Top 5 Reasons To Come To The 2011 Base Camp Bash

We are a few days away from the sixth annual Base Camp Bash on Saturday, April 30th, 2011 to benefit the Cottonwood Institute and everyone is buzzing with excitement! If you don’t have your tickets yet, here are the Top 5 Reasons to come to the 2011 Base Camp Bash:

5. Amazing food from Snooze!

4. Colorado beer from Wynkoop Brewing Company, wine from Mondo Vino, and spirits from Leopold Bros.

3. An adventurous silent auction with fabulous trips, concert and event tickets, restaurant gift certificates and more. And don’t forget the pre-bidding has started, so to learn more Click Here.

2. A chance to network with the movers and shakers of Denver/Boulder.

1. Let’s not forget that we’re doing all of this to help connect kids to the outdoors!

Buy Your Tickets Today: We can only sell 200 tickets and when they are gone, they are gone, so don’t miss out! Get your tickets today by Clicking Here.

We are so grateful for our sponsors, including: 5280 Magazine, Exclusive Resorts, Snooze, CoBiz Financial, The Kenneth King Foundation, CASI, Mile Hi Specialty Foods, Scout Cleaning and Maintenance, St. Charles Capital, Whitewave Foods, and all of our patron level donors!

Earth Task Force Helps New Vista High School Win National Green Prize

In February 2011, the Earth Task Force (ETF) put together a team of students and adults to write an application for the National Environmental Education Foundation to help fund sustainability initiatives at their school. Despite the stiff competition nationally, we are thrilled to announce that New Vista High School (NVHS) has been awarded the Green Prize in Public Education, along with a $10,000 prize!

Upon winning the award Kirk Quitter, Principal said, “I am incredibly proud of our community for winning this award. It would not have been possible without the hard work and amazing cooperation between teachers, students, our school and our nonprofit partner, the Cottonwood Institute.”

When two students, inspired after taking the Community Adventure Program (CAP) class, approached us about starting an environmental club at NVHS, we never dreamed where it would go. Those two students grew to three, then four, six, and in fall 2011 about eighteen students!

The ETF has done a number of enormously successful projects from local lunches to solar panel systems to transportation transformation to low flow toilets. The money they received from the Green Prize will be used to continue those efforts to help provide more efficient windows, a green roof, and a drip irrigation for the garden.

CAP and the ETF have been the twin engines powering NVHS towards sustainability. This momentum has been picked up by the community at large, with teachers and students across the curriculum taking actions to green the school, from a student run composting program, to a focus on energy efficient retrofits as the school makes decisions about what to do with their bond money.

The ETF has been getting the attention of the media recently as well. Click Here to read an article that appeared in the Boulder Daily Camera. They were also interviewed on KGNU 88.5FM last week.

Working with the community at NVHS, the support of the Cottonwood Institute and the incredible students and adults of the ETF has shown us through action what Margaret Mead said so well, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

A special thanks goes out to Earth Task Force students Kelly Muller & Seth Blum, New Vista teachers Kate Hartman and Andy Stephens, and the Cottonwood Institute’s Earth Task Force Mentor, Paige Doughty for writing and editing the Green Prize Grant.

This article was written by Paige Doughty, our Earth Task Force Mentor, and edited by Ford Church.

Whistling Dixie At The Base Camp Bash Patron Party

The 2011 Base Camp Bash is almost two weeks away, but we couldn’t resist celebrating early at the Bash Patron Party last Thursday and people are still whistling Dixie.

We met at the private home of Stephen and Genie Waters in Denver, CO and our theme was “Denver Welcomes New Orleans.” Guests were greeted by a Dixieland Jazz Band led by Lance Acker and the Acker Jazztet. Daniel Kuhlman, the owner from Tastes Wine Bar and Bistro, paired a variety of Colorado wines from Two Rivers Winery, Garfield Estates, and The Infinite Monkey Theorem with New Orleans dishes, including shrimp remoulade, jambalaya, red beans and rice, and Colorado beef tenderloin.

Don’t miss out on the next party. The 2011 Base Camp Bash is Saturday, April 30th, 2011 from 7 – 10pm at Gallery 1261 in Denver to benefit the Cottonwood Institute. Tickets are limited and are going fast, so to buy tickets, Click Here.

