George & Michael Gardner Fund

The George Fund provides financial assistance to Ouray County youth who wish to pursue outdoor or experiential educational opportunities for personal and interpersonal growth.

We believe that profound learning is often facilitated by time spent in the mountains, deserts, rivers and oceans of the world. These experiences provide an arena for leadership development and other lifelong skills.

From a participant on a Senior raft trip financially supported by the George and Michael Gardner Fund: “I took away "going with the flow" because I am a very go-against-the-flow person. I always chose to fight against what everyone says and strictly do life my way, but this trip taught me its generally impossible to be and feel in control of everything all the time, and I went home with a huge relief lifting off my shoulders thats its ok to let someone else take the lead sometimes, and it's even more ok if something doesn't work out the way we want it to. Everything happens on its own time for its own reason, similar to how the canyon walls were carved and the rapids were created.”