Every child deserves the opportunity to experience the joy, confidence, and lifelong benefits of sports. From September 1–15, Adaptive Sports Association is joining Colorado Youth Sports Giving Day to help make outdoor recreation more accessible for children and young people with disabilities.
ASA’s mission is to provide outdoor, sports, and recreational experiences for people with disabilities. Through adaptive skiing, cycling, paddling, rafting, camping, and more, we create supportive opportunities for participants to challenge themselves, build confidence, and explore new possibilities.asadurango
Your gift helps provide adaptive equipment, instruction, scholarships, and inclusive programming so that financial limitations never stand in the way of participation. Donations made through September 15 may also benefit from more than $1.5 million in matching and incentive funds available through the statewide campaign.
Give today and help ASA continue creating a community where people of all abilities can discover what is possible.
Community Insights:
"How grateful I am for an opportunity to experience a "sense of normalcy"...opportunities I would have never explored without you making the impossible possible."- Winter Participant
"Through sports we find freedom and self-esteem once lost. Your encouragement and belief that we can overcome any challenge is so important." - Summer Participant
"We are blessed to have had our son be a part of ASA for the last few years and know it will be an experience he will carry with him for life!" - Mother of a Participant
"Since getting involved with ASA I've gotten interested in other adaptive winter sports. I started playing sled hockey too and getting a lot more involved in other kinds of adaptive sports. It was definitely the beginning of a much more active lifestyle." - Winter Participant
The mission of the Adaptive Sports Association (ASA) is to provide outdoor sport and recreational experiences for people with disabilities. These activities are provided regardless of individual financial limitations in an atmosphere for learning and enhancing self-esteem.
Dave Spencer co-founded the winter program in 1983 after losing his leg to cancer. He moved to Durango to work as a traditional ski instructor at Purgatory Resort. His vision for an adaptive sports organization began when a woman, newly amputated from a water skiing accident, was inspired by his determination on the slopes and asked him to teach her. That moment revealed to Dave how snow skiing and outdoor recreation could empower individuals with disabilities, challenge their self-perceptions, and boost both physical and mental health. Though Dave passed away from cancer in 1986 at just 26, his legacy lives on through ASA.
Originally a winter-only program, ASA became a year-round adaptive sports organization in 1997 with the launch of its summer programming. Thanks to strong community support, dedicated volunteers, and generous partners, ASA has grown into one of the nation’s most respected adaptive sports programs.
Today, ASA remains the only year-round adaptive sports provider in the Four Corners region. Other local options are limited to two small therapeutic riding programs and Special Olympics, which focus on cognitive disabilities and team sports. With no overlap in services and the nearest comparable program over two hours away in Telluride, ASA continues to meet a vital and unique need.
Organization name
Adaptive Sports Association
other names
ASA
1983
Tax id (EIN)
94-2938093
Category
Recreation & Sports
Organization Size
Medium Organization
Address
463 Turner Drive #105Headquarters
463 Turner Drive #105Mailing
PO BOX 1884La Plata County, CO, US