Women of Influence
MEET SOME OF THE VALLEY’S MOST INSPIRING PHILANTHROPISTS
Photo by Preston Utley
Donna Giordano
Donna Giordano
Q // You’ve been on the board and a major supporter of the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival and are currently on the board of and active in the Vail Valley Foundation, an umbrella for many community activities and causes. Why do you remain so involved with nonprofits? Quite simply, it has always been the family’s belief to give back to the community you live in. This is my way.
Q // How do you view the evolution of the valley since you came here many years ago? I’m not crazy about moving away from the alpine village look of Vail, but I realize that things change everywhere.
Q // Is there anything about you that people don’t know?
I still work every day. They always think I’m retired and don’t do anything but go out to lunch or whatever.
Q // What’s your funniest memory of life in the Vail Valley? I do have one, but one of my girlfriends wouldn’t be happy if I told. It still makes me laugh every time I think of it.
Q // What’s your favorite kind of music? I like most kinds of music, but my car
radio is always tuned to country. That’s me.
Q // What are your favorite local restaurants? To name a few: Sweet Basil, Russell’s, Pepi’s, and, of course, pizza at Vendetta’s.
Beth Slifer
Q // What brought you to the Vail Valley? People may not know that Rod Slifer (Vail pioneer and former mayor) promised me we would move to Chicago if I didn’t like living in Vail after one year. He took a huge gamble, but he knew no one could resist the charms of Vail.
Q // Why are you involved with so many nonprofits, including serving as chairwoman of the Vail Local Marketing District Advisory Council? I love being involved in the community and being able to participate in problem solving for various nonprofits. I also love being engaged in marketing the town of Vail.
Q // What’s something about you that most people don’t know? I was once a marketing and product manager for farm chemicals. If one can sell chemicals, one can certainly sell this beautiful resort.
Q // Apart from your marriage, what makes Vail the perfect home for you? Being an urban dweller in downtown Vail is what makes this place a perfect home for me. The outdoor lifestyle combined with city living is the best!
Q // You’ve owned and operated a nationally acclaimed interior design business (Slifer Designs) from Vail for more than 25 years. What’s the secret of your success? From the beginning in 1984, we have worked to operate a creative service in a highly businesslike manner. We continuously improve our processes and procedures, as well as the cost of goods, to deliver to our clients on time and on budget. Our customers trust us and come back with referrals and their own repeat business.
Martha Head
Q // In the 40-some years you have lived in Vail, you have been involved in many community causes, such as the Shaw Regional Cancer Center and the Family Learning Center. And a sports medicine center at the Vail Valley Medical Center is named for your late husband, Howard Head, the famed sports equipment innovator. But your influence usually is behind the scenes. One observer describes you as an “enabler.” I don’t think I’ve heard that term before, but I do prefer to stay out of the limelight.
Q // What’s one of your funniest memories of Vail? When Sheika Gramshammer had a boudoir party for me about five years ago, just before I married John Feagin. Two friends brought an army outfit for me (among his other accomplishments, Feagin is a retired army colonel and a West Point grad and a medical doctor) with mesh stockings, over-the-knee boots—the heels were about six inches high—a hat, and a tight shirt with all the medals. It was a hoot. We’ll never forget it.
Q // Do you have favorite local restaurants? I wouldn’t dare mention them one by one, but I’m well informed about food and like most restaurants that teach us to eat healthfully.
Q // What’s one of your major interests outside of community involvement?
I love art. My interest tends toward contemporary art, whether it’s in my own home or in a museum. I don’t need to evaluate it. I take it on its own.
Q // What are your favorite types of music? Generally, classical music during the day, jazz at midnight, and piano music for dinner. My husband loves country music and has taught me to love it, too. It tells stories of our lives.
Elaine Kelton
Q // Over the years, you have been active on countless boards and commissions of governmental bodies and non-profits, many of which helped develop the community’s cultural institutions. What satisfaction do you get out of it? First, there is for me the internal satisfaction of being part of the development of this community and the educational and cultural environment in which we live. Second, there is the legacy aspect. We are what we leave behind, and hopefully we leave it improved.
Q // You’ve also known the town when it was a small alpine village. It changed over the years, with larger buildings recently opening. What’s your thought on this development in Vail’s evolution? Nothing can remain static; change is essential to survival, growth, and success. Vail was a small alpine village, but today we have made a conscious choice to become a more urbanized community. It is neither good nor bad—it is a choice. Renewal was needed, and, hopefully, we preserved the integrity of our basic design intention and ambience.
