Watch CBS News

New Denver Woman Is Grateful For 'Denver Days' Volunteers

DENVER (CBS4) - Neighbors reaching out to one another -- that was the idea behind the second annual "Denver Days."

The city initiative includes block parties and beautification projects.

"I asked them, 'Would painting be too much? And they said, 'No,' " Kelly Coatney said.

Coatney's home is getting a face lift. Volunteers on Saturday chipped away the paint and they helped build a back porch. The project at Coatney's home was just one of more than 170 events around the city, all part of the annual Denver Days event.

"This is about neighbors coming out to help their neighbors to enhance their community, coming out to get to know their neighbors," Mayor Michael Hancock said. "We know that when we know our neighbors better, we know who is on the block, when we get a chance to do service projects together, we're safer and we have better communities."

The event includes community service projects like debris cleanup and yard beautification and lasts about a week. But Hancock says the effects of those kind of projects are long lasting.

"We're hearing anecdotes about people saying, 'For the first time I know who lives on my block, our block party has created a greater sense of community, we're doing things together year round,' " Hancock said.

For Coatney the helping hands came at the perfect time. She had just moved into her home on 1st Avenue and Winona Street. In fact, she just moved to Colorado.

Denver Days
Volunteers giving a facelift to Kelly Coatney's new home (credit: CBS)

'It's been a long process trying to get the house remodeled and fixed up since I bought it almost a year ago," she said.

It's her first home. She chose Denver to be closer to her sister.

"That someone would do that is just amazing and it has been really difficult getting the work done," Coatney said.

She never knew though how much more she would truly be getting.

Sunday is the last day for this year's Denver Days.

LINK: Denver Days

More Denver Days Stories

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.