Opinion: Dear Campus Mosaic
A Letter of Gratitude From A Longtime Fan (And Dog Lover)
By Gary Martyn
For the GPHN

You were not around when I first met your lovely campus. Back then it was the Colorado Women’s College. I was just a little boy, and my mom took me to Mason Hall for swimming lessons in the indoor pool. I had no idea at the time how much your campus would eventually mean to me.
A few years later, I was visiting you again, this time riding my bike to meet friends and play football on your enormous lawn.
Time flew by as I graduated from college, started working in Denver and lived in Mayfair. I met a lovely lady who lived just two blocks away from you. We would walk our three dogs around your campus as we were getting to know each other. My lady friend had graduated from your college and bought a house near you because she liked the neighborhood.
Lady friend became wife, love of my life, and I moved in with her. You were the destination for daily walks. One by one, we lost the three dogs and started again with a puppy. You were suffering losses as well, finally closing and merging with the University of Denver. D.U. added a new building and moved their law school to your grounds, bringing once again the energy of young people on campus.
Succession of fine caretakers
D.U. was a fine caretaker. They brought the grounds back to life, planted lots of flowers, and even put a pub in Mason Hall. Fun to see the law students having FACs. An added bonus was seeing my nephew graduate from law school in a ceremony on the great lawn.
Law school didn’t last, as D.U. consolidated their campus. But you weren’t empty for long.
Johnson and Wales University opened on your campus in the fall of 2000, filled with mostly enthusiastic young folks. Added bonus was a culinary school.
Johnson and Wales took on a massive project of rejuvenating the old buildings. Dorms were redone, a new culinary building constructed, and the final gem was, with the help of History Colorado, Historic Denver, and others, the complete renovation of Treat (now Centennial) Hall. Treat is one of my favorite buildings in Denver and it was so gratifying to see it brought back to life — including reusing materials in the building. Old doors were refinished and used as wainscoting.
Treat is on the National Register of Historic Places. The J&W years were some of your best. Your campus is the closest thing to a park in this part of South Park Hill. The community utilizes your grounds for walking, lots of lawn for kids to play on, a little place to sled.
I was still walking our dog on your campus every day. By this time, the pup that started with the D.U. years was toward the end of her life, so our walks were a little subdued but even a slower pace brought opportunity to look closer at the fine buildings in our midst.
What stands out is the amazing masonry work. This is craftmanship rarely seen today. Everywhere you look there are little hidden gems. The little stone birds on the porch of Pulliam. The fierce face on Foote. Celtic designs on Mason. Fancy brickwork on Curtis and Porter. And the incredible entryway of Treat. Always something to see.
Vassar of the West
Soon, we were walking a new dog. One fun thing about walking a friendly pup on campus is the reaction by kids, homesick for their own pets. Impossible to count the number of times a student would stop us and ask to pet or hug our dog.
One memorable morning, we walked by the girls’ soccer team while they were warming up. It seemed half the team stopped to give our pup pats or grab a hug, completely disrupting the routine.
On the west side of your campus, we have attended more than one wedding at the beautiful Whatley Chapel. The stained glass is absolutely stunning inside. By the chapel entrance is the Hill Carillon, which tolls on the hour. Next to the chapel is an outdoor amphitheater, where I saw an impromptu concert by Sugarloaf, a Denver band just starting out, in the late 60’s.
A few other quick facts you might not know about what is now your campus:
• Whatley Chapel was designed by one of the architects of Red Rocks Park.
• When Treat Hall was completed in 1909, it was described as being several miles east of Denver.
• The Carillon by the chapel is the oldest authentic carillon in Colorado.
• The stained glass in Whatley Chapel is by French artist Gabriel Loire.
• Colorado Women’s College was referred to as the Vassar of the West.
• There was a boardwalk from the streetcar station at Poplar and Colfax that ran down Poplar Street to the campus. The boardwalk was so the young ladies could walk to the campus without getting dirty from the unpaved street.
• On the south side of 17th, in the middle of the block between Quebec and Poplar, there is a large, long stone by the curb. This was a mounting stone, to help the young ladies step into a carriage.
A wish for eternity
The COVID-19 pandemic was the final blow to Johnson and Wales, already suffering a declining enrollment. The university made the decision to close the school in 2021. This was a shock to the community, causing genuine unease over the fate of the campus. The Urban Land Conservancy came to the rescue, Mosaic was born, and the journey continues.
For me, I continue walking the dog around and through the campus. I never tire of the beauty of the place; the early morning light on the buildings can be magnificent.
If I were granted a wish for something, it would be making the campus a historic district and preserving it for generations of people — and dogs — to come.
Thank you, Mosaic.
Gary Martyn is a Park Hill native. Past Greater Park Hill News coverage about Mosaic Community Campus can be read at greaterparkhill.org/life-in-