A promise was made back in 1979 to 35 individuals with disabilities that they could learn to ski. Thanks to the vision of Don Summers and the efforts of many others, while their friends and family members were learning to ski at Snoqualmie Pass, these individuals with disabilities would not be left behind. Instead, a commitment was made that they would be offered equal opportunities to learn to ski thanks to a new nonprofit, then called the Ski for All Foundation.
Thankfully, that promise of offering equal opportunities for outdoor recreation is a commitment that continues unabated today. In fact, while skiing programs will always be the cornerstone of our operations, the commitment made 36 year ago for equal opportunities to recreate outdoors has grown even stronger over the years.
Since the early 1990s, we’ve been offering a variety of other life-enriching activities such as cycling, kayaking, excursions and rock climbing. Last year, a record 2,428 unique children and adults with disabilities exercised their abilities outdoors thanks to Outdoors for All.
As we work to continue to deliver on the promise of our mission today – and as we plan for the strategic growth of our organization for tomorrow – we know that we need to have a blend of resources in place in order to be effective at enriching the lives of individuals with disabilities in the outdoors. We need:
• A well-trained staff team and cadre of volunteers;
• Funding for adaptive recreation equipment (camping gear, rock climbing ropes, snowboard boots, kayak paddles and more);
• Funding for vans, trucks and trailers to keep our mobile fleet available to deliver our therapeutic recreation programs throughout the region;
• Positive relationships with our partnering organizations like ski resorts, parks departments, school districts & schools, hospitals and more; and
• Improvements for our facilities such as our Alpine office at Snoqualmie Pass, our Adaptive Cycling Center and headquarters at Magnuson Park in Seattle.
We promise to continue to focus on developing these necessary resources for our current operations – and we promise to also update our plans for the future so that our mission may continue to grow.
We’ll do all of this (we hope) – with your continued support; and we’ll do all of this (we also hope) – with your continued input, too.
An important part of my job is to work with our volunteer board of directors and our staff to update our strategic plan and we want to hear from you. What do you want to see from Outdoors for All today and in the next coming years?
• More day camps (our summer day camps are already just about sold out)?
• More custom adaptive recreation events / Custom Events which we bring to disability groups, schools and parks programs throughout the Puget Sound Region and the Pacific Northwest?
• Improved individual programs and lessons in rock climbing, kayaking, skiing and cycling?
• An improved mountain base camp at Snoqualmie Pass?
• An improved headquarters at Magnuson Park?
• More programs for youth? Wounded warriors? Families?
What would you like us to focus on? Where and how would you like us to grow?
We need and welcome your input as we continue to plan for the future and deliver on the promise that was started 36 years ago.
So, talk with us, message us on Facebook, send me an email, give us a call! To enhance our plans, our volunteer board of directors and our staff want to hear from you. Please forward your comments about our 2015-17 Strategic Plan to me and I’ll share your comments with our Planning Committee: edbronsdon@outdoorsforall.org
We promise that we’ll listen; and we promise that we’ll continue to stay laser-focused on our vision for the future that “People of all abilities will be able to recreate whenever and wherever they choose.”
Thank you for your support. Let’s get outside and play!
Ed