FEATURED PHOTO: Colorado Prime Timers (1994) members participated in a viewer mail session with Network Q. The LGBT video magazine/TV series was initially produced and distributed on videotape by subscription from 1992 to 1996.
Colorado Prime Timers, an affiliate of Prime Timers Worldwide, is a social organization of gay, bisexual, and transgender men for friendship, social interactions, cultural and educational activities, and personal growth, in a supportive and caring atmosphere.
Our members are primarily Generation X to Baby Boomers, including a culturally diverse population of gay, bisexual, and transgender men, and the working and retired. So, collectively, we have decades of expertise in a wide variety of different professions, topics, skills, and crafts.
We share the mission and values of Prime Timers Worldwide, providing a safe space for friendship, camaraderie, and networking. But our social, cultural, and educational activities are uniquely Coloradan.
These activities include art tours, cruises, bridge clubs, dinner and theater nights, coffee and conversation meet-ups, movie nights, night-on-the-towns, breakfasts, brunches, webinars, and regional events.
We have a special appreciation for historical events like Stonewall that paved the way for the sense of equality that so many enjoy today. And educating the LGBTQ community of health and wellness issues that still affect us like HIV/AIDS and mental illness. While we are not a political or religious organization, we are concerned with society as it affects our community’s aging populations.
Our activities are in the Denver metro area and along the Colorado Front Range, including the counties of Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Douglas, and Jefferson. However, we encourage individuals from not only Colorado but from all over to join and participate in our organization.
Prime Timers Worldwide has conventions every two years (on odd-numbered years) that provides members from all chapters an opportunity to socialize and attend workshops. Conventions are held in a different city. Announcements of the location are provided two years in advance.
Our Board of Directors
| President | Dick Moore |
| Vice-President | Stan Griffith |
| Secretary | Joel Weissman |
| Treasurer | Larry Nelson |
| Membership Director | Vacant/Dick Moore |
| Activities Director | Chef Charles McDonald |
| Member at Large | Cliff Hawkins |
Our Coordinators
| Tuesday Lunch Coordinator | Charles McDonald |
| Tour Guides | (Volunteers Needed) |
| Theater | (Volunteers Needed) |
| Over-Easy Breakfast | Darrel Freeland |
| Game Night | (Volunteers Needed) |
| Hand, Knee, Foot Card game | Joe Rotello/Jim Mickel |
| Night On The Town | Charles McDonald |
| Sip N! Sup | Dick Moore |
| Zoom Thursdays | Eric Jorgenson |
Our Mission
Colorado Prime Timers is a social organization of gay, bisexual, and transgender men for friendship, social interactions, cultural and educational activities, and personal growth, in a supportive and caring atmosphere.
Our Vision
To create engaged communities and a world that accepts, affirms, and celebrates diversity.
Our Values
- The right for all people to live authentically and with dignity.
- Personal enrichment through service to others.
- Families of choice as well as families of origin.
- Healthy aging through supportive relationships.
- Healthy physical, emotional, and sexual living.
- The blending of all generations.
- Personal growth through education and mentoring.
- Collaboration with other organizations that share our core values.
Regularly Scheduled Activities
- Art Tours – Monthly, or as show and museum schedules permit, taking place at a local gallery or museum
- Bridge – Biweekly, usually at a member’s residence
- Dinner Theatre – A quarterly, as interest and show schedules permit
- General Meeting – Takes place after our weekly luncheon
- Kaffeeklattsch – Weekly coffee and conversation at a local restaurant
- Movie Night – Monthly activity usually at a member’s residence
- Night On The Town – A monthly dinner at a local restaurant
- Wednesday Luncheon – A weekly luncheon and one of our most popular events with 50 + members attending per week
- Over-Easy Breakfast – A monthly activity at a local restaurant
- Sip ‘n Sup – A monthly potluck dinner at a member’s residence
- Sunday Brunch – A monthly activity at a local restaurant
- And more!
What We Do
In 2019, along with participating in Denver Gay Pride and our annual Christmas Party, Colorado Prime Timers has held:
- A booth and fundraising at Denver Gay Pride
- 1 cruise with another Prime Timers chapter
- 48 coffee and conversation events
- 48 luncheons at Golden Corral (at $9.87 per person)
- 12 Breakfasts
- 10 Card games
- 12 Beer Bust benefits at Denver Sweet and Trade
- 12 Board meetings
- 6 Night-on-the-town events
Our Story
In 1987, Bobby Gates, one of our previous presidents, formed a group whose first meeting was at St. Paul’s church in Denver with seven attendees. The goal was to create a club for like-minded gay men to meet in an informal (non-bar) social atmosphere and enjoy each other’s companionship.
Gatherings were generally to be held in private homes once or twice a month. Activities would include potluck dinners, board games, card games, and an occasional restaurant or theater outing. Also, there were no dues, and the newsletter was one page and often hand-written. The name “Golden Gays” was considered for the loose-knit and informal group, but the late John Ballard (another previous president) suggested “Prime Timers.”
That same year a similar group formed in Boston, Massachusetts. This “Boston group” was founded by Woody Baldwin, formalized their club by establishing an elected and appointed Board of Directors, adopted bylaws, and chose the name “Prime Timers.”
Both groups formed simultaneously and not aware of the other.
The Boston group multiplied, establishing affiliates in other cities and countries, and soon become known as “Prime Timers International.” By September 1991, the organization had grown to 11 affiliates, including the Denver group, who later joined. In October (of that same year), Prime Timers International had its first convention in Boston and Provincetown, Massachusetts. The inaugural event had 100+ registrations, including four members from the newly renamed “Colorado Prime Timers.”
By March of 1992, Colorado Prime Timers’ activities increased to 14 per month from 1 or 2 just a year earlier. The membership roster grew from 25 to 65 during the same period. By 1993 approximately 90 members were listed on the roster; by August of 1994, the figure was 110. Area of interests included antiques, boating, fishing, window-shopping, table pool, racquetball, scuba diving, dancing, technology, potlucks, theater, and mountain outings.
Today we have over 170 members, and with typically over 20 scheduled activities per month, we are one of the most active gay groups in the Denver area.