SKI FOR LIGHT, INC.

Ski for Light2014 ANNUAL REPORT1455 West Lake Street Minneapolis, MN 55408 (612) 827-3232

www.sfl.org

SKI FOR LIGHT, INC.

Ski for Light annual report • 1

President’s Letter

The 2014 Ski for Light International event held in Anchorage, Alaska, will be remembered for great skiing at Kincaid Park, the

fun and fellowship of many off-snow activities, warm hospitality from our hosts in Anchorage, and the excitement of the Iditarod’s ceremonial start. Despite some weather-related challenges, the 39th SFL Interna-tional week was indeed a success. We welcomed many new participants and guides to the Ski for Light family—along with a rare two-legged moose, who also makes an appearance in these pages—and we reached out to many beyond our circle, by taking part in such events as the 25-kilometer Tour of Anchorage and the Running of the Reindeer. I believe Alaska will remember us, for better or worse!

We also sent four outstanding representatives to Norway for the 2014 Ridderrenn, the event that served as the model for Ski for Light. I know you’ll enjoy reading Andrea Goddard’s wonderful account of the team’s adventures in Beitostølen, and all the other good news shared here.

Now it’s time to turn our attention to the celebration of Ski for Light’s 40th anniversary. On January 25, 2015, more than 250 of us will gather in Granby, Colorado, to begin another week of skiing, sharing, and learning. This is truly a unique experience, where terms like “disabled” and “handicapped” do not seem to apply. As a totally blind person who has participated in numerous social and professional organizations, I can honestly say that the focus on equality and ability that exist during an SFL week is unmatched.

None of this could happen without generous support from you, all our individual donors, the Sons of Norway, our corporate sponsors, a growing number of foundations, and hundreds of volunteers. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.

Thank YOU.

Sincerely,

Scott McCall,Ski for Light President

ContentsAbout Us 22014 Program Highlights 4Endowment Fund 8Contributors 9 Financial Summary 14Board of Directors 16

“This is truly a unique experience, where terms

like ‘disabled’ and ‘handicapped’ do not

seem to apply.”

Scott McCall at the start of the 2014 Tour of Anchorage, in which some two dozen Ski for Light participants and guides took part.

2 • Ski for Light annual report

About UsSki for Light, Inc. is an all-volunteer,

nonprofit organization founded in 1975, modeled on a similar program in Beitostølen, Norway. We have year-round offshoots across the country, but our primary endeavor is a week-long international event each winter in which blind and mobility-impaired adults are taught the basics of cross-country skiing. They leave Ski for Light with a sense of accomplishment and motivation that often carries over to the rest of their lives back home.

Each visually impaired participant (“VIP”) is paired for the week with an experienced, sighted cross-country skier who acts as ski instructor and guide. The disabled person skis in tracks or grooves groomed into the snow, while the guide skis in a parallel set of tracks. The guide provides directions and skiing tips, gives support and encouragement, and describes the countryside. For our mobility-impaired participants (“MIPs”),

who propel themselves in sit-skis, the guide sometimes lends extra muscle when the pair heads uphill or veers off-track.

Our peopleAs many as 300 people attend each

event. The blind and mobility-impaired adults who participate as skiers come from all over the United States and from several foreign countries. Many wish to become more physically active and fit, and to find recreational opportunities that are lacking at home.

The volunteer guides who attend Ski for Light pay the same event fees as disabled skiers. Their motivation is simple: to share a favorite activity with someone who would otherwise not have the opportunity to participate. Most of these guides discover that in the process of giving of themselves, they are getting more in return. Many come back year after year.

Our placesThe location of the event changes

from year to year in an effort to spread the Ski for Light concept to as many parts of the country as possible. In recent years, we have gathered in North Conway, New Hampshire; Bend, Oregon; Provo, Utah; Bellaire, Michigan, and Anchorage, Alaska. The 2015 event, our 40th anniversary celebration, will be in Granby, Colorado, with skiing at Snow Mountain Ranch, the YMCA of the Rockies.

