in ski school to 180 enrolled in the 2016-2017 season. This season, additional staff will help Emily manage programming (she’s largely run things single-handedly since that inaugural season), and the foundation will keep growing. Marmot has played a huge role in the foundation’s inception and success. In fact, each season culminates in the MarmotCoombs Classic at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, a springtime celebration that, according to the resort’s website, encourages participants to “finish off the year strong—just like Doug.” Marmot has sponsored Doug and Emily since the 1990s, when both were extreme skiers globetrotting the world in search of their next adventure. After Doug’s death in 2006, Marmot continued to support Emily’s endeavors. “When I started the foundation, they wanted to help in any way they could,” she said. Marmot began providing high-quality ski jackets to kids in the program. Participating children keep the jackets at the end of the ski season, then swap them out for a bigger size when they outgrow them. The Foundation accepts as many students as possible every year, with a focus on accepting participants from low-income
Doug was about breaking barriers and taking people places they wouldn’t otherwise go. That’s what the foundation does with kids, and it’s grown from 28 students the first year to 180 now. families. Emily and the foundation’s new executive director, Mary Ericksen, said one of their primary enrollment goals is to not turn anyone away. After they’re accepted, the foundation then enrolls children in ski school at Snow King, the local ski hill in Jackson, where they ski a couple of days a week during the winter. Some end up really incredible skiers within a couple of seasons—but, as organizers note, that’s not really the point. “It’s really not about teaching kids to ski,” said Ericksen. “It’s watching kids come into their own, find self-esteem, find themselves. It’s helping them to be a part of the community, and they learn that they can do anything. The skiing is secondary.” It’s also important to make sure kids are having fun. “Doug was always saying, ‘That was the best day of my life!’” Emily recalled. “We want to take these kids out for the best days of their lives so far.” The foundation’s programming doesn’t end when the snow begins to melt. During the summer, Emily and other staff members lead hikes. And local outfitter Exum Mountain Guides, for whom Doug worked a number of years as a certified IFMGA mountain guide, takes kids on rock climbing outings in nearby Grand Teton National Park during warmer months. “That’s part of Doug’s legacy, too—we didn’t just stop skiing and watch TV all summer,” Emily said. “Then the ski season comes around again, and you’re prepared.” Just as important as the programming is the outreach the Doug Coombs Foundation provides to families, many of whom aren’t familiar with seemingly high-risk sports like skiing and rock climbing. “It isn’t just a financial thing,” Ericksen pointed out. “We have to make sure families know about what their kids are doing and feel welcome.” The foundation works with Snow King and local gear shops to provide discounted lift tickets and rentals to family members of students. Last season, several parents and older siblings tried skiing, too. One parent even made an ascent of 13,755foot Grand Teton. The foundation also hopes it can serve as a model for similar programs in other mountain towns. In the meantime, however, Jackson Hole’s up-and-coming athletes are upholding the Coombs legacy every time they hit the slopes. “If Doug could show up one day and ski with these kids at Snow King, he’d be blown away,” Emily said. “These kids will grow up and carry that spirit of adventure that Doug had.” Used with permission from Marmot. Story originally appeared at Marmot.com. w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t
2018
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