Denver Public Schools Foundation Gala

I was lucky enough to photograph the very successful Denver Public Schools Foundation Gala.  With over 1200 guests, the event was on pace to raise over $1,000,000!  The event took place at the Hyatt Convention Center Hotel in downtown Denver.

Denver students made each and every table flower vase for the centerpieces.  It was a really nice touch and one guest from each table was able to keep it! Each Tiffany’s bag was for sale for $100 and had at least some jewlery inside, but could have been earrings and necklaces worth much more than $100…

Two of the guests of honor were Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper and Denver Mayor Guillermo (Bill) V. Vidal:

The biggest supporter of the evening was UMB Bank, and CEO Mariner Kempner.  Throughout the evening, there were various student groups entertaining.  The image next to Kempner is an image from the dance performance by the Denver School of the Arts:

The dance performance was good, but my favorites were the Archuleta Elementary School Choir.  The kids had so much fun singing in front of the huge crowd! This lady, named Marie Greenwood was the first African American teacher to be put on a contract by Denver Public Schools in 1935!  She walked up to the Governor with the biggest smile on her face! All in all, a successful night for the Denver Public Schools Foundation!

And a big thank you to Katie Van Buren for helping me photograph the event!