A huge thank you to everyone who helped make the 2020 VASS Cup & Snowfest our best yet!
Almost 300 members of the VASS community including students, families, volunteers and supporters joined us at Grouse Mountain on March 7th for a beautiful day of sunshine, snow and VASS MAGIC! Activities included a fun ski and snowboard race, an adaptive snow sport experience zone, an adventure course on Paradise, a ski-a-thon, apres party and a silent auction.
The goal of our race is to be consistent across two runs – and the winners were ‘Big Air’ Mare Deeley in the individual category, and the Stroopwafels in the team category. Click to see the full list of Individual times and results and Team times and results.
To relive the day, take a look at the photos from the event in this Flickr Album (courtesy of Mark Teasdale).
The event raised more than $67,000 to support VASS programs that make the mountain experience accessible to all. Raising such a great amount makes us all winners, but a few extra shout-outs go to the winners of:
- The coveted top fundraiser award: Jan Rae (individual) and the Seymour Saints (team)
- Most adventurous award on the new Adventure Course: Scott Mallinson
- Best Costume: the Unicorn Family
The annual Lorraine McLatchie Award recognizes a student who has shown outstanding determination, dedication and a positive attitude. This year the Award went to Brian Kingsley, who received the Award with his father. Brian has a remarkable story and is a true survivor. In 1991 he was in a car accident that resulted in a brain injury and the loss of his best friend. He came to VASS as part of his recovery and learned to ski. Two years later, Brian was shot in the head during a gas station robbery. Against all odds, he survived. While some may have felt defeated, Brian took charge of his own destiny. After two more years of rehabilitation, he returned to VASS and has now skied with us for 30 years. Despite all, Brian shows up with hugs, humour and smiles and demonstrates the true spirit of VASS.
A HUGE thank you to our wonderful sponsors, in particular our Host Sponsor Grouse Mountain and our Premier Community Partner Vancouver International Airport, as well as all the businesses and individuals who donated items for the silent auction.
Our fundraising pages are still open so if you would like to make a donation to support VASS, you can sponsor a participant or donate through Ying Zhong’s page and Mackenzie Investments will match your donation!
We look forward to seeing everyone next year for the 2021 VASS Cup & Snowfest!
*Photos courtesy of Mark Teasdale.