Excelsior's Kathy Graveley Honored By Aurora
Chamber of Commerce
Executive Director Joan
Gabrielson congratulates Kathy Graveley, Unsung Hero
Award Nominee.
More than
300 people attending the Women Making A Difference breakfast
on March 3rd hosted by the Aurora Chamber of Commerce Women
in Business Committee heard about Excelsiors message because
Kathy Graveley was one of 3 community finalists for their unsung
hero award for her development work with Excelsior. Our
own Jeannie Davis was the chair of the successful breakfast.
The Gateway Rotary Club (thanks to Jeannie) purchased a table
and 12 Excelsior people, including 4 girls, attended to support
Kathy. I was humbled and honored to represent Excelsior
in our Aurora community, says Kathy. Many thanks
to Joan Gabrielson for her nomination.
The other finalist was Michelle Leslie for her work with the
Lupus Foundation of Colorado. Congratulations to the winner
of the Unsung Hero Award, Darla Stuart, for her work with intellectually
and developmentally disabled people through The Arc of Aurora.
New William C. Gregory Scholarship Established
In December, anonymous donors created a large endowment
from which the yearly interest earned will fund scholarships to
be awarded in Bill's name. The William C. Gregory Scholarship program
is expected to receive $10,000 per year from this endowment to be
awarded to Excelsior's girls, past or present. What a tremendous
way to honor Bill, who cared so deeply about our girls and their
futures.
Excelsior Names New Executive Director
Joan Gabrielson has been named the new Executive Director of Excelsior
Youth Center. She succeeds Bill Gregory who will retire December
31st after serving Excelsior for 32 years.
"I appreciate the responsibility the Board has entrusted to
me and I will do everything I can to build on the tremendous program
Bill (Gregory) created and developed," says Gabrielson, a 32-year
Excelsior employee. "Bill's wisdom and leadership have been
the foundation of Excelsior's success. But it has also been because
of all of the talented and dedicated people here. I feel very fortunate
to work with all of you," she told a crowded room of Excelsior
staff members who jumped to a standing ovation following the announcement.
Gabrielson has served as Excelsior's Associate Director and Human
Resources Director. She received her BA from Colorado State University
and MBA from University of Colorado at Denver. She will assume her
new role September 1st "but we still have four and a half months
to learn from Bill."
"I will miss my relationships with the kids, staff and Boards.
However, there's a great relief in stepping away from the tremendous
responsibility of seeing to the welfare of these girls" says
Gregory. "I'm extremely optimistic of Excelsior's future with
the new leadership that will bring fresh ideas, energy and enthusiasm."
Gregory and his wife, Vonna, have been married for 47 years and
have five children and seven grandchildren. They will soon move
to a new home in Parker where "I want to enjoy country life,
see more of my family, learn to fly fish and travel," says
Gregory.
Charcie Russell, Board Chair, says "we are so fortunate to
have had Bill Gregory leading Excelsior's efforts for the past 32
years. His impact on our organization, staff and students is greatly
appreciated and literally beyond measure. With Joan Gabrielson's
capable leadership we will now launch forward, continuing the positive
direction that Bill established."
Excelsior Leadership Announcements
Congratulations to Arnie Goldstein and Carol Beauchamp-Hunter,
Excelsior Youth Center's new Associate Directors. Arnie and Carol
will be active in managing all aspects of Excelsior's daily operations
to provide for the highest quality of service for the girls. Arnie
will focus on the Center's financial concerns both internally and
externally. As Excelsior's CFO for the past 18 years, Arnie has
established Excelsior's solid accounting and financial management
practices. As the current President of the Colorado Association
of Family and Children's Agencies (CAFCA), Arnie is a leader in
advocating for children and service providers.
Carol will focus on programming for clients. She is
a leader on CAFCA's Training Committee, a committee she helped create.
Carol has a wealth of knowledge about families, social service systems,
COA, licensing regulations and treatment modalities, along with
a true passion for providing the best possible care for our clients.
Congratulations to Vivian Zlobec who will be Excelsior's Director
of Human Resources. Over her 22 years with Excelsior, Vivian has
gained a wealth of information about Excelsior in her many positions
with the organization. In the Human Resources Department, Vivian
has worked continuously to improve the benefits provided to staff
and the communication of those benefits. She is always eager to
take a leadership role in saying 'thank you' to staff members for
their hard work and dedication.
Excelsior's Bill Gregory Honored
Bill Gregory, Excelsior's Executive Director Emeritus
was recently honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the
Colorado Association of Family and Childrens Agencies, CAFCA.
