Our Vision
Our vision of supporting inclusive year-round youth sport programs focusing on the ‘human-powered' sports of xc skiing, mountain biking, alpine ski touring, running, hiking and climbing has become reality. The River Fund Maine collaborates with other organizations in the area such as Sunday River, the Mahoosuc Kids Association, the Mahoosuc Land Trust, Inlands Woods and Trails, the Bethel Outing Club and Mt. Abram. Through these partnerships kids are given the chance to not only take part in many different recreational sports but are also afforded the opportunity to build relationships with high quality coaches, instructors and mentors.
Most importantly, we support programming grounded in the notion of physical literacy, hat gives equal weight to social and emotional development.
Program Goals
Participation
Education
Leadership & Mentorship
Outcomes
Self assessment will be a central tool used by young athletes. Kids in the program will be familiarized with the benchmarks for physical, emotional and social development. Participants will take ownership in assessing their progress and will have the opportunity to communicate their needs and hopes for future progress through routine goal-setting.
A core group of coaches will take ownership in creating, developing and implementing a youth sports program that focuses on the physical, emotional and social needs of youth living in the community. This exercise alone will be an educational process for the adults involved, heightening attention on the true needs of kids at this moment.
Older athletes will serve as mentors to younger athletes and thereby develop leadership skills. Adults involved in the program will become more physically active and gain wider access to endurance based outdoor activities.
The ultimate goal is to be a part of developing a more resilient community. The most direct beneficiaries of the programming will be the youth involved and their families. But our community will be stronger by having a new generation of leaders.
