The Greeley Arts Legacy has selected the 2024 class of honorees who will be inducted into the Greeley Arts Legacy Hall of Fame. The event will be held on October 17, 2024, in the Hensel Phelps Theatre of the Union Colony Civic Center in Greeley. The event is free to the public, although a ticket must be reserved through the UCCC box office, and will begin at 7 p.m., followed immediately by a classy reception in the Two Rivers Lounge of the UCCC.
In order to be selected for the Greeley Arts Legacy Hall of Fame award, recipients must represent an area of the arts, including but not limited to visual, performing, literary, education, leadership, benefactors, performing/applied and creatives. The nominee must exhibit a body of work that identifies significant accomplishments and contributions, and who has made a substantial commitment to Greeley and its arts community. Residents of the community may nominate individuals or organizations during the nominating period of October – May. Please go to greeleyartslegacy.org for additional information.
Hall of Fame Honorees for 2024
Distortions Unlimited – Creatives
Distortions is an art company internationally known and has been in business in Greeley since 1978 creating and producing Halloween Props, masks, displays and exhibits. Employing hundreds of local people to help create these unique products, Ed and Marsha Edmunds have fostered an amazing community of creatives which has sparked joy for decades. Although their talents have led them into the horror industry, with an unlimited line of unique masks, props and animatronics, they continue to “push the envelope” with incredible characters for haunts, Halloween and other business ventures. They design, sculpt, mold, paint, and add technical effects on sight. The working environment looks more like a nightmare factory than a place of business which was featured on the reality show “Making Monsters” that aired on the Travel Channel. From haunted houses and electric chairs to Alien’s homicidal alien queen and Alice Cooper’s Brutal Planet Tour, child-like enthusiasm and imagination has always reigned supreme at the office. Their innovations have carried their popularity and success with large exhibitions throughout the country. In addition, a Greeley event entitled, “Monster Day” in August has filled the downtown area with creatures, events and participation from kids and adults throughout the community. 0–15-minute video clips are available on YouTube where detailed close ups of the creations take place in the monster warehouse.
Greeley Children’s Chorale – Music
The Greeley Children’s Chorale, a non-profit choral organization established in 1990, was the idea of the then-Greeley Chorale conductor, Dr. Carl Gerbrandt, who with Kay Copley co-founded the GCC through the support of the Greeley Chorale (a 2023 Arts Legacy inductee). The GCC consists of two performing groups, divided by school grade. Annually, students from all areas of Weld County audition for the Chorale. The GCC performs each year a subscription series of established and newly-composed works here in Greeley, and they’ve often found themselves on concert tours and exchange concerts. The GCC has performing in several areas around Colorado, across the U.S., and even abroad. A highlight of the Children’s Chorale was a performance with the Greeley Chorale on a tour to Oklahoma City, performing Dean Rishel’s “Requiem for the Children: All the Pretty little Horses” in memory of the children who perished in the bombing of 1995. The GCC has performed in venues at Disneyland, Pearl Harbor, Mount Rushmore, in Denver, Colorado Springs, San Francisco, Seattle, Boston, and Washington, D.C., to name a few and have even found themselves on an international tour to Vancouver, Canada. The group has performed for the International Children’s Choral Festival in addition to having appeared multiple times with the Greeley Philharmonic Orchestra (a 2019 Arts Legacy inductee), the Greeley Chamber Orchestra, the Colorado Dance Theatre, Youth Orchestra of the Rockies, the UNC Choirs, and the Greeley Chorale. They have also sung the Star-Spangled Banner at UNC Bears sporting events, as well as with the Colorado Rockies, and Colorado Eagles. The GCC is currently directed by Kris Pierce, Sue Davis, Megan Nugent, Darlene James, and Christen Adler.
Colette Pitcher – Visual Art
Colette Pitcher is an internationally recognized artist from Greeley, CO. A talent in multi-media, a master in watercolor, and an internationally known bronze sculptor. Pitcher has inspired others to try their hand in the arts by teaching classes at her privately owned Showcase Art Center, which she opened in 2002. She continues to write bestselling art books and magazine articles. She has juried national art shows, created several pieces of public art, run popular galleries (the Showcase), has won numerous awards, and is a signature member of the Colorado Watercolor Society. Pitcher conducts workshops throughout the world and is an on-call artist for the TV and film industry. She is founder of the Greeley Art Association, a founding board member of the Greeley Creative District, past director of the National Greeley Artists Exhibition, and the former Director of the University of Northern Colorado Libraries Art Exhibitions. As a Graduate of Greeley West High School and UNC, she has been creating fine art for more than 30 years. In 2023, Colette was honored with the UNC Honored Alumni Award.