Congratulations, Bill!"
SCHOLARSHIPS!
The Daniels Fund distributed $1.4 million in scholarships in June
to at-risk students who might not have been able to afford college.
The scholarships are given to students from alternative schools,
juvenile justice programs, GED recipients and from underserved schools
in Colorado.
Two Excelsior students will be chosen to receive two of these Daniels
Opportunity Scholarships in partnership with the Community College
of Aurora. The Excelsior candidates will receive full scholarships
as they study at CCA for their two-year Associates Degree.
"We should have our two worthy candidates by December,"
explained Joan Gabrielson, Excelsior's Associate Director. "We're
thrilled to partner with both the Daniels Fund and Community College
of Aurora as they are extrordinarily flexible in meeting the needs
of our non-traditional at-risk students. This is a wonderful opportunity
for our students. "
REUNION FOR FORMER EXCELSIOR STUDENTS: Friday, August 19,
3-7 p.m. at Excelsior. We will have food, beverages, karaoke and
the sharing of lots of memories with fellow classmates and your
favorite staff. We would love to meet your family members so bring
them along, too!
If you can join us, please contact Taneshia Nettingham at TaneshiaN@excelsioryc.org
or call 303-693-1550x311. Be sure to tell her how many people you
will bring because we need an accurate count to plan for plenty
of food.
We are looking forward to hearing about your life since you left
Excelsior. Come say 'farewell' to Bill Gregory, Executive Director,
who will retire December 31, 2005. If you'd like, please tell us
what you're doing by submitting the 'former student' link on this
web site. See you at the reunion!
The Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS), Division
of Youth Corrections has selected a new provider for the privately
operated secure treatment program for girls at the Betty K. Marler
Youth Services Center in southwest Denver. A partnership of two
private organizations; Rite of Passage Inc. and Excelsior Youth
Center, has been notified of the State's intent to award the bid
to operate this program.
"We are looking forward to working together with this partnership
to bring the Marler Center up to its full potential," said
CDHS Executive Director Marva Livingston Hammons.
This announcement follows the release of the request for proposals
in December 2004, and a nationally competitive process. The Divison
of Youth Corrections will enter into a new contract at the end of
an appeals period. The State releases new Requests for Proposals
for privately operated programs periodically to ensure that it contracts
effectively for these services.
The program and its 14 current residents will be temporarily moved
to the State-operated Marvin Foote Youth Services Center in Englewood
pending reopening of new operations at the Marler Corporation, and
the CDHS Division of Youth Corrections to maintain programming and
best use existing resources and staff during the transition period.
The Marler Center is scheduled to reopen under a new State contract
with Rite of Passage/Excelsior no later than July 1, 2005. The center,
named for former DYC Director Betty Marler, opened in July 2002
and has a capacity of 40 residents.
Connecting Hearts
and Hands for Excelsior Youth Center
Nearly 150 volunteers from the
Arapahoe Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
celebrated Colorado Cares Day on Saturday, July 30, 2005 in a day
of service and volunteerism at Excelsior Youth Center. Joined by
Governor Bill Owens and his staff, volunteers of all ages and abilities
spent the day repairing walkways, landscaping, hanging ceiling tiles,
painting and decorating nearly every facet of Excelsior's 33-acre
campus.
Under this year's unifying theme
"Communities Working Together," the Colorado Cares initiative
encourages Coloradoans to make a difference in their communities
through service projects to deserving non-profit organizations across
the state. Steven Hess, a volunteer from the church says, "I
was told there were up to 150 people participating at one time or
another from ages 6 months to 70 plus years it was a very pleasant
and meaningful experience for everyone." He goes on to describe
the satisfaction he feels in giving back: "Doing service like
that for what I have come to appreciate as a truly benevolent institution
is a gift to the giver that few can understand."
Joan Gabrielson, Associate Director
of Excelsior Youth Center, was touched by the community support.
"It meant a great deal to our girls to have all of these people
from the community, strangers even, work so hard. The girls loved
having their home spruced up and to know that these volunteers cared
about them and wanted to do something so generous," she says.
Carol Gianfrancisco and Arnie Goldstein coordinated
the effort with assistance from Mike Walters, Facilities Manager.
Taneshia Nettingham conducted tours and recruited lots of new volunteers
to help at Excelsior in the future.
On April 15, 2005 Excelsior Youth Center hosted
a Career Fair on its campus featuring approximately twenty-five
exhibitors from local community colleges, universities, and trade
and vocational schools. Representatives from participating organizations
will be available to answer questions and provide valuable information.
