Board Member Spotlight: Pam Bricker
Initiator & Volunteer
Since moving to Greeley over 30 years ago, Pam Bricker has given her time and talent to help build and better this community.
Pam originally fell in love with Colorado as a child during her family trips to the mountains. So when her husband was offered a job in Greeley, she was excited to relocate. Upon arriving, she was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to get to know folks–she felt genuinely welcomed by the community. A volunteer at heart, Pam naturally found herself wanting to contribute and get more involved.
Over the years Pam has worked with several local nonprofits in a variety of capacities–in many, serving as an initiator and change agent.
During her time with United Way of Weld County, Pam helped start and grow the Weld Food Bank from a single fridge operation in the basement of the Salvation Army to a vital organization that now serves thousands of the most vulnerable in our community.
Likewise, while serving as the Executive Director of the Greeley Downtown Development Authority (DDA), Pam set many programs in motion to beautify and breathe new life into Downtown Greeley. Notably, Pam helped launch Greeley’s FridayFest concerts making Greeley one of the first communities in Colorado to take advantage of an open container law that allows alcohol at outdoor events. One of her Coors vendors for another event suggested the idea and Pam did the research to make it happen. Today FridayFest Events draw folks from all over Greeley to the downtown for family fun, brews and local fare paving the way for new businesses to open and thrive.
A devoted volunteer for the Greeley Multicultural Festival, Pam loves being able to help organize events that celebrate our community’s rich diversity.
As the Secretary Treasurer and a Board Member for the Greeley Blues Jam, Pam enjoys hosting what their tagline describes as, “ain’t nothin’ but a party!” Every summer the event draws folks from all over the country for live rhythm and blues as one of the largest music festivals of its kind. And because the Greeley Blues Jam is a non-profit, all of the proceeds are distributed to other local nonprofits to support their work in Greeley.
A founding member of the Greeley Creative District (GCD), Pam worked closely with Becky Safarik, the City of Greeley and the DDA to obtain state certification through Colorado Creative Industries making the organization eligible for funding and support to help bolster the arts in Greeley. An active board member since the Greeley Creative District’s inception, Pam has helped provide resources for artists (including networking and business training opportunities), helped host community events (such as Chalk-a-lot, a community wide effort to break a Guinness Book world record) and helped highlight the wide array of creative activity happening in Greeley.
“I’m amazed at the amount of creativity in a city of this size–we have to take care of those creatives and give them a boost!” Pam asserts.
As she continues to serve on the GCD board she is eager to help solidify the organization for a strong future–one that empowers creatives to flourish and that fosters cultural inclusion. “I’m excited about our current strategic planning conversations. They are really helping us focus, be realistic and dream about what’s possible.”
Looking back, Pam is gratified to see all the growth that has come from the seeds she has helped sow (a metaphor ripe with meaning for Pam as the the founder and former owner of Mariposa Plants & Flowers). Though many of the initiatives she’s been involved in are near and dear to her, she holds them with open hands, grateful to see others carrying them forward. That is after all the beauty of community–we all have a part to play and everyone’s contribution matters whether we are at the front tilling the soil for something new or tending the garden someone has else planted.
by: Dana Buckingham