Activities! This winter, our Buddy Pairs have benefited from a wide variety of enriching opportunities including snowshoeing with a nature tutorial at Ashcroft, an overnight at Up4Pizza on Snowmass Mountain with leadership coaching, cooking lessons and first tracks the next morning, and a special meet and greet with the inspirational X-Games athletes. Also, many of our Big and Little Buddies joined us last weekend for our annual Buddy Ski Day at Buttermilk. For most attending this activity, it was their first time to try skiing or snowboarding! (see below for more information)

Later this month, 13 of our dedicated teenage girls will partake in our Odyssey Hut Trip Program. These young women have committed to weekly Life Skills Sessions and Buttermilk hikes over the past month to mentally and physically prepare themselves for this challenging journey. After hiking over 2,000 vertical feet and covering 7-9 miles to a remote hut, participants will have the chance to reveal their personal struggles within a supportive environment of their group mentors and peers and learn techniques to overcome these challenges at home.

Click here for more information

On the other side of the office, we are planning our annual summer fundraisers: Boogie's Bash for the Buddies to be held on Friday, July 1st, and the Buddy 5-Mile Race, as always on the 4th of July. We are thrilled to announce that we are "Shaking It Up" this year! With the evolution of our mentoring programs going in a fresh and fundamental direction, we thought it was time to shake up our annual party. This year's Bash will be held on picturesque Aspen Mountain. Supporters will enjoy a Silent Auction, cocktails, and hors d'oeuvres from the best Aspen restaurants in a tented area of the Gondola Plaza and then will head up the Gondola to the Sundeck for a one-of-a-kind, exclusive dinner catered by the Little Nell... all the while enjoying the stunning view of the Elk Mountain Range at sunset. So, please SAVE THE DATE for the best party of the summer and more importantly, an essential fundraiser to support our Valley's youth.

Kindest regards,

Catherine Anne Provine, Executive Director