Manitou Springs’ Mardi Gras celebration turns non-profit to keep tradition alive

MANITOU SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - Since the early 1980s, the Manitou Springs "Carnivale" founders organized the Mardi Gras event largely through their own private funding and sporadic private donations, according to organizers.

After turning the event over to the Manitou Springs Chamber of Commerce in 2017, board members realized it was time for a change.

"With Carnivale coming up in March, folks were starting to retire, so to speak," said co-chair of ManiKrewe Carnivale committee Jenna Gallas. "Getting the next generation involved, we really needed to set up the vehicle to get us there, and that's what this non-profit's doing."

The new model brings the Mardi Gras party to Manitou Springs months sooner than previously experienced. For its second year, Manitou Springs will host "Pardi Gras" on November 14, at a fundraising dinner where the crew will announce the theme for 2025.

"It's just a little fundraiser so that we can help to pay for the logistics and the physical things that need to be put into place to have this parade," said co-chair of ManiKrewe Carnivale committee Laura Ettinger-Harwell. "It's just one more way to raise money, but also keep the community engaged."

Gallas and Harwell are already busy fundraising in anticipation of their November 14 Pardi Gras. Gallas hosts game nights to raise money for the 2025 Carnivale every Tuesday night at her bar Armadillo Ranch in Manitou Springs.

Carnivale is scheduled for March 1, 2025.