Running of the Gays 2018
2018-09-08 11:00 - 14:00 (America/Denver) | ACE Eat Serve, 501 E. 17th Ave, Denver, 80203, United States
Running of the Gays: Hoofin’ it in Heels for LGBTQ+ Youth
Come out and join Denver’s LGBTQIA community and Allies as we run toward a better future for youth at the 9th annual Running of the Gays!
Get yer heels (and ankles!) ready to roll… or strut, or hop, or stumble in a 3-block “marathon” in heels to fund creative empowerment programs for queer youth in the Denver community. The event is organized by Art from Ashes, Denver’s LGBTQIA* community and Allies. Each year runners are asked to raise money through sponsorships to trot 3 blocks down 17th Avenue in heels, starting at Ace Eat Serve patio next to Steuben’s Food Service followed by an all ages (until 1.30 pm) after party at X Bar!
Proceeds contribute to continuing transformational creative programs for local youth who identify as LGBTQ+. While the event is silly, the statistics for our LGBTQ+ young people are decidedly unfunny: gay and lesbian youth are two to three times more likely to commit suicide than other youths, and 30% of all completed youth suicides are related to the issue of sexual identity; 45% of gay males and 20% of lesbians surveyed reported having experienced verbal harassment and/or physical violence during high school as a result of their sexual orientation; 26% of gays and lesbian youth are forced to leave home because of conflicts with their families over sexual identity. Art from Ashes provides creative programs with proven results that improve self-perception and increase involvement with and connection to the community.
Run a 3-block marathon in heels to help fund creative empowerment workshops for the queer youth in our community! Register with a $40 donation below:
RUNNERS Register here: bitly.com/ROTG2018
(or send by cash or check to Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver CO 80204)
The fee entitles runners to the ROTG “I brought the gay” t-shirt, a goodie bag, a free Mimosa courtesy of Steuben’s, and a foot massage!
Runners also seek sponsorships from friends and family to raise money for the youth programs. Download the Runners Packet for more info!
SPONSORS SUPPORT YOUR RUNNER HERE!
If you are sponsoring a specific runner, please enter their name in the Special Instructions field of the Donate Now window.
BUSINESS PARTNERS SUPPORT THE MARATHON HERE!
So many thanks to our wonderful business sponsors, most of whom have been sponsoring Running of the Gays since 2010! If you’re interested in supporting our youth program, please download our ROTG Sponsor Menu.
Runners gather at the bullpen at Ace Eat Serve/Steuben’s at 11 am to sign in, stretch and enjoy the street show. After Party, foot massages, drag show and silent auction at X Bar from noon to 2 pm!
See on our ROTG Facebook page to see the photos from previous years, as well as find out more information. And be sure to join this year’s event HERE!

Thank you to all those who have “come out” in the past. Re-live the fun here:

Creative Time
2018-11-05 16:00 - 18:00
FREE PIZZA! FREE ART! RESPECT FOR YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS!
All youth ages 12 to 24 are invited to join us at Art from Ashes every Thursday from 4 to 6 pm for a FREE Creative Time workshop: create art in a welcoming, safe space where people respect you and your creativity.
All youth are welcome; free pizza provided.
YOU ALREADY ARE AN ARTIST! WE BELIEVE IN YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS!

Workshops are at our location just off the 10th and Osage light rail station.
If you’d like to let us know you’re going to stop by, contact Celeste Seiler at Art from Ashes, using the form below or JUST DROP IN.
Thank you so much to Imagine 2020 and the Arts in Society grants, and to all our business sponsors and individual donors who make these workshops possible!

Phoenix Rising Workshop at AfA
2018-11-14 16:00 - 18:00 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver, Colorado, 80204
Join Art from Ashes facilitators, other youth from the community, and guest poets for a FREE poetry and spoken word workshop at Art from Ashes every Wednesday from 4 to 6 pm at 1310 West 10th Ave right next to the light rail station at 10th and Osage.
All young people between the age of 12 and 24 are welcome. We provide the writing materials, art supplies, guest poets, food and drinks… You provide the creative genius! You can email us using the form below if you’d like to let us know you’re coming or want more information…and if you want to be sure you get some food. Or just drop in any week at 4pm!
Thank you so much to the Tony Grampsas Youth Services (TGYS) and to the City and County of Denver’s Office of Children’s Affairs Healthy Lifestyles grant, and to all our business sponsors and individual donors who make these workshops possible!

