Ski
EDD Memorial Fund adapted skiing programs are designed around the unique needs of each participant; they celebrate ability and give children with disabilities an opportunity to excel.
Golden Awards Program
The Golden Awards Program is a training program to develop accomplished young skiers and snowboarders across the country into potential racers. This national program provides training goals and incentives for disabled athletes who dream about competing at the national level and one day qualifying for the US Disabled Ski Team. We are partnering with the Professional Ski Instructors of America Education Foundation to roll out this new program in 2008.
Click here to see skiers and snowboarders who have earned their Golden Awards.
Race Training at Windham Mountain
The EDD Memorial Fund believes that accomplished skiers with disabilities deserve opportunities to excel. We support the Adaptive Sports Foundation’s Race Team, a program that provides coaching and training for skiers who want to enter the competitive arena. Team members compete in Disabled Sports USA sanctioned races across the Northeast. In 2009, we are providing scholarships for five new skiers to attend a Learn to Race Clinic at Windham Mountain.
Partnering with Pathfinder Village
For the past seven years, the EDD Memorial Fund has provided skiing lessons at Windham Mountain for students with Down syndrome from Pathfinder Village. In 2009, twenty-five school-age children with Down syndrome will learn to ski and enjoy a day of camaraderie on the mountain. Pathfinder Village staff members report that the students love this program and that it helps to develop their self-esteem.