The Littleton Museum was packed with more than 150 artists, business owners and city leaders on the evening of March 27. It was the city’s third annual State of the Arts event, where leaders shared local and regional metrics on arts and cultural activity in the city.
But this year, the attendance was over double the previous two years’ turnout.
“That’s what happens when you’re honoring a local legend,” Museum Director Tim Nimz said.
During the event, the Arts and Culture Board presented the city’s first-ever Arts and Culture Award to Sonya Ellingboe, a longtime force in Littleton’s civic and cultural life and a regular writer and columnist for our newspapers. Until her retirement in late 2023, her arts and culture writing appeared in the Littleton Independent, Centennial Citizen, Englewood Herald and other south metro newspapers.
The honor is awarded to an “individual, group or organization that exemplifies innovative and creative ways to make meaningful connections within the Littleton community through arts and culture,” said J.D. McCrumb, the board’s vice chair.
The board received five nominations for the award. They were all “very deserving,” Board Chair Kate Eckel said, but Ellingboe “blew them all out of the water.”
“Sonya just had a breadth of what she had done, and for a number of years, and how much she’s promoted arts and culture in the city,” she said. “It was just overwhelmingly clear.”
Ellingboe, 93, was born in Columbus, Ohio in 1930 and grew up in Pittsburgh, according to the event’s program. She adopted Littleton as her hometown when she moved to the city in 1956 with her husband and the first of what would ultimately be four children.
In the decades that followed, Ellingboe made an impact on almost every corner of the city’s civic and cultural makeup. She joined or helped launch many of the city’s important institutions, including the local League of Women Voters, the Town Hall Arts Center, the Bemis Library Fine Arts Committee, the Littleton Business Chamber, the Commission on Human Rights, the Littleton Fine Arts Guild, Hudson Gardens, Friends of the Library and Museum, the Littleton Garden Club and Historic Littleton, Inc.
She owned the Book House bookstore in downtown Littleton from 1970 to 1986 and worked briefly as a librarian, the program says.
When Ellingboe was in her late 50s, she entered the career for which many Littleton residents nowadays know her. For 35 years, she worked as a writer for newspapers, first for the short-lived Littleton Times before joining the Littleton Independent, also contributing to the Independent’s sister newspapers as the company grew.
Her writing mainly focused on art, music, stage performance and culture.
“Readers loved her work, waiting for her weekly reports on a play, art exhibit or unique program,” said Thelma Grimes, former editor of the Littleton Independent, who nominated Ellingboe for the award.
“When I had the privilege of sitting down with her and talking about her family, life and career, I was even more enlightened about the impact she has had on Littleton and the Denver metro area,” Grimes said, referencing a profile she wrote when Ellingboe retired. “This award serves as an exclamation point to an exemplary career.”
A lifelong passion for the arts
Event attendees gave Ellingboe a standing ovation as she received her award, which is a piece of artwork by local glass artist and sculptor Dianna Whitlock.
In her reception speech, Ellingboe reflected on her passion for the arts and libraries, which started with a childhood routine to visit the Carnegie Mellon library and museum with her father on Saturdays. She said her passion for arts and culture never went away after that.
“I’d recommend it as a way of life for anybody,” she said. “I think that’s the main thing, is just get out and go do the art shows. It made Littleton a great place to raise kids, I think. Many of you have discovered that.”
After raising four kids in Littleton, Ellingboe now has grandchildren and a great-grandchild, with a second great-grandchild due any day now. She said she has enjoyed watching her family members get involved in the arts scene as well.
Her son, Bruce Ellingboe, said his mother’s involvement in the arts has always been a part of his life. He said it was exciting to see her receive the award.
“She’s been doing arts things as long as I can remember,” he said.
In addition to being a champion of the arts scene, Ellingboe is an artist herself. Her family said she was a painter who enjoyed using watercolors, and she also did ceramics work.
“We’re so proud of her,” said Ellingboe’s daughter, Kirsten Orahood.
The State of the Arts
During the event, museum leaders said there was a steady increase in arts attendance in the community over the past year. They said almost 3 million visitors interacted with local arts and culture industries in the community.
They also highlighted the success of the new Lodger’s Tax, a tax on stays at hotels and motels. Its revenue contributed almost $850,000 to the Littleton arts and culture scene in its first year.
Nimz said the tax revenue and the city leadership’s support of arts and culture in Littleton is exciting. The tax made it possible for the Arts and Culture Board to offer grants to arts and culture organizations for the first time.
“When we were first talking about the Lodger’s Tax, we were kind of in survival mode,” he said. “We were thinking ‘This is going to be (for sustaining) organizations.’ But as we got into last year’s first cycle – and as we’re going into this year’s cycle – what we’re seeing is it’s actually enabling organizations to take a next step.”
The leaders noted that the arts and culture industry is great for Littleton’s overall economy. City Manager Jim Becklenberg said the city’s recent economic development strategic plan pointed at arts and culture as a primary and attainable sector for growth in the future.
“We’re really poised to capitalize on all the energy that we have happening with our arts and culture board and the organizations that are here,” he said at the event.
With arts and culture offering benefits for the economy and for the soul, Ellingboe left attendees with a call to action and gratitude. She encouraged them to take advantage of the shows and exhibits in their community, and thanked them for the award.
“It’s exciting,” Ellingboe told the Littleton Independent regarding her award. “Except, I had a moment of nostalgia that I wish I had a deadline, I guess. I was thinking I was really tired of deadlines — but I wish I still was going to this (event) to report on it.”