Outward Bound California is pleased to announce a $1 million four-year grant award from the William K. Bowes, Jr. Foundation. The Foundation has been a consistent supporter of our work since 2008. Over the next four years, this grant will invest in OBCA’s strategic vision of expanded accessibility to OBCA programming for youth communities historically excluded from outdoor experiential education.
“We appreciate this generous investment in our work so much,” says OBCA Executive Director Nettie Pardue. “Since 2008, Mr. Bowes’ and the Foundation’s support have made it possible for OBCA to become one of California’s most respected outdoor experiential learning programs while bringing access through scholarship to thousands annually.” This previous support enabled OBCA to engage over 17,000 youth across California on 80,000 days of transformational courses, empowering them to uncover their strengths, confront fears, and cultivate leadership qualities: moral courage, compassion, and resiliency.
“In the wake of the Covid-19 induced shutdown, the timing of this amazing renewal could not be better. Our youth, particularly those from underserved communities, are reeling from the impacts of isolation,” observes Pardue. Bowes Foundation support is key to enabling OBCA to expand its unique position to serve students who are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, systemic racism, wildfires, and a dearth of opportunity in their local communities.
OBCA is proud to serve many of these youth communities through community partners like Aim High, Summer Search, Larkin Street Youth Services and dozens of others. “These incredible partners send new students to us year after year,” shares Pardue. “We only serve them several days a year, but we return the students to these wrap-around programs with new tools, confidence and perspectives. We’re so grateful to the William K. Bowes. Jr. Foundation, and all of the philanthropic support we receive from our amazing community, to make this work possible.”
OBCA is currently enrolling individuals and school / nonprofit groups in one-days ropes course experiences at our San Francisco McLaren Park-based Ropes Challenge Course, and in multi-day expeditions in the High Sierra.
To learn how your philanthropic support can expand accessibility of OBCA programming for the youth and veterans we serve, please contact Leslie Velez at [email protected].