At the Inkwell Poetry Reading
2019-02-16 16:00 - 18:00 | Book Bar, 4280 Tennyson St, Denver, CO, United States
It’s February and love and poetry are floating like bits of annoying flotsam and jetsam in the atmosphere. But not for this event. At The Inkwell Denver returns February 16th to the Book Bar (and bar bar!) and kicks off 2019 with only the best in poetry and all its raw, honest darkness. Organized and hosted by Hillary Leftwich!
Featured Readers Include:
Two youth poets from the Phoenix Rising program at Art from Ashes, plus AfA’s founding director and CEO Catherine O’Neill Thorn. Catherine has conducted poetry and spoken word workshops for youth and adults since 1992. She established and ran weekly poetry sessions for three years for Columbine students and the aftermath of the Columbine shooting and in 2000, produced Screams Aren’t Enough, a compilation of Columbine student poetry, which won the Colorado Book Award. She is a published poet, writer and journalist and was the proprietor of O’Neill Publishing. She served as a poetry judge for both the 1994 Colorado Book Award and the 2007 Poetry Out Loud national competition among high school students. She was the editor and publisher Inner 303, an arts and poetry magazine for Denver’s urban youth, from 1997 to 2001, and the inspirational book/journal for youth Why Keep Tryin’? Voices from the Street.
Ashley Cornelius is a performance poet in Colorado. She graduated with a master’s in International Disaster Psychology from DU. She focuses on providing creative therapy for adolescents through poetry therapy and is currently working as a therapist in Denver and lives in Colorado Springs. Her poems reflect her personal struggles and journey as a young black woman navigating the changing world. She aims to inspire, empower, and tell a story of truth and depth. She has won four Hear Here Poetry Slams in Colorado Springs. She was the Women of the World Poetry Slam Colorado Springs Representative and competed in Dallas at Nationals in March 2018. Ashley is an organizer with Poetry 719 and has planned multiple community events in Colorado Springs included the Poetry 719 festival. Ashley was nominated for two 2018 Pikes Peak Art Council (PPAC) awards and won best recurring poetry event. Ashley is committed to using poetry as a platform to speak up and out for marginalized groups and be a voice for those who have been silenced.

Robert Kloss self-published his two most recent books. He is currently writing about murder.

Jay Halsey’s poems, prose, and photos have been published in several online and print journals and a handful of anthologies. Most recently, his hybrid piece “Predator and Prey” was nominated for Best of the Net by Menacing Hedge, and his short story “Hard and Harder” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize by Cowboy Jamboree. His photography has been used as cover art for poetry collections and novels, featured in fundraising campaigns for the Rocky Mountain Land Library in Fairplay, Colorado, and was part of a touring exhibit featured at libraries and bookstores throughout France to represent Editions Gallmeister’s American authors. He was born and raised in Dayton, OH and has lived on the Colorado Front Range for the past 12 years.

Ben River is a Denver local non-binary latinx who also lives part time in New Mexico. They do work as a writer/poet/activist/painter working mostly in immigration, story telling, and gender bending.

2019 Rockies Game
2019-06-27 18:30 - 21:30 | Coors Field, 20th and Blake St, Denver, CO
ALL SOLD! Thank you, community ❤️
If you’d like to donate towards food and drinks for the youth we’re taking, please do so via Paypal or ColoradoGives or with cash/check (please indicate the purpose of your donation)!
1310 West 10th Ave • Denver, CO * 80204

Great seats, too! Section 117, rows 21, 22, 23

Creative Time
2019-07-04 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave., Denver, Colorado, 80204
CREATIVE TIME IS CANCELED FOR THE INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION!
The absolute ONLY time we ever cancel a workshop is if it falls directly on a holiday. So have a beautiful day, even without AfA! And make some art anyway!
YOU ALREADY ARE AN ARTIST! WE BELIEVE IN YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS!

