Happy Mother's Day from Coombs Outdoors!
Running programs all year requires a lot of hard work from many different people. It truly takes a village; from our community partner organizations whose support is essential for every single one of our programs, to the volunteers and instructors who spend countless hours working with participants, inspiring them to lead a life of outdoor adventure, and of course the donors who have upheld our mission for so long, and devote so much to helping us see the vision through.
However, it is the participant families and parents who are the soul of our organization. Our programs are built with them, for them - their input shapes our offerings to what our Coombs community needs and is excited about. We continue to be impressed with the incredible dedication of participants' parents, bringing their children to programs rain or shine, advocating for their needs, and sharing our mission to ensure their kids have opportunities to grow and thrive.
Over the last few years more and more parents have been joining adventures themselves, too. They're learning to ski with the Padres program and having adventure outings with Camina Conmigo, spending time outdoors with family and friends. We've been proud to grow these adult and family programs and increasing access to outdoor recreation, positive physical and mental health, and connection beyond our youth programming.
On Sunday we celebrate Mother's Day/Día de las Madres, so we wanted to take the time to recognize the mothers of Coombs Outdoors.
Marcela is the mother of three longtime Coombs participants, Julian, Isabella, and Valentina. She stopped by the office this week to chat about what it means to be a Coombs mom. Marcela's oldest, Julian, has been in our Empower internship program for the last three years, two of which he spent as an intern in Activate summer camp. She mentioned that the most rewarding aspect of being a mother is getting to see her kids grow into the people they will become. She has been proud to see Julian grow into an independent young man, helping out with his two younger sisters and forming his own goals and aspirations.
Marcela stressed the importance of teaching her kids to be kind people as they move through the world. This lesson has clearly stuck with them. As we have seen all three kids grow over the years, they have become some of the most positive and thoughtful Coombs participants in each program they join.
When asked about the role Coombs Outdoors has played in her children's lives, Marcela said that they are always excited when they find out they're signed up for a Coombs program: "they know that with a Coombs program, there is going to be a friend — someone they can relate to."
Marcela's family has always been very active. She and her kids are involved in Scouting America, and adding Coombs on top of that has brought them more awareness of other outdoor opportunities like skiing and climbing, which are some of her kids favorite activities.
With so many new participant families signing up for programs this summer, we asked Marcela what advice she would give to new Coombs parents. Marcela knew exactly what she would say because she has already referred many families to our programs. "If you want your kid to have a positive view of outdoor activities, start with Coombs."
As her kids rise through Coombs programs, Marcela is looking forward to seeing them grow into the respectful, humble, and trusted community members we know they will become.
Miriam, pictured above with her husband Roney and daughter Valeria, is a Coombs parent and the founder of Camina Conmigo. She started Camina Conmigo in 2020 to improve mental health, social connection, and outdoor access for her Spanish-speaking peers. In her role as the mother of a Coombs participant, Miriam has said:
"It makes me happy to see my daughter growing up and learning through activities that she would not have been able to access without Coombs Outdoors. Watching her grow - developing her leadership skills, her self-esteem, her determination, and her concern for the planet and animals-shows exactly what Coombs is: an organization where anything is possible. 'Gracias por existir'."
Valeria has been involved in Coombs programs since she joined the Ositos nordic program as an elementary schooler. Now in high school, Valeria is one of our most experienced and passionate participants. She says that seeing her mom start Camina Conmigo has inspired her to pursue a life exploring the outdoors. When asked how her mom has helped her become a confident leader, she laughed and said, "by making me do everything! - try all the activities." Her mom always encouraged her to join as many sports and activities as she could, even bringing her along on Camina Conmigo trips.
Valeria loves Coombs for the same reason Miriam started Camina Conmigo: getting outdoors with friends is powerful and fun. And, like her mom, Valeria is stepping up to leadership roles helping her peers and newer participants learn and connect through outdoor adventures.
Summer's almost here!
We're less than 6 weeks out from the first day of summer programs! We've been busy at work with participant enrollment, putting the finishing touches on our summer schedule, and organizing the new instructor training. There's a whole lot happening this summer that we can't wait to tell you about. We have a bigger summer staff team than ever before, we've added a number of new programs, and we're growing our leadership structure for older participants who want to take on more responsibility. Most of all, we're just looking forward to getting outside and having some fun this summer!
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