The impact lasts far beyond the winter season
5/14/2026
Why Winter4Kids Matters
For many young people, access to outdoor recreation, enrichment experiences, and confidence-building opportunities is limited long before they ever step onto a mountain.
According to the Newark Public Schools 2026–27 budget, the districtwide allocation for extracurricular activities equates to roughly $27 per student. While schools work incredibly hard to support students with the resources available, meaningful enrichment experiences often depend on community partnerships and philanthropy.
That is where Winter4Kids comes in.
In our First Tracks Scholarship Program at Winter4Kids, we provide youth with access to skiing, snowboarding, mentorship, and outdoor experiences designed to help them build resilience, confidence, and self-agency. The majority of the youth we serve come from Newark and Passaic County communities. For many participants, Winter4Kids is their first opportunity to experience winter sports, spend meaningful time outdoors, or challenge themselves in a completely new environment.
This past season, Winter4Kids served nearly 1,900 youth, delivered more than 11,000 lessons, and provided over 22,000 hours outside on the mountain.
But there is still more need.
During the 2026 season, there were hundreds of empty seats on buses already scheduled to come to Winter4Kids. Not because transportation was unavailable, but because some students could not afford the cost of participation. That is why we launched the Fill A Bus Campaign.
Fill A Bus turns unused capacity into meaningful access. Donations directly support participant costs, helping ensure that no seat on a bus coming to Winter4Kids goes empty because of financial barriers.
Every filled seat represents a young person gaining access to something bigger than a day on the snow. It is an opportunity to build confidence, navigate challenges, connect with mentors, and discover what they are capable of.
Programs like Winter4Kids exist because communities choose to invest in young people. Donations help provide equipment, instruction, meals, mentorship, and access to experiences many families otherwise could not afford.
When you support Winter4Kids and the Fill A Bus Campaign, you are helping create opportunities that build resilience, independence, and belief in what is possible.
The impact lasts far beyond the winter season.
Learn more about or Fill A Bus campaign