Nick Would Foundation - Q2 2025 Newsletter

Q2 2025 Newsletter

Our Mission:

To leverage the experience of outdoor pursuits, wildland exploration, and development of artistic talent to extend and expand the light and love Nick brought to our world. Our Goal: To raise over $1M, give away $100K annually, and positively impact at least 1,000 people every year.

Dear Friend of the Nick Would Foundation,

Please enjoy this quarterly update from the Nick Would Foundation, which is busy spreading Nick’s love and helping people explore and preserve the outdoors and develop their artistic talent. Read on for the latest information from the foundation and remember…Nick Would.

Nick Would in the News

New Silent Auction June 10-22

Flag this email because it’s silent auction time! Yep, our board has been burning the midnight oil for this year’s fundraiser, which centers around a silent auction to be held from June 10-22, 2025. As soon as the auction goes live, you can visit it online to bid on great prizes and vacations, from condo and house stays (everywhere from Hawaii to Mexico and Telluride to Aspen) to jewelry, spa treatments, artwork and more. And it all goes toward helping support Nick’s spirit and legacy, and our mission to spread the stoke to everyone.

The Board at Work

Check this photo of our hard-working board of directors at our quarterly meeting on May 6. We’re so grateful for all the work everyone is putting into continuing to spread the light and love Nick brought to our world by helping others. In alphabetical order, our esteemed board members include Nathan Brickman, Brooke Buchanan, Eugene Buchanan, Scott Burridge, Jack Craig, Spencer Dietrich, Dan and Sarah Simon, Jack Vanderbeek, and Matt White.

2025 Grants!

The Nick Would Foundation plans to give away $32,000 in 2025, continuing the Foundation’s mission of helping people explore and preserve the outdoors and develop artistic talent. This year’s grants eclipse the $29,000 donated in 2024. Included in this year’s grant giving are the following:

Oregon Adaptive Sports: $1,000
Integrated Community’s Newcomer Ski Program: $3,000
Stern Grove Festival: $1,000
Friends of the Yampa: $2,000
5 Point Adventure Film Festival/Nick Would Video Contest: $3,000
Steamboat Springs Free Summer Concert Series: $9,000
California’s Windansea Surf Club: $2,000
Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club: $5,000
Public School Ski Sponsorship: $3,000
Autism Ski Association: $3,000
The Cycle Effect: $2,000
Project Valkyrie: $1,000

Have an idea for a recipient? Send it in to nickwould11@gmail.com.

Check our New Logo

Friend of the Foundation, Dominic McLeod, has been busy designing a 2nd logo for the Foundation. This one centers around Nick’s beloved, hometown Howelsen Hill ski area and will be used in some dual marketing promotions around the big mountain and freestyle teams with the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club. Please tip your ballcap to Dom for such an amazing logo.

NWF Sponsors IFSA Steamboat Big Mtn Comp

Once again, the Nick Would Foundation plans to sponsor the IFSA Steamboat Big Mountain Freeride competition hosted by the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club in January 2026, building upon the success of this year’s event. Both the discipline and club were close to Nick’s heart, and we were thrilled to be a part of it. This year’s event drew more than 200 participants, all converging on Steamboat’s East Face run for high-flying fun and at the main stage at the base of the mountain for the awards ceremony. “For our first time sponsoring the event, it was a tremendous success, and this is just the beginning,” says Nick’s dad, Dan. “It’s the perfect addition to our event line-up.”

Free Summer Concert/NWF Silent Auction Fundraiser – June 21 (Saturday)

Come join the VIP tent at the Steamboat Free Summer Concert Series for Andy Frasco & The U.N. on June 21, 2025, at 5:30 p.m. at Howelsen Hill. The American blues-rock band from Los Angeles puts on a show that is sure to get you grooving. And new this year, we’re holding a Silent Auction Fundraiser online at www.nickwould.com, with a slew of great items to bid on. The bidding ends at midnight Sunday, June 22, so use the concert to get your last bids in. The VIP tent will have schwag, food, and beverages for all supporting party-goers. Don’t miss out—it’s going to be a blast! There will also be a barbecue for friends, family, and out-of-towners at Wild Mountain Ranch following the concert on Sunday, June 22, at 3 p.m., complete with the JR Adams band, food, drinks, and more. Yeeewwww!

2nd Annual Nick Would Surf Contest – La Jolla Shores Beach – September 13 (Saturday)

Cowabunga! With more than 70 competitors and even more spectators, last year’s first annual Nick Would Foundation amateur surf competition at Kellogg Park on La Jolla Shores Beach in beautiful La Jolla, CA, was so successful and fun—we’re doing it again. With gratitude to the Windansea Surf Club, this fun, low-key surf competition is a blast for participants and spectators alike (judges look for overall “steeze” more than anything else). With a variety of age categories, everyone is included, from youngsters on up to “legends.” Participants and spectators will enjoy food and libations, as well as surf comp T-shirts for purchase, raffle items, and more. Come soak in the sun, sand, and salt and join us for this fun event. Wax up your board and get ready to drop in! Visit www.nickwould.com for more info.

The Nick Ripple Effect

Don’t think something as small as a Nick Would Foundation sticker makes a difference? Don’t tell that to Elijah Vargas or Elizabeth Dietrich. In Durango, Elijah was biking downtown, noticed a NWF sticker on someone’s car, and decided to leave a note on the windshield introducing himself and thanking them. Elizabeth, the car’s owner, saw the note and now they’ve become fast friends.

Another woman in Ohio pulled up in a Starbucks drive-thru line and noticed a NWF sticker on the car in front of her. Intrigued, she googled “Nick Would Foundation” on her phone and went down the worm hole, learning all about Nick and the Foundation. She was so touched and moved; she emailed the Foundation and asked to get involved. Keep spreading that Nick love!

Merchandise Madness…

Hats, Shirts, Buffs and More

Want to help spread the Nick Would word (and look stylie doing so)? Hats, shirts, buffs, and more headline our Nick Would merchandise line. Choose from ballcaps, new (hot-off-the-press!) T-shirts, buffs, holiday ornaments, and more—all from sustainable lifestyle clothing brand West Lyfe here in Steamboat. Best yet, 40% of proceeds go directly to the Nick Would Foundation. Purchase your Nick Would merchandise here or buy at https://www.nickwould.com.

Sticker Slappin’

Shameless sticker-slappin’ plug: Remember to slap your Nick Would Foundation stickers anywhere you think Nick would want them and upload a photo to the foundation’s Instagram page, describing the where and why of your slap. Happy slappin’! Go here to upload your slap today.