Former Boulder County Clerk Clela Rorex who was the first county clerk in the United States to issue a same-sex marriage, will be honored with her own day next week to mark her place in history.
The Boulder County Commissioners Thursday declared that July 23, 2022 is to be recognized as Clela Rorex Day in Boulder County. The proclamation is in “honor of an exceptional Boulder County resident and advocate for human rights and equality,” the commissioner’s proclamation states.
Rorex passed away on June 19, 2022 in Longmont and will be greatly missed by her sons and countless LGBTQ+ individuals and allies around the world who embrace her and her story as beacons of hope and inspiration, the proclamation states.
Rorex gained national notoriety when two men entered the Boulder County Clerk’s office on March 26, 1975 and requested a marriage license. Rorex sought confirmation from the assistant district attorney about any Colorado state law or code that would prohibit her from issuing the license to two people of the same sex.
After discovering there was no such prohibition, Rorez issued the marriage license.
Rorex said in 2016 that “After having been so deeply involved in the women’s rights movements, who was I to then deny a right to anyone else? It wasn't my job to legislate morality,” the proclamation states.
Within days of issuing the first same-sex marriage license, local and national news outlets picked up the story. Over the course of the next month, Rorex would issue five more licenses to same-sex couples. As a result, Rorex reported receiving hundreds of letters and calls to her office and her home condemning and threatening her, the proclamation states.
“My son would sometimes pick up the phone and I could always tell when it was someone calling about the licenses because he would get this terrified look in his eyes. It changed our lives,” the proclamation states.
Rorex, the commissioners said, was never an ‘armchair ally’ but instead a woman ahead of her time, who dedicated much of her life to feminist and LGBTQ+ allyship and advocacy, often volunteering with Out Boulder County and marching in local Pride parades.
The proclamation will be read aloud at Rorex’s memorial service. A celebration of her life will be held on what would have been her 79th birthday, July 23, 2022. Details are forthcoming, according to an obit in Out Boulder County’s website.