Clockwise from above: rookie guide Janelle Goehle

with her aunt, guide Lynn Posey; 93-year-old

blind skier Charlie Wirth and 83-year-old guide

Gunvor Satra at the 2014 Ridderrenn in Norway;

Maya Jonas and Jim Steele train new guides

in Anchorage; Deb Wiese and guide Wendy Gould

negotiate a downhill; and veteran MIP Dianne

Brunswick skis with Svein Thorstensen, Heather Hall,

and Tim Byas.

“If I can do this, I can do anything.”

—Ski for Light motto


How it worksAll first- and second-year guides

arrive a day early for a guiding boot camp. In teams, each led by an experienced skier-guide pair, the new guides head out to the ski area and rotate through a series of learning stations—from simple orientation to skis and snow, which includes making sure the skier is properly dressed for the day, to such advanced techniques as the herringbone (for uphill climbing) and the snowplow (for controlling speed on a downhill run). The guides learn how to break each skill down to its component parts. They learn how to replace a visual demonstration with words and, in some cases, touch.

New guides also learn useful vocabulary—“tips left” signals a left-hand turn, for example, while “track left” signals a lateral move with skis parallel and body facing forward—and how to indicate the severity of turns or inclines by using a number-rating system, clock face or compass symbols. Most importantly, guides learn how to ensure everyone’s safety by constantly assessing their skiers’ abilities and comfort level, by using proper trail etiquette and, as a last resort, shouting the “Sit!” command for an emergency stop.

In practice, though, “how it works” varies with each skier-guide pair. It can even vary from day to day, as the kind of input the skier needs from the guide changes due to trail conditions, visibility (many SFL participants are partially sighted), and the skier’s own improving abilities and confidence.

Join the SFL familyGo to www.sfl.org, Like us on

Facebook, or call (612) 827-3232 to request more information.


Program HighlightsInternational WeekBy Julie Coppens and Peter Slatin

Alaska has always attracted bold spirits, and Lucy Zapata is no exception.

She’s part of a Phoenix-based group called Daring Adventurers, whose members all have varying physical abilities but share a love of travel and the outdoors, along with a certain fearlessness. Even among that intrepid company, the 45-year-old Lucy is known as a daredevil.

“I’m one of those people who will jump off a cliff,” she said. “I’ve always been a go-getter.”

Still, Lucy recalled some anxiety about making the trek to Anchorage in February 2014 for her first Ski for Light International Event. Though she had been snowboarding, before losing her sight to lupus as a young adult, “I had never cross-country skied before. They”—meaning her fellow Daring

Adventurers—“kind of pushed me into it. I was nervous. I had never traveled to Alaska, but I’d wanted to for a long time. This seemed like the perfect opportunity.”

It was SFL’s third visit to Anchorage, and as in 2003, unseasonably warm temperatures made for less-than-ideal skiing conditions. The skilled groomers at Kincaid Park managed to provide four days’ worth of excellent tracks, on well-designed five- and ten-kilometer trails, but a Thursday meltdown turned the park’s stadium into a slush pool, which froze overnight into a sheet of glass. The impassable, iced-over trails forced a cancellation of Friday’s Race/Rally—only the second time in SFL’s thirty-nine years that the culminating event had to be surrendered.

“That was a bummer,” Lucy admitted, but she and her fellow skiers grabbed the opportunity to turn the day around. Volunteers organized exercise classes, a walking tour of downtown Anchorage, and other activities to keep everyone busy until Saturday’s ceremonial start of the Iditarod. Ski for Lighters turned out in force to cheer on more than sixty teams of sled dogs and mushers—and their starting companion riders, including first-time SFL guide Ingrid O’Connor of New Jersey. As the winner of a special IditaRider raffle that netted $2,000 for Ski for Light, Ingrid bundled up in a sled driven by Norway’s Joar Leifseth Ulsom and set off along an eleven-mile preview of the Last Great Race on Earth, an unforgettable journey she described vividly for the rest of us at that evening’s banquet. Eight grueling days later, Ulsom finished the thousand-mile Iditarod in fourth place.

Earlier in the Ski for Light week, Lucy Zapata faced her own trail challenges—particularly some uphill stretches unlike anything she’d encountered back in Arizona,

“We all have different

disabilities.”

