Thank you for your consideration to volunteer for Vancouver Adaptive Snow Sports (VASS). We provide ski and snowboard lessons to people with disabilities at the 3 local Vancouver North Shore mountains and operate the biggest adaptive snow sport group in all of Canada. All of this is done with volunteer instructors, people who a short time ago, were just like you. Our fundamentals are rooted from the national ski and snowboard organizations via the Canadian Adaptive Snowsports (CADS) training programs. And through these partnerships, we offer world class training to help you become a specialized snow sport instructor. In your first year, we will pair you up with a returning volunteer, so you can team teach and keep developing your skills even more. We want everyone to be successful, both volunteers and students. You will be supported throughout your entire adventure.
You are about to make one of the best and easiest decisions of your life. Volunteering with VASS answers the call for so many. Here are some of the reason our members have joined our membership:
- a love and passion for anything on the snow
- wanting to make a difference in our community and the world
- having a connection to someone with a disability
- a want to be involved in social structures
- opportunities to learn new skills
- to create memories that last a life time
- to get free access to local mountains
- to support a family member or friend
And then there are all of the health benefits. Obviously, there is a level of physical health that can be achieved through snow sports. But have you considered strengthening your mental health? It is my greatest hope that you never have any serious mental health challenges and volunteering with VASS can help. Many top psychologists suggest, getting outside, helping others, being more social and learning something new are all beneficial to your wellbeing. Click here to check out more about growing your mental health.
Finally, to give you an idea of the size of VASS, in 2020 we had 450 volunteer instructors who delivered 1500 lessons. And the equation is simple… the more volunteers we have, the bigger the impact we make and are able to deliver more lessons. Currently, VASS does absolutely no advertising looking for students and every year there are 50-100 students who do not get a chance to learn the joys of swishing down the slopes. We have yet to find a way to meet the demand, and you deciding to help us, will get us a little closer. Click here to get closer to your decision and learn more about what your first year will look like.