New Leaders Step Up At The Cottonwood Institute

New leaders have been stepping up at the Cottonwood Institute the past few months. We are excited to have April Pishna, our Adventure Coordinator for the past two years, become our first Program Director! She will be responsible for working with our educational partners and instructors to make sure we deliver fun, high quality, high impact programs for our students. Madeline Bachner is still teaching the Community Adventure Program at New Vista High School and is stepping into our Adventure Coordinator role.

New board members have also been working hard behind the scenes to infuse fresh passion, energy, and ideas. Marley Steele-Inama, Education Research and Evaluation Manager at the Denver Zoo recently joined the board to help improve our program logic model and evaluation tools. Jack Derby, a Certified Financial Planner from the Derby Financial Group, is our board Treasurer. Janet Woods, Vendor Manager at Avnet Technology Solutions, is our board Secretary and marketing guru. Chris Zook, Vice President at Q Advisors, is the new Chairman of the Board.

The compass is set and we are so excited about the direction the Cottonwood Institute is headed!

Operation: Military Kids With A Twist!

We experienced a new twist in the evolution of the Operation: Military Kids Essential Survival Skills course – family participation!  10 folks from 4 families, converged at the Colorado Lions Camp to challenge their carnivorous and cooperative edges. We learned about survival priorities, wild edibles, sustainable harvesting, camp craft, fire craft, stalking and wilderness walking. We were even treated with deer venison – Yum!  We learned how to work together and make decisions as a group, and how to take these skills back to our everyday lives.

In the face of the frost-covered forest floor, fire bans, and the chilly mountain air, participants still wanted more with phrases like, “why can’t this be longer?!” and “will we do it again?”

Check out our newest course: Operation: Military Kids Family Survival Skills Overnight, July 16-17, 2011 and stay tuned about what will we learn this time.

Click Here to view a slideshow of the activities and relive the adventures of the weekend!

A special thanks to Operation: Military Kids, Colorado Lions Camp, and our brave military families for making this trip possible.

This article was written by Jason Lawrence and edited by April Pishna.

 

CAP Turned Out The Lights On Another Quarter

The third quarter of the Community Adventure Program (CAP) for the 2010-2011 school year came to a close as spring started to emerge around us. While the class was very excited for a week of relaxation, spring break meant no more CAP.  It was a little bittersweet for all of us after a very enjoyable and successful two months. The intelligent and fun nature of the students, the overnights, and Action Project created a very effective learning experience in CAP.

“Over the past quarter of taking CAP, I feel as if I have grown more as a person than I have from any other class in a very long time.  Even though CAP defies the laws of conventional academics, I feel as if I pushed my brain to think harder about the world than I would have in any purely academic class.” -Alexander R. Brown

Spontaneous Colorado weather allowed for the quarter to start out on a positive note with a few beautiful hikes at Chautauqua Park. From the beginning, the students in the class started building relationships with each other to create an inclusive community that nicely balanced silliness and hard work. On the trails and in the classroom, students learned about different plants we can find here in Colorado, outdoor skills, environmental issues, and prepared for the exciting overnights.

“I felt that the most calming time of the whole of CAP was looking out into Brainard Lake.  I felt very isolated but very connected at the same time.” – Luke Jirman

“CAP is still the most amazing class as far as I’m concerned, and I have a whole list of new experiences under my belt as a bonus.” – Maddy Green

With that foundational enthusiasm, students became very interested in exploring energy consumption and efficiency.  A field-trip to two LEED certified buildings, the North Boulder Recreation Center and Casey Middle School, inspired the 3rd Quarter CAP Action Project that focused on raising awareness about how much energy New Vista consumes and ways to reduce the carbon footprint. The students learned a lot about energy, lighting, and working together as a group.

“Our Action Project has shown me how inefficient we are at home and at school and how it can be changed so that we can use less energy to do the things we do every day.”  -Meagan Traylor

Overall, the longer third quarter flew by! The classroom and the overnights were always entertaining, creating movement in a positive direction and enhancing the community of CAP.

“All in all,this has been one of the best learning experiences a high school student can get.”  -Hannah Tuton

“My favorite part about our class is our willingness to share their thoughts and opinions and skills with everyone else. The outstanding aspect of this class that has been shown to me is that being yourself and showing your own ideas and perspectives makes it all the better…” -Luke Jirman

This article was written by Sinead Maguire and edited by Madeline Bachner.