Q // What’s something about you that people don’t know? In 1986, as reported in Time, I was the last person to leave the Jeu de Paume Museum when it closed before the Impressionist collections were moved to the Quai D’Orsay Museum. And I went skydiving at age 20.
Q // What’s one of your funniest memories of living in the Vail Valley? A 1970s armed robbery at Manor Vail ended up with the chief of police handcuffed to a tree and the hotel staff standing on the toilet seats for fear of being found by the burglars. Ended well, though: arrests made.
Q // What are your favorite local dining establishments? Larkspur, Pepi’s, and La Bottega.
Q // Is there a place in the valley that reminds you of the reason you came here and stayed? The Gore Valley, sunrise and sunset, the changing seasons. I never take it for granted.
Sheika Gramshammer
Q // You and Pepi, both Austrian born, have been married more than four decades and have owned and operated Hotel Gasthof Gramshammer, a Vail Village icon, for nearly as long. Your marriage has survived so many years not just as husband and wife but also as business partners. What’s the secret? Marriage is a commitment with a lot of responsibilities. One important thing is that as the years go on, both partners need their own space. Space, communication, responsibility—and the family—help keep a marriage together.
Q // How did your fundraising efforts begin? A baby was stillborn in our then small medical center. Even if it would have been alive, it wouldn’t have lived because we had no incubator. So I threw a fundraising picnic, and eventually we raised enough to buy an incubator and a defibrillator. Ironically, the first person saved by the equipment was named “Mr. Vail.”
Q // Later, you ran the Crystal Ball, a legendary fundraiser, for 20 years. That’s only one example of your community involvement. What do you get from it? Satisfaction when you do things like that and they have a wonderful outcome. We’re part of a community and support it in any way we can.
Q // What is one of the funniest memories you have of Vail? There are so many. In the early ’60s when Vail was very small, thank goodness there were no serious fires, because watching our all-volunteer fire department (Pepi and our neighbors) was like watching the world’s funniest home movie. The blind leading the blind.
Q // What’s your favorite form of recreation? Skiing, hiking, and waterskiing until my knees gave. Now I sit on Pepi’s porch (part of the Gasthof’s restaurant), have a cocktail, and watch the people come off the mountain. It’s fun.
Q // You and your family have had a special friendship with the late President Ford and his family for decades. We met in ’68 after they bought a condo across the street. Through the years, an unbelievable friendship formed. It was unique. We became part of their family and they part of ours. I thought of them almost as my parents. I’m still in touch a lot with Betty and the family.
Susan Frampton
Q // You arrived in the Vail Valley in 1981 when your husband, Harry, became president of Vail Associates. What types on nonprofits and causes have you been involved with since? I’ve been on the board of the Bright Future Foundation for the past 10 years. (Editor’s note: BFF helps victims of domestic violence through a variety of services.) I’ve also volunteered for many of the Vail Valley Foundation’s programs (such as heading up social activities for the ’89 and ’99 World Alpine Ski Championships), served on the boards of Art in Public Spaces and the Family Learning Center, and volunteered for many years at Red Sandstone Elementary School. I was an elementary school teacher earlier in my life.
Q // Do you believe the community encourages citizen participation?
I have never seen a community that pulls together more for nonprofit organizations and for people in difficulty. For instance, when a fundraiser is organized for someone who is sick, you can go ask for anything in this town and they’ll give it to you in a minute.
Q // What do you get out of your efforts? Seeing people improve.
Q // What is one of your funniest memories of Vail? When Harry wore loafers while riding a horse in a July Fourth parade. It was our first year here, and he didn’t have any cowboy boots. Just his East Coast loafers. Watching him was hilarious. Needless to say, he got a lot of feedback.
Q // Is there something most people don’t know about you? I nibble on Goldfish crackers.
Q // Any favorite restaurants? Vail has so many wonderful restaurants. We are very lucky. To name just a few offhand: Kelly Liken, Larkspur, La Bottega, Avondale, Grouse Mountain Grill.
Q // Speaking of restaurants, I understand cooking is one of your passions. I love to cook. Maybe that’s my artistic side. To create something that somebody else loves and enjoys is rewarding. Also, it’s peaceful to be working in the kitchen cooking, listening to music.
Q // Any favorite vacation destinations? Wherever a beach is. I grew up by the beach and the ocean, and that’s the thing I miss living in the mountains.
