Denver

Centering community to scale innovative approaches and advance equity

An image of young children sitting up against a bridge in nature.

Overview

We collaborate with community to elevate a shared vision of inclusive prosperity

With the backdrop of the Rocky Mountains, Denver is known for outdoor adventure and recreation. The city is home to trend-setting breweries, a thriving startup and business community, and a rich cultural history. Rapid growth has brought challenges bringing significant wealth disparities to the forefront.

 

GreenLight partners with the community and the local nonprofit ecosystem to break down barriers to economic mobility by launching and scaling evidence-based programs that open possibilities and meet community-identified needs.

Addressing Challenges in Denver

3X

Black and Latine children are three times as likely to live in poverty as their white peers

54%

of DPS K-3 students are below or significantly below grade level in reading

83%

average rent increase since 2005 while home prices grew by 138%

Denver Team and Partners

GreenLight Denver is made up of a diverse group of changemakers from across the community, working together for positive impact.

Team

Rebecca Gorrell
A headshot of Rebecca Gorrell with a nature background.

Rebecca Gorrell

Founding Executive Director, GreenLight Denver

Garrison Stewart
A headshot of Garrison Stewart with a nature background.

Garrison Stewart

Coordinator, GreenLight Denver

Jackie Tran
A headshot of Jackie Tran with a nature background.

Jackie Tran

Program Manager, GreenLight Denver

Advisory Council

Dave Anderson

Colorado Equitable Economic Mobility Initiative

Mike Cortés

Colorado Latino Leadership, Advocacy, and Research Organization

Isabel Cruz

Colorado Consumer Health Initiative

Isabel Dickson

Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment

John Farnam

Morgridge Family Foundation

Jerilynn Francis

Colorado Housing & Finance Authority

Kaycee Gerhart

Metropolitan State University

Collin Hiew

The Denver Foundation

Elsa Holguín

Denver Preschool Program

Tim Main

Mile High United Way

Dan Maxey

University of Colorado Denver

Erika McIntire

Bank of America

Lorez Meinhold

Caring For Denver Foundation

Charlyn Moss

Working Within

Khanh Nguyen

Colorado Health Foundation

Stephanie O’Malley

University of Denver

Andrea Perdomo

Google

Joshua Posner

City of Denver

Elvis Rubio

City of Denver

Emily Shamsid-Deen

ESD Consulting

Wylia Sims

The Equity Project

Julie Stone

Gary Community Ventures

Lisa Sullivan

LS Ventures

Kris Whalen

Platte River Equity

Aubrey Wilde

Colorado Coalition for the Homeless

Cindy Willard

Impact Charitable

Founding Investors

The Alpert Family

Anonymous

Bain Capital logo.

George and Kalliope Balafas / Kentro Group

Bank of America Logo.

Bank of America – Denver

Seth and Cody Belzley

Bender West Foundation

Buildstrong Education logo with three different colored hands arranged in a circle hovering above.

Sarah Burney and Vanessa Ramich / Cresset Capital

Mollie Hale Carter

George and Christina Caulkins

Citywide Banks logo with a sun overtop.

The Clayton Club

Jonathan and Aimee Coleman

Colorado Thrives logo with interlocking blue and yellow triangles.

Mark Cordova / Centennial Bolt

The Cushman Family

Deloitte logo.
Digital Ocean Logo.

Joy and Chris Dinsdale

DrivenBrands Logo with a red striped curve below.

Durand Foundation / Andre and Kim Durand

Bob and Lynda Engel

Darren Fisk

Matt and Brooke Flavin

Steve and Yama Foreman

Ken Fugate / Signature Bank

The Gardner Family Foundation

Goldman Sachs logo with a grey line below with Gives underneath in grey script.

Heather Rule Grady

Barbara Grogan

Mowa Haile

Steve Halstedt

Pat Hamill / Oakwood Homes

John J. Hanley

Dane and Andrea Harbaugh

David Harbaugh

Robert and Laura Hill

Eric Holt

iheartmedia logo with an antenna and audio waves inside a red heart.

Matt and Alissa Joblon

Brandon and Wendy Johnson Family Foundation

Sam and Nicole Kasparek

William T. Kemper Charitable Trust, UMB Bank N.A., Trustee

Taylor and Molly Kirkpatrick

Bruce K. Lee

Lockton Logo with a globe hovering over top.

Steven Lockton Family Foundation

Ashley Marks

Eileen and Tate McCoy

Brian and Amy McDowell

Adam and Ayeisha Mesinger

MSU Denver Logo with a red and blue bird.

Mile High Five Foundation

Scott and Deb Mitchell

The Morgridge Family Foundation

Leigh and Tyler Nottberg Family Foundation

Juan Padro

Platte River Equity Logo with a bird and red background.

Jake Reagan

Salazar Family Foundation Logo.

MacKenzie Scott

Shane Co Logo.

Stephan Shelanski / Vegas Sports Network

Susan and John Simon

Greg Sissel and Therese Ivancovich

Geoff and Lauren Smart

Sunflower Bank Logo.

Jeff and Dani Sussman

Kent Thiry and Denise O’Leary

UMB Logo.
Mile High United Way Logo with a circular icon of a sun with a person in the middle and outstretched hand below.
University of Denver logo.
U.S. Engineering Logo.
U.S. Engineering Metalworks Logo.

Gina and Dan Vecchiarelli

Kris and Laura Whalen

Wiegers Family Foundation

Type

GreenLight Fund Names Ali Knight as Chief Executive Officer
A headshot of Ali Knight with a window in the background.

Announcement, News, Press Release

GreenLight Fund Names Ali Knight as Chief Executive Officer

Apr 16, 2024

GreenLight Fund Launches GreenLight Denver, its 13th Site
Denver skyline with trees, buildings, and mountains in the background.

Announcement, News, Press Release

GreenLight Fund Launches GreenLight Denver, its 13th Site

Feb 8, 2024

Denver

GreenLight Fund Annual Impact Report July 2022 – June 2023
The cover photo of the annual impact report with a young woman wearing a yellow sweater standing outside with her arms crossed.

Insights

GreenLight Fund Annual Impact Report July 2022 – June 2023

Oct 20, 2023

Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Denver, Detroit, Greater Newark, Kansas City, National, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, Twin Cities

Join our work in Denver

We rely on champions and supporters who believe in the power and potential of community-driven change.