El Pomar Foundation put the focus on excellence at a special dinner and awards presentation Oct. 27 at The Broadmoor.

Receiving the Julie Penrose Award, established in 2020 for the 150th birthday of the early philanthropist, was Kathy Loo, celebrated as a woman, like Julie Penrose, with “significant contributions to her community through leadership and dedication.”

Loo said she has always appreciated the role so many women have played in this community. “All I do is what I think is right. I just do the best thing you can do. I am grateful people have benefited.”

Loo’s list of involvement dates back to 1961 and includes numerous boards, Colorado Springs City Council, Colorado Commission on Higher Education, the Fine Arts Center, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, The Nature Conservancy, the Symphony, Urban Renewal Board and the family investment company High Valley Group.

She co-founded the first downtown apartment complex in 50 years and is working on an affordable housing project. The award brought $10,000 that she is donating to Pikes Peak State College Foundation for an arts and music scholarship.

Receiving the Pikes Peak Award for Excellence was Early Connections Learning Centers for “its impact on thousands of families in the Pikes Peak region as the oldest nonprofit child care organization in Colorado.”

Jason Janz received the Russell L. Tutt Leadership and Service

Award for CrossPurpose, a church “poverty abolition program that helps families exit poverty and become self-sufficient” in inner-city Denver.

Colorado Education Initiative received a $30,000 grant for cultivating “systems of improvement and equity in K-12 education by helping teachers, school leaders and district stakeholders catalyze comprehensive changes in the system.”

The Ben Wendelken Trustee Award went to Bob and Joyce Rankin. Bob Rankin served in the Colorado House and Senate and was “a leader on legislation supporting rural Colorado, education and tax reform.”

He founded Computers for Kids. Joyce Rankin served on Colorado State Board of Education, advocating for literacy in elementary school, saying “children’s reading is the most important.” She’s also a runner and has won the Pikes Peak Marathon.

Wray Community District Hospital and Clinic received a $30,000 grant for the Rural Award of Excellence and a “commitment to patient quality care.”