All-America City

Lakewood wins 2016 All-America City Award!

Your city has been recognized, once again, with an award that’s sort of like a national championship.

Lakewood has been named a winner for the 2016 All-America City Award, a prestigious national award given to 10 communities each year. Lakewood previously won the award in 2011.

Watch our community's winning presentation to the All-America City judges:

Tell us what you think makes Lakewood an All-America City!

We could post your great Lakewood stories, photos or videos on this page.

• Email your All-America Lakewood stories and photos to Staoul@lakewood.org. 
• For videos, post them to YouTube and email the YouTube link to Staoul@lakewood.org

The award celebrates and recognizes trailblazing efforts to bring residents, local government, businesses and nonprofit groups together to tackle the most pressing local issues. This year, the awards are focused on collaborations that ensure all children are healthy and supported in school and life.

Lakewood competed against 20 other cities for the 2016 award, and each of the finalists gave a presentation to a jury of civic, business and community leaders from across the country during the annual All-America City Conference from June 16 to 19 at the Sheraton in downtown Denver. The jury announced the 10 winners at end of the conference. The fellow finalists this year ranged from the seventh-largest city in America (San Antonio) to a town of only 7,000 people (Hartsville, South Carolina).

The application for the award involved presenting three projects that demonstrate community collaboration:

• Mountair Park Community Farm – This project highlights the creation of the first community farm in Lakewood and the role it has played in supporting the surrounding neighborhood as well as students and families at Molholm Elementary School in Lakewood including the creation of the Mountair Summer Camp. 

• Lakewood Linked – This mayor-initiated effort is designed to build better connections from neighbor to neighbor, residents to businesses, churches to businesses and businesses with schools. Lakewood Linked has fostered neighborhood connections and volunteer projects, and it launched the Lakewood Faith Coalition, which has played a major role in expanding the Whiz Kids mentoring and literacy support program from Foothills Elementary School in Lakewood to nine Lakewood elementary schools.

• Schools as Hubs – Viewing schools as critically important community hubs is not new, but the idea of what should be included in that hub and how services can be delivered through that hub has changed – or rather intensified to take on a new urgency. This project outlines numerous and wide ranging community efforts that work with and through schools to provide support to students and their families, particularly highlighting the Field of Dreams project at Foothills Elementary School and major initiatives at Stein Elementary School in Lakewood.

Contact Information:

Stacie Oulton - City Public Information

Direct: 303-987-7058
Email: staoul@lakewood.org