Chris Leppek

Chris Leppek, IJN assistant editor, is a consummate and lifelong writer. He has won many Rockower Award for Excellence in Jewish Journalism for his articles in spot news, investigative reporting, feature writing and other categories. Chris has a special love for historical inquiry and has uncovered many hitherto unknown aspects and personalities of Denver Jewish history. He has focused on Denver’s Lavender Hill Mob, the Elsner family, Naphtali Herz Imber and “Big Ed” Johnson. Journalism has been Chris’ only career. He served in the US Navy Seabees as a journalist, covering his unit’s activities across three oceans. He started with the IJN in 1977 as a staff writer and now supervises the paper’s wire service editing and archives, in addition to writing, of course. Chris and his wife Lisa have two sons, Noah, 29, and Adam, 25. They live in South Denver. In his spare time, Chris enjoys writing fiction, including mysteries and horror.