Running of the Gays 2019
2019-09-15 11:00 - 13:30 | ACE Eat Serve, 501 E. 17th Ave, Denver, 80203, United States
Running of the Gays: Hoofin’ it in Heels for LGBTQ+ Youth
Come out and join Denver’s LGBTQIA community and Allies as we run toward a better future for youth at the 10TH ANNUAL Running of the Gays!
Get yer heels (and ankles!) ready to roll… or strut, or hop, or stumble in a 3-block “marathon” in heels to fund creative empowerment programs for queer youth in the Denver community. The event is organized by Art from Ashes, Denver’s LGBTQIA* community and Allies. Each year runners are asked to raise money through sponsorships to trot 3 blocks down 17th Avenue in heels, starting at Ace Eat Serve patio next to Steuben’s Food Service followed by an all ages (until 1.30 pm) after party at X Bar!
Proceeds contribute to continuing transformational creative programs for local youth who identify as LGBTQ+. While the event is silly, the statistics for our LGBTQ+ young people are decidedly unfunny: gay and lesbian youth are two to three times more likely to commit suicide than other youths, and 30% of all completed youth suicides are related to the issue of sexual identity; 45% of gay males and 20% of lesbians surveyed reported having experienced verbal harassment and/or physical violence during high school as a result of their sexual orientation; 26% of gays and lesbian youth are forced to leave home because of conflicts with their families over sexual identity. Art from Ashes provides creative programs with proven results that improve self-perception and increase involvement with and connection to the community.
Run a 3-block marathon in heels to help fund creative empowerment workshops for the queer youth in our community! You’ll be able to register with a $35 donation ($40 after Aug 15th).
REGISTER TO RUN HERE!: bit.ly/ROTG2019
The fee entitles runners to the ROTG “I brought the gay” t-shirt, a goodie bag, a free Mimosa courtesy of Steuben’s, and a foot massage!
Runners are asked to seek sponsorships from friends and family to raise money for the youth programs.
SPONSORS WILL BE ABLE TO SUPPORT SPECIFIC RUNNERS BY DONATING THROUGH FACEBOOK, PAYPAL, GIVINGFIRST, OR WITH A CHECK.
Donate through ColoradoGives: www.coloradogives.org/ROTG2019
Donate through Paypal GIving Fund (100% goes to AfA!): bit.ly/PayPal-AfA
If you are sponsoring a specific runner, please enter their name in the Special Instructions field or by writing their name on your check. Please send checks to 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver CO 80204.
BUSINESS PARTNERS CAN SUPPORT THE MARATHON BY CONTACTING US USING THE FORM BELOW OR BY CALLING 303.837.1550!
So many thanks to our wonderful annual business sponsors. Some have been sponsoring Running of the Gays since 2010! If you’re interested in supporting our youth programs, please download our ROTG Sponsor Menu for levels of sponsorship and associated benefits. We love to support community businesses that support creative empowerment programs for queer youth!
Runners gather at the bullpen at Ace Eat Serve/Steuben’s at 11 am to sign in, stretch and enjoy the street show. After Party, foot massages, drag show and silent auction will be held at X Bar from noon to 1.30 pm!
See on our ROTG Facebook page to see the photos from previous years, as well as find out more information.
Thank you to our business sponsors who make the whole thing possible!

Out Front Magazine :: Payroll Vault :: The Bank of Denver :: Queen City Collective Coffee
Thank you to all those who have “come out” in the past. Re-live the fun here:

First Friday Youth Workshop
2019-12-06 16:30 - 18:15 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver, Colorado, 80204
FREE PIZZA! FREE POETRY PERFORMANCE! RESPECT FOR YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS!

