7/20 Memorial Foundation
Our Story
The foundation is led by families of those we lost, survivors, people who were there, and members of the community who have carried this work forward alongside us. This is how it started — and what it does now.
How this began
Formed in grief. Built in love.
The foundation is led by families of those we lost, survivors, people who were there, and members of the community who have carried this work forward alongside us.
On July 20, 2012, thirteen lives were taken at the Century Aurora 16 theater and seventy more people were wounded. In the months that followed, the families of those who died began meeting — not to be defined by that night, but to answer it.
The 7/20 Memorial Foundation was formed in March 2013 with one job: build a permanent place to remember. In July 2018 that job was finished. Ascentiate rose above the Water-Wise Garden, eighty-three steel cranes climbing the Colorado sky.
What began as a promise to build something has become the work of sending it outward. Today the foundation carries paper crane wreaths to communities across the country in the aftermath of mass tragedy, hosts the annual Day of Resilience, and walks alongside people who have just joined a group nobody chooses to belong to.
The memorial is built. The work continues.
Our mission
Honoring the thirteen lives taken and the seventy wounded on July 20, 2012 — by sustaining a place of reflection, extending compassion to communities affected by mass tragedy, and bringing people together through connection, creativity, and remembrance.
What we're working toward: a world where everyone is thriving and empowered in their own healing, where long-term mental health support is recognized as necessary and made genuinely available — and where that support reaches people before tragedy is ever inflicted on anyone else.
Cultural Heritage Site · 2026
A place set apart
In 2026, Ascentiate and the Aurora Water-Wise Garden were officially designated a Cultural Heritage Site — a recognition that this place serves the community beyond its physical form.
Eighty-three steel cranes rising from a public garden. Thirteen translucent at the center. An entry in the Congressional Record. And now, a place set apart — preserved not just in metal, but in the memory of a city that answered tragedy with action.
Our values
What we believe
Healing & Resiliency
We advocate for healing and long-term resiliency for survivors and communities affected by mass tragedy — not for a season, but for as long as it takes.
Which is whyS.T.O.P. stays in touch with communities long after the news trucks have gone.
Hope & Positivity
We offer hope to people living through adversity. Every crane made, every wreath delivered, every visitor who sits in the garden carries the same message: you are not alone in this.
Which is whyevery wreath is made by hand and arrives without an invoice.
Compassionate Collaboration
We work alongside like-minded organizations rather than around them. Aurora learned what helps from communities that came before us, and we pass it on.
Which is whywe partner with The Rebels Project, the City of Aurora, and any community that asks.
Our programs
What the foundation actually does
Four programs, running from a weekly table in a café to wreaths crossing oceans.
Worldwide
Paper Crane Peace ProjectSince 2017
Cranes made by hand in 47 countries are woven into wreaths and carried to communities in the aftermath of mass tragedy. More than ninety wreaths have gone out so far — from Uvalde to Parkland to Christchurch.
See where they've gone →Nationwide
S.T.O.P.Survivors of Tragedy Outreach Program
When a community is hit by mass violence, the people who understand it best are the ones who have already been through it. S.T.O.P. connects survivors and bereaved families in Aurora with those in a place that has just joined them — peer support, practical guidance, and honest answers about what comes next. The foundation also advocates for the long-term mental health resources these communities need long after the coverage ends.
Reach out to us →Every July · Aurora
Day of ResilienceFree and open to all
A morning at the Water-Wise Garden built around wellness and the arts — the Hero's Journey 5K, chalk artists, yoga in the garden, live music, food, and a dedicated sober space. It is free, and everyone is welcome.
See what's planned →Every Saturday · Aurora
Paper Crane Peace Makers11 AM – 1 PM, Milly's Community Café
A table, some paper, and whoever shows up. Cranes get made, projects get planned, and people who have been through something sit next to people who haven't. No experience needed and no need to come every week.
Join a Saturday →Voices of Aurora
What people here say about it
Not from the foundation. From the city that lived it — officials, neighbors, and people who were there.
“I spend time in the Memorial Garden, remembering the relationships with the victims' families and knowing it was an honor to be part of their lives.”
Nancy FreedFormer Deputy City Manager, City of Aurora
“Fourteen years later everyone lives with trauma differently. My hope is that there is always someone to reach out to.”
Bob LeGareFormer Aurora City Councilmember
“Let's support one another, stay alert, love and pray for one another. Don't give up on life, as there is plenty of life to be lived.”
Sharon MayesCommunity Member
“I knew what had happened across the street, and knew that it was time to turn the page and begin the steps moving forward for the community.”
Bill ParkhillCommunity Member
The people behind the work
Who runs this
Families of the thirteen. Survivors. People who were in the building. And members of the community who have carried this work alongside them. Nobody here is doing this from a distance.
Leadership
Heather Dearman
Chief Executive OfficerTheresa Hoover
Chief Operating OfficerAllison Zamaitis-Robles
TreasurerTiina Coon
Secretary
Board of Directors
Aris Billapando
DirectorToni Curtsinger
DirectorZoee Jordan
DirectorJohann Rydquist
Director
Honorary Members
Heather Bailey
HonoraryRena Medek
HonoraryKatie Medley
HonoraryTerry Sullivan
HonoraryMegan Sullivan-Jenks
HonoraryJansen Young
Honorary
The foundation is always looking for people who want to help carry this. If that might be you, write to us.
Reach us
There is a person on the other end of all of these.
If something has happened where you live
Write to us. That's all it takes.
You do not need an introduction, a formal request, or the right words. Tell us what happened and what you need.
Someone who has been where you are will answer — and if what you need is a crane wreath, or advice nobody warned you about, or just to talk to a person who understands, that is what this is for.
720Memorial@auroragov.org →Everything else
Questions, partnerships, press
Use the contact form, or
720Memorial@auroragov.org
303-739-7333
Sending cranes
Mail them here
We accept cranes year-round.
7/20 Memorial Foundation
15151 E. Alameda Pkwy
Aurora, CO 80012