A celebration of a lifetime
About last Saturday….WOW. We still can’t believe we got to celebrate our 25th Anniversary with so many fabulous folks, a whole 135+ of you to be exact. Our hearts are bursting at the seems with gratitude and a sense of connection.
From sponsors and partners, to past and current participants and from community members, to past Executive Directors, we had such a great time connecting with you all through workshops, games, and heartfelt conversations.
A special thank you to Guiding Mountain Dragon & Lion Dance Association (@gmliondance give them a follow!) for their incredible performance, to our partners Stio @stio, Cotopaxi @cotopaxi, REI @rei, Sierra Designs @sierradesigns, and Apline Bank @alpinebank who helped us celebrate with activities and prizes, and to our generous and fabulous friends at Boss Lady Pizza @bossladypizza and Lucy’s Bakehouse @luckysbakehouse who donated so much deliciousness!
As Kriste (our new Executive Director) reflected on this past weekend’s celebration, she wrote:
“Over the weekend, we hosted a 25th anniversary celebration at @womenswilderness as a way to meet the community, our sponsors, participants, and their families. It was also an opportunity to introduce myself as the new ED of the organization. I was struck by the outpouring of support from new and longstanding friends who love what we do, and the enthusiasm from people who had no idea about us was even more exciting.
I also met a woman whose two daughters had just completed our Discover Nature weeklong program, and she told me that her girls were able to join because of the financial aid we offer. Even better, she’d been able to participate in our adult courses. ‘We’re like the poster family for Women’s Wilderness,’ she said, ‘because our whole family can get involved!’
And that’s probably one of the highest compliments we can get as an organization – knowing that our offerings, from the programming and scholarships, skilled instruction and adventure, right down to the welcoming community keep our participants coming back. I even overheard a young man sharing that he loves Women’s Wilderness because his mom always comes home happy after our events.
It felt good to move beyond Zoom, finally bringing names to faces and playin in real time with corporate partners from Cotopaxi, Stio, Alpine Bank, and Sierra Designs. Boulder Climbing Community and Social Venture Partners were also on hand to celebrate with us. Guiding Mountain Lion Dance came out to spread good vibes to the community and to our house too!
The list of people to thank is longer than I have space for here, but the lasting impressions of how positively our work has impacted people is a powerful reminder of how important our relationships are and that even as we have room to improve, learn, and grow, the fact remains that we’re up to a whole lot of good, and that matters a lot.
There was pizza, games, and music, too, but it was the people. Really. It’s such a gift when you get to hang out and play with a bunch of amazing strangers who don’t feel like it. More of this, please and thank you.”
We couldn’t agree more and can’t wait to create more community events where we get to meet all of you, spread the WW mission, and further spark your love for the outdoors.
A huge thank you to everyone that joined us. We loved seeing old friends and making new ones, and we hope to see you on a course soon. And last but not least, thank you to our crew of the very best volunteers and staff on the planet 🫶🏻
If you’re also feeling the love from this event, please consider clicking on the button below and donating. Help us start the next 25 years strong!