All youth ages 12 to 24 are invited to join us at Art from Ashes every First Friday of the month at 4.30 pm for a FREE one-hour Phoenix Rising poetry and spoken word workshop, followed at 5.30 by a FREE 45-minute performance workshop, featuring a performance poet. All youth are welcome; free pizza provided.
YOU DON’T NEED TO ALREADY WRITE POETRY!
WE BELIEVE IN YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS AND THAT YOUR WORDS ARE POWERFUL!

Workshops are at our location just off the 10th and Osage light rail station. Just DROP IN!
The first 10 youth willing to perform their workshop poems afterwards will receive $10!
PLEASE NOTE: WE’LL BE TAKING JAN-MARCH OFF; THE NEXT FIRST FRIDAY WORKSHOP WILL BE HELD DURING POETRY MONTH ON APRIL 3, 2020.

First Friday Performance
2019-12-06 18:30 - 19:15 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver, Colorado, 80204
Join us every First Friday for youth spoken word performances at the Art from Ashes location just off the 10th and Osage light rail station between 6.30 and 7.15 pm.
Stop by in support of our community’s young people who participate in our Phoenix Rising youth empowerment program. Listen as young people ages 12 to 24 tell their stories in metaphor through poems written in only 3 minutes.
Visit our beautiful space on the corner of 10th and Navajo on your way to the Art District on Santa Fe!
Much more than a public performance, youth gather at Art from Ashes at 4.30 for a FREE one-hour Phoenix Rising writing workshop, followed at 5.30 by a FREE 45-minute performance workshop, featuring a local performance poet. All youth are welcome; pizza provided.
PLEASE NOTE: WE’LL BE TAKING JAN-MARCH OFF; THE NEXT FIRST FRIDAY PERFORMANCE WILL BE HELD DURING POETRY MONTH ON APRIL 3, 2020.

Celebration of Light
2019-12-10 19:00 - 21:00 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver, Colorado, 80204
The Art from Ashes annual Celebration of Light brings together the beautiful humans in our community to observe the triumphs and accomplishments of the year. Light is the common bond that unites diverse holiday celebrations at the end of the year. It signifies hope, rebirth, and guidance—all things Art from Ashes values. These values are honored when we come together to applaud the youth we serve and the community it takes to serve them. We ask everyone to shine a light on the Art from Ashes youth with their unwavering support and kindness at this special time of the year!
Give where you live!
Please join us at our annual Celebration of Light party on Colorado Gives Day at our location on 10th and Navajo. We’ll have adult and other beverages, great food, holiday art projects, youth and community poets, and our entertainment will feature the talented poet and musician Kayla Marque!

Creative Time
2019-12-19 16:00 - 18:00 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave., Denver, Colorado, 80204

All Sacred Tattoo Event
2020-03-13 18:00 - 22:00 | All Sacred Foundation, 7700 W 44th, Wheat Ridge, CO
Details coming soon!
Or sign up for our newsletter and get it right it hot off the press: text ARTFROMASHES (all caps, no spaces) to 22828

First Friday Performance
2020-05-01 16:00 - 16:30
VIRTUAL YOUTH & GUEST POET PERFORMANCE!
Log in to listen to the voices of young creative geniuses and a featured guest LIVE on Instagram at 4pm!
Because of the COVID-19 crisis, our monthly First Friday workshops and performances have been temporarily suspended in favour of a virtual performance on Instagram. For those of you unfamiliar with Instagram, easy instructions are below.
This event features youth spoken word performances by young people ages 12 to 24 tell their stories in metaphor through poems written in only 3 minutes. A guest poet from the community will join the youth to provide encouragement and to promote access to the arts.
For Instagram novitiates! How to watch Instagram live:
Use a smartphone (not a tablet or desktop!)
If you haven’t set up your own Instagram account, do that
and if you have, log in and search for @afaphoenix
Click on our profile (If you’re not already following us, please hit follow!)
If our logo has circles around it, that means we are LIVE; Click on the logo. (You don’t have to hold it down to watch.)
You can also leave us comments (or poems ) while in our page!

