What getting outside does for a kid cannot be measured.
As parents, we all want to do the right thing for our kids. Keep them active; help them do well in school, become independent and responsible. Skiing and snowboarding does all this and more. Kids learn a sport for life, not a game that is played through high school and then forgotten. They make choices, become engaged, meet new friends, play, and playing is important! They laugh, they cry, and experience the real world, not a virtual one! They are outside, not locked in a room with electronics. They have to take care of real gear and remember where they left it. They learn to trust, listen to, and respect adults that are only there to help them get better for the sheer love of the sport and kids.
Chairlifts are the real social network above 7000 feet. Life lessons get shared in a nine-minute ride to the top by both kids and adults. Results are priceless. They grow as a person. When they become great skiers and boarders they can become JR Instructors and take on the role of mentor to younger kids. They get healthier, gain confidence, and usually do better in school!
Sky Tavern is about much more than getting down a slope. It is about growing, gaining skills, learning responsibility, and trust. It is about living.
The Real Mission:
Sky Tavern gets kids outside during a time when most are playing video games. We want kids to play!
The Mission
Sky Tavern is a nonprofit regional center providing exceptional summer & winter outdoor sports training, competitions, recreation & events accessible to all.
The Vision
Sky Tavern is a community asset that promotes a child's growth & success through exposure to outdoor sports and recreation, no matter the personal challenges.
I am 38 years old and have been in the US Navy for almost 13 years. I have very fond memories of participating in the Junior Ski Program every winter from the time I was 7 on up. My sister and I were picked up by school buses at Reed High, and transported. I decided to see if the program still existed as my wife just asked me how I had become such a great skier with the high cost of lessons.
We are on vacation right now in Germany. Today, I skied at a resort in the Bavarian Alps, my 8-year-old son has had previous lessons in the mountains of West Virginia. My 6-year-old daughter has been begging me for a month to let her try. So, today I paid 50 Euro for a two-hour lesson. When I paid it, I thought to myself - this is half a season with the Junior Ski Program.
I highly recommend the program to anyone wanting to give their children the benefit of great ski instruction for pennies as compared to a regular day on the slopes. I wish there was a Junior Ski Program everywhere - I would push to get stationed wherever one existed. Thank You for all you do for kids!
- Lance Burney