2024 State of the Sector
Advocates for Good: The Power of Nonprofits in Colorado.
2024 State of the Sector Recap
The focus of our 2024 State of the Sector celebration was Advocates for Good: The Power of Nonprofits in Colorado and featured an engaging panel discussion with change makers in our field discussed how they are finding ways to succeed despite rising demands and the need to adapt rapidly. We also celebrated the hard work and dedication of Maria Fabula for her accomplishments during her tenure as CRC’s CEO & President.
Speakers Included:
- Katy Sawyer – Director of Capacity Building, CRC
- Alex McHenry – Director of Civic Engagement, Interim Co-Executive Director, CRC
- Jodi Walker – Executive Director, Kids At Their Best, CRC Board of Directors
- Naomi Amaha – Director of Policy & Government Affairs, The Denver Foundation
- Nelly Navarro – Executive Director, Integrated Community
- Andrea Kuwik – Senior Policy Analyst, Bell Policy Center
- Aaron Miltenberger – Executive Director, Boys & Girls Club of the San Luis Valley, CRC Board
The recipients of the 2024 Community Trailblazer Award:
Individual Award-Winner:
Stephania Vasconez
Founder, Executive Director, Mutual Aid Partners
Mesa County, CO
Nonprofit-Award Winner:
Lamar Unidos
Lamar, CO
2023 State of the Sector
Resilience: Emerging Leadership in Changing Environments
2023 State of the Sector Recap
While we celebrated the contributions of Colorado leaders in our sector – groundbreaking legislation protecting the rights of agricultural workers and organizations helping to build the political power of the Latino community – stresses and challenges remain a key theme for us. Staff turnover, increasing community impoverishment, lack of affordable housing, a contraction in the number of donors to nonprofits, and unsustainability (in organizational culture, funding and personnel) were lifted up as challenges. Our panelists provided brave, heartfelt perspective about the necessity of transforming our messaging to share our compelling visions for change that drive our work, not just the ‘need’. This provides sustenance for our staffs, motivation for donors, and clarity for our strategies.
Speakers Included:
- Maria Fabula, Community Resource Center
- Lisa Duran, Community Resource Center
- Anna Stout, City of Grand Junction
- Christin Crampton Day, Colorado Business Committee for the Arts
- LaDawn Sullivan, Black Resilience in Colorado (BRIC) Fund
- Stephania Vasconez, Mutual Aid Partners, Grand Junction, CO
The recipients of the 2023 Community Trailblazer Award:
Individual Award-Winner: Mike Cortés
Nonprofit-Award Winner: Hispanic Affairs Project of Western Colorado
2021 State of the Sector
2021 State of the Sector Recap:
- Celebration and storytelling about our sectors work and impact in 2021 and beyond
- Engaging discussions with change makers in our field
- Exploration of new ways to advance the public good
- Presentation of the Community Trailblazer Awards
Speakers Included:
- Melanie Bravo, Caring for Colorado
- Megan Strauss, Alpine Achievers Initiative
- Sandra Blythe-Perry, Integrated Family Community Services
The recipients of the 2021 Community Trailblazer Award:
Individual Award-Winner: Carol Hedges, Executive Director, Colorado Fiscal Institute
2019 State of the Sector
Community Trailblazer Award Winners
*The Community Trailblazer Award presented by Community Resource Center recognizes outstanding achievements of a person or organization who has promoted and led innovative, grassroots social change in Colorado’s nonprofit sector. Community Resource Center is proud to honor the following individuals and organizations for their innovative leadership, which has fundamentally shaped and influenced the landscape of Colorado’s social sector.
2024
Stephania Vasconez (Individual)
Lamar Unidos (Nonprofit)
2023
Mike Cortés (Individual)
Nonprofit-Award Winner: Hispanic Affairs Project of Western Colorado (Nonprofit)
2021
Carol Hedges, Executive Director, Colorado Fiscal Institute (Individual)
2019
Lance Cheslock, La Puente Home, Inc., Alamosa (Individual)
One Colorado – Denver, Colorado (Nonprofit)
2018
Lisa Duran, Grassroots Grantmakers (Individual)
2017
Richard Male, Community Resource Center Founder & President (Individual)
