The mission of the Chill Foundation is to provide opportunities for at-risk and underserved youth to build self-esteem and life skills through boardsports.
Each year, we take about 75-100 youth from each of our sites to the slopes. We provide them with everything they need to learn to ride: lift tickets, lessons, transportation, and head-to-toe gear. We use snowboarding to motivate youth to accomplish goals they never thought they could, while teaching them some of the most important lessons in life about patience, persistence, responsibility, courage, respect, and pride – our weekly themes within the program.
This winter alone, Chill will work with over 1,000 youth in cities across North America, Sydney (Australia), and Innsbruck (Austria).
Chill gives at-risk and underserved youth the chance to break boundaries and find their opportunities to be successful in life. More than that, Chill helps these youth look forward - to see beyond the circumstances of today - encouraging them to focus on positive alternatives for the future. Our weekly themes serve as the anchor for the youth development piece of our program while the sport of snowboarding serves as the vehicle, creating profound and impactful teaching moments.
Chill serves youth facing a multitude of challenges: youth in group homes and foster care; with addictions; from the juvenile justice system; those struggling with drugs, violence, excessive anger, or depression. Many of the youth have never left their cities, and most have never been to the mountains.
Jake and Donna, the founders of Burton Snowboards, started Chill in 1995 in Burlington, Vermont to bring snowboarding to youth who otherwise wouldn't have the opportunity. The program had such an immediate and profound impact that we have continued to expand into new cities, new boardsports and new countries over the past 17 seasons. Since our inception, Chill has positively impacted over 18,500 at-risk and underserved youth.
With positive adult role models, engaging activities, and incredible mountain environments we build self confidence and raise self esteem. As many of us know, the impact of snowboarding can be particularly inspiring.