Board Member Spotlight: Karen Baumgartner

Savvy Communicator & Connecter

New to the Greeley Creative District board but certainly not to downtown Greeley, you may recognize Karen from her work with the Downtown Development Authority (DDA). 

Karen has been with the DDA since 2013. In her current project coordinator role she works to organize and promote events–we highly recommend her fabulous newsletters which are chock-full of great information about happenings around town. (Subscribe here if you would like to receive them.)  

Before her time with the DDA, Karen worked for nearly two decades in radio assisting with promotions for K99, Tri 102.5, 99.9 The Point and 94.3 Max FM. Prior to that she worked for the Greeley Tribune in advertising and design. 

As a student, Karen originally planned to become a journalist earning her Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism from the University of Missouri, Columbia. However shortly after graduating, she decided to pivot into marketing and communications because she realized that she didn’t like chasing tragedy. She reflects, “I didn’t like the idea of camping out on folks’ lawns after something terrible had just happened to them.” Instead, Karen chose to use her communication skills to spread the word about local events and opportunities in order to help people connect with each other and take pride in where they live. A long time resident of the front range, Karen still lives in the home where she grew-up in Kersey—it’s part of why she is so invested in this community.

Karen and her class growing up in Kersey, CO

Her desire to help others connect is ultimately what drew her to the Greeley Creative District. Karen hopes to be a conduit between the business community that she serves with the DDA and the artists who beautify the downtown. “I want to provide the downtown perspective as the Greeley Creative District determines how best to serve artists in the future.”

We are so grateful to have her communications savvy, deep roots in the community and partnership as she serves on the Greeley Creative District board.

by: Dana Buckingham