When it comes to introducing an award recipient, it goes without saying that the job should be given to someone who knows that person well.
Who else would share all those interesting factoids that might otherwise go unnoticed?
Here’s what I mean:
When Irit Waldbaum received the 2015 Laura Merage Transforming Communities Award at signature fundraiser, the Epic Gala, event chairs Bradley Joseph and Amy Whiteside Schaeffer lined up Dr. Art Waldbaum and the award’s namesake, RedLine founder Laura Merage.
Art Waldbaum pointed out that his wife couldn’t just be described as one who is beautiful, elegant, knowledgeable and caring — although the words are certainly true. He said she’s also an incredible baker, cook, babysitter, dog sitter and carpool driver. And when something is amiss, “We don’t call a ghostbuster, we call Irit.”
Merage praised her friend of 20-plus years by noting that she is both a champion of the community and one in whom trust can be placed.
“She’s a guardian of good work in this community, and I am continuously grateful that she joined RedLine’s board,” added executive director Louise Martorano.
In addition to her work on behalf of RedLine, Waldbaum, who holds a master’s degree in architectural design from the University of Colorado, is a Rose Community Foundation trustee and past president of Hillel of Colorado, where she co-chaired its recent $4 million capital campaign.
RedLine, which Merage founded in 2008, is a mixed-use art space at 2350 Arapahoe St. where artists in residency, some of whom are homeless themselves, help build community by engaging young people and others in the transformative power of art.
At the Epic Gala, current and former RedLine artists provide the decor for the tables where such supporters as board chair Julie Rubsam; Susan and Jeremy Shamos; Gay and Barry Curtiss-Lusher; Susan and Randy Karsh; Morris Price Jr.; Peter Colussy and Willie Recht; Donna Crafton Montgomery; Vicki and Harry Sterling; Gretchen Gagel and Philip Snellen; and Debra Herz enjoyed a roasted chicken dinner from Three Tomatoes Catering.
Joanne Davidson: 303-809-1314, jdavidson@denverpost.com or twitter.com/joannedavidson
