New, fresh and young might not be the first words that spring to mind when the subject is antiques. But they were heard over and over when close to 400 friends of the Central City Opera gathered at Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum for a cocktail supper launching the 2005 Denver Antiques Show & Sale.
A committee headed by Judy Grant worked long and hard to give the venerable fundraiser a fresh, new look; they also went out of their way to make the next generation of givers feel part of it all.
“This is a season when flowers, shrubs, fountains and statuary mix beautifully with antiques, making our homes more beautiful and welcoming,” Grant explained, adding that other tweaks to the show’s format were made with the idea of taking things to the next level, making it the premier spring event in the region. Guests entered Wings Over the Rockies through a garden created by Laurie Jekyll of The Last Detail and Meg Nichols, whose husband, Ed, is president of the opera board.
Once inside, they could check out the antique furniture, art, jewelry, rugs and more from 32 of the nation’s top dealers. Also to be enjoyed was a buffet supper from Footers Catering.
Sue Kinney was there with friends, saying that her husband, Roger, was off enjoying seven days of golf on the Bobby Jones Trail in Alabama; Joy Johnson, Denise Cohen, MJ Powers and Catherine Bedel stopped by on their way to the U2 concert at Pepsi Center, while Ralph and Ann Poucher had been to the Caribbean to celebrate her 60th birthday.
Brenda and Dr. David Schrier said they were very pleased with the results of a wine tasting they’d hosted for the Raymond Wentz Foundation: “One hundred people who contributed $14,000” for cancer patients in need.
Rockmount Ranch Wear’s Steve Weil, one of the show’s three lecturers, was there with his father, Jack B. Weil, while Pam and Dutch Bansbach invited their daughter and son-in-
law, Brooke and Chas Maloy.
The VIP crowd also included Charlie Gates and Lucy Dikeou; Alice and Jack Vickers; Sarah and Chris Hunt; Marcy and Bruce Benson; Nina Kelly and Don Greco; Martha Gart; Sharon and Lanny Martin; Virginia Maniatis; Barbara and Peter Judd; Eileen and Dave Morton with her mom, Eileen Honnen; Sandy Reichborn-Kjennerud; and Annzo Phelps.
Also, Marilyn Coors; Pam and Korvin Powell; Marne Tutt; Barbara and Dennis Baldwin; LeeLee Lichty; Payne and Brian Heselton; Shelley Magness; and Debbie and Al Parsons.
The show had its start 23 years ago, as a benefit for Spalding Rehabilitation Hospital. It allied with the Denver Art Museum. For the past several years, it has partnered with the Central City Opera, generating funds for the preservation and maintenance of 30 Victorian-era properties that the company owns in the mining-town-turned-gambling-mecca.
Society editor Joanne Davidson can be reached at 303-820-1314 or jmdpost@aol.com.
More online: See additional pictures www.denverpost.com
