Left Hand Laurel - Riki Frea

A community thrives when its members are involved, passionate, ambitious and always looking to the future. In these respects, Riki Frea excels.

Frea, a Niwot resident, mother and unwavering volunteer, is recognized with the Courier’s Lefthand Laurel for her commitment to the Niwot community and its youth. Despite juggling the busy schedule that comes along with being a mother of three, Frea still manages to donate much of her time to the community. She serves as an integral member of the Niwot Children’s Park building committee and volunteers at Niwot Elementary School in a variety of positions.

Bill Frea, Riki’s husband, can attest to his wife’s lifelong passion for making positive change through volunteering. “My wife has been a tireless community-focused volunteer spirit since I met her,” he said, mentioning school, church and children’s needs as causes at the forefront of her efforts.

Over the past year and a half, Frea has been essential to the Niwot Children’s Park, arguably the town’s most ambitious project in decades, through her work on the building committee. As the fundraising coordinator, Frea has labored to transform the original park plan into reality, bringing the park to life by raising and putting to use the donations of the Niwot community.

Frea was proud to say that, despite only starting last summer, the committee has been “able to raise over $200,000 in less than a year’s time” to go with the $250,000 donated by the Lambert family through the Reiman Foundation.

Such a steadfast commitment to the community is difficult to overlook, a fact validated by fellow building committee member Biff Warren of Warren, Carlson & Moore, who was lavish in his appreciation of Frea.

”Riki came to the NCAA and volunteered to coordinate the fundraising for the Niwot Children’s Park,” Warren said. “She was amazing, and raised our expectations of what we could do, both in terms of fundraising from the community, and in the design of the park. She was instrumental in selecting play structures that will appeal to kids and yet keep the park looking like a very natural setting.”

When asked why she donates so much of her time to volunteer efforts for the Niwot Children’s Park, Frea said it comes down to community. “Niwot is a really unique place to live and so much of what we have in our town, we have because of what people give of themselves,” she said. “Our park is being made possible because of the generosity of so many people giving of their money and time. It’s an honor to be a part of [the park] project and a part of something that’s hopefully going to be here forever.”

Not one to passively stand by, Frea has been key in turning this hope into reality. Through her time spent fundraising for the park, her tenacity has made the ambitious $250,000 community fundraising goal attainable.

“Riki has spent countless hours on the park,” Warren said, “getting a website set up for donations, creating a Facebook page, coordinating fundraising events and getting us to over 90 percent of our goal.”

Jim Fletemeyer of Fletemeyer & Lee Associates, and member of the park’s building committee, is looking forward to the opening of the park at the end of summer. “I think it’s really going to be rewarding for people, and my hope is that it will be most rewarding for her,” he said of Frea. “Without Riki’s energy, time, experience and heart for what this project is all about, I don’t know what the alternatives would have been.”

“She had Channel 9 come down at one time and interviewed her in the park and I told her ‘whatever your day job is, you can move over into this arena of public television,’ because she was very, very good on camera and spoke very well about the whole organizational thing and the community behind it and the spirit that came across in her delivery was excellent.”

Not only does Frea’s passion for service benefit the community at large, but it also provides a model for her children. Frea, cognizant of her ability to serve as a powerful role model for her kids, believes that being passionate about and involved in the community herself will help them to understand what it is to be an active and caring community member.

“It means a lot to me that I’m able to give so much of my time and set a good example for my kids to be a good steward,” Frea said, “[to] show them that it’s important to be involved and help make things happen.”

From the time her eldest child began school at Niwot Elementary, Frea has regularly volunteered at the school, helping out in the classroom, counting box tops and serving on the Parent Teacher Advisory Council (PTAC). She also served for two years as vice president of fundraising on the PTAC.

“I value a good education and I know the importance of parental involvement,” she said. “So, to me it’s just a no-brainer to be involved at the school. I just know that everything I’m doing is helping to make a difference for the kids.”

In regards to the Niwot Children’s Park, Fletemeyer believes that, aside from being “a joy to work with,” what makes Frea such a valuable community member is her devotion for the endeavors she pursues.

As Frea’s husband said of her, “She cares deeply about every project she takes on. Tears are often shed if she falls short of her high self-expectations. She’s a true warrior for the causes she cares deepest about.”