John W. Hickenlooper - Mayor - City of Denver
Denver Mayor John W. Hickenlooper
Before being elected as Denver’s 43rd mayor on June 3, 2003, John W. Hickenlooper was a successful entrepreneur who helped revitalize Lower Downtown (LoDo), and also served as a leader on the boards of dozens of local nonprofits and civic organizations.
Mayor Hickenlooper’s passion for Denver began in 1981 when his career as an exploration geologist brought him to Buckhorn Petroleum, where he worked for five years. After a regional collapse of the oil business in the mid-80s, he spent two years developing the Wynkoop Brewing Company, the first brewpub in the state of Colorado.
Hickenlooper has been active in local community affairs and has served on the boards of the Colorado Business Committee for the Arts, the Denver Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Denver Art Museum, Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, Denver Civic Ventures, Volunteers For Outdoor Colorado, the Association of Brewers, and the Institute for Brewing Studies.
Additionally, he co-founded CultureHaus, the Denver Art Museum’s 600-member young adult organization. In 1987, he co-founded the Chinook Fund, a pass-through foundation that provides seed grants ($5,000-10,000) to community organizations that emphasize social change.
