Warm Cookies of the Revolution invites you to share food for thought in Denver tonight

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Evan Weissman wants Denver to take control of its civic health, so he's created Warm Cookies of the Revolution, a monthly gathering where the community can discuss important issues, promote advocacy and also enjoy entertainment. Tonight's event at Buntport Theater is a letter-writing party, where attendees can write a letter to a loved one or a government official -- enjoying cookies and milk along with the food for thought.

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Weissman, who has been part of the Buntport crew for eleven years, has always been involved with social and political issues. But he understands that people also want to do something fun after a long day of hard work, so he decided to combine the two ideas in Warm Cookies of the Revolution.

"If I send you an e-mail or a flier saying, 'Come to this talk about the city budget' or, 'Come to this talk about welcoming sex offenders back into the community' -- these are things that are happening and the ramifications are huge -- you're not going to come," Weissman says. By combining civic discussions with fun activities, he thinks the community will be more interested in getting involved.

The initial Warm Cookies board comprises friends Weissman met through working with the Mi Casa Resource Center. "We're concerned about the community as a whole, but we also know people want to have fun," he says.

"The term 'revolution' is fun, it's a fun way of saying it," Weissman says. "But I take that word seriously. And I think what that means is, if we can start advocating for ourselves, if we can decide what it is that we want as a community and advocate for that, that's a revolution."

Weissman hopes to have a permanent location for the gatherings by this time next year, ideally near the Esquire Theater. "Once it's open, there's going to be a storefront and it will be a pay-what-you-can donation-only system for cookies and ice cream and soup from local businesses," he explains.

Until then, the monthly gatherings are at Buntport -- but the Warm Cookies crew is also trying to arrange events at the McNichols building and in other parts of town. "One of the restraints and challenges is that we're going to be in one location, so it's not in every neighborhood," Weissman explains. "So we're going to try to get people involved and feel a sense of ownership before it's open, so that maybe coming to that neighborhood won't feel as daunting."