Ignite Imaginations
Build Literacy Skills
Strengthen Communities
About Us
In 1988, a collaboration between Germaine Dietsch, a person committed to the community with a degree in Theatre and trained in Gerontology, and the Denver Public Schools Community
Partnerships placed 5 volunteer senior citizens in a Denver public elementary to tell stories. It was such a success for both the seniors and the children that they decided to continue. The Denver group adopted the name “Spellbinders”. The seed was planted. Spellbinders became a formal organization in 1990. And how we have grown!
Today, the Denver Licensee of the Spellbinders organization remains strong. The Denver Public Schools Office of Volunteer Services is still our strong right arm and treasured advisor. We continue to grow by embracing new storyteller volunteers as well as maintaining the ties to our foundation – the storyteller members who have stuck with us over the years.
The Denver licensee involves members in continuing education programs to further sharpen our skills and we always leave time to share and have fun at our monthly meetings. Our community of storytellers is as diverse as the city of Denver and we have more invitations for tellers than volunteers. Come and join us!
Upcoming Trainings
Sign up NOW for our February 2024 training!
Join the Denver Spellbinders® for their next training for new storytellers. Learn the art of oral
storytelling!
By becoming a part of our fun, loving community, you can:
● Learn the tricks to becoming an amazing storyteller
● Receive ongoing training & support
● Have fun while making a positive impact on your community
● Share the rich oral tradition of storytelling with children.
Denver Spellbinders® will offer volunteer training at the DPS Acoma Campus, 1617 S. Acoma St., Denver CO on these dates:
● Tuesday, February 13, 2024, noon – 3 pm
● Thursday, February 15, 2024, noon – 3 pm
● Tuesday, February 20, 2024, noon – 3 pm
Attendance at all four training sessions is required to complete the course. To learn more or RSVP, contact Denver Public Schools, FACE – Volunteer Services at Volunteer_Services@dpsk12.org or call (720) 423-3007.
All trainings are held at the DPS Acoma Campus. DPS Acoma Campus, 1617 S. Acoma St., Denver CO.
Free parking is located next to and behind the building.
Please dial 303.877.5782 to enter the main door and sign in.
Training content is standardized; however, other training requirements may differ from Local Group to Local Group.
Denver Spellbinders® meets monthly.
When: 2nd Monday of the Month
Time: 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Where: Please contact one of our leaders for current meeting location
(We typically meet at: Denver Public Schools’ Acoma Campus, 1617 S. Acoma St, Conference Room 113 OR Blair-Caldwell Library, 2401 Welton St.)
We would love to have you join us for our monthly meeting and meet our Spellbinders® Community! If this is your first visit, please email one of our Licensee Group Leaders to let us know that you are coming.
Shirley Stafford-shirley223@aol.com
Tom Hobbs-tom@themaninthehat.net
Our Newsletters
Contact Us
Denver Spellbinders® is a Licensee of the 501 3(c) nonprofit Spellbinders®. We serve the communities of the Denver Public School District
Leader Emails: shirley223@aol.com
Monthly Meeting Location: DPS Acoma Campus 1617 S Acoma St Denver, CO 80223
Meet Our Leaders
Shirley Stafford
Shirley’s love of storytelling goes back to the early 70’s when she first began her teaching career. She was inspired by listening to Pete Seeger’s albums and realized that children needed books but they also needed oral storytelling and music. She has been singing and telling stories throughout her 40+ years of teaching young children. After retiring she found that she missed interacting with children and that Spellbinders would be a wonderful opportunity to get back in the classroom (without all the paperwork.) She has thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The Denver licensee has such a talented and dedicated group of tellers and learn from each other all the time. So it is with great pleasure that she will be co-chairing our Denver Licensee.
Tom Hobbs
Tom Hobbs is a business owner, a serial Entrepreneurial Nut & Professional Speaker. He draws upon stories from his youth in the country to traveling on Cruise Ships as a Dance Host. He was Toastmasters District 26 Governor 2013-14 the largest Communications and Leadership Organization in the World. A Master of Causing Smiles. He utilizes Stories & Humor as a Professional Speaker/Trainer to make information stick. Tom Hobbs proves this over 150 times a year as he speaks for Professional Organizations, Schools, Service Clubs and teaches entrepreneurs to Increase Profits by Causing More Smiles. Enriching our youth with Creative Literacy is one way Tom gives back to the world. Tom brings training skills from high end training organizations to support our Storytellers for greater success. Tom takes great joy in having Hats as a vehicle to tell stories from around the world. Yes Tom has over 100 hats.
Meet Our Trainers
Ray Mohr
Ray holds a fondness for three key areas of storytelling: 1) The art itself, 2) The inherent magic, and 3) Finding one’s story. His abundant regard for all three components sheds light to the inner-workings of his mind, which allows him to be both an incredible Storytelling Volunteer and a Trainer for our Licensee.
Ray has been with Denver Spellbinders® since 2006. If you or someone you know is interested in signing up for our Volunteer Training, please contact him at raymondemohr@gmail.com.
Other members of the Denver Licensee training team include Tom Hobbs, Gina Abegg, Kathy Babb and Shirley Stafford.
Meet Our District Liason
Sarah Rice
Volunteer Services Manager
1860 Lincoln St., Denver, CO 80203 | 12th Floor
720-423-2046 | dpsk12.org | Volunteer Services Website
Our Impact
Each year Denver Spellbinders® Storytelling Volunteers take the time to ignite imaginations, build literacy skills, and strengthen our communities. For the school year of 2023 – 2024, our Licensee had: