‘Angels’ are heaven-sent

To say that Denver Health is grateful is an understatement. In fact, administrators are so grateful for the support that nine of the city’s highest-profile women have given to its Newborns in Need program that they have taken to calling Janet Elway, Frances Owens, Susan Kiely, Debra Pain, Sharon Magness Blake, Pam Crowe, Katie Trexler, Peggy Shanahan and Kelly Ford “angels” and paid tribute to each of them at the hospital’s annual gala.
“An Evening with Angels” was the theme for the dinner-dance held at the Adam’s Mark Hotel. Each angel has hosted one or more baby showers for Newborns in Need, a program that provides diapers, clothing, toys and other essentials for the babies born to families that cannot afford them.
Items collected at the showers are given to the families that often have to choose between paying the rent or buying food, let alone be able to purchase new items for their babies. Approximately 4,000 babies are born each year at Denver Health and a signficant percentage of their families live in extreme poverty.
Dr. Patricia Gabow, Denver Health’s chief executive, emphasized her appreciation for the work done by the Angels by pointing out that each of them have full lives of their own.
Janet Elway, for example, is the founder of Janet’s Camp, which sends inner-city children to YMCA summer camp; she also lends support to the Community College of Aurora Foundation scholarship program and Developmental Pathways. Frances Owens, Colorado’s former first lady, is chairing the 2007 Western Fantasy for Volunteers of America and also supports Developmental Pathways.
The Rev. Susan Kiely ministers to low-income seniors while Peggy Shanahan and her husband, Denver Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan, were honored last week for their support of Beacon Center, a residential treatment program for abused and neglected teens.
Katie Trexler and Kelly Ford are local media personalities; Debra Pain oversees the University of Phoenix campuses in Colorado; Pam Crowe, whose husband heads Level 3, is known for her generosity in letting nonprofit organizations use her home for fund-raising events. Sharon Magness Blake is the cofounder of Western Fantasy and supports numerous local causes through her Thunder Foundation.
Pictures from the Denver Health Gala are posted at denverpost.com/SeenGallery.
Society Editor Joanne Davidson’s column appears every Sunday, Wednesday and Friday in the Scene section. She can be reached at 303-809-1314 or jdavidson@denverpost.com.