Of the volumes that could be written about Russ and Susan Ahrens, one simple phrase says it all: They give as good as they get.
Especially when they’ve been wrestled into the spotlight.
Last week, Colorado Humanities thanked the Morrison couple for six years of devoted service by appointing them honorary chairmen of Benjamin Franklin LIVE! They were lauded at a VIP reception before an audience of 550 filled the Donald R. Seawell Grand Ballroom for actor-teacher Christopher Lowell’s living history portrayal of one of America’s founding fathers.
Executive director Margaret Coval and board chair Marguerite Salazar had plenty of nice things to say about Russ and Susan, but they were in for a big surprise when he took the microphone and announced his dream for developing a Colorado Humanities-administered program that would teach ethics to young people. He put his money where his mouth was by presenting Coval with a $1,000 check to get the ball rolling.
His career in public relations taught him that a catchy name always works, so he suggested the acronym YES, which could stand for Young Ethics Society, Youth Ethics Series or even Young Ethics Symposium. “With all the ethical issues involving today’s corporate executives, athletes, politicians … what Susan and I would like to start is something to bring to the young people of Colorado that would teach them to live more principled lives.”
Russ Ahrens’ involvement with Colorado Humanities began in 2000 when Gov. Bill Owens appointed him to its state board. At the time, it was known as the Colorado Endowment for the Humanities; the shortened name was adopted following a merger with Colorado Center for the Book. This is his final year as a board member.
In addition to Colorado Humanities, he has also been active in DARE and the Just Say No campaign.
Russ and Susan were accompanied to Benjamin Franklin LIVE! by their 13-year-old son, Nick, and her folks, Ross and Arline Marzolf. Well-wishers also included Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, state Sen. Suzanne Williams and such humanities board members as chairman Wendell Pryor, who heads the state Civil Rights Commission, and his wife, Janine; past chair Charlotte Neitzel of Holme Roberts & Owen; Susan Davies of Durango; Ludie Dickeson of Estes Park; Mark Matthews, an attorney with Gold Sponsor Brownstein Hyatt and Farber; Phil Marcum of Denver; Judith Casey of Colorado Springs; and Valerie Switzer of Centennial.
Board member Lisa Alexander of Cherry Hills Village, who was instrumental in starting Colorado Humanities’ American Spirit Series five years ago, was there too, as was fellow trustee Taylor Kirkpatrick of Denver, who auctioned a series of kites to benefit the group’s Young Chautauqua program. CBS4’s Ed Greene was master of ceremonies.
Others enjoying refreshments from Gourmet Fine Catering and a display of memorabilia from the 1800s were Marilyn and Dr. Jules Amer; Virginia Newton and Mary Hobart McCotter; Jane Adams, director of the High Plains Chautauqua, and her husband, John; Leslie Forster; Dale Walton of Platinum Sponsor Republic Financial; Brenda Woodard, whose son, Cole, is a Young Chautauquan and came dressed as Albert Einstein; marketing pro Linda Rieger; Jerry and Sandra Glick; and Young Chautauquan Kaitlyn Jerome, a sophomore at Greeley Central High School, whose portrayal of Mary Boykin Chestnut, wife of a Civil War-era U.S. senator from South Carolina, opened the evening’s program and brought her a standing ovation.
Society editor Joanne Davidson can be reached at 303-809-1314 or jmdpost@aol.com.
