Film festival helps SOLE's SnowSchool
(Courtesy illustration) It’s that time of year again as Selkirk Outdoor Leadership & Education holds its annual fundraiser, the annual Backcountry Film Festival. Tickets can be obtained online at panida.org or EventBrite, at the door, or at Eichardt’s, Evan’s Brothers Coffee, and the Alpine Shop.
It’s that time of year again — grab your skis, backcountry buddies, and get ready for some serious fun while raising essential funds so Selkirk Outdoor Leadership and Education can help over 450 under-served youth in the community unplugged and outdoors to explore and learn in their winter wildlands through SOLE’s award-winning and nationally recognized SnowSchool Experience program.
SOLE will hold its annual fall fundraiser, the Backcountry Film Festival on Dec. 6 at the Panida Theater, officials said in a press release announcing the film festival.
This event is a community favorite, aimed to inspire winter adventurers to seek the snow less traveled, while raising critical funds and bringing awareness to SOLE’s award-winning and nationally recognized SnowSchool Experience Program through proceeds raised at this event.
The Backcountry Film Festival is renowned for its mix of professional and grassroots films — from well-known filmmakers who search backcountry corners across the globe to submit their best work to first-timers who take a video camera out on their weekend excursions. The festival first toured in 2004 to highlight Winter Wildlands Alliance’s efforts to preserve and promote winter landscapes for human-powered users. From a single showing in Boise that first year, the festival has grown to include showings in locations throughout the United States and Canada and now in Antarctica, Europe, Australia and Asia. Funds raised stay in local communities to support like-minded, human-powered recreation and conservation efforts and to raise awareness of winter management issues, avalanche training/safety and winter education programs. Come take the ride and support a great cause while doing so.
Produced by Boise-based nonprofit, the Winter Wildlands, the Backcountry Film Festival makes its world premiere in Boise and will then tour to more than 100 showings around the world. With a series of award-winning and juried films (all which celebrate the human-powered experience), a great holiday silent auction with gifts from local vendors, artisans, businesses and gear vendors; fun raffle prizes; great brews; and the usual dose of special surprises — this family-fun event is a cause worth supporting.
All event proceeds directly toward supporting SOLE’s SnowSchool Experience Program at Schweitzer Mountain Resort. The program was recently recognized as a National SnowSchool Flagship Site and also was awarded the 2017 Innovation Award Winner from the Idaho Nonprofit Center due to the experiential education curriculum that SOLE has developed for the site. Currently, the E-STEM curriculum offered focuses on a comprehensive watershed study which includes, snow science, winter ecology, conservation literacy, avalanche education, as well as the opportunity to develop outdoor living and travel skills.
Because of previous Backcountry Film Festival patron support, the program has been able to get over 2,000 youth unplugged and connected to their winter wildlands. Without that support, many youths would not have access to these programs.
Information: soleexperiences.org