—Lucy Zapata, blind skier,

2014 Jan Haug Award winner


Opposite page, from top: Lucy Zapata (right) with guide Carol Gary at the SFL 2014 awards banquet; guide Peter Mjos, of Anchorage, crests a hill with blind skier Barbara Lewis, from New London, Connecticut.

This page, from top: outgoing SFL president Marion Elmquist (left) honors Bjorg Dunlop with the Bjarne Eikevik President’s Award; below, blind skier Claude Cavaillier, from France, and guide Betty Johnson from Minnesota, have an unexpected encounter with some Alaska wildlife.

“Sharing my love of cross-country skiing and making it possible for someone else to experience the joy of skiing is very rewarding. It is wonderful to see skiers improve and master an activity they did not think they could participate in. I hope I will be able

to continue for many more years ”

—Bjorg Dunlop, 2014 Bjarne Eikevik President’s Award recipient

laughed. “It was just overwhelming. We had some tears of joy after that.”

In addition to the fine skiing at Kincaid Park (while it lasted), Lucy enjoyed the fun evening activities, exploring the ice sculptures in Anchorage Park, learning about local history, and getting a (warmish) taste of an Alaskan winter. “I’d never been on a real sleigh ride before—that was awesome. And I met a lot of great people,” she added, while getting a fresh perspective on her own so-called disability.

“We all have different disabilities,” she said. “None of us judge anybody. I see us all as one. We’re all there for the same reasons—to have fun, to learn from each other and support each other. This is such a great event. I felt nothing but kindness the whole time I was there.”

which demanded new skills.“Every time I tried to get up the hill,

I didn’t know where to put my feet, and I kept sliding backwards,” Lucy recalled. But daily group lessons led by some of SFL’s resident Nordic experts helped Lucy begin to master the herringbone (for climbing), the snowplow (for slowing down and stopping), and other important techniques. “I would recommend the classes to everyone. They helped me have a lot more courage to get out there on the trails and not be afraid.”

Lucy and her guide, Carol Gary, also developed a countdown system for timing transitions—for instance, Carol might warn Lucy that the tracks were about to wash out “in three… two… one,” enabling the blind skier to adjust her stance at just the right moment. “It’s harder for me to visualize feet or yards or something happening in ten seconds,” Lucy explained, though other skier-guide pairs might find those measures useful. By the second or third day the partners had their lingo down, and Lucy was skiing so well, and smiling so much, that the Ski for Light leadership tapped her for the Jan Haug Award. Like most past recipients of this annual memorial tribute to an enthusiastic first-timer, Lucy had no idea such an honor existed, or that the prize was a brand-new set of skis, boots, and poles for her next Daring Adventure.

“Carol heard the announcement [at the closing-night banquet in Anchorage], and she said, ‘You won some skis!’ And I said, ‘What are you talking about?’ She had to explain it to me afterwards. I was like, ‘So people were watching me this whole time?!” Lucy


snow and clicking into the skis felt good and right. It’s as close as I’ll ever get to being truly independent, going at speed… a freedom I only get to experience when I’m skiing.”

Two years later, Tim ventured a little further out that front door—to Beitostølen, Norway, where he joined visually impaired skier Bonnie O’Day, from Alexandria, Virginia, and longtime guides Lynn and Jerry Cox, from Excelsior, Minnesota, as U.S. representatives to the Ridderrenn. Now in its fifty-second year, the Norwegian Ridderrenn, or Knight’s Race, is where the Ski for Light concept was born, and it brings together hundreds of athletes of all abilities from all over the world for a week of Nordic events. I was fortunate enough to experience the Ridderrenn myself, in 2013, and it was wonderful to relive it vicariously, through Tim’s and the others’ recollections.

Though Jerry Cox had guided visually impaired and blind skiers for seventeen years at that point, and Lynn had guided for

Program Highlights Ridderrenn 2014By Andrea Goddard

Pedaling “to nowhere” on a stationary bike in 2011, Tim McCorcle was

certainly ready for a new chapter in his life. He had been very athletic growing up, with the help of his then peripheral vision, but as his eyesight deteriorated in his thirties, he’d gradually given up the sports he’d loved. Biking, baseball, softball… by the mid ’90s, Tim was out of the game. Once an enthusiastic alpine skier as well, Tim decided the risk to other skiers he could no longer see was too great. He put down his poles, thinking he’d never ski again.

