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Initiatives
In addition to its grantmaking the Bee Vradenburg Foundation is deeply committed to researching and supporting efforts to strengthen the sustainability of the arts community and expand awareness and appreciation of its cultural assets. Executive Director Susan Edmondson serves the arts community in a variety of ongoing ways, including serving on the board of Experience Colorado Springs, the Convention & Visitors Bureau; the Colorado Springs Downtown Development Authority board; the board of COPPeR, the Cultural Office of the Pikes Peak Region; the leadership council of Imagination Celebration; Pikes Peak Community Foundation Fund for the Arts committee; and the World Arena board, which also oversees the Pikes Peak Center for the Performing Arts. Among the efforts or activities of note which the foundation has led or participated in:
2007
Much of the foundation’s staff efforts in 2007 were focused on joining with many other community stakeholders to fully launch COPPeR programs, including the PeakRadar.com arts events website and The COPPeR Pages guidebook. As 2007 concluded, COPPeR had hired its first executive director, Bettina Swigger, and was poised to take occupancy of its new downtown storefront office. COPPeR’s formation involved many years of research and planning involving scores of volunteers, and Edmondson’s involvement in COPPeR continues as that of a dedicated founding board member.
Bee an Arts Leader Award
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| Be an Arts Leader honoree Matt Mayberry, center, is joined by John Boddington of the Pioneers Museum board, left, and Bee Vradenburg Foundation President Phil Kendall |
The second annual Bee an Arts Leader Award was presented to Matt Mayberry in April 2007 at the annual Arts / Business / Education luncheon. The award honors the legacy of Bee Vradenburg by recognizing an individual who has demonstrated sustained, passionate and innovative leadership toward advancing the arts in the Pikes Peak region. As cultural services manager for the City of Colorado Springs, Matt doesn’t just “manage” – he inspires. Matt oversees several city properties, including the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum. The efforts of Matt and his staff truly came to fruition in 2006 with the yearlong Pike Bicentennial celebration, including three exquisite exhibits, scores of informational programs, and even the commissioning of an original opera. Perhaps most importantly, Matt is a passionate advocate for the “authenticity” of our community – ensuring that heritage and the arts are foremost in telling the story of this region’s unique attributes and vibrant identity.
Arts & Economic Prosperity
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Nonprofit arts organizations and their audiences provide a $94.7 million impact to the metro Colorado Springs economy each year, and annual attendance at arts events tops 1.5 million children and adults. Those are just some of the findings of “Arts & Economic Prosperity,” a report commissioned by the Bee Vradenburg Foundation and released in 2007 by the Cultural Office of the Pikes Peak Region. The report’s release garnered extensive media coverage, and a sold-out audience learned of the findings at a luncheon sponsored jointly by COPPeR and the Colorado Springs Economic Development Corporation. At the lunch, local artists talked about their diverse roles in contributing to the region’s economic health and quality of life. Susan Edmondson presented a breakdown of the numbers, showing that spending by audiences of nonprofit arts organizations far exceeds that of similar-sized cities. The presentation was aired in its entirety on the Pikes Peak Library District’s cable-access channel, and the report has proved to be a valuable tool for organizations seeking to demonstrate the many ways the arts contribute to the community. The study was part of a larger national report of the economic impact of the arts in cities and regions across the country, conducted and released by Americans for the Arts.
Notable
Foundation Executive Director Susan Edmondson’s work on behalf of the arts was recognized twice in 2007, first with the Leadership Service Award presented by the Center for Nonprofit Excellence on Volunteer Day, and by being selected by readers of The Independent as the region’s best arts advocate in the newspaper’s annual Best of the Springs issue.
The Bee Vradenburg Foundation launched the Bee An Arts Leader Award. Henry Tippie, board chair of Kennedy Center Imagination Celebration, was its first recipient, and the award was presented at the Arts/Business/Education luncheon.
Edmondson co-chaired the Economic Vitality Committee of the Imagine Downtown Strategic planning process convened by Colorado Springs Downtown Partnership. In that role, she chaired the Arts & Culture Subcommittee.
In partnership with the Colorado Springs Hispanic Chamber Foundation, the Bee Vradenburg Foundation created the Henry Quintana Memorial Music Scholarship to honor the memory of the gifted flamenco guitarist who died in 2005.
Edmondson joined with many community stakeholders in forming the founding board of the Cultural Office of the Pikes Peak Region (COPPeR), the culmination of years of research and work by a dedicated task force.
In 2005 and again in 2006, Edmondson served on a citizen grant review panel for the Colorado Council on the Arts.
With assistance from COPPeR volunteers, Edmondson worked throughout 2006 to coordinate local participation in Arts & Economic Prosperity II, a national study measuring the economic impact of the arts. Results will be released in 2007.
