The Center has awarded more than $70,000 in grants to 20 organizations across the region to support projects that help get more people involved in outdoor recreation.

“We’re thrilled to support the amazing work being done by communities and organizations across the region to get people connected outdoors and connected to the Northern Forest,” said Joe Fox, outdoor recreation manager for the Center. Fox added that requests for funding this summer outnumbered available funds by a factor of nearly 10 to 1 this year.

The community grant program is part of the Center’s overall outdoor recreation strategy, which aims to foster a regional outdoor recreation economy that generates dynamic business opportunities, helps retain and attract people to live in rural communities, honors local culture, and inspires public appreciation and stewardship of the forested landscape

The Center awarded grants to support a wide range of strategies that organizations are using to increase youth connections and access to the outdoors:

Adaptive Sports Partners, which serves northern New Hampshire and the Northeast Kingdom, is purchasing communication systems that allow blind and visually impaired athletes to communicate safely with guides during activities like skiing, snowboarding, biking, kayaking, and climbing. According to Executive Director Kelly Starr, the units will “allow for smoother and more efficient guidance, while enhancing comfort and safety.”

Vermont Huts and Trails’ “FOREST” Program (Fostering Outdoor Recreation, Education, Sustainability, and Teamwork) is using its grant to reach more students in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. Development Director Dani Kehlmann explains that the program helps students learn “about their natural environment, how to care for themselves and others in the woods, and what makes Vermont’s trails and forests special.”

Outdoor Sport Institute (OSI) in the Katahdin region, uses its grant to support its summer internship program, which offers meaningful employment to young people exploring careers in outdoor leadership. “They are working with several groups across the region on projects focused on collaborative youth programming, trail stewardship, visitor and user education, and activation of key regional recreational assets,” said OSI Executive Director Mike Smith. This summer’s interns are helping to advance several projects that align with a regional outdoor recreation investment strategy that the Center coordinated.

The Center also awarded grants for trail stewardship tools, summer camp transportation assistance, mountain bikes for a growing youth program, and other projects.

“We’re grateful to LL Bean and to the RK Mellon Foundation for helping to fund these grants that enable more people to get involved in outdoor recreation in their communities,” said Fox.

Projects Funded in 4 States

MAINE

• Main Street Skowhegan: $5,000 — Youth mountain biking program.
• Mt. Abram Ski Club: $5,000 — Scholarships for winter snow sports for area youth.
• Rangeley Region Guides and Sportsmen’s Association: $1,200 — Youth nature education program.
• Outdoor Sport Institute: $30,000 — Funding to support for four summer interns.
• Island Falls Recreation Department: $3,000 — River Walk Trail along the Mattawamkeag River.
• Town of Medway: $4,500 —  New youth paddling program.
• Schenck High School: $1,270 — Tools for a program to engage students in stewardship of trails abutting the school’s campus.
• Town of Millinocket: $2,500 — Support for an adaptive friendly swing for a town park.
• Inland Woods and Trails: $5,000 — Support for a program engaging New Americans in outdoor recreation programming.
• Mahoosuc Kids Association: $5,000 — Transportation assistance for youth programming.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

• Adaptive Sports Partners: $3,000— Communication devices for visually impaired athletes to be able to talk to coaches.
• Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust:  $3,533 — Tools, staff support, and bridge lumber for several trail projects.
• Nansen Ski Club: $4,940 —  Local Nordic and ski jumping team.
• Coos Cycling Club: $3,000 — Support for a youth mountain biking camp.

VERMONT

• Northwoods Stewardship Center: $5,000— Support for a Clyde River-based, multi-faceted paddling program.
• Vermont Huts and Trails: $4,000 — Series of youth retreats of a Northeast Kingdom –based school district to VT Huts.

NEW YORK

• Backcountry Youth Foundation: $5,000 — Subsidies for kids in Crown Point and Moriah, NY to downhill ski.
• Village of Canton: $1,320 — Cost offset for a summer hiking program.
• Champlain Area Trails: $5,000 — Support of the “CATS for Kids” youth program.
• Elizabethtown Social Center: $5,000 — Support for the “GRIT” youth program.