“There’s got to be more out there,” Tim thought as he got off the exercise bike. Googling “Nordic skiing” and “blindness,” he began to see a way forward. The Ski for Light 2012 annual event was approaching, set for Provo, Utah, and Tim had some dreams to live out—both his own, and those of his Dad, whom Tim had lost to cancer just months before.

“I wondered whether my dreams for myself died with him, along with his dreams for me,” Tim reflected. He took a deep breath, and applied to attend the week. “Unless you get outside that front door, adventures are never going to happen.”

During that first ski week in Provo, Tim was heartened to meet other blind skiers and some guides from his home area of Puget Sound, Washington. Thriving on the companionable ease of the working relationship with his guide that first year, Tim realized, “I can do this, and it feels exactly the same as it used to.” Though he fell a lot his first day out, his confidence and skiing ability were soon back where they’d used to be. “The sound of gliding across the

“Unless you get outside

that front door, adventures are never going to

happen.”

—Tim McCorcle, blind skier,

2014 Ridderrenn Team


Above, the 2014 SFL Ridderrenn team in Beitostølen: Bonnie O’Day (from left), Lynn Cox, Jerry Cox, and Tim McCorcle. Opposide page: Tim McCorcle with Norwegian guide Anne-Grethe Espeseth.

eleven years, the couple still were delightfully surprised when Ski for Light chose them to make up half of the official Ridderrenn team. They’d thought that being sent to Norway was an honor bestowed on rather young, up-and-coming or quite athletic skiers in the organization, and were pleased beyond measure to be reminded that the spirit of SFL could be lived out, no matter one’s age or level of ability.

Bonnie O’Day, whose own journey with Ski for Light began in 2000, was the one member of the team to have been to the Ridderrenn previously (accompanying her husband, Bob Hartt). Having partial vision, Bonnie hadn’t participated in competitive sports at all before SFL, though she’d been dedicated to pursuits such as swimming and other forms of exercise. When she began skiing, she said, things shifted for her: “It’s really fun for me to be able to compete and do well, and SFL has motivated me to stay fit.” Packing up her ski gear to head back to Norway was just the next step on that path of personal wellness and achievement, and she felt ready. Her luggage, though, had other ideas: Bonnie spent much of the 2014 trip separated from her misrouted belongings, but thanks to her new and old friends in Norway, she had what she needed.

It was about 60 degrees Fahrenheit when the Americans landed in Oslo that Saturday in March. Having some time to relax after arriving at the hotel, Tim joined up with Lynn and Jerry and some others in the group to wander around downtown. “The tables at the outdoor cafes were jammed, and the city hummed with enthusiasm and with the optimism of a spring day. I heard kids skateboarding and laughing, and kids’ laughter sounds the same in any language.”

Ridderweek had its ups and downs for the SFL team. Whether it was a broken ski pole the first day out on the first fifty feet of the trail, or missing ski gear, or physical illness, or needing to mix and match skiers and guides to find the most effective pairings, flexibility and forward momentum proved essential. The Beitostølen trails did their part: the snow and tracks were hard

and fast in the mornings, slowing a bit later in the day.

“The skis make a certain music—the sound of the swish-swish, the poles, and the glide,” Lynn mused. “There were constant straightaways where you could keep a rhythm for so long!” She and Jerry spoke of what they most enjoyed about guiding: the “aha” moment when a skier first masters a new skill.

The teammates also recalled the inspiring example of two Ski for Light veterans—blind skier Charlie Wirth, age 93, and 83-year-old guide Gunvor Satra—who seemed to share a dynamic week, on and off the snow. As Charlie’s roommate, Tim felt he learned much about dignity, and about how he’d like to live his own life. Jerry and Lynn, for their part, felt renewed and invigorated to continue guiding, though they sometimes struggle with the ways their bodies have changed with age and use.

Having enjoyed a successful week on her skis, Bonnie left Beitostølen ready to head home. Unfortunately, one of her bags got left behind… again… and she was pleased and touched when one of the King’s Guard drove it all the way down to Oslo for her.

