Bonfils-Stanton Foundation
We invest in equitable arts and culture organizations and nonprofit leaders to create a thriving and just Denver.
The Bonfils-Stanton Foundation is a Private Nonprofit Foundation based in Denver Colorado that has an overarching vision of supporting arts and leadership as keys to building a vibrant community. The core work of the Foundation manifests itself in providing grant support to arts organizations in metro Denver that demonstrate artistic excellence, visionary leadership, financial stability and adapti
We’re celebrating our rainbow community with the Center on Colfax. 🏳️🌈🎉🏳️⚧️
The Center On Colfax is bringing the joy with amazing Pride events lined up (in addition to their regular and completely FREE programs).
From weekly drop-in hours for youth and young adults, to peer-led support groups for trans, nonbinary, and older LGBTQ+ community members — there’s always a space to connect.
Whether you’re looking for wellness programming like chair yoga, community conversation through groups like News Flash and Telling Your Story, or a sober social scene, The Center has you covered.
Bonfils-Stanton Foundation supported the Center on Colfax with a Rapid Response Grant in 2025.
🎥 Photos courtesy of The Center on Colfax.
Bobby LeFebre wrote this poem as a tribute to the BSF Social Impact Artist Awards and awardees.
The poem frames what socially engaged art is about: how it climbs off the wall and moves the community to deeper action and reflection.
The poem was first heard at the SIAA awards celebration last night in celebration of:
Armando Geneyro Jr.
kalyn4mayor Wheelchair Sports Camp
Stephen Malloy Brackett
“Gallery of the Living”
Written and performed by Bobby LeFebre
Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Trustee
Poet Laureate of Colorado (2019-2023)
“Welcome to the gallery of the living.
The art of the socially engaged.
Creation.�Action.�Impact.
The click of the shutter; a raised fist.�Sheet music; a manifesto.�The rhyme; a revolution.
Art is a practice.�A process.�A verb, even.
To engage is to inspire.�To turn witness into responsibility.�Beauty into bridgework.�Story into shelter.
This practice is not stagnant.
It does not rot, hanging pretty upon city walls.
It marches through the streets.�Shakes loose memory.�Turns sidewalks into sanctuary, cultura into community.
This practice refuses the lie of separation.
It knows the waves are the ocean.�That five fingers make a fist.
This practice transmits pain into progress.�Belonging into better tomorrows.
This practice knows imagination is not escape;
it's infrastructure.
Another world is possible, �and we are making it �with our hands, �our hearts, �and the collective courage �to imagine each other free.”
🎥 Credits:
Director, producer, editor - Anthony Grimes Anthony Grimes
Cam op, producer, editor - Samuel Bydlon Samuel Bydlon
Cam op - Michael Kirton Michael Kirton
06/15/2026
Japanese Arts Network and Mile High JACL invite the Denver community to walk through an important chapter of history. 🗺️
“Stories of Solidarity: The Japanese Americans in Five Points” is a free, self-guided neighborhood mapping tour through Denver’s historic Five Points neighborhood — tracing the footsteps of Japanese Americans who rebuilt their lives there after being released from WWII incarceration camps.
Japanese businesses were concentrated during this time in the Five Points area due to oppressive redlining which did not allow them to open in other parts of the city. Japanese arrivals joined other communities of color who also inhabited and owned businesses in this stretch of neighborhood.
Today, there are multiple ways to learn about the history of the area through the new FREE mapping tour. Bring headphones and an open heart.
🔗 Find the full tour + exhibit details at ja-ne.org/sos
📸: Photos courtesy of Japanese Arts Network
Japanese Arts Network received a grant from Bonfils-Stanton Foundation in 2024.
06/09/2026
SCFD arts and culture funding in our region is up for reauthorization in 2028. Here’s how to stay involved:
👉 Attend public listening tour meetings — Summer 2026
👉 Join open stakeholder meetings — Winter 2026/Spring 2027
👉 Submit comments on the final proposal — Summer/Fall 2027
👉 Vote — November 2028
Learn more at scfd.org
06/05/2026
Don’t miss “Good Sports” — the current exhibit at Access Gallery! 👀🏀
🔸First Friday Art Walk: June 5 from 6 PM - 9 PM
🔸Champions Magazine Launch with Special Olympics Colorado: July 17 from 6 PM - 8 PM
🔸On View: June 5 - July 18, 2026
🔸FREE and open to the public
19 Access Gallery artists explore sports and athletic culture through painting, drawing, sculpture, digital art, and mixed media — drawing on personal experience, humor, storytelling, fantasy, and more.
