Born in Germany, raised in Wisconsin and a Goldenite since 2001, I am a mom of three amazing teens and wife to my grad school sweetheart, musician, fisherman and consultant Chris Thompson.
Chris and I founded UllrGrass back in 2014 as a way for us to celebrate our love for Golden, bluegrass music, and the Colorado outdoor playground. Our goal was to support up-and-coming local musicians, create a family-friendly atmosphere, and bring the community together to dance and smile. As we celebrate our 10th anniversary of the festival, we are so grateful to all the volunteers, sponsors, vendors, and festivarians who have helped us make that a reality.
The UllrGrass Beer Festival takes place each January (Jan. 26-28, 2024) Each year, attendees enjoy live music on two alternating stages while sampling craft brews and ciders from 30+ breweries from across Colorado . The evening shows on Friday and Saturday night take place in Parfet Park under heated big top tents. Sunday is FREE Family Day, featuring an UllrEgg Hunt, craft activities and games. Food trucks provide a variety of tasty treats all weekend long.
The only way this event can happen is with the support of our incredible Golden community. It takes a village to throw a festival, with more than 100 volunteers and 50-plus local businesses working together to pull it off. Every year we are humbled by the collaboration of our town.
UllrGrass is a volunteer-powered, non-profit event with proceeds benefitting the Kids Music Project by Coral Creek, which delivers music education and performance to kids in Colorado.
Q: Please tell us about your current, past, or future career/accomplishments. What do you love most about what you do?
I am a marketer by profession and have had the chance to work for a variety of companies, including a decade at Molson Coors in brand marketing, innovation and international strategy; three years leading brand marketing for Epic Pass at Vail Resorts; and most recently as VP Marketing for Destination Pet. What fires me up is strategic problem solving, creative ideation, building teams and delivering results. The joy for me in life and in my career is learning, meeting people who inspire me, and creating something that makes an impact in the world. Hopefully all the little lessons I’ve collected over the year have helped me to be a better leader.
Q: What are a couple of your favorite restaurants or breweries in our community?
I am a die-hard GCB (Golden City Brewery) loyalist since 2001 and have even written a song about it being my Golden “home away from home.” There is nothing like picking a tune at a table in the sunshine sipping an Evolution IPA with your favorite OG Goldenites. My close second is New Terrain Brewing – you can’t beat the live music, the views, the Lost IPA, and the incredible staff. My favorite restaurant is Anthony’s Pizza, of course… my daughter works there.
Q: What is one of your favorite hiking or biking trails?
I used to trail run all around Golden before using up all the cartilage in my knees and a favorite spot was the Matthews Winter/Dinosaur Ridge loop because it was a long, tough trail with good variety. These days I enjoy taking out-of-town visitors up the short, scenic hike to South Table’s castle rock to look out over “Whoville,” our nickname for Golden, and out towards the Rockies.
Q: What is your favorite thing or something unique about our community?
This town is simply special. There is nothing like it on earth. Tucked between the mesas and the front range of the Rocky Mountains, we are a down-to-earth local collection of engineers, outdoor enthusiasts, beer drinkers, and music lovers. We celebrate our rich history from cretaceous to cowboy, and we gather to worship at the shores of our beloved Clear Creek. I am so grateful to have found Golden and become a part of it. On a side-note, my Susannah 5-cent tour of Golden has three key points of interest on top of the basic tourist sites: Dino tracks at a not-well-known spot near School of Mines fraternity row , shhhh–the hadrosaur trace fossil is so cool; driving past the Coors Brewery on 44th Ave. and slowing to peek down at the Adolph Coors Mansion sitting in the shadows of the largest single-site brewery on the planet; and finally a stop at the second biggest brewery in Golden–Golden City Brewery for a pint of Evolution IPA.
Q: Finally, what 3 words or phrases come to mind when you think of the word HOME?
Golden, Golden, Golden