Bonnie, Tim, Lynn, and Jerry expressed a deep appreciation for the generosity, warmth, and open-heartedness of the Norwegian people, and of the other Ridderrenn participants. The experience helped make the world feel a little smaller for them, in all the right kinds of ways.

There is more out there, Tim discovered—and you can’t get there on a stationary bike.


Endowment FundContributions to the Endowment

Fund are invested to ensure that Ski for Light will glide along for years to come. We gratefully acknowledge those who made contributions to the fund between December, 2013, and November, 2014:

Janis Andol Doug Boose (In memory of Bruce

Scharfenberg and in honor of Grant Scharfenberg’s high school graduation)

Dede Chinlund David Fisk

Ju-yeong Lee Carl Richardson

Virginia Stillman (in honor of Joan Holcombe)Arni Thomson Charles Wirth Karen Wedde

Friends of Ski for Light

During the year we welcomed Janis Andol, Dede Chinlund,

Ju-yeong Lee, Carl Richardson and Arni Thomson as new Life Members of Friends of Ski for Light. They join 359 individuals or couples who previously became Life Members of Friends of Ski for Light by donating $400 or more to the SFL Endowment Fund, or because someone else donated that amount in their honor. For the complete roster of Life Members, visit www.sfl.org/life.html. We thank all of them for their investment in the future of Ski for Light, and for their commitment to the program.

“The spirit of the program, the treasured friendships, and the fun

throughout the week have made SFL an annual cherished experience with

memories that will last forever.“

—Don Perlman and Eileen Goff, longtime participants and supporters from New Jersey,

pictured at right snowshoeing in Anchorage


ContributorsWe gratefully acknowledge all the

generous individuals, foundations, corporations and Sons of Norway lodges that helped us with general operating support from December, 2013, through November, 2014.

Racers ($2,500 and beyond)

Delta Gamma Foundation

Statoil

The Flatley Foundation

The Gibney Family Foundation

The Sence Foundation

The TJX Foundation

Double Polers ($1,000-$2,499)

Ann FaganJean Replinger (Goodfellow fund in honor of Scott McCall)Harry and Carol WoehrleHarry and Carol Woehrle (Goodfellow fund)Anne and Phil ZinkSons of Norway FoundationThistle Foundation

Gliders ($500-$999)

Einar BerghJoe and Suzanne BrownTrond S. JensenJohn and Shelley LamoreauxMarvin LiewerLeslie Maclin (Goodfellow fund)Bonnie O’Day and Robert HarttJohn PaxmanRichard and Priscilla SchmeelkDavid Sweeny (Goodfellow fund)Archer Daniels Midland Co.Sons of Norway District 2

Waxers ($100-$499)

Renee AbernathyJames and Patience Barnes (Goodfellow fund)Daniel Beckman (Goodfellow fund in honor of Scott McCall)

“SFL has given me the opportunity to travel to many places and meet many, many people

from all over the United States. I have made some great friendships and skied with wonderful guides who have helped me

on and off the slopes.”

—Simon Butler, visually impaired skier, United Kingdom,pictured above with guide Sonja Baker of New Jersey


Contributors continued

Erling Berg (Goodfellow fund)John BirdsongDoug Boose (in honor of Deanna McVeigh and JoAnne Jorud)Nancy Brown (Goodfellow fund)Judith ChapmanRobert CiviakLee Coleman (in honor of Jean Replinger)Julie Coppens (in memory of Bob Stevenson)Gerald and Lynn CoxGerald and Lynn Cox (Goodfellow fund in honor of Jean Replinger)Jean CronjeLiv DahlRobert DenholmBjorg DunlopDonald EddyDavid EpsteinSarah G. EpsteinMargaret Erickson (Goodfellow fund)Duane Farrar (Goodfellow fund)Silas and Olivia FordSusan Friedman (in memory of Richard Friedman)Nancy GerberMarilyn GerhardPaul and Nina Goddard

The Goodfellow FundDonations earmarked for the Goodfellow Fund are used for guide stipends and guide training at the

International Event. The fund was created in 1990 in honor and memory of Marilou Goodfellow, a longtime guide at the Puget Sound Regional and the International Ski for Light programs. Goodfellow’s life ended too soon, the result of an accident. Among the many lives she touched was that of Nancy McKinney, her niece, who began guiding at her suggestion and eventually went on to become Ski for Light president.