The show also features a Community Art Wall where artists explored movement as part of the creative process.
Access Gallery is an inclusive nonprofit organization that engages the community by opening doors to creative, educational and economic opportunities for people with disabilities to access, experience and benefit from the arts.
Bonfils-Stanton Foundation supported Access Gallery with a grant last year.
06/02/2026
Denver Fringe Festival starts this Wednesday! 👩🎤
Check out the link in our bio to get Resident Storyteller ‘s don’t-miss recommendations.
Leave us a comment with what you’re excited to see! ↓↓↓
📷: Photo courtesy of
is cooking up a brilliant show for May!
This is a sneak peek of a tune from the upcoming show, Departure.
Departure is your chance to experience something different—an intimate evening of two short operas that draw you into two very different stories.
In Down in the Valley, a young couple’s love is pushed to the breaking point, leading to a violent choice that changes everything. Then The Bear shifts gears: a tense standoff between a widow and an unexpected visitor turns into something fast, funny, and surprisingly romantic.
This performance will be happening on May 29 and May 30. General admission tickets are available starting at $30!
Bonfils-Stanton Foundation supported Opera Colorado with a grant in 2025.
05/21/2026
Announcing the 2026-27 Equity in Arts Learning For Colorado Youth Grantees! 🎤
Now in its third year, this statewide initiative represents a growing commitment to arts education, with a cumulative investment exceeding $1.3 million in support of Colorado youth.
This year, 24 organizations across 11 counties were selected for the 2026–27 funding cycle:
-Access Gallery
-Breck Create
-Clyfford Still Museum
-Colorado Conservatory for the Jazz Arts
-Concrete Couch
-d2b Studios
-Dancing Spirit Inc
-El Sistema Colorado
-ETM-Colorado, Inc.
-Feel the Beat, Corp. .dance.studio
-Four Corners Rainbow Youth Center
-LFMG Music Academy
-LuneAseas
-Mancos Creative District
-Mirror Image Arts
-New Cottage Arts
-Stillwater Music
-Swallow Hill Music
-The Catamounts
-The Matthews House
-The Village Institute
-Theatre Aspen
-University of Denver - Newman Center for the Performing Arts
-University of Northern Colorado Foundation
This collaborative grant program is made possible through:
➡️ Think 360 Arts for Learning (grant administrator)
➡️ Bonfils-Stanton Foundation
➡️ Colorado Creative Industries
➡️ Denver Arts & Venues
This work is grounded in the belief that access to the arts is fundamental to a vibrant, inclusive and thriving Colorado.
Congratulations to the winners! We can’t wait to see what you do.
📸: Photo courtesy of Concrete Couch
05/21/2026
Debuting at the Denver Fringe Festival this June: The Starlight Puppet Theatre! 🎭
The Starlight Puppet Theatre ( ) is a brand new, magical little theater on wheels built for big stories and curious audiences.
Designed to pop up in unexpected places, Starlight is all about wonder, storytelling, and meeting audiences right where they are.
The project includes two resident artists, Thompson Powers and Katy Williams, who are creating original works for Starlight. They are also welcoming four emerging artists into the 2026 Puppet Cohort. These artists will receive paid performance opportunities alongside hands-on professional training, mentorship, and production support throughout the summer of 2026.
Bonfils-Stanton Foundation supported Starry Night Productions with a grant for this debut roaming theatre.
05/15/2026
Last year, we ran usability tests on the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation website with community members.
We incorporated the community’s feedback, and invested in improvements to our website!
Our goal: simplify processes, providing easier navigation for our visitors and applicants.
Let us know what you think! 👏
Click here to claim your Sponsored Listing.
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1033 Santa Fe Drive
Denver, CO
80204