Last month, I promised to interview some of the region’s “cultural pioneers” for this column. I’ll start with one such lighthouse. That lighthouse shines so brightly that it impacts all of our lives whether we know it or not.
Kathy Lou has cared about the cultural pillars of our community since she came to Colorado Springs from Kansas and Montana more than 60 years ago. She served on the Colorado Springs City Council for six years and has invested time and money in a variety of organizations, including the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at the University of Colorado, and conservation organizations.
And she has had a tremendous impact on my life, primarily as an inspired leader of courage.
I asked her daughter, Susan Lou Patti, to join me in this conversation. The intersection of heritage, an expansive vision of cultural sensitivity, and family are some of the takeaways I took away from this conversation. Here are just a few of the insights shared by these amazing women (some edited for space).
Linda: What does the word culture mean to you?
Susan: I have a bachelor’s degree in anthropology, so when I think about culture and when I think about Colorado Springs, I think a lot of our culture comes from Western culture. It includes individualism, independence but also interdependence. We often think about what unites us and what we have in common.
Kathy: I agree with you, Susan. I think the culture in Colorado Springs is very enlightening. We have the opportunity to live at the base of these mountains and are defined by everything outdoors.
Linda: Is there anyone in your life who has influenced how you think and perceive culture?
Kathy: Oh, yeah! many people. Let’s start with the family. My entire family is from small towns in Kansas and Montana and we love the outdoors. My grandparents had a big influence on my love of the outdoors. There were always animals and sports and adventure. Along the way, I also had teachers and mentors who encouraged my curiosity.
Susan: My parents were a huge influence, but so were my grandparents. Everyone had a huge respect for the outdoors and the can-do attitude that is such a big part of our culture. Ranchers, Native Americans, and the ruggedness of this environment were part of my upbringing.
Linda: Susan, what is your message to other families in this area who have chosen to live here about how to get involved and really care about our culture? A member of a wonderful lineage.
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Susan: For me, when you think about the generations and the leaders who have guided you, there are many ways to be engaged. Everyone comes and stays for the same reasons. Don’t hesitate to get involved. Everyone needs to be involved in what you care about most. Our history and culture has an ethos of “everyone is welcome” and we hope that is what we do. We value this even as we grow as a city.
Linda: What are the cultural intersections that inspire you both for the Union Printers Home project? (I’m considering turning it into a collection of spaces, including a park or other public use area.) What message to our readers would help the community best understand the project?
Susan: My mom inspired all of us to work on that project.
Kathy: This is a unique place like no other in our country. Some of us were able to preserve it for our cultural landscape and to allow everyone to participate in the long term.
Susan: That’s another example of our “can do” culture. I don’t know how to save it, but I plan on saving it.
Linda: That project is a beautiful intersection of “everyone is welcome”, history, and health. Kathy, you have been a part of so many spaces in our cultural landscape: the arts, conservation, zoos, and entrepreneurship, to name a few. You do this work so selflessly. When you think of Printers Home, what does the word โlegacyโ mean to you?
Kathy: Everything is positive. We as a community are much better at getting everyone to the table for all of these spaces.
Susan: Legacy is less about the nature of what you do and more about your intentions and how you do it. Bring all kinds of people to the table and work together. Legacy is not about the person, but how something continues to exist after we are gone.
Linda: Is there anyone in Colorado Springs history who inspires you?
Kathy: Miriam Lu, founder of Current. She exemplified everything we were talking about.
Susan: This is my grandmother Miriam.