Bank of Estes Park held a Community Appreciation Open House on June 24th at all three locations, where the community could sneak a look at the bank’s new commercial and get professional headshots by Northpeak Media, enjoy food and beverages, and just have a great time mingling. But the bank also took that opportunity to announce a very unique Golden Antler Award recipient.
The Bank of Estes Park Golden Antler Award was created in 2023 to recognize local individuals or organizations who exhibit outstanding and extraordinary community engagement and philanthropy, but who would otherwise not potentially be recognized for their actions. The award is accompanied by an engraved elk trophy, as well as a $5,000 grant that the recipient is able to designate toward any local nonprofit. In prior years, the award has frequently been split among recipients, depending on the circumstance of that year—having now granted $21,000 through this program to local nonprofits. However, this year was very unique—I hope you are as inspired by this recipient as I am.
I called this long-time local a while back to ask her if I could nominate her for a different award, and she was hesitant to accept any recognition for the things she does, and she reluctantly agreed to allow me to nominate her. However, she called me immediately the following morning, and had changed her mind, saying, “Scott, I don’t want any recognition for the things I do—I don’t even want an obituary when I pass. I believe that people should LIVE their obituaries.” That quote was very meaningful to me, and has stuck with me—I hope it resonates with you too…