This year Excelsior is incorporating a hair and fashion show into
the event, as well as a culinary arts exhibition and women's advocate
speaker. Last year's Career Fair was a great success and we expect
this year's to be even better!
The National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice honored
Taneshia Nettingham with its "Outstanding Service Award"
for her work with the Excelsior Youth Center Step Team at it's annual
scholarship fund raiser on Saturday, February 5, 2005. The EYC Step
Team also presented a brief performance at the event. Congratulations,
Taneshia, Excelsior's Special Events Coordinator.
For the past several years Maggiano's
Little Italyhas generously hosted Thanksgiving dinner for
all of the girls who are at Excelsior on Thanksgiving Day. This
holiday can be a terribly difficult day for a child who is far from
home or who has limited familial connections. Maggiano's truly cares
about our girls and has done everything in their power to be sure
that Thanksgiving is a truly special day. The restauraunt staff
treat the kids with the same high level of professionalism and respect
as their regular customers.
To quote a girl from this year's dinner: "I have never been
to a place like this — it's the most beautiful room I have
ever seen." This year Maggiano's hosted all of the children
and staff on our campus as well as parents, volunteers and younger
children from a partner agency. Maggiano‚s has also organized
a Christmas gift program in the past which has generated literally
truckloads of gifts for the girls at Excelsior and hundreds of children
in placements throughout the metro area.
Thank you, Maggiano's! We sincerely appreciate all you do for kids
in need in our community.
Rhonda and Tommy Vickers
Honorary Chair Persons
EXCELSIOR YOUTH CENTER CELEBRATES
EXCELSIOR! EVER UPWARD
APRIL 16, 2004
WILDLIFE EXPERIENCE MUSEUM
Excelsior Youth Center announces Rhonda and Tommy Vickers will serve
as HonoraryChairs of Excelsior! Ever Upward, the fundraising gala
Friday, April 16, 2004 at the Wildlife Experience Museum.
The Vickers hosted the Patron Party at their Castle Pines home on
Friday, April 2nd for patron level guests to Ever Upward. Invitations
to the event that costs $150 per person are available by calling
Excelsior at 303-693-1550x226.
The hot air balloon theme represents the definition of excelsior
which is ‘ever upward” and the goal of improving and
empowering the lives of the troubled girls who reside at Excelsior.
Excelsior! Ever Upward features a welcome reception, silent and
live auctions with auctioneer, Gary Corbett, dinner and live entertainment
by Excelsior girls. Funds will benefit activities for the girls
residing at Excelsior. Reservations are required.
As a renowned sculptor, Rhonda Vickers says, “I was introduced
to Excelsior when I was commissioned to create the bust of Excelsior’s
Executive Director, Bill Gregory, to commemorate his 30 years of
service. Tommy and I learned a great deal about the program and
have become very supportive.”
Rhonda was born and raised in St. Louis and studied fine arts at
Wichita State University. She and Tommy were married 35 years ago
and have two grown children. Rhonda has volunteered teaching art
to children with Cerebral Palsy and worked with homeless women and
children at the Gathering Place and served as its Board Chair. In
1999 Rhonda began her full time bronze sculpting business.
Tommy, raised and educated in Wichita, KS, was in the securities
business for 25 years before moving his family to Denver in 1984.
While in Kansas he was involved in Catholic Charities, National
Jewish Hospital Board, the Institute of Logopedics Board and the
Crime Commission. “I’m a low key patron of charities
and I prefer organizations dedicated to children and their future,”
says Vickers.
Ever Upward co-chairmen, Molly Ross and Bill Lane, are joined
on the gala coordinating committee by: Anne Barrett, Deb Braun,
Gary Corbett, Maggie Eichenlaub, Joan Gabrielson, Judy Girardot,
Bill Graveley, Kathy Graveley, Bill Gregory, Lisa Houston, Hal Hultquist,
Dick Jones, Andrea Kellough, Carol Kingery, John Kivimaki, Abbie
Kozik, Jackie Lane, Taneshia Nettingham, Anne Prather, Matt Rivera,
Arlene Wayland and Vivian Zlobec.
Corporate sponsors of Ever Upward include Comcast, Denver Nuggets-
Kroenke Sports Enterprises, Wells Fargo Bank, Wagner Investments,
Inc., Allegiance Benefit Plan Management, U. S. Bank, Hillyard Floor
Care, Trugreen Land Care and Piper Jaffray.
For ticket information please call Excelsior, 303-693-1550 x 226.
Photo: Rhonda and Tommy Vickers, Honorary Chair Persons