Susan Dalton has been a prominent member of the Western Slope community for over 20 years. Through serving on the board of directors for Mountainfilm Festival in Telluride and authoring four books detailing the history of some of Colorado’s largest cities, she has made a lasting impact on Colorado’s rich artistic culture.

Originally from Michigan, Dalton moved to Telluride in 2002 and quickly fell in love with the many touching presentations and films at Mountainfilm. In 2005, she worked with former festival director Arlene Burns to raise additional funding by organizing an event at the Sheridan Opera House. After raising enough money to put on that year’s festival, Dalton was invited to join Mountainfilm’s board of directors.

“The board recognized that Mountainfilm needed to run like a business, not an organization dependent on volunteers,” says Dalton. “We needed an office that was functioning full time.” Dalton and the board collaborated with the Asia Society to host a one-time fundraiser in New York City, which raised enough funds to reshape Mountainfilm’s management. The board was able to create full-time paying jobs within the organization and bring in more donors to continue supporting the festival.

After eight years as a board member for Mountainfilm, Dalton was invited to become a board member emeritus. Since then, she has treasured the opportunity to continue supporting the festival and Colorado’s vibrant art and outdoor culture. “The sheer natural beauty of the state reminds us of the majesty of nature and how important it is to preserve that for future generations,” says Dalton.

During her time on the foundation board of the American Hospital of Paris from 2008 to 2013, Dalton met Craig Stapleton, the U.S. ambassador to France at the time. Through his initiatives, she became close to government officials in Megève, a French ski resort village. Megève’s adjunct mayor contacted Dalton in search of someone to write a book about Telluride with a publishing company in northeastern France, and she seized the opportunity. “I had always wanted to write,” says Dalton. “And it was my perfect opportunity, especially since I knew the region of Alsace. Though I had no writing experience, a book about Telluride was something I could do.”

Dalton published Telluride: A Silver Past, a Golden Future in 2014, which features antique prints, maps and postcards detailing Telluride’s history as a mining town and transformation into one of Colorado’s quintessential ski resorts. Since then, she has published Durango: A Silver Past, a Golden Future and Denver: A Silver Past, a Golden Future to complete the series. Her latest book, Aspen Journey: Past to Present, was published in 2023 through her publishing company, Red Tambourine Publishing, LLC.

In 2024, Dalton received an alumni citation from Denison University for her accomplishments in authoring Colorado history and at Mountainfilm in Telluride.

Readers can purchase Aspen Journey from aspenjourney.com and Dalton’s three other books from her author website, coloradosnowstories.com.

Originally published in the Spring 2025 issue of Spoke+Blossom.

Susan Dalton Preserves Colorado’s Spirit Through Storytelling and Service