Paul and Nina Goddard (in honor of Andrea Goddard)Eileen Goff (Goodfellow fund in honor of Arne Landvik-Larsen)Barbara Guinn (in memory of Olav Pedersen)Walter and Ardis Hammen (Goodfellow fund in memory of Mary Lou Goodfellow)John HeggeEivind Heiberg (Goodfellow fund)Carlton and Lauren HeineWegard Holby (in memory of Aase Holby)Leslee Lane Hoyum (in memory of Bud Keith, Bjarne Eikevik and Egil Almaas)William and Chris Jansen (Goodfellow fund)JoAnne Jorud (Goodfellow fund in memory of Loraine Mattison)Jeff Knox (Goodfellow fund in memory of Velma McMeekin)Marit and Orlyn Kringstad (in honor of Leif Andol)Rick LipseyKaren and David Lukacsena (Goodfellow fund)Liv Markle (Goodfellow fund in memory of Brit Peterson)

“Just going skiing

can change a person’s whole life.”

—George Wurtzel, veteran blind skier


Scott and Marilyn McCallNorma Jean McCorcleCarolee MillerOral Miller (in memory of Bud Keith and Diane Lemke)Don MorrowGeorge MossJohn and Cynthia OlnesJudy Paul (Goodfellow fund)Stephen Pearlman (in honor of Peter Slatin)Suzanne Pedersen (in memory of Olav Pedersen)Don Perlman (Goodfellow fund in honor of Sonja Baker)Don Perlman (Goodfellow fund in honor of Jim Steele)Gunvor SatraLarry Showalter (in memory of Bob Stevenson)Stony Stondall (Goodfellow fund)Grethe WintherRomelle Wojahn (Goodfellow fund in honor of Brenda Seeger)Arlington Host Lions Charities, Inc.Lino Lakes Lions ClubNorwegian Society of Washington, D.C.Synnove-Nordkap Lodge 1-008Kristiania Lodge 1 047Nordic Lodge 1-502Solglimt Lodge 1-547Solskinn Lodge 1-550Norsota Lodge 1-602Elveby Lodge 1-604Harald Haarfager Lodge 2-011Grieg Lodge 2-015Fedrelandet Lodge 2-023Svalbard Lodge 2-033Odin Lodge 2-041Columbia Lodge 2-058Lauderdale Lodge 3-475Hampton Roads Lodge 3-522Thor Lodge 4 067Sverdrup Lodge 4-107Lodsen Lodge 4-138

Corporate supporters

Our thanks go to the following companies that have provided products or services to help support Ski

for Light. Many of these companies have stood behind us for years—and we’re grateful.

Hydro FlaskIndependent Living AidsKavuKlean KanteenLekiLiberty BottleWorksLive EyewearMcConnell Design & Printing Co.Olly DogPatagoniaPEET Shoe DryersPeppers Polarized EyewearPolar BottlePowertravellerRuffwearSierra DesignsSportHillTurtle Fur

JanSportAcornBaggalliniBlue Ridge Chair WorksBorton Overseas TravelBridgedale SocksByer of MaineCamelbakClif BarColumbiaCowbells.comCrazy CreekDanskoDarn Tough SocksEagle CreekECOS LLCFasterSkier.comFox River MillsHaikuHoney Stinger

Blind skier and new SFL board member Krista Erickson, left, from Mundelein, Illinois, with first-year guide Haim Wenger from Anchorage, in the beautifully groomed tracks at Kincaid Park.


Contributors continued

Friends ($50-$99)

Jim and Sharon Allen (Goodfellow fund)Robert and Koni ArnoldHelene BaouendiKathleen Barkmeier (Goodfellow fund)Larry Behne (in memory of Bud Keith)Sue Birdsong (in honor of Suzanne Brown)William Burgunder

Wergeland Lodge 4-247Sidney Lodge 4-489Smaa Fjell Lodge 4-557Nordlandet Lodge 5-620Edvard Grieg Lodge 5-657Roald Amundsen Lodge 6-048Sol Byer Lodge 6-134Vestafjell Lodge 6 146Desert Troll Lodge 6 165Sons of Norway District 3

“I used to be able to do

things like this myself. Now, with a guide, I can move freely again. That’s just a tremendous

gift.”

