Club 20 recognizes Pitkin County commissioner

ASPEN – Pitkin County Commissioner and Aspen resident Rachel Richards has received the Johnson-Theos Bridge Builder Award from Club 20, a coalition of individuals, businesses, tribes and local governments in Colorado’s 22 western counties.

The award went to Richards and also Tom Harned, of Gypsum, in honor of their commitment to collaborative problem solving.

According to a statement from Club 20, the Theos-Johnson Bridgebuilder award epitomizes what the organization is all about: working through different perspectives and approaching often complex situations, putting personal agendas aside and working for the best solutions for western Colorado.

Club 20, based in Grand Junction, honored five other people during its annual Awards and Recognition Banquet at Colorado Mesa University. The banquet was attended by Western Slope community leaders, appointed and elected officials, friends and family of the recipients and attendees of the Club 20 spring meeting.

Richards is serving her second term as Pitkin County commissioner. She has lived in the Roaring Fork Valley since 1978 and has served previously as mayor of the city of Aspen and an Aspen City Council member.