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POWER DUO right: City Year volunteer Danny Mazur helps Selena Ramirez with her school ork w at Lake Middle School in Denver. inset: Mike Johnston (left) and Ben Walton sporting their City Year jackets. How were you introduced to City Year? Ben Walton: Jeremy Cramer, one of City Year's officers, introduced me in 2009. We had gone to the same school outside of Boston, and my wife and I had moved to Denver in 2007. Also, we do work with my family's foundation [the Walton Family Foundation] in several other cities that City Year was looking at. I assisted City Year in making connections in several of those places, and I personally took on the Denver connection. Mike Johnston: The first time I was aware of City Year was at a political dinner that Ben convened to bring all of the opinion leaders of the city together and said, "This is something we've got to do." He kept pushing to get City Year started in Denver. After we got it up and running, I was asked to join the board. Knowing that I would be dealing with Ben made me say, "Absolutely." With so many charitable organizations out there, why did you decide to dedicate your time and energy to City Year? MJ: City Year is committed to engaging the ethic of service in a really targeted and strategic way that drives the volunteers into those schools and classrooms that need them the most, providing exactly the kind of mentorship and academic support that so many of our young kids need. To a principal, there is nothing like giving them a team of 10 young people who are willing to work 60 hours a week. " hen these kids see W City Year's red jackets in the hallway, it is like seeing a life raft." —mike johnston That is about the best shot of energy and opportunity that you can bring to a school. BW: I liked that City Year was working directly with some of the most challenged school districts in our nation and working on the ground creating strong relationships with kids. With the "near peer" model, these volunteers aren't too far removed from these school buildings themselves. Some of our students here in Denver have actually gone back to their schools as corps members and created a community fabric within the school. What special relationships have you seen firsthand? MJ: I went to visit Montbello, and a young volunteer, Dexter, who didn't have a lot of opportunities, made it into college and was a great athlete and academic. Walking behind him was like following some version of the President and LeBron James at the same time. All of the kids knew him. He was asking kids how their math test or reading exam went. With each of these kids, he could tell the back story of the student. There was in the eyes of these kids such an intense desire to be like him, and for the first time that felt attainable. When these kids see City Year's red jackets in the hallway, it is like seeing a life raft. Every kid can look up and see that jacket and know that "I can swim there from here. If I start to feel like I'm drowning, there is someone who will throw me a lifeline." AP Insight What: City Year Denver Red Jacket Gala When: Thursday, February 27, 2014; 6 to 9 pm Where: Grand Hyatt Denver, 1750 Welton St. Get Involved: 303-226-4871; cityyear.org/denver photography by matt nayer continued from page 78 students in 2012–13. Though growth was welcomed, it places strain on the school system, a challenge being redressed by City Year. While Walton and Johnston's friendship is just four years in the making, their professional chemistry was quickly realized. "You can't underestimate the impact Ben has had in the philanthropic community," says Johnston. "The prospect of cochairing with Ben made this something I wanted to do." Walton agrees: "[Our] strengths complement each other; it has played quite well for City Year." Founded in 1988 by Harvard Law School roommates, Michael Brown and Alan Khazei, City Year now embraces 25 cities and communities around the US, impacting tens of thousands of students. As the Denver chapter is poised to celebrate its annual gala on February 27, we talked with Walton and Johnston about their dedication to the organization and what makes City Year stand out among educational reform. 80 aspenpeak-magazine.com 078-080_AP_SP_PwrDuo_WIN13_SPR_14.indd 80 10/30/13 4:46 PM