producing Director at Writers Lab, a Denver-based company dedicated to the production of new plays, from 1987-1993. His play with music, "Ludlow," opened the Denver Civic Theatre in 1991. His play, "The Half-Life of Karen Silkwood," was commissioned by her labor union and received its world premiere in Detroit in 1993. His association with Jeffrey Nickelson dates back to Mr. Nickelson's appearance in Bograd's "Western Slope" in 1992. A former professor of English at Metropolitan State College, Mr. Bograd is also the author of more than twenty books. |
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