—Chris Leghorn, visually impaired

skier, pictured above in Anchorage

First-time VIP Eliza Cooper, from Brooklyn,

New York, with guide Joan Holcombe,

from Lebanon, New Hampshire. Both ladies made an impact on the Anchorage event: Eliza

with her incredible skiing, Joan by helping to raise more than $2,000 for

Ski for Light through a memorable stunt involving

a herd of reindeer run amok and some gutsy SFL

men. We’ ll say no more about it.


Jody Carman (Goodfellow fund)Karin Grossman (Goodfellow fund)Ray Charles HarrisonGary Hayward (in memory of Tim Hayward)Chelsea HillLinda HillJulie Hobart (Goodfellow fund in honor of Eileen Goff and Don Perlman)Susan Hooker (Goodfellow fund)Leslee Lane Hoyum (Goodfellow fund in honor of Leif Andol)Billie Jean Keith (in memory of Bud Keith)Caroline Lavanhar (Goodfellow fund)Helen McIntyreSharon McKinley (Goodfellow fund)Geoff Miller (in honor of Carolee Miller)Jody and Grady MillerScott Miller (Goodfellow fund in honor of Carolee Miller)Inger MoenAstrid and Ken MullenA.N. and Inger Olsen

Helge Rommesmo (Goodfellow fund in honor of Leif Andol)Megan SchraubenCarol and Frank SchultzDennis Sorheim (Goodfellow fund in honor of Leif Andol)Erlene Stevenson (in memory of Bob Stevenson)Sheila Styron (Goodfellow fund)Haarfager Lodge 1-040Fedraheimen Lodge 1-059Valdres Lodge 1-503Elvidal Lodge 1-509Vennekretsen Lodge 1-559Norskfodt Lodge 1-590Marsteinen Lodge 1 596Hjemkomst Lodge 1-599Elvedalen Lodge 2-129Norge Lodge 3-337Bondelandet Lodge 3-612Mollargutten Lodge 4-478Trollhaugen Lodge 5-417Sonja Henie Lodge 5-490Stein Fjell Lodge 6-114

In memoriam

First Aid Bob was an apt nickname for longtime friend and volunteer Bob

Stevenson, of Edmonds, Washington, who died in October. Bob attended the International SFL event eleven times, usually with his wife Erlene. Along with guiding many skiers over the years, he tended our blisters and bruises, bandaged our pride, and taught us how to avoid more serious injuries. “Bob was always ready to help in whatever way needed, offering a friendly smile, a positive outlook, and encouraging words,” Larry Showalter said. “He will be deeply missed by all.”

“SFL has motivated me to

stay fit.”

—Bonnie O’Day, visually impaired skier, 2014 Ridderrenn Team


Financial SummarySKI FOR LIGHT, INC.June 30, 2014 and 2013

Statements of Financial Position

ASSETS 2014 2013CURRENT ASSETS Cash and cash equivalents $83,894 $110,962 Prepaid expenses $1,907 $969TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS $85,801 $111,931

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT Equipment $8,305 Less accumulated depreciation ($8,305) NET PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT $0 $0

OTHER ASSETS Endowment investments $392,286 $349,852

TOTAL ASSETS $478,087 $461,783

NET ASSETSUNRESTRICTED NET ASSETS Undesignated $85,800 $108,430

TEMPORARILY RESTRICTED NET ASSETS Time and purpose restricted $69,302 $39,193

PERMANENTLY RESTRICTED NET ASSETS $322,985 $314,160

TOTAL NET ASSETS $478,087 $461,783

The entire financial statement for fiscal years 2013 and 2014 is available upon request. The most recent IRS Form 990 is also available upon request from the Ski for Light office.


