Prosperity & Progress: A Moment of Celebration for Prosperity Denver Fund

On Friday, December 5, Prosperity Denver Fund convened their staff and board, partner organizations, student program participants, and supporters to celebrate the organization’s recent growth and kick off their new brand.

More than 100 guests gathered at the Tivoli Student Union’s Turnhalle on the Auraria Campus for Prosperity & Progress, an opportunity to hear about Prosperity Denver’s positive impact and plans for the future. A live youth mariachi band, Mariachi Quetzal, enlivened the festive atmosphere, setting the stage for speeches by Prosperity Denver Fund executive director Rebecca Arno, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, and Latinas First scholarship recipient Melissa Chavez.

“This was a time for partnering nonprofits, civic leaders, and youth participants to come together to showcase and celebrate what the Prosperity Denver initiative has achieved,” Arno shares. “In the last seven years, we have collectively supported over 100 nonprofits and 63,713 Denver students by reimbursing $65 million in scholarships and post-secondary education opportunities. To see the impact aglow in the space showed not only how much this initiative has already benefitted our city, but also how much is possible in the years to come.”

A pop-up video booth invited representatives from partner organizations to share mission-related stories, and a station was set up with supplies for guests to write a letter to their future selves—an activity Prosperity Denver Fund often facilitates with youth to encourage them to tap into and communicate the wisdom they already hold, and their dreams for the future.

Over the past months, Prosperity Denver Fund welcomed our board and volunteers, our partner organizations, and our community into discussions about the future of our organization. Together, we reflected on who we are and what we aspire to be at Prosperity Denver, guided by our core values that define us.

As a result of these conversations, our Board of Directors voted to approve an updated mission, vision, and core values at their meeting on November 18th. 

Then, on December 5th, our guests were surrounded by the results of these conversations, which you can also see in this newsletter. With our partners at StorySpring, we built new visual look that demonstrates who Prosperity Denver is and how we'll grow. Our goal is to reflect the diverse partners, dynamic students, and thriving neighborhoods we serve. 

“Seeing our community come together to celebrate what Prosperity Denver Fund has already and will continue to give back to the community was so meaningful,” Arno reflects. “There’s much positive impact to recognize—and we’re just getting started.”