Stapleton Group Organizes Picnic To Show Diversity & Inclusivity
DENVER (CBS4) - Saturday was a great day to be outside. Neighbors in Stapleton came out to have fun and raise awareness with a picnic.
It looked just like a normal neighborhood gathering complete with a grill and games, but the people who came out to Prairie Meadow Park in Denver's Stapleton neighborhood Sunday came out to be seen.
Lori Pace is the founder of Soulfully Stapleton. She organized Sunday's picnic to show her community that diversity is all around them.
She says it's been a tough summer. First residents and business owners in the neighborhood decided to keep the area's name of Stapleton; it was named after a former Denver mayor who had ties with the KKK.
Then she says racist graffiti showed up at the park and a young man was killed in a shooting.
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The picnic wasn't a big event, but Lori says it shows what Stapleton is really all about.
"I wanted people to know that this is a safe park and that there are families of color that are doing positive things and people who are really disenfranchised or underrepresented. I wanted them to have an opportunity to have a safe place so I wanted to dedicate the park as a safe place" she said.
In addition to the picnic, Soulfully Stapleton plans to plant a tree in the spring to remember the young man who was killed and promote inclusion.