Annual Elders Luncheon

The Annual American Indian Elders Christmas Celebration began in the 1990’s as a small Christmas dinner for Native elders sponsored by an Elders Program at the Denver Indian Center. When the Elders Program was discontinued, community members, Ms. Margaret Tyon and Ms. Ida Bear reached out to Rick Williams and the American Indian College Fund to see if they would help sponsor the continuation of the Christmas gathering. Through the initial sponsorship of the American Indian College Fund and Rick Williams, the event was hosted at a church near Federal and Evans in 1999 and approximately 150 Native elders attended. In addition to a meal, the elders were given gift bags, a Christmas ham, and a visit by Indian Santa Claus. At the request of the elders, the menu evolved from a potluck type arrangement to a more traditional offering of buffalo stew and wojape. The menu has now grown to include mutton stew! The American Indian College Fund continued sponsoring the annual dinner and as attendance grew, moving the event to the Cable Center on the University of Denver campus. After learning that the annual event was going to be discontinued in 2018, the Denver Indian Center took the lead and has hosted and sponsored the event at its facility at 4407 Morrison Road. Attendance approaches 250 Native elder community members, and the event has been changed to a luncheon setup at the request of elders to make the event more accessible. This year will mark the 25th continuous year since the first dinner began in 1999 (2020 and 2021 the dinner was not held because of Covid, but elders were sent food and gift cards). Gifts are still provided to the elder attendees and Indian Santa still makes a guest appearance! This year the annual event will be held on Tuesday, December 12th from 1-3 pm.