At its annual Women Making History reception Thursday, Colorado Black Women for Political Action recognized a dozen local leaders in business, politics and education.
The event, chaired by Simone D. Ross, honored former state legislator Rosemary Marshall; Wy Livingston, owner of Wystone’s World Teas; Linda Alvarado, founder, president and CEO of Alvarado Construction and a part-owner of the Colorado Rockies; and Dr. Jandel Allen-Davis, vice president of government and external relations for Kaiser Permanente Colorado. Additional honorees were Maria Garcia Berry, CEO of CRL Associates; Lynn Gangone, dean of the University of Denver Women’s College; Denise King, senior program manager at the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation; retired educator Alice Langley; and Carita Watson, retired information technology director at IBM Global Technology Services.
Also among those recognized was Joanne Davidson, society editor of The Denver Post. Davidson, who has been writing for The Post for 27 years, was lauded for the inclusiveness of her coverage and her continual efforts to recognize achievements by members of the African American community.
After the ceremony, Anthony Graves, director of government and community affairs for Visit Denver, said he gained a “new appreciation” for society coverage once he started reading The Denver Post “because it’s not just the same people featured every time.”
The award was “totally unexpected, but very much appreciated,” Davidson said, noting that her role model has long been the late Charlotte Curtis, who shook things up as society editor of The New York Times. “In her eyes, society was defined as ‘the entire human race,’ and that a person’s worth should not be measured by ‘pedigree,’ ZIP code or the model of car that they drive,’” Davidson said.
Former Denver Mayor Welllington Webb and his wife, Wilma, presented the awards at the event held in Craig Hall on the University of Denver campus. In attendance were more than 100 CWPA members, family and friends of the honorees. Special guests included Rosemary Rodriguez, state director for U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet; state Rep. Rhonda Fields; and Janet Buckner, who was representing her husband, state Rep. John Buckner.
This year’s youth honorees were Ruvencia Boyd and Nefretarie Lockley.
The CBWPA was founded 36 years ago by former state legislator Gloria Tanner and a group of like-minded women who were determined to “infuse Colorado politics with strong and knowledgeable black women.”