There is no question that we are all excited that this summer is shaping up to be much better than the last. More and more Colorado counties are reaching the 70% mark of eligible residents vaccinated, which means we can gather (both indoors and outdoors), reconnect and celebrate in person with our colleagues, friends and loved ones. (Nonvirtual networking – what a concept?!)
June brings with it many reasons to celebrate, from additions to the Chamber family team and planning for members to return to our building to vibrant events in our city such as the Juneteenth Music Festival and Denver PrideFest. We’ve got a lot to look forward to.
Recognizing Pride Month and Juneteenth
Denver is ready to get the summer started on a celebratory note with two of the city’s great summer events, the Juneteenth Music Festival and Denver PrideFest. Now more than ever, these events provide a space for communities to celebrate and come together to reflect on our history and commit to an even brighter future. Happy Pride and Juneteenth!
If you attend the Juneteenth Parade, look out for members of the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation’s Alumni Advisory Council, who will be sharing information about upcoming programs and events.
Welcoming New Team Members
Speaking of the Leadership Foundation, the team has hired a new program director. Mary Haynes joins the team from the Daniels Fund, where she spent the last 21 years, first as scholar relations officer and then senior scholar relations officer and Boundless Opportunity Scholarship relations manager. She is a certified life and executive coach, mediator, professional facilitator and trainer, and education professional with 30-plus years in education, management, program and curriculum development, admissions and financial aid. She also previously served as a coach for our Colorado’s Civic DNA Fellows program.
Mary is a great addition to the team, and as Leadership Foundation programs return to in-person, we look forward to seeing her impact. Please join us in welcoming Mary to the Chamber family, today is her first day!
Are you interested in working for the Chamber? We’re hiring a full-time Enterprise Sales Director to join our Sales team. Learn more.
Recapping the 2021 Legislative with Governor Polis and Business Leaders
We hope that you join us Tuesday at the virtual State of the State to celebrate the close of a memorable legislative session. Our Public Affairs team was busy, weighing in on 73 pieces of legislation over the 116-day session. At the State of the State, you’ll hear Colorado Gov. Jared Polis’ thoughts about what crossed his desk in 2021 and what he sees for the future of our state.
We’ll also convene a panel of business leaders to talk about the intersections between our workforce, economic development and policy, and, as always, I’ll share the business perspective on this unprecedented session.
Working Together, Safely
To support our members and their employees in their return to work, we’ve partnered with Obsidian HR on a guide for creating a vaccination plan for your workplace. This guide provides you with information on how the proliferation of vaccines will impact workplaces, guidelines to draft your own vaccine policy and ways to continue to evolve that policy.
Happy summer, everyone! Can’t wait to see you in person!
Building an economy that works for everybody.
Kelly Brough is the president and CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber.