“We Are Family” At 2026 Dancing With The Denver Stars

If you’ve ever learned a choreographed dance either counting it in sets of eights or thinking “quick, quick, slow,” you understand the amount of time, work and dedication it takes to learn and perfect a two-minute Dancing with the Denver Stars partner routine. Especially knowing that one-half of every team isn’t a pro, but instead, a well-known local luminary who excels in other career arenas. Fortunately, anyone in the audience can marvel at the intricate routines presented on stage. This event sells out every year.

Event co-chairs CBS Colorado anchor Michelle Griego and U.S. Bank commercial banking relationship manager Chris Ross

On Saturday, Aug. 22, Cleo Parker Robinson Dance once again delighted an audience of supporters hosting its annual Dancing with the Denver Stars fundraiser at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel. This year, 13 pairs of dancers embraced the “We Are Family” theme, celebrating musical families and dance with creative routines. Dancers and their CPRD partners:
Kourtny Garrett, president and chief executive officer of the Downtown Denver Partnership, and Santos Garcia
Nick Lopez, CEO of the Latin American Education Foundation and Lauren Slaughter
Kelly Werthmann, CBS Colorado anchor/reporter, and Corey Jamel
Jeremy Fusilier, assistant vice president and senior operations manager at U.S. Bank, and Jasmine Francisco
Andrew Holder, director of community relations and local government affairs for Xcel Energy Colorado, and Tori Carter
Jimmy Johnson, senior director of wildlife health and conservation for the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance, and Michael Battle
Mike Katz, market CEO at BOK Financial, and Gabriela Maduro
Annie Lee, president/CEO of Colorado Access, and Tripp Starr
Janet Lopez, senior director of policy, partnerships and learning at Denver Foundation, and Max Nelson-Steinhoff
Jonna McGrath, vice president of United Airlines airport operations in Denver, and Lamar Rogers

Anna and 2026 Denver dancing star Kevin Sullivan, managing director at Southwest Busines

Kevin Sullivan, managing director at Southwest Business, and Koura Wright
Jaco Swart, vice president at PCL Construction, and India Johnson
Srinivas Vallem, technical lead, information technology, at CoBank and Caeli Blake

Along with dancers on stage: event co-chairs Michelle Griego, CBS Colorado anchor-reporter, and Chris Ross, commercial banking relationship manager at U.S. Bank, and honorary chair Karen McNeil-Miller. Ed Dwight was honored with this year’s Cleo Parker Robinson Legacy Award. In 1961, he made history as the first Black officer chosen for the aerospace training program that fed into NASA’s astronaut corps. In 2024, at age 90, he finally traveled on a Blue Origin flight, becoming the oldest person to fly in space.

Learn more about the spectrum of extraordinary Cleo Parker Robinson Dance programs and services at https://cleoparkerdance.org/.