In Good Health

Our hearts are heavy and grieving with all those affected by the devastation of the fires that yesterday swept through many Colorado communities in Boulder County. The magnitude of this tragedy is both unprecedented and still unfolding. For those Coloradans with the least resources who are unsure of what may be left of their homes, businesses and other aspects of their livelihoods, we know rebuilding will soon be, if it is not already, a much-needed focus. Since this horrific event began, we have all seen the eagerness and hard work of fire fighters, emergency workers, law enforcement, local leaders and community members from all over the state to help one another and support the spaces and communities that many call home

After another challenging year with the COVID-19 pandemic, and its far-reaching socioeconomic impacts, we applaud Colorado’s nonprofit community for their continued fight to bring health, equity and justice in reach for all Coloradans. You inspire us to work harder and smarter, challenge ourselves, and more deeply live into our mission. We are grateful for your partnership in this critical work.

As a token of our appreciation, Foundation staff select Colorado-based nonprofits annually to receive a $10,000 holiday donation – recognizing each for their commitment to improving the health of Coloradans. Join us in congratulating this year’s recipients:

• Asian Girls Ignite builds a strong community of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) girls and women to celebrate their individual and collective

Our Learning & Evaluation team continues to wrestle with practicing evaluation in more equitable ways. Since 2018, we’ve deeply engaged in this journey with the Equitable Evaluation Initiative, and as we work to create equity-aligned evaluation practices, we toggle between a focus on being, thinking and doing. This means regularly reflecting on who we are in relationship with our work (and the implications of that for ourselves and others), our beliefs about what it means to do rigorous and valid evaluation work, and the specific actions we should take to create evaluations that are better aligned with principles of equity.

In a previous blog post, we shared ways in which we’ve been honing our skills around noticing and

Nothing will bring George Floyd back, yet today’s conviction of Derek Chauvin bent the arc in the direction of justice. Today’s verdict signals the progress we can and must make to uproot racist structures, though, as the Association of Black Foundation Executives said earlier today, “This is not a time to celebrate, but to collaborate.” 

Systemic racism is indeed alive and well. Elijah McClain, Daunte Wright, Adam Toledo, Breonna Taylor, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Mike Brown, Dominique Luscious, Rayshard Brooks, Kathryn Johnson, and so many other Black and Brown folks who have died at the hands of police are not. This must stop.

Racism takes lives. It erodes health and well-being. And, while we stand in