2022 Report Card

Our Successes would not have been possible without your help!
THANK YOU!

FOYAN has Increased the number of youth impacted though  outdoor programs from 2,900 in 2019, to 6,700 in 2022.
FOYAN received several regional grant awards in 2022 focused on youth outdoor programs from the following: El Pomar Foundation, Westerns Colorado Community Foundation, West Elk Community Fund, Anshutz Family Foundation, Goodwin Foundation, Forever Our Rivers, the City of Grand Junction, Colorado Garden Foundation and several others.   In addition,  FOYAN  has established a new funding partner (Montrose Community Foundation) and continues to seek new funding opportunities such as the Kyle Clark/Channel 9 News Fundraising Campaign, Colorado Gardens Foundation and the City of Grand Junction. Private donations were instrumental in helping us leverage matches for our grants.
FOYAN  facilitated opportunities for students in Montrose, Mesa, Delta and Ouray Counties to be involved with watershed education Activities and field trips.
“Water in the West” – a new Colorado River Water interactive exhibit at the Eureka Science Museum in Grand Junction.  This hydrology exhibit has 12 different lessons about water, from turbulence and dissolved oxygen, measuring flow rate, irrigation, fish ladders, other  water uses and a model of a transmountain diversion.
 
The annual Montrose Natural Resource Festival sponsored by the Shavano Valley Conservation District providing demonstrations and hands-on activities led by resource specialists – many stations focused on various aspects of water.

With our partners the Gunnison Round Table, the Colorado Conservation Board and Forever our Rivers, FOYAN establsijed two water quality education kits for teacher checkout and assisted with funding bus transportation for field trips  intended to bring students to western water learning opportunities.

Approximately 1,000 students from Mesa County participated in the "outdoor wilderness Lab"  (OWL).
FOYAN assisted with bus transportation costs to bring 1,000  6th grade students from Mesa County School District to attend the Outdoor Wilderness Laboratory (OWL) in Gateway, COWL is a 3-day environmental education program where specialists provided hands-on instruction exploring conservation of natural resources.

FOYAN received the "Youth Outside" grant (2021) and in 2022 continued to help at-risk youth connect with nature and the outdoors.
Approximately  130 Youth from CASA7JD (Montrose), 80 youth from  Families Plus (Delta), 30 youth from  Haven House for the Homeless, 80-90 youth from Partners West (Montrose, Delta, Ouray) and Peer Kindness (Montrose) are gaining experience and competence in new outdoor skills with peers, participating in team building activities and engaged in nature-inspired art through this grants. FOYAN is assisting with the purchase of outdoor gear (camping, backpacking, paddle boards, snowshoes, cross country skis, and mountain bikes) for these groups and continues to facilitate guided outings twice a month to a  local or state park and/or federal public land area. 
FOYAN provided partial or full scholarships For students and teachers to attend environmental learning and outdoor programs including:
FOYAN was able to fulfill 44 classroom requests this year for bus transportation as well as individual scholarships for programs fees within classrooms across the 4 counties we serve. Outdoor experiences include everything  from a day exploring the Grand Mesa National Forest to year-round outdoor programs for individuals and classrooms.
FOYAN has partnered with Delta Country School District FArm to School Program.
The Delta County school gardens and outdoor classroom components are expanding from from K-5th grade to include middle and high school students in their upcoming 5th year of operations, increasing their impact from 2,500 to 4,000 youth.  Their goal is to help alleviate food insecurity and provide much-needed nutrition and conservation education.

FOYAN provided funding for cross country ski equipment rentals and participation in winter ecology programming for 0ver xxx youth


FOYAN board member continue to publish monthly outdoor articles in the local papers with tips and ideas for getting kids outside, and we consistently share information on nature and outdoor activities through Facebook and Instagram.

Check out our "blog" for seasonal tips and ideas on planning successful outing with youth.
FOYAN is helping Riverside Educational Center (REC) in Grand Junction with the purchase of beginner cross-country skis for their resilience building enrichment program.
REC will be serving 15 schools in the 2021-2022 school year, with one-on-one tutoring, and building outdoor skills helping more than 700 youth in need, build self -esteem and confidence.
Web development continues. The FOYAN website will be a one stop resource for youth, teachers and families in Delta, Mesa, and Montrose Counties!
Funds received by FOYAN through grants, donations and in-kind contributions directly impact over 6,700 of our local youth in Montrose, Mesa and Delta Counties to get outside this last year and increase of 1400 youth from 2021.
Friends of Youth and Nature has been honored with the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Southwest Region Partners in the Outdoors Award for 2022.
The charts below depict FOYANs funding history over the past three years and our funding sources and outreach activities during 2022.