The GMAS Adaptive Ski and Ride Program is expanding! This season, thanks to a generous match received from the Vermont Community Foundation last October, GMAS is able to provide athlete scholarships for Vermonters in need of financial assistance for adaptive lessons at both Stowe Mountain Resort and Smugglers’ Notch Resort.
The Vermont Community Foundation is a public charity that’s home to more than 1,000 funds and individual giving accounts created by Vermonters to serve charitable goals.
The expansion of the GMAS Ski and Ride program – which has been offered solely at Stowe Mountain Resort for the past 15 years – also means that GMAS is now able to offer financial support to even more Vermonters living with disabilities.
Each Ski and Ride scholarship ranges from four to eight one-on-one lessons at either of the ski resorts this season. All of the lessons are offered by PSIA-AASI professionally trained and certified adaptive ski instructors.
Additionally, 29 of the 45 GMAS Ski and Ride scholarship recipients receive free rental equipment, thanks to the generosity of our friends at Pinnacle Ski and Sports in Stowe. A handful of athletes get an adaptive ski pass to ski independently with friends and family at Stowe.
VCF Donor Match
Tom Hall, of Stowe Mountain Resort leads an adaptive ski lesson with a young boy in a bi-ski.
This incredible opportunity for growth was made possible in parts from a Vermont Community Foundation match which helped GMAS raise over $40,000 at last year’s Heady Trotter 4-Miler Race, one of GMAS’s most important fundraisers organized by the Great American Brewery Runs hosted by the Alchemist Brewery in Stowe, Vermont.
“Last year’s Heady Trotter match inspired an incredible wave of generosity, and now Green Mountain Adaptive Sports is turning that energy into new opportunities,” said Felipe Rivera, Vice President of Strategy & Comms at the VCF. “Our work is all about connecting people who care with the organizations making a difference. Seeing GMAS expand to offer scholarships at Smugglers’ Notch is a perfect example of what happens when Vermonters rally around one another.”
The Heady Trotter this year is Sunday, October 19th, and GMAS hopes to once again unlock the VCF $20,000 donation match which will directly benefit all of the athletes participating in our adaptive programs. Read more about VCF here. Donations are accepted here.
The evolution of the SNAP partnership
Sterling Anderson, a ski instructor at SNAP also coaches a group of athletes who compete in the Special Olympics of Vermont.
2026 will be remembered as the official beginning of an exciting new partnership between Green Mountain Adaptive Sports (GMAS) and Smuggler’s Notch Adaptive Program (SNAP).
GMAS ran a pilot program with SNAP for the last two seasons. GMAS sponsored a young girl in need of financial assistance last winter. She made incredible strides with her skiing throughout the season, and is returning this year with more poise and confidence than ever. GMAS also supported five SNAP Special Olympics athletes who participated in the season long race training program, and raced in the Special Olympics. Read more here.
“We are excited for this new chapter for GMAS and our growing number of scholarship recipients, and wish to thank the Vermont Community Foundation and their generous donors,” comments Pascale Savard, VP Board of Directors. “This financial support is crucial to the growth, and the continuity of our adaptive programs. To be able to support more athletes in need this year means the world to us, and to the multiple families we serve in Vermont.”
We at GMAS believe that access to sports and recreational programs is a powerful means for people with disabilities to develop independence as well as physical and mental well-being. We focus on getting people out and having fun, and we value the effect our programs have on entire families. Our vision is a world where sports and recreation are available for people of all abilities.
The Power of Sports
The athletes’ stories are often moving and remind us about the power of sports and recreation in peoples’ lives.
GMAS loves collaborations with all other adaptive programs, and is excited for the 2026 season.
Eight-year-old Sam is super excited about learning to snowboard this year. Their mother related that they were very successful with skiing in 2024, going from complete beginner in December to navigating black diamond trails in March. “It is hard to describe the positive impact this had on Sam’s mental health and self-confidence. It was truly a lifeline for them during a very challenging year. It is wonderful to see Sam so excited about the upcoming winter season! Our family would never be able to afford to send Sam to the mountain without the generosity and dedication of GMAS. Let alone the fact that none of us can keep up with him because we have never learned to ski or ride! We are so grateful for this opportunity.”
Eight-year-old Sara and five-year-old Emily are sisters. Their mother writes “Sara loves skiing so much and Emily would love the opportunity to try a new thing and participate in something her sister and myself already love doing. Honestly this year as parents we’ve wondered how we are going to break the news that we won’t be able to participate in the way we normally do as this year has been very tough financially for our family. Receiving a scholarship for equipment and a pass means we will be able to ski together and participate in something they love, which gives them such great confidence. It’s amazing to see how much skiing allows them to feel strong, brave, stretches them to try new things, and be flexible in ways they have a more challenging time practicing during their everyday life. I’m so grateful for this possibility.”
by Pascale Savard
October 13, 2025