In August 2016, two organizations came together for one mission. Bolder Options Youth Mentoring –a non-profit focused on mentoring referred youth ages 10-14, and Quetico Foundation-US –a charitable organization promoting wilderness preservation, joined forces and shared a vision that became a united mission. Bolder Options, in partnership with the Quetico Foundation-US, is excited to announce the launch of a new, innovative programming collaboration called A Quetico Wilderness Youth Program (AQWYP).
The vision was to create a progressive wilderness training program that would immerse Bolder Options’ mentors and mentees into a world of outdoor exploration, discovery, opportunity and appreciation. The program uses a progressive introduction and immersion of youth and adults into the lifestyle, recreation and career opportunities of the great outdoors. This will include wilderness activities like canoeing, camping, fishing, shooting sports, conservation, higher education and career opportunities in the outdoor sciences and much more.
The program will be integrated into Bolder Options’ programming platform of internal and external activity resources. The introductory and mid-level activities will be open to first-year mentoring pairs while the more advanced levels will be open to graduated pairs continuing their experience through Bolder Options’ Alumni Network. The capstone of the AQWYP is the week-long Wilderness Adventure trip into the clinical wilderness of the Minnesota Boundary Waters Canoe Area or the Quetico Park region of Ontario, Canada, by pairs within Bolder Options’ alumni network.
Where did the idea for AQWYP & Wilderness Adventure come from?