2023-24 Mt. Bachelor Play Forever Recap
Presley here, Mt. Bachelor’s Communications and Community Relations Manager, to share a recap of our Play Forever initiatives this past season.
Play Forever? It’s Mt. Bachelor’s commitment to protect the environment and support our community. We do this through financial contributions, in-kind donations, scholarships, and action.
This past season, we supported over 70 local nonprofits, providing $186k in monetary donations and 73k in product donations to champion the amazing philanthropic work happening here in Central Oregon. We welcomed 200 individuals to the resort on full-ride scholarships, prioritizing at-risk youth, people of color, people with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ community members.
Access and inclusion are at the forefront of our Play Forever mission, and we are learning so much through doing this work. Not only have our partnerships with nonprofits, schools, and public agencies helped us identify and understand barriers, but they have also shed light on ways that we can make Mt. Bachelor a place where all people feel welcome and safe. Whether it’s helping source and fund transportation, providing free lessons and rentals, giving out lunch vouchers, or offering winter clothing to our scholarship recipients, our teams are working hard to enhance accessibility and the feeling of belonging at the resort.
Although we still have a long road ahead of us, we’re proud of what we have accomplished with our partners through Play Forever. Here’s a look into some of our specific programs and initiatives:
As many of you are already aware, operating a ski resort is no easy feat, especially in the conditions we experience up here at Mt. Bachelor. It takes over 1,000 employees to bring this place to life, and the work never stops. If you haven’t read Bend Magazine’s article giving a behind-the-scenes look into our operations, you should check it out. The point here is, employees are all part of the Central Oregon community, and we love this place as much as you do.
Employee engagement in Play Forever reflects our passion for the community, resort, and natural environment. This year, employees made waste management a priority, evaluating and improving our workflows to divert 25 tons of material from the landfill. Special thanks to Lodge Services and Food & Beverage teams for their efforts to properly recycle and compost at our lodges. Another shout out to Retail, Rentals, and Receiving teams for their collaboration in our soft plastics recycling initiative. In partnership Deschutes Brewery and The Environmental Center, we recycled over 135 pounds of soft plastics.
The Play Forever team also hosted 3 Mini Mountain Clean Ups, where we invited employees to take an hour from their day to collect trash around the base areas. We had participation from nearly every department, and we collected over 200 pounds of litter. Stay tuned for our annual Mountain Clean Up event slated for September 28.
New for the 2023-24 season, we launched Play Forever Thursdays, an initiative that allowed guests to purchase discounted $99 lift tickets every Thursday in January, February, and March, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting a local nonprofit. Each beneficiary was invited to table a booth at West Village Lodge and share information about their programs and services with our employees and guests (and take a few laps, of course!).
Through Play Forever Thursdays, we raised 36k for 13 local nonprofits. We also strengthened relationships with our nonprofit partners. Some of the feedback we received was really encouraging:
“This actually functions like a two-way, mutually beneficial partnership, and it’s an inspiring model for how businesses and nonprofits can work together.” – Deschutes River Conservancy
Also new this year, we implemented a Play Forever Fund $1 Add-On for all ticket and pass sales. This allowed guests to contribute $1 (or more) to the Play Forever Fund when purchasing Mt. Bachelor products online. Through this fundraising initiative and a Mt. Bachelor match, we donated $53k to local nonprofits such as The Father’s Group, Discover Your Forest, and Oregon Adaptive Sports.
This season marked year 19 of supporting Bend-La Pine and Redmond schools with the Ski 4 Schools initiative, where we released 500 lift tickets at $50, with 70% of the proceeds going to the Bend La Pine Education Foundation, and the other 30% going to the Redmond School District.
Lastly, our employees are taking special care to show up in the community. Whether it be filling tables at our partners’ fundraising events, speaking on panels, volunteering, attending seminars, or serving in leadership roles on boards and steering committees, we want to be involved in our community. We want to connect with locals, hear feedback, and share our passion for the mountain and Central Oregon.
We’ll be hosting several Passholder Parties this summer, so stop by and get to know us. We’ll have these listed on the Events webpage soon. If you’re a nonprofit or community organization looking to partner with Mt. Bachelor, I’d love to hear from you directly. Shoot me an email at pquon@mtbachelor.com. Lastly, stay tuned to the Play Forever webpage, we have some exciting projects and programs on deck this summer.
