Join me in providing opportunities for children and adults with disabilities that build health, confidence and independence!

I have had the privilege to work with the Achieve Tahoe program for the past 3 years. When I first volunteered as a skiing instructor at Achieve Tahoe, I thought it would be a way to help people that are facing the daily challenges of living with a disability to get out and enjoy the sport that has brought so much enjoyment to my life. While my initial goal of volunteering was to help our participants gain independence and learn to ski, I did not realize how much I was going to learn from each of them. Our participants are nothing short of amazing. They are some of the brightest, strongest, and most determined people I have met. Every one of the participants I work with teaches me something and they truly inspire me in dealing with personal challenges I face.

This past year I expanded my volunteering to assist with the water-skiing program Achieve Tahoe offers. Once again, helping our participants learn to get up on water skis was extremely educational for me. Working with people having all types of disabilities, towing them behind a powerful boat with ropes, skis, and safety equipment was incredible. Helping a couple who were both visually impaired get up on water skis was a very moving moment for me. Being their eyes, keeping them safe and helping them achieve a little more independence, was a day I will never forget.

As you can imagine running a program like this is not a simple task. The full-time program employees and hundreds of volunteers work hard to provide our participants with the breadth of opportunities we offer. Beyond the Achieve staff and volunteers, we need funding to keep our programs running, to maintain and purchase the specialized equipment, and to pay for the general operational expenses.

Please join me in supporting this cause and provide life-changing experiences for children and adults with disabilities!

About Achieve: Achieve Tahoe is a nonprofit that builds health, confidence, and independence through recreational sports for children and adults with disabilities. The organization serves over 500 people a year through one-on-one snow sports lessons, water skiing, paddle sports, and more. Achieve Tahoe's highly trained instructors and specialized, adaptive equipment allow the organization to serve just about anyone with any disability. Achieve Tahoe participants and family members often say that their experience with Achieve Tahoe goes on to affect other areas of their life such as gaining confidence to try different sports, becoming more social, and breaking down perceived barriers showing them that they can do things they perhaps never thought they could before.