Free for all: Five Free Events in Denver This Week

The first day of summer brings a surfeit of big-fun festivals around Colorado. But this week, you can find yourself at a number of free, mind-improving events around Denver, including an early-morning program celebrating the solstice and a seminar on making a living as a writer. Keep reading for five of the best free events this week, plus a bonus art walk in case the first fills up. And you can get an early start on next weekend with two more freebies...

Joel Berg, America, We Need to Talk: a Self-Help Book for the Nation
Monday, June 19, 5:30 p.m.
Our Mutual Friend Brewery, 2810 Larimer Street

Joel Berg, the CEO of Hunger Free America, is also the author of what's billed as the world’s first “public policy self-help guide.” At his free appearance at Our Mutual Friend, he'll sign copies of the book that explains Donald Trump’s rise, proposes solutions to America’s most vexing problems, and provides a how-to for fighting back. Find out more at joelberg.net.

Connect-Develop-Thrive Denver: A Business Development Forum for Visual Artists
Tuesday, June 20, 1 to 6:30 p.m.
Space Gallery, 400 Santa Fe Drive

The Clark Hulings fund, a nonprofit that helps give artists the marketing and financial tools they need to make a living off of their art, is hosting a free business-development forum for professional visual artists at Space Gallery. Find out more at clarkhulingsfund.org.

Colorado Stonehenge Summer Sunrise 2017
Wednesday, June 21, 5:31 a.m.
Bluff Lake Nature Center, 3400 Havana Way

Celebrate the summer solstice the way the Druids did at Stonehenge. Arrive at the Bluff Lake Nature Center parking lot by 5:10 a.m. (not a typo!) for a free interpretive program about Stonehenge and the summer solstice. If you just can't make it there that early, there will be an evening program on nature's relationship to planetary alignment at 7:45 p.m.; meet in the same spot. Find out more at blufflake.org.


Commons Park Public Art Tour
Wednesday, June 21, 5:30 p.m.
Millennium Bridge, Commons Park

Join Denver Public Art curator Rosalie Martin for a free walking tour highlighting the public-art pieces at Commons Park, everything from Bernar Venet’s “222.5* Arc x5” to Barbara Grygutis’ “Common Ground” to John McEnroe’s “National Velvet.” The tour size is limited, so RSVP now.

Wednesday Art Walk in Vail
Wednesday, June 21, 11 a.m.
Vail Village Welcome Center

Didn't get into the Denver art tour? Here's an alternative: Head to the hills, where Vail's weekly Wednesday Art Walk and tour of Vail Village with the town's Art in Public Places coordinator kicks off this week. The one-hour tour includes the history of Vail and a guide to more than 45 artworks around the town; more than thirty of them were created by Colorado artists. Take a virtual tour of the collection at artinvail.com/Collection/Interactive-Map; find out more about the walk here.

La Alma Jaguar Club Neighborhood Party
Thursday, June 22, 1:30 to 3 p.m.
La Alma Rec Center, 1325 West 11th Avenue

For the last three weeks, kids in the Lincoln Park neighborhood have been part of the La Alma Summer Journey Through Our Heritage Youth Leadership Program, or La Alma Jaguar Club for short. On June 22, the community is invited to a free public celebration to mark the conclusion of the program at  La Alma Rec Center, with pizza, face-painting and Aztec Dance by grupo Huitzilopochtli. There will also be demonstrations by Jaguar Club kids, showing off the skills they learned in the leadership club. For more information, e-mail [email protected].

Keep reading for bonus free events this weekend.

Hole-in-One Challenge
Friday, June 23, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Denver International Airport

Denver International Airport's series of “Fly Away Fridays” events continues with a free hole-in-one challenge on the plaza on June 23. Find out more on flydenver.com/events.

Strong Sisters
Saturday, June 24, 2:30 p.m.
Park Hill Library, 4705 Montview Boulevard

Producer Meg Froelich will be on hand to talk about her documentary about women in Colorado politics after a free screening of Strong Sisters. Teachers and other other education professionals who attend will receive a free DVD; find out more at strongsisters.org.

For more event listings, go to the Westword calendar.