Base Camp Bash Debrief

Despite the spring blizzard of 2009, approximately 80 die hard Cottonwood Institute fans strapped on their snow shoes and winter gear to attend the Cottonwood Institute’s 4th Annual Base Camp Bash fundraising event at the Wynkoop Brewing Company in Denver. The Earth Day Ale was flowing as everyone got down to business bidding on their favorite silent auction items.

Dave Kagan, from Grand Rapids, MI, attended the event with his son Jeff Kagan, a Boulder resident, Environmental Educator, Cottonwood Institute Instructor, and one mean guitar player. Dave thoroughly enjoyed the night and was a lucky winner of a Cottonwood Institute vest and gift certificate to the Mountain Sun Restaurant and Brewery. Dave had only good things to say about the Bash: “I was very impressed with the people and organization of the event. It was very well put together, educational and laid back. I learned a lot from the slide show presentation about the mission of the Cottonwood Institute and where it is going. There was a nice feeling about the whole event, and I felt a real warmth from Ford and everyone who attended. We had a really good time and enjoyed the whole evening.”

Robbie Knight, from 99.5FM The Mountain helped Emcee the event and really helped make this a fabulous evening. She plugged the silent auction items and really helped highlight the purpose of the Base Camp Bash: to raise money to underwrite the Community Adventure Program in public schools in the Boulder/Denver area and to fund the Jason F. Griffith Scholarship Fund for our 2009 Summer Courses.

After tallying the donations, we ended up just $3,000 short of our fundraising goal. Unfortunately, many people who had planned to attend, could not make it through the blizzard to Denver where the event was held. In the week following the Bash, two anonymous donors stepped up to the plate to offer matching gift challenges up to $3,000 to help us reach our final goal. If you were unable to attend the Bash it not too late to contribute! You can still make a donation by clicking the link to DONATE NOW, or by simply head down to the Wynkoop Brewing Company before the end of April to enjoy a tasty pint of Earth Day Ale.

To check out a slide show of the 2009 Base Camp Bash: Click Here.

Base Camp Bash Silent Auction Pre-Bidding Has Begun!

The Base Camp Bash is this Friday, April 17, 2009 from 7-10pm at the Wynkoop Brewing Company in downtown Denver and we hope you can attend this amazing event. It is not too late to buy tickets, so for tickets and information, Click Here.

If you cannot attend this year, but you would still like to support us by participating in our fabulous Silent Auction, you can place a pre-bid on any of our silent auction items. Pre-bids must be submitted by 5pm on Thursday, April 16, 2009. Pre-bids will start the bidding at the silent auction at the Base Camp Bash on Friday, April 17, 2009, so if you really want something bid high! To place a bid, please contact Ford Church at 303.447.1076 or Click Here to email your bid.

Here are a few highlights from this year’s Silent Auction:

• Vacation Packages: Fabulous trips including trips to New Orleans, Seattle, Beaver Creek, and wine tasting in California. Bid Now!
• Music and Events: Tickets to The Dead, eTown, festival passes to the 2009 Boulder Adventure Film Festival, and more. Bid Now!
• Outdoor Items: Great outdoor gear including a Mountain Hardwear tent, a SPOT Satellite Messenger tracking device, Survival Kits, and more. Bid Now!
• Restaurants: Great gift certificates to your favorite restaurants in Boulder and Denver, including the Mountain Sun, The Kitchen, Hapa Sushi, Snooze, Fluid Coffee Bar, and more. Bid Now!

We hope to see you at the Bash on Friday! If you have any questions, please contact me via Email or by phone at 303.447.1076.

Thank you so much for all of your support!

Wynkoop’s Earth Day Ale to Support the Cottonwood Institute

Do you want to know a really easy way to support the Cottonwood Institute? For the whole month of April the Wynkoop Brewing Company in Denver, CO will be featuring an Earth Day Ale and Wynkoop recently announced that a percentage of every pint sold will benefit the Cottonwood Institute!

According to Ford Church, the Cottonwood Institute’s Founder and Executive Director, “Wynkoop is really walking their talk in terms of environmental sustainability and reducing their environmental footprint. This promotion is another example of how they are also reaching out to the community to support small nonprofits in these challenging economic times to lend a helping hand. We are very appreciative and hope people come down to Wynkoop to enjoy a tasty Earth Day Ale!”

This generous donation will help support our educational programs and the Jason F. Griffith Scholarship Fund, which will help make our Summer Courses more accessible to students during these challenging economic times. This another great reason to join us for our upcoming Base Camp Bash, held at the Wynkoop Brewing Company on Friday, April 17th, 2009, from 7-10 PM. We hope to see you at the Bash, but in the meantime head on down to Wynkoop and enjoy a refreshing Earth Day Ale!