Indigenous poet will succeed Andrea Gibson, who died of cancer last summer, and serve two-year term

Gov. Jared Polis continued to make history Wednesday with the appointment of his third Colorado Poet Laureate: Crisosto Apache, an associate professor at Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design.

Apache will serve an uncommonly short two-year term with a special emphasis on the ongoing, year-long commemoration of the United States’ 250th anniversary in July, and Colorado’s 150th anniversary of statehood in August.

Colorado’s Poet Laureate is its statewide ambassador of the arts, assigned with inspiring and uplifting the next generation of artists and poets in Colorado. The Poet Laureate engages with communities across the state, conducting readings and workshops intended to inspire a love for the art form.

“Crisosto will be a strong advocate for the arts and art education, helping youth discover poetry, and bringing Coloradans together,” Polis said in a statement.

Apache, who is Indigenous, succeeds Andrea Gibson, who became the state’s first nonbinary Poet Laureate in September 2023 and served until their death from ovarian cancer July 14. “Come See Me in the Good Light,” a film that chronicles the last year of Gibson’s life, has been nominated for best documentary by the Academy Awards.

Gibson has said the Poet Laureate assignment helped them to rediscover a love for poetry.

“I have learned that just about everyone is a poet, and it is absolutely thrilling to watch people of all ages discover their own personal talent for writing,” Gibson said in 2024.

“I am grateful for Andrea Gibson’s service,” added Polis, “and we posthumously continue to honor Andrea’s artistic influence and unwavering conviction as powerfully shown in the film.”

Gibson succeeded Bobby LeFebre, who served from 2019-23 and made history himself as both the state’s youngest and first Colorado Poet Laureate of color.

Apache is originally from Mescalero, N.M., on the Mescalero Apache Reservation, and currently lives in the metro Denver area with their spouse. They are also Chiricahua Apache and Diné (Navajo). Apache is also the author of the poetry collections “GENESIS,” “Ghostword” (finalist for the Colorado Authors League in Poetry), and “is(ness).” Apache is also an editor-at-large for Offing Magazine.

Apache, who uses they/them pronouns, advocates for a better understanding of the Two-Spirit identity, an umbrella term to describe a person who embodies both a masculine and feminine spirit.

“I am deeply honored to step into the legacy of Colorado’s Poets Laureate as the 11th to walk this path,” Apache said. “For me, this service is more than a title; it’s about sharing the quiet miracle of poetry and the transformative power poetry holds for our lives.”

Colorado Poet Laureate is an honorary position based out of the state’s official arts agency, called Colorado Creative Industries, which itself is part of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT).

“Crisosto’s profound work as a poet and commitment to a Colorado for all will help strengthen our creative economy and reinforce the vital role arts and culture play in driving economic vitality,” said OEDIT Executive Director Eve Lieberman in a news release.

Colorado Creative Industries and Colorado Humanities jointly support the honorary position, providing the honoree with $10,000 annually. This year, an additional $5,000 will be available as part of the 250/150 commemoration work.

“Today, perhaps more than ever, our young people need poetry,” Apache said. “When a young person finds their voice through a poem, they aren’t just writing — they are building the vision for a more compassionate society and future. I hope my time in this role can serve as a bridge, helping young people discover the voices that will shape our futures.”

The Word, A Storytelling Sanctuary administered the application and selection process.

“Crisosto’s critical work and inspiring voice will invite all Coloradans to reflect upon our storied histories, contextualize the realities of today, and boldly imagine a future where all Coloradans can belong and thrive,” added Josh Blanchard, director of Colorado Creative Industries, in the release.

A new collection titled “Begin Where You Are, The Colorado Poets Laureate Anthology” features work from the first 10 Colorado Poets Laureate, including never-before-published poems by Gibson. It is published by University Press.

“The Poets Laureate help us to remember the past, process the present and inspire us to dream of the future we hope to create,” said Sarah Olivier, Executive Director of Colorado Humanities. “We are fortunate to have Crisosto fill a role that is so vital in this current moment.”

 To invite Crisosto Apache to your community, email poetlaureate@coloradohumanities.org.

Colorado Poets Laureate

• 1919-23: Alice Polk Hill
• 1923-52: Nellie Burget Miller
• 1952-54: Margaret Clyde Robertson
• 1954: Milford E. Shields
• 1979-88: Thomas Hornsby Ferril
• 1996-2010: Mary Crow
• 2010-14: David Mason
• 2014-18: Joseph Hutchison
• 2019-23: Bobby LeFebre
• 2023-25: Andrea Gibson
• 2026-27: Crisosto Apache

‘Carrizo,’ by Crisosto Apache

in my youth, I hitched a ride to San Diego, across

chirping desert and distant night, I gazed upon a slow-moving

dark, encasing a convex cerulean cavity

each night, I stood beneath the sky for hours mesmerized

at the perplex reformatory, twinkling lights of broken

glass fragments spreading against a glistening sunset

a faceless man behind a lost reflection of glass

at a drive-up window informs me,

too bad, you know nothing of your own past

how far will I walk against the night?

conforming to a captivity I had never realized

some years later, under the kitchen table, they all huddle,

as the rampage continues toward the back of the house,

a clash of debris from the other room recoils

and broken sounds escape the barricade of doors

I remember I returned in 1970,

all they remember is me sitting at the edge of my bed,

with the war still in my hands.