Ski Vermont Donates Record Breaking Grant to Preserve Working Landscape of Vermont

Montpelier, VT, May 17, 2017 --

On May 16, 2017 Ski Vermont donated a record breaking $19,980.00 to Larson Farm and Creamery in Wells, VT. The donation comes from the proceeds of the 2016-17 seasonal Fifth Grade Passport sales which helped over 3,100 children to ski and snowboard in Vermont for free this winter.

Ski Vermont 2017 Grand Presentation

The Ski Vermont grant, which is part of the Working Lands Enterprise Initiative, will help the Larson family develop marketing, packaging and cover initial startup costs for their new line of dairy products. New products will include cream-line milk, yogurt, skyr, gelato and butter. The WLE Initiative works to protect and progress the working landscape of Vermont by investing in agricultural and forestry based businesses.

“Ski Vermont has been donating Fifth Grade Passport proceeds to the agricultural and environmental communities of Vermont for seven years now, and this year is no different. The Larson family and their farm represent what it means to be Vermonters who are putting their heart and soul into bettering their community and providing local, healthy and organic food options,” said Chloe Elliott, Ski Vermont Communications Manager. “We at Ski Vermont feel passionately about our passport program and the benefits of enabling children to partake in sports like skiing and snowboarding at a young age so that they can not only discover a lifelong passion for these sports, but they can also create healthy lifestyle habits, such as engaging in physical activity and eating locally sourced, healthy foods.”

“It is so important to us to have Ski Vermont’s continued support of the agricultural and tourism industries here in Vermont,” said Chelsea Bardot Lewis, Business Development Section Chief with the Vermont Agency of Agriculture. “Both the Working Lands Enterprise Initiative and Ski Vermont have a mission of protecting the landscape of the Green Mountains while also growing a sustainable economy. To achieve this we must support local businesses and invite Vermonters and visitors to experience all that our state has to offer, from skiing and snowboarding, to local foods like Larson’s dairy products.”

Next season, 2017-18, will mark the eighteenth year of enriching families’ winters with the Fifth Grade Passport program. Each year the program grows exponentially and as of the final seventeenth year headcount, the program has enabled over 23,100 children to partake in skiing and snowboarding at Vermont’s resorts. Next season’s passports will go on sale in early fall of 2017 for $11 and passports can be purchased at skivermont.com/FGP.

About

Ski Vermont (Vermont Ski Areas Association) is a proud ambassador of the thriving winter tourism industry in Vermont, where the legislature has designated skiing and snowboarding as the official state sports. Vermont is not only the #1 ski state in the East and among the top ski states in the US, but also reigns supreme in snowmaking quality and coverage, variety of terrain and historical impact on the sports of skiing and snowboarding - making it one of the most significant ski and ride destinations in the world. Ski Vermont’s mission is to help create a legislative, economic and social environment in which the state's ski areas can grow and prosper. It serves over 20 Alpine and 30 Nordic member resorts in three major areas: Governmental Affairs, Marketing and Public Affairs.

Working Lands Enterprise Initiative
In 2012, the Vermont Working Lands Enterprise Initiative (WLEI) was signed into law. The Initiative supports, grows, and sustains Vermont’s entrepreneurs by providing technical and financial assistance to help Working Lands businesses innovate and grow. The grant money and loan programs directly impact businesses and service providers by helping to create jobs, build infrastructure, provide technical aid, and promote growth. The program also protects Vermont’s greatest natural resource: its land.

Larson Farm and Creamery
Founded by Richard and Cynthia Larson in 1977, the Larson family is proud to offer fresh, healthy food to their community in Wells, VT and beyond. With a herd of 33 Jersey cows, the Larson’s product line includes fresh milk, beef, eggs and as the result of the 2017 Ski Vermont grant, will expand to offering cream-line milk, yogurt, skyr, gelato and butter.

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Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/dfa73ab6-d642-4b72-be63-f426afcce762

Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4fb5c1be-d280-4e5e-89d8-fbed1af02a7d

Choe Elliott
Ski Vermont
8022232439
[email protected]