SANDPOINT, Idaho — Winter is months away, but for a local nonprofit, it isn’t too early to start thinking about snow.
Selkirk Outdoor Leadership & Education, a Sandpoint-based nonprofit that organizes wilderness expeditions, will host Roundup at the Ranch on Saturday, Sept. 28 — a western-themed gala to support SOLE’s youth programs.
“It’s going to be a good time,” said Dennison Webb, SOLE founder and executive director. “Wear your western duds or whatever you want,” he added. “We want to make it fun and not uncomfortable.”
Proceeds from the event will go toward SOLE’s youth scholarship fund to help kids participate in adventures like rafting the Salmon River. Funds raised will also support SnowSchool — a field study program for local fifth graders.
“We’ve found over the past 12 years that teachers love it,” Webb said of SnowSchool, which takes students out of the classroom to study snow science in the Selkirk Mountains.
“We provide support for teachers to be able to do real field work,” he added.
The program aims to engage students with Sandpoint’s environment through the examination of snow water equivalent, snow temperature profile, snowpack depth, and other factors. After making observations, students plot and analyze data to gain a better understanding of statistics, trends, and the scientific method.
“They get into it because they understand the relevance of it,” Webb said of bringing students to the field. “They're hitting academic standards in a highly relevant way that they may not necessarily get in the classroom.”
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