Film fest funds outdoor classroom

SANDPOINT — Attend a movie festival; throw down a couple bucks for raffle tickets; jot your name on the list for some very cool silent auction items; change the lives of local kids forever.

That’s the plan for Nov. 22, when the 9th annual Winter Wildlands Alliance Backcountry Film Festival comes to the Panida Theater. The showings, sponsored by Sandpoint-based Sandpoint Outdoor Leadership & Education, will feature 10 independent films that celebrate the backcountry winter experience.

Included in the collection are three award-winning shorts. “Valhalla” is about a quest into the frozen north, “Bolton Valley” tells the story of how a small town saved its ski area, and “Bigger Braver” is the tale of a young female athlete who finds courage through big mountain adventure.

And while the films are exceptional and the auction items and raffle prizes are impressive, SOLE executive director Dennison Webb noted that a strong turnout for the film festival is the most important part of the event. That’s because having enough ticket buyers will help the organization make a large impact with a relatively small amount of money.

“The film festival raised about $6,000 last year, which allowed us to put 100 kids on the snow for the winter,” he said. “We can exceed that this year with the community’s support.”

For SOLE, putting kids on the snow has multiple meanings. First, it’s a chance for students who often come from lower-income families to strap on snowshoes and experience the outdoors in a way that would not otherwise have happened for them.

But it goes beyond ‘I’m going out on snowshoes,’” the executive director said. “It’s a combination of outdoor education and having fun.

“We create an outdoor classroom where we teach winter ecology and outdoor leadership,” Webb added. “It allows youth to understand more about their natural surroundings and, ideally, to develop an affinity for nature.

“That kind of stewardship translates back into the community.”

SOLE’s outdoor classroom concept isn’t limited to the winter season. Working in partnership with groups such as the Idaho Conservation League, Idaho Fish & Game, Friends of Scotchman Peak, Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper and the region’s Native American Tribes, the Sandpoint organization turns nature into a fascinating laboratory that augments the science curriculum for kids in the Lake Pend Oreille School District.

“In 2012 — our first, full year — we worked with 84 kids, primarily from high school,” said Webb. “This year, we’ve already worked with 243 youth, with about a third of them in elementary school — we’re jammin’.”

As reported in a recent Daily Bee article, SOLE has developed a complete outdoor studies curriculum for Lake Pend Oreille High School, which Webb explained will cover topics as diverse as science, life skills and character development in a program he said will total approximately “560 user days” of instruction.

Rolling into winter, Webb and his team of outdoor instructors are eager to expand the learning to other schools and grade levels — a plan that has been welcomed by LPOSD Superintendent Shawn Woodward, according to Webb.

“Shawn has been so supportive, because he understands the value of experiential education,” the SOLE director said, adding that events such as the film festival allow the group to offer the programs to schools at no cost. “The schools are on tight budgets and local families are strapped, so any way we can find to bridge that gap and provide access to these experiences for kids is fantastic.”

This coming winter’s curriculum includes a new avalanche education class designed for high-school aged students and interested adults. Working with the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education, SOLE also has teamed up with the Selkirk Powder Company and Schweitzer Mountain Resort to offer subsidized class rates for teens.

The classroom, Webb pointed out, will be the backcountry on the Colburn Basin side of Schweitzer.

“We can’t mitigate all the risk, but we can provide tools to make good decisions in an avalanche situation,” Webb said. “What this course teaches is sound judgment and decision-making — in a critically important environment.”

In its other school programs, SOLE attempts to reconnect kids with the outdoors and completely unplug them from the myriad games and devices that fill their time and distract their attention.

“What we’re addressing is ‘nature-deficit disorder,’” the executive director said. “And the fact that we’re getting youth outdoors on the snow is a win.”

Student interest — especially among youngsters whose family finances have prohibited activities such as exploring the natural world on snowshoes — is high. School district support is strong, as well, with many principals ready to incorporate the innovative approach to teaching science and life skills.

“When we can go into a school and say, “Hi, we’re SOLE and we’d like to do an outdoor experience program for your school and, guess what? It’s free,’ the principals are all over that,” said Webb.

“How many kids will we be able to work with this year?” he asked. “That depends on how much money we can generate through events like the Backcountry Film Festival.”

The annual Winter Wildlands Alliance Backcountry Film Festival, hosted by SOLE, will show on Friday, Nov. 22, at 7 p.m. in the Panida Theater in downtown Sandpoint. Doors open at 6 p.m.

Tickets are $10 in advance, $12 at the door, and include admission and one free raffle ticket.

To learn more about SOLE’s educational programs, call (208) 946-6960. To purchase advance tickets for the film festival, visit them on line at: www.soleexperiences.org/news/upcoming-sole-experiences/backcountryfilmfest/