REI Foundation donates $50,000 to Seattle-based non-profit
The REI Foundation, a US-based non-profit organisation supported by outdoor gear and apparel retailer REI, has awarded its annual $50,000 Mary Anderson Legacy Grant to The Mountaineers, a Seattle-based outdoor education, recreation and conservation non-profit founded in 1906.
The grant will assist in the expansion of the non-profit’s Mountain Workshops youth educational programming and bolster its scholarship efforts, both of which are part of The Mountaineers’ Youth and Family Initiative. The organisation provided 1,260 youth-oriented outdoor experiences between 2010 and 2011, including 40 Mountain Workshops that reached about 550 individuals.
The Mary Anderson Legacy Grant was introduced in 2009 in celebration of the 100th birthday of REI’s co-founder. Mary Anderson, now 102, helped establish REI as a co-op in 1938 in Seattle with her husband, Lloyd, and 21 fellow mountaineering colleagues.
The Mountaineers’ mission is to enrich the community by helping people explore, conserve, learn about and enjoy the lands and waters of the Pacific Northwest.
“Research has shown that positive outdoor experiences during childhood create a lifelong appreciation for the outdoors,” said Martinique Grigg, The Mountaineers executive director. “The Mountaineers is committed to instilling that appreciation in today’s youth and Mary Anderson’s Legacy Grant will allow us to expand our program as well as provide funding for outreach to underserved youth.”
“The Mountaineers are such an important organisation in the Northwest and have introduced many people to the outdoors,” said Michael Collins, REI Foundation president. “We are pleased to have an opportunity to help support and grow the organisation’s youth programming. It’s an exciting and important direction for the organisation and they have shown great results in a short period of time.”
