Fund Fest Leverages Gifts

January 18, 2016January 19, 2016Leave a comment

You may have heard that Ridge-A-Thon is expanding in an effort to make it’s appeal broader and its funding impact stronger. The Community Foundation has long wanted to make a bigger splash with our winter event at Taos Ski Valley, and this year is proving to be the perfect time to launch. For the 20th anniversary, TCF wants to get more people participating on the mountain, meaning more people talking to their friends and neighbors, and more people giving to the cause.

When a donor gives to a TCF Fund Fest Participant their gift has several impacts. First, the donation is applied to the fundraising totals of the participant they give to, making the participant eligible for awards and prizes. That donation will be designated by the participant toward the nonprofit cause they support, and then, the donation will be matched from pennies on the dollar up to 1:1 based on the volume of donations made by businesses and individuals in order to leverage the excellent fundraising work of the community.

The Taos Community Foundation Winter Fund Fest, and the Ben Myers Ridge-A-Thon are all about improving Community Health outcomes in the Taos area. Taos Ski Valley is playing a major role in the initiative to expand Ridge-A-Thon’s snowsports fundraising model to include local nonprofits, families and skiers/boarders of all ages and abilities under the Fund Fest umbrella, and they are doing so as the lead Challenger for the match pool. Over the next few years, there will be more surprises to come from this weekend event, as the fun and the fundraising impact grow stronger!

A Big Birthday

March 21, 2015November 23, 2015Leave a comment

So it’s Ridge-A-Thon’s 19th year, and today is Ben Myers’ 45th birthday.
The weather and snow conditions were variable, the storm of Thursday rolled through Friday, and then cleared up on Saturday. In one participant’s words “this year was brutal”, which brought our athletes back to the Looking Glass sun-kissed and ready to relax.

The snow conditions kept numbers lower for runs completed, but valiant efforts were made by all. Our ‘Most Ripping’ U-18s were Forest Rach of team ThunderLizards, 15, with 26 runs and Angie Burns, 8, with 4! Both received a Mona Van Riper Designs Skier pin. Our ‘Most Ripping’ Adults were Mike Engelhardt for the men with 45 runs taken, and for the ladies, Eliana Lerman of team Peregrine Falcons with 12, both receiving Mona’s classic bronze El Borracho pins. Former NM Governor Gary Johnson was on Engelhardt’s trail, coming up just short with 42 runs. With the third most runs taken was the Family Burns, who not only took 31 runs, and raised over $1,200 dollars, they also won two of our Big Kahuna prizes, Ross won the NeverSummer Industries snowboard, and Naty won a pair of Lange Boots!

Team Edelweiss’ Kent Forte and Jonathan Kushner raised the most funds bringing in over $4,500 for the Emergency Medicines Fund for the 5th year running! They also managed to hike 27 runs on the weekend. We had quite a few teams break into the thousands this year on their fundraising efforts. As of the event awards party we have received over $24,800 in donations and pledges. We were missing two of our biggest fundraisers this year, Mike “Red” Wagener on a knee injury, and one of our Grannies, Edy Anderson, who is always one of our biggest cheerleaders and fundraisers. Second most successful fundraisers were the Millie and Jessica Savages bringing in $3,219, then our Grannies – who happened to all be Gramps this year – with $2,558, and the Peregrine Falcons’ Ryan Debue and Eliana Lerman with $2,265.

Athan Miller from Golden, Colorado who donated to Millie and Jessica Savages won our huge BookTaos.com $5,000 vacation raffle, and all our athletes went home with amazing gifts, swag, the 2015 tshirt and Big Kahuna raffle prizes from our sponsors.

More details, thank yous and results are forthcoming. For now, suffice it to say, it was another Ben Myers Ridge-A-Thon, another beautiful opportunity for all of us to feel really good about giving back and going the extra mile for the people and things we believe in.

Photo by Kevin Rebholtz

Sponsors that RAWK!

March 12, 2013February 5, 2015Leave a comment

The prizes are piling up around the office, and that may be annoying to SOME people, but it doesn’t bother me. We have a fine collection of hard goods from our industry sponsors, like K2 and Never Summer Industries, and serious stacks of goodies from some of our favorite local businesses. Oh let’s see here….We have gift certificates to La Chiripada Winery‘s Tasting Room – right here in Taos, which, if you have not visited, is quite a treat for aprés ski, or aprés shop. We have a punch-card from Northside Health and Fitness, and a great eats gift certificate for Orlando’s New Mexican Cafe in El Prado (soon to open second location on the south side in the old Lula’s/Pizza Emergency building)! What else? We have got a sweet Babolat tennis racket and strings with free string and tune from Kurt at Taos Tennis at the Quail Ridge, and a gift certificate to support your daily grind in el norte, from Elevation Coffee, and one more for everyone’s favorite happy hour and comfort-food, at the Alley Cantina just off the plaza. Moby Dickens has donated two $25 gift certificates toward your collection of good reads. And someone is going to get to take a pal and fly the gorge in a Pueblo Balloon!

Now, I know you liked those options, BUT, there are some more excellent rewards up for grabs at the event award party….Seriously – you could win a two night stay or $100 to the restaurant at the Southwest’s celebrated, authentic old-world home cooking and alpin-lodge, The Bavarian, right on the slopes at TSV and I am almost sad that I have to work instead of hike because I really, really want to stay there and eat too much delicious spätzle. You could also get lucky and win another great lodging prize from The Historic Taos Inn, or food from Doc Martin’s restaurant. They kindly offered one night and brunch downtown in the cozy atmosphere of the “Living Room of Taos” with live music nightly. We have certificates from 999dine.com for Sabroso Restaurant and Bar in gorgeous Arroyo Seco. And SOMEONE is going to win a TSV Millennium Pass.

After the exertion of fund raising and ridge hiking, some of you may prefer a pampering – and Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs has sweetly sent us almost a dozen mid-week day passes, while Vapour Organic Beauty has donated a gift certificate for their line of beautiful, luminous, natural beauty products, you will surely want to know more about them if you haven’t heard before. Golightly Cashmere’s Chocolate + Cashmere on lower Bent Street has also offered up a certificate for some posh and plush feel-goods. We have artisan silver Jewelry from Mona Van Riper (the Taos Skeleton Ski Bum pin), and a beautiful cuff copper and silver bracelet from Mesa’s Edge at the Ski Valley.

Don’t forget to bring registration forms and your collected pledges (CHECKS MADE OUT TO TAOS COMMUNITY FOUNDATION memo: Raise the Ridge – athlete name) to the mountain with you Friday or Saturday morning. Have fun – there’s no need to break a record for runs, just raise some funds, come enjoy a Ski Valley weekend, and live it!

The 50th Anniversary K2/Rolling Stones AT Rockers!

The Never Summer Industries SL series board is versatile, for many riding styles and all-terrain.

Prizes are Coming In

January 18, 2013February 5, 2015Leave a comment

We have secured some excellent top prizes this year, and things are starting to roll in the doors at the Community Foundation. We’ve got a sweet Never Summer Industries snowboard and a pair of fatty Völkl Gotamas waiting for you. Pics to come!

Register Today

December 27, 2012February 19, 2014Leave a comment

OK. It’s not too late to get those tax-deductible pledge contributions while you’re enjoying winter break. Register today to participate in the Ridge-A-Thon March 22 and 23 2013 and help Raise the Ridge for the Emergency Medicines Fund. Download your packet here or pick one up at the Taos Community Foundation.