The Boulder Rotary Service Above Self Gala

The Boulder Rotary Club is committed to making our world a better place to live, and part of that commitment includes recognizing those who do great work outside the scope of Rotary.

Our annual Service Above Self Gala calls attention to those individuals and organizations who make Boulder County a better place to live, day in and day out. Each year, we recognize with our Service Above Self Award four such individuals or organizations who exemplify Service Above Self, which is the Rotary International motto.

The Service Above Self Gala is our club’s signature fundraiser, consistently netting more than $50,000 in funds that the club uses for good works in and around Boulder, as well as global efforts including polio eradication. We’re thankful for our nominees each and every year, and we’re grateful for those who support our club’s foundation to help make our world a better place.

Alissa Sims, a longtime volunteer for Adelante!, a program first established at Boulder High School 25 years ago to support first generation Latino students, has devoted hundreds of hours to mentoring first generation college bound students, guiding them through college essays, financial aid applications and scholarships and frequently mentors them through their college years.  Since Adelante! was founded, Boulder High School dropout rates among first generation students have declined from 22.8% in 1992 to less than 1% today.

John Cohagen, a member of Board of Directors of the YMCA of Northern Colorado and Southern Wyoming, played a pivotal role in the recent development of Camp Tumbleson, a brand-new overnight camp that has become a beacon of community engagement and youth development in Boulder County.  Cohagen devoted hundreds of volunteer hours to the design and construction of this new camp among many other contributions to the community, including his involvement with the Gateway of Remembrance project

Bob Yates has dedicated his life to serving the Boulder community since retiring from a corporate job at the age of 50 in 2011.  In addition to serving on the City Council for two terms, Yates has served on the board of directors of the Colorado Chautauqua Association and the Dairy Arts Center, but Bob counts the opening of the Museum of Boulder in 2019 as his proudest accomplishment thus far. Currently, Bob serves on the boards of the CU Center for Leadership, Boulder Community Health, the Boulder Chamber’s Community Advisory Council and All Roads Homeless Shelter as well as the Pearl@50 Celebration Planning Committee.