It has been a remarkable two years for us all.
In spring of 2020, as schools began to proactively protect their students, teachers, and communities from the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the Outdoor School also acted to ensure our programs created a safe environment for all our friends and guests. We cautiously halted our programs until both the Foundation and our partner schools felt it was safe to resume working together.
In the two years that followed, we have pivoted hard, searching for new and creative opportunities to continue to impact students, teachers, and the communities of our partner schools. These opportunities grew into our Spring 2021 MORE Outdoors Cohort and budding partnerships with San Antonio organizations like the Cibolo Center for Conservation, San Antonio River Authority, and Ghisallo Cycling Initiative. Internally, we developed new ideas for strengthening our partnership model with schools and other organizations, creating a more holistic approach to empowering San Antonio schools and their communities to engage their students with the natural spaces.
We are delighted to announce that student retreats with our schools have returned to the Canyon two years later. With seven retreats in the books for the spring of 2022, we have a renewed sense of excitement as the bell rings at our Echo Valley campsite, telling us it’s time for our next activity session along the cool waters of the East Frio River.
This is only the beginning. As things continue to ramp up, we look forward to more conversations about how we can strengthen our relationships with schools, invest more deeply in our partnerships across the greater San Antonio region, and dive into a season of rebirth.
We hope this news comes to you as a breath of fresh air.
We can’t wait until we see you again!