Empowerment Fund Grant Cycle 1, 2025

Through our Empowerment Fund, we provide two grant cycles each year to support individuals with life-changing injuries in reclaiming their independence and reconnecting with outdoor adventure. The first grant cycle of 2025 was a powerful reflection of that mission in action.

In this cycle, we welcomed 51 new athletes and continued our support of 64 returning athletes. Together, they represent a community that stretches across 47 U.S. states & Territories and Canada.

West Coast Athletes

Daniel Lombardo

Athlete #878

Meet Daniel "DJ"

Shawn Fluke

Athlete #908

Meet Shawn

Matt Sollinger

Athlete #899

Meet Matt

Theodore Schapp

Athlete #910

Meet Theo

George Yang

Athlete #884

Meet George

Calen McDougall

Athlete #873

Meet Calen

Cory Nilsson

Athlete #877

Meet Cory

Alexander Beklik

Athlete #867

Meet Alex

Ellen Duffer

Athlete #881

Meet Ellen

Mark Herbison

Athlete #897

Meet Mark

Jackson Clement

Athlete #886

Meet Jackson

Caleb McDonald

Athlete #917

Meet Caleb

Derrek Sevcik

Athlete #880

Meet Derrek

James Scharnick

Athlete #887

Meet James

James Taylor

Athlete #888

Meet James

Alexander McEwan

Athlete #868

Meet Alexander

Kenji Nonaka

Athlete #894

Meet Kenji

Thomas Rupp

Athlete #912

Meet Thomas

Max Arsenault

Athlete #900

Meet Max

Matt Bowen

Athlete #898

Meet Matt

Max Merland

Athlete #901

Meet Max

Nathan Turner

Athlete #902

Meet Nathan

Patricia Fonstad

Athlete #905

Meet Patricia

Casey Tynan

Athlete #874

Meet Casey

This slide is intentionally left blank

Central Athletes

Nicholas Abeyta

Athlete #903

Meet Nicholas

Nicholas McCoy

Athlete #904

Meet Nicholas

Kayla Sarmiento

Athlete #892

Meet Kayla

Cade Fair

Athlete #872

Meet Cade

Daniel Marshall

Athlete #879

Meet Daniel

Amber Rangel

Athlete #869

Meet Amber

Ethan Gallegos

Athlete #882

Meet Ethan

Tom Babb

Athlete #913

Meet Tom

Weston Lamborn

Athlete #916

Meet Weston

Shay Downey

Athlete #909

Meet Shay

This slide is intentionally left blank

East Coast Athletes

Thomas Mullen

Athlete #911

Meet Thomas

Shawn Burnett

Athlete #907

Meet Shawn

John Marquez

Athlete #889

Meet John

Andrea Nelson

Athlete #870

Meet Andrea

Leah Kreitz

Athlete #895

Meet Leah

Anneka Siegel

Athlete #871

Meet Anneka

Harrison Sandifer

Athlete #885

Meet Harrison

Justin Hauser

Athlete #891

Meet Justin

Trent Wilson

Athlete #915

Meet Trent

Joseph Turnbull

Athlete #890

Meet Joseph

Logan Knuckles

Athlete #896

Meet Logan

Chris Ferranti

Athlete #875

Meet Chris

Corey Fisher

Athlete #876

Meet Corey

Garrett Dejordy Wheeler

Athlete #883

Meet Garrett

Sebastian Ortiz

Athlete #906

Meet Sebastian

This slide is intentionally left blank

Athletes received grants for adaptive mountain bikes, custom ski equipment, handcycles, recumbent trikes, mobility devices, and accessible home upgrades. Others received funding for physical therapy, acupuncture, gym memberships, and cognitive rehab—because recovery is as much about the mind and spirit as it is about the body.

To everyone who donated, partnered, and believed in our mission—thank you. Because of you, we’re not just giving grants. We’re giving people the tools to push forward.