February 11, 2015–
“Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wilderness is a necessity.” -John Muir
At our Black Tie & Tennis Shoes Gala in October, we heard a compelling presentation from James Mills, journalist and author of The Adventure Gap. Mills writes, “That boundary between the many who play it safe and the few who push beyond their limitations to achieve great things in the natural world is the adventure gap that people must cross to fulfill their dreams.”
In an effort to close the adventure gap and help students from all backgrounds discover there is more in them than they know, we launched the ASCEND Program in 2013. Through this program, we partner with schools like STRIVE Prep and DSST to take groups of students out of their comfort zones and beyond city limits. Students discover leadership skills, a strength of character and teambuilding skills that they can take back to their classrooms, their families and their communities.
We recently spent some time talking about this with Gloria Neal, well-known for her journalism with CBS4 Denver and her service to the community. Gloria believes that celebrating Black History Month is not only about honoring history, but about making history. And she’s doing just that. So naturally, we met her at the climbing gym. And here’s how it went.
Many thanks to our ASCEND program supporters including: the Daniels Fund, Anschutz Foundation, Carson Foundation, North Face Explore Fund, Wells Fargo Foundation, and Mabel Hughes Charitable Trust. To learn more about the ASCEND Program and how you can get involved, contact Darcy Struckhoff at [email protected].
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