Sen. Faith Winter remembered for persistence, warmth and impact on Colorado at memorial

When Sienna Snook was younger her mother would sing her to sleep each night It was a tradition that Sen Faith Winter kept up even as her life and political career grew busier And though it would sometimes come through a phone call or a voice recording You Are My Sunshine made it home at night As Sienna grew older Winter would tell her bedtime stories about feminists to show me to shoot for the moon she narrated a crowd of mourners on the attempts of the state Capitol on Friday Her love stretched far and wide Sienna disclosed When I was a kid she advised me she loved me to the moon and back Now it s just a little further Winter a -year-old mother to Sienna and Tobin whose decade-long career in constituents organization helped reshape her home state and encouraged countless women to follow in her flipflop-shaped footsteps was killed in a three-vehicle crash on Interstate near Centennial on Nov the evening before Thanksgiving The cause of the crash which happened in close proximity to another collision is still under review and likely will not be determined for weeks agents revealed earlier this week Hundreds of loved ones friends former colleagues and elected representatives crowded seats and when those filled the concrete surrounding them for Winter s memorial Friday Friends including women whom Winter had trained and helped run for office described the lawmaker s warmth her love of bright colors and the outdoors and the optimistic tenacity that helped her endure personal challenges and become one of the the majority impactful Colorado lawmakers of her generation Benjamin Teevan right a longtime friend of Sen Faith Winter hugs one of Winter s aids Sabrina Pocha before a memorial amenity for Sen Faith Winter on Friday Dec on the west efforts of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver Sen Winter died on Nov in a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate near Centennial Colo Photo by Timothy Hurst The Denver Post She was a nerd for women s leadership reported Dawn Huckelbridge who was quoting remarks from another friend An organizer by profession and passion Winter was elected to the Westminster City Council before first winning a seat in the state House in She mentored and trained other women to seek higher office throughout her career and U S Rep Brittany Pettersen commented Friday that when she met Winter in she was the first person to tell Pettersen to run for office She still has Winter s name saved in her phone as mentor Her mantra Rep Jenny Willford remembered was lift as you rise She didn t wait for the right moment or the perfect woman Willford reported Friday She saw expected in people before they saw it in themselves and she insisted that they rise too In her years at the Capitol Winter was the primary sponsor on more than bills that passed the legislature Between the and sessions alone she shepherded more bills into law a pace that s likely matched only by the workhorse legislators who draft the state budget Her tally could have been even larger She also was among the legislators whose bills were largest part frequently vetoed itself a badge of honor and a marker of her willingness to dig in The layered legacy that emerges from Winter s time in office will be felt even if they don t know it by millions of Colorado workers tenants eating disorder patients transit riders lawmakers legislative aides lobbyists affordable housing developers new mothers students who use menstrual products women wondering about a career in politics and incalculable employees transgender people and children at menace of harassment The shadow cast by the diminutive legislator from Broomfield is long and there are insufficient classrooms buses and workplaces that haven t felt it In interviews and remarks Friday several friends called her Wonder Woman Gov Jared Polis presents a Colorado state flag to Sen Faith Winter s children Sienna Snook left and Tobin Snook right during a memorial amenity for Sen Winter on Friday Dec on the west policies of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver Sen Winter died on Nov in a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate near Centennial Colo Photo by Timothy Hurst The Denver Post As a populace servant she cared so deeply for the Colorado we love so deeply for Colorado s majority vulnerable announced Gov Jared Polis the first speaker at Friday s operation She was kind and also tough in fighting for her people her district and our state Her legislative work was remarkably focused She championed issues because she d lived them Hazel Gibson who was one of the women Winter trained and encouraged to run for office revealed in an interview Thursday Winter studied environmental science in school Gibson noted She often relied on her bike to get around She d been a worker and a tenant In college she d helped unhoused women She championed anti-harassment provision including after she and others publicly accused a fellow Democrat of sexual harassment The lawmaker Steve Lebsock was later expelled from the legislature The statements prompted broader investigations within the Capitol and Winter later sponsored regulation to improve how harassment complaints are filed and investigated Colorado Senate President James Coleman left presents a Colorado state flag to Sen Faith Winter s father Mike Winter during a memorial arrangement for Sen Faith Winter on Friday Dec on the west procedures of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver Sen Winter died on Nov in a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate near Centennial Colo Photo by Timothy Hurst The Denver Post Winter became a fan of Kesha the pop star who d accused her producer of abuse and she kept a cape in her office for anyone who wants to feel powerful she revealed in She also loved Taylor Swift Winter s work was all the more remarkable given the battery of personal challenges she faced She became a face of Colorado s political MeToo movement after coming forward with statements against Lebsock She was diagnosed with an autoimmune sickness in The next year she was hospitalized after crashing her bike to avoid a truck while riding to the Capitol In she was investigated by her colleagues and was discovered to have violated ethics rules after she appeared intoxicated at a area event She entered healing for substance use and returned to the Capitol where she soon helped pass one of the majority of sweeping housing modification bills in the state s history She wasn t perfect but no one is and she knew she wasn t Sienna mentioned of her mother That s why when I was little she taught me an critical lesson I got into my first argument with my parents and she sat me down and taught me how to apologize She narrated me that apologies weren t about me They weren t something that I should use to make me feel better They were about the other person You have to own up to your actions Don t make excuses Show that you care then you have to act My mother was an action- and changemaker Often that change-making took years a persistence that defined Winter s career Gov Jared Polis center speaks during a memorial provision for Sen Faith Winter on Friday Dec on the west measures of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver Sen Winter died on Nov in a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate near Centennial Colo Photo by Timothy Hurst The Denver Post After repeated attempts to require businesses to provide paid family leave benefits failed in the Capitol Winter took the issue to the ballot box where voters passed it by more than points in In its first months paid family leave has already been used by nearly Coloradans who ve received more than billion in benefits Pettersen explained Friday I know that was a little wonky she explained But so is Faith Winter Extending Title IX protections for women and girls to high school students took multiple swings So too did ordinance limiting harassment in the workplace When that bill was at last passed Winter donned the silver cape for the bill signing Related Articles State investigates Rep Ron Weinberg for alleged campaign finance violations Colorado Sen Faith Winter killed in crash on I- near Centennial Colorado wins legal battle to cap interest rates on consumer loans Young people held at Pueblo detention facility aren t getting enough food parents allege Gov Jared Polis proposed Medicaid cuts Pinnacol spin-off get cold reception from lawmakers That was her Gibson who also spoke Friday announced She taught me This is your goal How are you going to get there And to look at all the different techniques you can get there That s how I look at everything now whether it s lobbying or planning her funeral function She was never a person that backed down or thought the fights were too big She might need to pause take a breath But she perpetually came back Her children were her pleasure friends mentioned She brought them along inside her world Pettersen announced in an interview Thursday and Winter declined calls to run for higher office because of the demands it would put on her time She announced These are the the bulk critical years for me to be there for my kids Pettersen declared A fifth-generation Coloradan Winter was a hiker a kayaker a camper Pettersen remembered Winter Sienna and Tobin all sleeping in hammocks slung between tall trees The family hiked together every Sunday with Winter in flipflops Her strength later slowed her down making the hikes more formidable and the kayaking trips less frequent But even still she never stopped seeking beauty Gibson commented Friday She never stopped choosing color or flowers or dresses or bliss She never stopped finding reasons to laugh especially at herself especially when life was absurd She lived big yes but more than that she lived bright And she made the people she loved brighter too Stay up-to-date with Colorado Politics by signing up for our weekly newsletter The Spot