Hundreds of mourners gathered on the west side of the Colorado Capitol in the brisk December air Friday to memorialize state Senator Faith Winter, who died at 45 in a car crash last week.

Friends, family and colleagues remembered the Broomfield Democrat as an “altruistic” public servant who followed a steady moral compass during her career and life. More than anything, they spoke about her love for and commitment to her family and friends.

“It’s easy to see that she made an outsized impact in her short time. But to me, it’s not what she accomplished that’s remarkable, but it’s how she accomplished it — with empathy, humility and inclusivity,” Jessica Walker, a lifelong friend of Winter’s, said. “Kindness was her North Star.”

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The memorial was attended by many current and former elected officials of both parties, including Governor Jared Polis, members of the state’s congressional delegation and state lawmakers. Nearly everyone wore orange, Winter’s favorite color, or buttons that read “Lift As You Rise,” a nod to Winter’s ethos of creating better pathways and environments for everyone, especially women interested in public service.

“She knew that our state could be a better place, and she focused tirelessly on making it so,” Polis said. “When Faith was on your team, she was a fierce ally, 100 percent committed to the cause.”

Winter died in a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 25 near Dry Creek Road on Nov. 26. The cause of the crash, one of two that occurred around the same time along the same stretch of the highway, is still under investigation. Her autopsy could take a month to finish.

Winter is survived by her two teenage children, Sienna and Tobin Snook. She was engaged to Matt Gray, a former Democratic state representative.

“My mom put so much love out into the world, which is why we feel her absence so strongly,” Sienna Snook said. “She didn’t need a reason for fighting to fight for others. She did because she knew that her voice was made for helping those who didn’t have one.”

Snook said that every night her mother would read her a “feminist story to show me to shoot for the moon.”

Elevating women’s voices

Speakers highlighted Winter’s public policy successes, including championing the successful ballot measure in 2020 that created a state-run paid family and parental leave program.

“She didn’t just win paid leave in Colorado,” said Dawn Huckelbridge, the leader of the national Paid Leave for All campaign. “She won it after fight after fight — after introducing it, after flipping the Senate and then taking it to the ballot for the very first time in this country, ignoring every naysayer and winning.”

Winter also sponsored a major transportation funding bill in 2021 that imposes fees on fuel, deliveries and ride-shares to fund transit and transportation projects. During this year’s regular session, she ran a bill to further protect reproductive health care access in Colorado.

As a representative in 2018, Winter alleged sexual harassment by fellow lawmaker Steve Lebsock, setting the stage for the House to expel him.

She became the assistant majority leader in the Senate in 2023.

Winter previously worked as the director of Emerge Colorado, an organization that recruits and trains women to run for public office. Many mourners spoke about Winter’s commitment to elevating women’s voices and helping them ascend to positions of power.

“Because she was only one person and only had so many hours in each day, she trained others on how to step up and do the work and build the bench that we needed to bring the change that she sought. And I was one of thousands who benefited from that,” said U.S. Representative Brittany Pettersen, a Lakewood Democrat who served in the Colorado Legislature with Winter and first met her in a fellowship program.

“She said ‘You should run for office,’” Pettersen said. “I immediately laughed and replied that people like me don’t run for office. And she said ‘Isn’t that the problem?’”

While many people spoke through tears about Winter’s life and legacy, the atmosphere was also celebratory. Speakers played upbeat music from artists including Taylor Swift and Kesha, two of Winter’s favorites, before and after the memorial service. Large photos of her with her two children flanked the podium. The steps of the Capitol were adorned with vibrant flowers, arranged by Representative Jenny Willford, a Northglenn Democrat.

“She loved gerbera daisies and sunflowers because they were bright and bold,” Willford said. “They are cheerful blooms that match her energies — the kind of flowers that don’t shy away from the sun. They turn towards it, just like she did.”