SKI FOR LIGHT, INC.Statements of Activities and Changes in Net Assets

For the year ending June 30, 2014 and 2013

2014 2014 2014 2014 2013 Unrestricted Temporarily Permanently TOTAL TOTAL Restricted RestrictedPUBLIC SUPPORT and REVENUE

PUBLIC SUPPORT Contributions $59,108 - $8,825 $67,933 $53,324 Auction and raffle revenue $8,042 - - $8,042 $7,567 Direct costs of auction and raffle ($2,020) ($2,020) TOTAL PUBLIC SUPPORT $65,130 - $8,825 $73,955 $60,891

MERCHANDISE SALES Revenue $7,241 - - $7,241 $10,579 Cost of Sales ($2,235) - - ($2,235) ($4,865) NET MERCHANDISE SALES $5,006 - - $5,006 $5,714OTHER REVENUE Participant fees $216,925 - - $216,925 $214,331 Investment interest and dividends $15 $13,981 - $13,996 $12,083 Realized gain on investments - $3,762 - $3,762 $14,060 Unrealized gain on investments - $31,366 - $31,366 $6,747 TOTAL OTHER REVENUE $216,940 $49,109 - $266,049 $247,221

Satisfaction of purpose restriction $19,000 ($19,000) - - -TOTAL PUBLIC SUPPORT and REVENUE $306,076 $30,109 $8,825 $345,010 $313,826

EXPENSES

PROGRAM SERVICES SFL Event $284,728 - - $284,728 $268,677 Ridderrenn $7,449 - - $7,449 $10,167 TOTAL PROGRAM SERVICES $292,177 - - $292,177 $278,844SUPPORTING ACTIVITIES Administrative and General $29,277 - - $29,277 $22,351 Fundraising $7,252 - - $7,252 $10,538TOTAL SUPPORTING ACTIVITIES $36,529 - - $36,529 $32,889

TOTAL EXPENSES $328,706 - - $328,706 $311,733

INCREASE (DECREASE) IN NET ASSETS ($22,630) $30,109 $8,825 $16,304 $2,093

NET ASSETS, BEGINNING OF YEAR $108,430 $39,193 $314,160 $461,783 $459,690

NET ASSETS, END OF YEAR $85,800 $69,302 $322,985 $478,087 $461,783


Board of DirectorsSki for Light, Inc. is an all-volunteer

organization, managed by an elected Board of Directors. The affairs of the organization are managed between meet-ings of the full Board by an Executive Committee of the Board. Board members serve four-year terms; executive commit-tee members serve two-year terms. Here is the roster for 2014-15.

Executive CommitteeScott McCall, President

Atlanta, GeorgiaJulie Coppens, Vice President

Juneau, AlaskaJudith Dixon, Secretary

Arlington, VirginiaBrenda Seeger, Treasurer Red Lake Falls, Minnesota

Cara Barnes, Director-at-Large Eureka, California

Robert Civiak, Director-at-Large Lebanon, New Hampshire

Marion Elmquist, Immediate Past President

Des Moines, Iowa

DirectorsRenee Abernathy - Dallas, North Carolina

Heather Berg - Colchester, VermontWendy David - Seattle, WashingtonKrista Erickson - Mundelein, Illinois

David Fisk - Post Mills, VermontNicole Haley - Peterborough,

New HampshireRobert Hartt - Alexandria, Virginia

Eivind Heiberg - Minneapolis, MinnesotaKen Leghorn - Juneau, Alaska

Leslie Maclin - Evanston, IllinoisTim McCorcle - Seattle, WashingtonBonnie O’Day - Alexandria, VirginiaLaura Oftedahl - Berkeley, California

Lawrence Povinelli - Madison, AlabamaHolly Schmaling - Delafield, WisconsinLarry Showalter - Seattle, Washington

Peter Slatin - New York, New YorkDavid Sweeny - Brooklyn, New York

Honorary Director: Jon Tehven,

President, Sons of Norway Minneapolis, Minnesota

Directors EmeritusLeif Andol - Huron, South Dakota

Nancy McKinney - Seattle, WashingtonEinar Bergh - Stavanger, Norway

Jean Replinger - Marshall, Minnesota

Scott McCall accepts the baton—the weight of the

world, actually—from outgoing Ski for Light

president Marion Elmquist, who led the origanization

for six successful years. Scott previously served as president from 1992-94,

and has been active in SFL leadership for many years,

so we’re in good hands.

SKI FOR LIGHT, INC.

Documents

Transcript of SKI FOR LIGHT, INC.