LIVING OUR VALUES Reaching a Summit of Awareness As we stand above 13,000 feet, Mother Nature announces her BY KYLE THOMAS presence with gusts of wind SO strong it is impossible to escape. Wet snow whips in our faces soaking us to the core and every step forward requires a level of strength that seems ever fleeting. We can see the summit, which is both encouraging and also a depressing reminder we are hours from our goal in conditions accurately described as "epic!" In an instant, without much of a conversation, a decision is made-a decision that not only shapes the remaining hours of our day, but shapes the very meaning of this trip and serves as a great metaphor for our lives. ON OCTOBER 2, 2014, a group One team member has been pushing incredibly hard and has come of military veterans descended from the to the reality that his current elevation is as high as he will climb on approach of Redcloud Peak (elev. 14,034 ft.) in the San Juan Range in Colorado. this day. We all stand perched on an exposed ridge contemplating For months, the team prepared for this the logistics of splitting the group. But before the guides can even day in the mountains. The final session ponder a plan, the team collectively decides to descend together as of three, this group was planning to push the envelope in order to reach the summit a unit leaving the summit to stare down our backs as a reminder of of three of Colorado's 14,000 foot peaks. who is boss. While the summit did not meet our acquaintance, the After two days of weather delays, the level of camaraderie within the group has grown ever stronger and group of veterans-three with total vision we are returning to camp a family of one. loss-had one window of opportunity to make a push for the summit and celebrate the abilities of all people with a ceremonial ending to a life-changing event. However, the mountains had different plans. While cliché, The Ability Experience Summit Vision program is not about reaching physical summits at all, but about embarking on a journey with a team to reach the summits of our souls. During the summer and fall of 2014, The Ability Experience teamed up with the Adaptive Sports Center for three sessions of mountaineering programs designed to enable athletes with visual impairments to climb the high peaks of the Rocky