By Maddie Interdonato
Last Spring, Monarch Community Outreach awarded Alpine Achievers Initiative with a small grant to purchase 35 pairs of snowshoes. On New Years Eve at our Winter Camp, we broke them in by exploring the hills west of Saguache.
The idea came last Winter when snowstorm after snowstorm hindered our ability to get our kids outside and active. There is nothing as fun as playing in the snow in the Winter, so purchasing a set of snowshoes seemed like the perfect solution.
Monarch Community Outreach (MCO) is a Non-Profit Organization associated with Monarch Mountain and its employees that provides aid and service to their community. They focus on areas including humanitarian, individuals in need, and community support when deciding where their funds will go. We reached out to them and explained our dilemma. They awarded us with enough funds for 15 youth snowshoes and 20 adult snowshoes so that we can play outside year round.
We finally got to break them in on New Years Eve at Winter Camp. Sixteen kids, three AmeriCorps members and one of our board members trekked through the snow with their new snowshoes. Despite the barely double digit temperatures, they had fun in the sun as they figured out how to walk with these strange contraptions strapped to their feet.
The kids had a blast, saying things like, “Wow, this is fun!”, “Can I eat the snow?” and “I think i put these on upside down.”
We have so much gratitude towards MOC and their members. It is due to generosity from community members, businesses and organizations that we are able to continue providing quality programming for our youth. Thank you!