Facebook Community Writing Prompts
2020-05-26
Join us on our Art from Ashes Facebook page for a community writing prompt every Tuesday and Thursday! You can post your 3-minute poem in the comments, send it to us here: www.artfromashes.org/share-your-poem or just keep it to yourself to cherish. Not lyin’, we hope you share it, though!

First Friday Youth Workshop
2020-06-05 16:30 - 18:15, 2020-07-03 16:30 - 18:15, 2020-08-07 16:30 - 18:15, 2020-09-04 16:30 - 18:15, 2020-11-06 16:30 - 18:15 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver, Colorado, 80204
FREE PIZZA! FREE POETRY PERFORMANCE! RESPECT FOR YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS!

All youth ages 12 to 24 are invited to join us at Art from Ashes every First Friday of the month at 4.30 pm for a FREE one-hour Phoenix Rising poetry and spoken word workshop, followed at 5.30 by a FREE 45-minute performance workshop, featuring a performance poet. All youth are welcome; free pizza provided.
YOU DON’T NEED TO ALREADY WRITE POETRY!
WE BELIEVE IN YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS AND THAT YOUR WORDS ARE POWERFUL!

Workshops are at our location just off the 10th and Osage light rail station. Just DROP IN!
The first 10 youth willing to perform their workshop poems afterwards will receive $10!

First Friday Performance
2020-06-05 18:30 - 19:15, 2020-07-03 18:30 - 19:15, 2020-08-07 18:30 - 19:15, 2020-09-04 18:30 - 19:15, 2020-11-06 18:30 - 19:15 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver, Colorado, 80204
Join us every First Friday for youth spoken word performances at the Art from Ashes location just off the 10th and Osage light rail station between 6.30 and 7.15 pm.
Stop by in support of our community’s young people who participate in our Phoenix Rising youth empowerment program. Listen as young people ages 12 to 24 tell their stories in metaphor through poems written in only 3 minutes.
Visit our beautiful space on the corner of 10th and Navajo on your way to the Art District on Santa Fe!
Much more than a public performance, youth gather at Art from Ashes at 4.30 for a FREE one-hour Phoenix Rising writing workshop, followed at 5.30 by a FREE 45-minute performance workshop, featuring a local performance poet. All youth are welcome; pizza provided.

Pastries and Poetry
2020-09-22 17:00 - 18:30 | Online
With all that extra time at home, perhaps you’ve binge watched several seasons of The Great British Baking Show and are ready to try your hand at making a trifle that would earn you a Hollywood Handshake. We’ve got the perfect event, just for you (complete with youth poetry performances, too)!
Mark your calendars! Tuesday, September 22nd at 5 pm, Art from Ashes is hosting Pastries and Poetry, a delicious virtual event that you DO NOT want to miss!
Learn to bake a delicious dessert with Brian Smith, Pastry Chef for the TAG Restaurant Group, from the comfort of your own kitchen. While your creations are baking away, our youth will bless your lil’ chef ears with poetry and spoken word PLUS you’ll even get to hear from several local guest poets!
Plus PLUS you’ll be supporting our mission to empower struggling youth with creative expression all in one fun, sugar-filled evening!
What a Tuesday!
Donations start at only $35 (we’ll even provide ingredients for just a little more) —hurry and get ’em because they’re selling like HOT CAKES! ha.
Click here link to purchase your tickets ASAP!

First Friday Youth Workshop
2020-10-02 16:30 - 18:15 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver, Colorado, 80204
FREE PIZZA! FREE POETRY PERFORMANCE! RESPECT FOR YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS!
All youth ages 12 to 24 are invited to join us at Art from Ashes every First Friday of the month at 4.30 pm for a FREE one-hour Phoenix Rising poetry and spoken word workshop, followed at 5.30 by a FREE 45-minute performance workshop, featuring a performance poet. All youth are welcome; free pizza provided.
You don’t need to already write poetry/spoken word, because you ARE poetry!
WE BELIEVE IN YOUR CREATIVE GENIUS AND THAT YOUR WORDS ARE POWERFUL!

