$6,700 has been donated to the Trail Maintenance Endowment Fund (TMEF). It will be used to support trail maintenance for hikers, bikers, and equestrians. The money was raised from the Continental Divide Trail Run in August, with help from the Steamboat Springs Running Series in partnership with Smartwool. There were over 350 entrants. The fund is held at the Yampa Valley Community Foundation.
Here is the full press release from the Yampa Valley Community Foundation.
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS RUNNING SERIES SUPPORT LOCAL TRAILS
(STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, CO, September 27, 2021) – This past August 21st, the Steamboat Springs Running Series in partnership with Smartwool organized the Continental Divide Trail Run with over 350 entrants. The net proceeds raised by the event, $6,700, was donated to support the Trail Maintenance Endowment Fund (TMEF).
“We were more than happy to be able to partner with the folks at Smartwool to provide this funding to the Trail Maintenance Endowment Fund” said Ken Rogers, Steamboat Springs Running Series Director, adding “because so many of our races are on the trails it’s the least we can do to give back to the fund.”
The TMEF is the vision of our community to have incredible trails today and into the future. Since inception in 2016, over 1,000 unique donors have supported the fund. When the TMEF reaches its goal of $1 million to $1.5 million by 2026, approximately $50,000 will be generated every year for maintaining and improving non-motorized trails for hikers, bikers, equestrians and other users in Routt and Moffat counties. Today, the fund has a balance of $964,000.
Grants from the TMEF are made annually, and have already funded several trail improvement projects, including the Uranium Mine trail near Fish Creek Falls and the Wyoming Trail near Summit Lake in Mount Zirkel Wilderness. The 2022 TMEF grant cycle is now accepting applications for trail maintenance projects from land managers and nonprofit organizations to support trail maintenance on public lands in Routt and Moffat Counties. The fund will support almost $28,000 in trail projects next summer. You can learn more and apply at www.yvcf.org/trails.
The Trail Maintenance Endowment Fund is held at the Yampa Valley Community Foundation, a primary source for philanthropic resources and education for donors and nonprofit organizations. For more information, contact Helen Beall at 970-879-8632.