Edmondson served on a task force convened through Downtown Partnership to work toward renovation and an improved business model for Colorado Springs City Auditorium.
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The Bee Vradenburg Foundation is pleased to be the recipient of the 2005 Outstanding Foundation Award, presented at Partners in Philanthropy. We thank the Kennedy Center Imagination Celebration for nominating the foundation for this honor. |
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Susan Edmondson holding the Outstanding Foundation Award |
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Executive director Susan Edmondson served as keynote speaker for the Partnership for Community Design's annual awards dinner at the Doubletree World Arena Hotel.
Edmondson penned an article on Richard Florida's appearance for the Colorado College alumni magazine.
The foundation collaborated with the City of Colorado Springs Department of Parks, Recreation and Culture, Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado, Springs Community Action Network and Pikes Peak Community Foundation on pARTy in the Park, two weeks of arts activities and performances in the new Confluence Park downtown.
Edmondson helped to facilitate Arts & Culture Day for the 2005 and 2006 Leadership Pikes Peak classes, exposing about 100 people to a range of local arts opportunities and education. Edmondson also worked with Kathy Allen to coordinate Arts & Culture Day for LPP's Women's Community Leadership Initiative program.
Bee Vradenburg Foundation Board President Phil Kendall served as chair of the Encore Fund, a $5 million campaign to renovate the Pikes Peak Center. Both Kendall and Edmondson served on the renovation comittee.
Mary Mashburn and Edmondson served as co-chairs of the new Fund for the Arts at the Pikes Peak Community Foundation. They provided input and resources in an ongoing effort to launch and grow the fund.
Edmondson served on the Fort Carson sustainability indicators project to provide information about cultural indicators and vitality.
Edmondson participated in the arts healing task force at Memorial Hospital to integrate visual and performing arts into the hospital's work.
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The foundation joined with the Gay & Lesbian Fund and the Pikes Peak Nonprofit Partnership to present Artsy Smartsy, a series of 10 workshops geared for arts nonprofits. Successful completion of the series enabled organizations to seek capacity-building grants from the two foundations.
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Along with Rocky Scott, CEO of the Greater Colorado Springs Economic Development Corporation, Edmondson provided a local response to economist Richard Florida’s presentation to a capacity crowd of 750 at Colorado College’s Armstrong Theatre. |  |
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The foundation collaborated with Springs Community Action Network, Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado, Leadership Pikes Peak, Downtown Partnership and others to stage the awareness-raising event Creative Callout at City Auditorium .
Along with Erin Hannan of the Fine Arts Center, Executive Director Susan Edmondson helped to plan and facilitate Arts and Culture as an Asset Day, a daylong program of Leadership Pikes Peak, exposing about 50 community leaders to cultural offerings.
Under the leadership of Wendy Mike of FutureSelf, Edmondson served on the committee organizing ARTernatives for At-Risk Youth, a daylong forum bringing together about 80 arts admnistrators, educators and youth-service providers to learn how the arts can better serve at-risk youth.
Edmondson gave presentations on the arts to Eastside Rotary and Woodmen Valley Sertoma. A presentation for the Chamber of Com merce quarterly breakfast series on the economic impact of the arts was attended by more than 100 businesspeople.
The foundation received support from Community Venture Partners, a donor-advised fund of Pikes Peak Community Foundation, in its efforts to establish a professionally staffed cultural commission for the Pikes Peak region.
The foundation collaborated with others to present the first-ever Arts Summit, attended by m ore than 130 artists and arts administrators. The event, held at Penrose House, featured regional and national speakers and breakout sessions geared toward mobilizing greater commonality and collaboration within the arts community. This summit was a collaboration including El Pomar Foundation, Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado, Pikes Peak Community Foundation and Joseph Henry Edmondson Foundation.
The executive director gave a presentation on the economic impact of the arts to the Downtown Rotary group, reaching about 70 members.
In fall 2003, Edmondson represented the concerns of the Pikes Peak region in serving on an ad hoc task force to re-examine the role of the Colorado Council on the Arts.
Edmondson chaired a task force on arts-and-entertainment as part of the Greater Colorado Springs Economic Development Corporation's Springs Into Action '04 strategic planning process. A report from that task force was delivered in January 2004.
In collaboration with the Pikes Peak Community Foundation, Bee Vradenburg Foundation commissioned a study determining regional support for the arts.
Making a Difference in El Paso County: Special Emphasis on the Performing Arts Report, 2002 [pdf]
Infrastructure of the Colorado Springs Arts Industry, 2003 [pdf]
The Role of Arts and Entertainment in the Economy of the Pikes Peak Region, 2004 [pdf]
The Arts Industry: Enhancing Economic Prosperity and Quality of Life in the Pikes Peak Region [ppt]
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