Workshops are at our location just off the 10th and Osage light rail station. Just DROP IN!
The first 10 youth willing to perform their workshop poems will receive $10!
Contact Sarah Lanzarotta at Art from Ashes, for more information.

First Friday Performance
2020-10-02 18:30 - 19:15 | Art from Ashes, 1310 West 10th Ave, Denver, Colorado, 80204
Join us every First Friday on your way to the Art District for youth spoken word performances at the Art from Ashes location just off the 10th and Osage light rail station between 6.30 and 7.15 pm.
Stop by in support of our community’s young people who participate in our Phoenix Rising youth empowerment program. Listen as young people ages 12 to 24 tell their stories in metaphor through poems written in only 3 minutes.
Visit our beautiful space on the corner of 10th and Navajo on your way to the Art District on Santa Fe!
Much more than a public performance, before they perform at 6.30, youth gather at Art from Ashes at 4.30 for a FREE one-hour Phoenix Rising writing workshop, followed at 5.30 by a FREE 45-minute performance workshop, featuring a local performance poet. All youth are welcome; pizza provided.

Pastries and Poetry #2
2020-11-10 19:00 - 20:30
On September 22nd, Art from Ashes hosted our first-ever Zoom event, Pastries and Poetry, live from the kitchen of FNG on West 32nd Avenue in Denver.
After seeing them in action, we wouldn’t be surprised if Brian and Laura get recruited to host their own show! While delicious smells wafted from everyone’s ovens, we were proud to showcase the creative genius of several of our youth poets, and guest poet Kylee Wellons. Most of the poems shared by our youth were written in AfA Phoenix Rising workshops in just three minutes – amazing!
It was so popular, we’ve planned a SECOND event on Nov 10th with Chef Brian featuring PECAN PIE!!! Whoo-hoo! Just in time for Thanksgiving. This is a Zoom event, so stay tuned for the invitation via email, here on our website, and on social media.

Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Awards Celebration
2020-11-20 12:00 - 13:30
Catherine O’Neill Thorn receives the 2020 Bonfils-Stanton Foundation’s Arts and Society Award!
AfA’s Founder and Executive Director, Catherine O’Neill Thorn, has been selected to receive the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation’s Arts and Society Award for her vast achievements and decades of service to the arts and youth in Colorado.
In 1984 Charles Edwin Stanton, the foundation’s benefactor, established the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation’s Annual Awards to honor individuals making significant and unique contributions to our community—Art from Ashes is honored that our very own Catherine O’Neill Thorn is being recognized for her impact in our community and for improving the lives of young people through the power of art and creative expression! The foundation also is presenting awards in the following additional categories: Artist and Community Service in the Arts.
The celebration will feature short videos of the award recipients created by professional filmmaker Sam Pike and YOUTH POETRY PERFORMANCES by our very own youth workshop participants! Whoo-hoo!
The event will be held Thursday, Nov 20th at noon via Zoom. Because this year the celebration is virtual, the public is invited to join.
Registration is required to receive the Zoom link from Bonfils-Stanton: Register here

Pastries and Poetry Part Deux
2020-11-24 19:00 - 20:30
In a different kind of workshop, our second Pastries and Poetry virtual event will be held Tuesday, November 24th from 7 to 8:30pm. (For those who donated to a previous invitation, you don’t need to reserve another spot.) We’ll once again feature Brian Smith, Pastry Chef with FNG, and our very own, Laura Peña. Brian has more than 15 years experience in the pastry and restaurant biz and is donating his time to provide an entertaining spin on how to bake a PECAN PIE right in your own home. There will be youth performances during baking time, and you’ll get to learn a little more about what Art from Ashes does.
A $35 donation gets you a spot to join in the fun. A Zoom link will be sent to you in your confirmation email after signing up. A list of ingredients you will need on hand is under Details.
Please let us know when you RSVP if you have dietary restrictions and/or preferences so that we can work with you to accommodate them.
Thank you for supporting the work that Art from Ashes is doing for their community. We’ll see you in your kitchen soon! Register here!
