Our History

The Holland & Hart Foundation carries on Holland & Hart’s longstanding tradition of community service. The firm’s attorneys and staff members believe in giving back to the community, not just through financial contributions, but also through contributing time and effort. While other law firms have established grant-making foundations, only a handful focus principally on volunteerism and building community.

Launched in 1998 by Holland & Hart retired partner Sam Guyton, and his wife Jean, the Holland & Hart Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization with three primary goals:

To achieve these goals, Holland & Hart attorneys, staff, friends, families and clients support programs and participate in volunteer-driven community events organized by the Foundation’s board and office committees.

Success Through the Years

Since 2014, the Holland & Hart Foundation has made a huge impact* on the communities it serves:

(*through 2023)

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25th Anniversary Celebrated in 2023

For 25 years, the Foundation has been the “heart” of the firm, carrying on the longstanding commitment to serve our communities. To commemorate the Foundation’s 25th anniversary, each of the firm’s 13 offices chose a service activity supporting a local community organization. Click the link below to read more about the local organizations supported in each market and highlighted project impacts:

• Holland & Hart Foundation Celebrates 25th Anniversary with Firmwide Service Projects

Click on the image below to play a short video highlighting the projects: 

Co-founders Sam and Jean Guyton were interviewed by media and shared highlights from the Foundation’s 25-year history, special project memories, and the incredible community impacts of the Foundation over the quarter century. Comments from Holland & Hart Firm Chair Chris Balch, a long-serving Foundation Board member, were also included.

• Read the Law Week Colorado, January 2024 feature here: Holland & Hart Foundation Celebrated its 25th Anniversary

We are delighted to share the Foundation’s 25th anniversary microsite that highlights the history and milestones of the Foundation:  Holland & Hart Foundation Celebrates 25 Years!

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20th Anniversary Celebrated in 2018

In 2018, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Foundation with special projects throughout the firm. Our founders, Sam and Jean Guyton, had the vision and passion to establish this organization, devoted to creating volunteer events for all members of Holland & Hart LLP and the opportunity to enhance our relationships with our colleagues and friends. Over that time, the Foundation’s volunteers have organized countless events, helping neighbors far and near, and creating a strong sense of community across our offices and beyond that endures even as the legal profession, law firms in particular, and the world at large undergo rapid and widespread transformations.

On this milestone, we asked Sam and Jean Guyton to reflect on the Foundation’s history and recollect some pivotal projects from the past 20 years:

• In this video interview, Sam and Jean talk about why they formed the Foundation and how it worked in the early days.
• In this video,  Sam and Jean reminisce about projects and events across the firm that supported organizations, communities, and people in need.

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Volunteerism and Philanthropy Awards

Contributions by the Foundation have received national and local recognition. Below are a few highlights from the Foundation’s historical timeline.

Legal Marketing Association’s “Your Honor Awards”

In 2005, the Foundation received the National First Place Award for Community Relations in the Legal Marketing Association’s “Your Honor Awards,” recognizing how the Foundation’s communication tools (website, annual report, and annual calendar project) advanced its community relations mission. The Foundation was also recognized in 2000, with the National Second Place Award for Community Relations in the Legal Marketing Association’s “Your Honor Awards.”

InnovAction Award

The Holland & Hart Foundation received the College of Law Practice Management InnovAction Award in 2007. The Foundation’s award is one of only four that were announced for innovative efforts in legal services. Holland & Hart formed the Holland & Hart Foundation in 1998 with the goal to build relationships between attorneys and staff, and between offices and practices within the firm. It acts as the “heart” of Holland & Hart by creating opportunities for attorneys and staff to work side-by-side in the firm’s communities. As the first of its kind and a model to other firms, this unique institution enables and empowers Holland & Hart volunteers to make worthwhile contributions to the community, and to get to know each other in the process. Read  more about this award on the Holland & Hart website: Holland & Hart Foundation Wins InnovAction Award.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Lifetime Achievement Award

In 2009, the Guytons were humbled to receive the 2009 Martin Luther King (MLK) Humanitarian Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by the Colorado Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Commission, and share it with the hundreds of dedicated people at Holland & Hart who have helped their dream of building community become a reality. Read more about the 2009 MLK Humanitarian Awards and Recipients in the January 2009 issue of Soundings, the magazine of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra.

Metro Volunteer’s Lifetime Achievement Award

Sam and Jean Guyton Receive Metro Volunteer’s Lifetime Achievement Award. On March 4, 2014, hundreds gathered at the McNichols Civic Center Building in Denver to celebrate two special community volunteers at Metro Volunteer’s annual “Heart of Volunteerism” event. Sam and Jean Guyton received the Lifetime Achievement Award, given to an individual or individuals who, through a lifetime of service, accomplish significant change in the community by encouraging and supporting the volunteer efforts of others. Sam and Jean Guyton launched the Holland & Hart Foundation in 1998 and accepted the Metro Volunteers Award on behalf of all of the people who have volunteered for the Holland & Hart Foundation.

Walk to End Alzheimer Corporate Award

In 2007, the Alzheimer’s Association Colorado Chapter recognized the Foundation as the Memory Walk/Run Outstanding Fundraising Team for raising just under $30,000, double what was raised in the previous year. From 2001-2006, The Foundation received the Alzheimer’s Association Colorado Chapter, Memory Walk/Run Corporate Award for reaching a special fundraising milestone. Members of the firm participate in the annual Memory Walk/Run every year to help lead the way in the fight against Alzheimer’s.

Rebuilding Together Metro Denver Community Impact Award

Rebuilding Together Metro Denver awarded the Foundation its 2008 Community Impact Award for its work on a home and yard improvement project completed and in honor of all the volunteers who harvested food, collected school supplies, offered pro-bono legal work, and delivered meals to those in need.

United Way Community Champion Award from United Way of Salt Lake

In 2014, the Foundation received the Community Champion Award from United Way of Salt Lake for its ongoing, generous contributions and its numerous community service projects, including the full-day, 20th anniversary project at Kearns Junior High School.

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To learn more about the impact of the Holland & Hart Foundation, see our 2023 Annual Report.

For additional information about the Foundation, please contact Michael Wadley.

Media inquiries should be directed to Tracy Atkinson.