The Optimist: Aspen’s summer giving season

Americans are generous people. Each year, US charitable giving runs approximately $500 billion, around 2% of gross domestic product. On a per capita basis, we are among the most generous societies in the world. This is true of dollars and it is true of time — nearly a quarter of American adults volunteer annually.

Our valley, in its unique way, takes something good about America and amplifies it. We have a cornucopia of extraordinary nonprofits, some with national or international impact. Whether the focus is extremely local or broadly global, our valley nonprofits provide countless opportunities to inspire and change lives.

If the environment is high on your list of causes, you have Aspen Center for Environmental Studies, Independence Pass Foundation, and Aspen Valley Land Trust. If you are looking to support local youth, you could start with the Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club, Aspen Education Foundation, or the Buddy Program. You could enrich lives through music with the Aspen Music Festival and Jazz Aspen Snowmass, through the visual and performing arts with Aspen Art Museum, Anderson Ranch, Theatre Aspen, The Arts Campus at Willits, Aspen Film, or through science with Aspen Physics. You could support the immigrant community through English in Action or Valley Settlement, housing through Habitat for Humanity, mental health through Aspen Hope Center, or people with disabilities through Challenge Aspen. You could inspire non-partisan dialogue about the issues facing our country and world through the Aspen Institute. I could keep going, but there’s a word count limit, and I apologize to the incredible organizations that I did not list.

A special attribute of our community is that we have full-time residents who care deeply about this place and we have part-time residents and visitors with similar love. We get to see love from both sources each summer. In the US, nearly one-third of charitable giving takes place in December. Because of our unique summer influx of part-time residents and visitors, our community sees a second giving spike in the summer.

Why do many of our special nonprofit organizations host summer giving events at a time when some locals are away from the valley? Well, our part-timers, that group occasionally demonized for its big hats and big homes, make their annual in-migration. And with that migration comes generosity that amplifies the generosity of our locals. From what I can tell, every local nonprofit that ran a summer giving event exceeded its target, some by huge amounts. Whether they are full-time or part-time, this summer, one person gave $10 million to support the new JAS Center on Cooper Street. Another family gave Aspen Institute nearly $200 million. The sums are staggering, in the best of ways.

The Negative Nellies will fuss and say these people only gave to impress their friends or to put their names on a building. To those commentators, I first ask, why would you make such assumptions? Second I ask, who cares? They did it. They stepped up. Maybe they gave to impress their golf buddies or to have a legacy when they are gone. But more likely, they stepped up because they were inspired by the missions.

This year, I had the opportunity to attend the annual event at the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES), the incredible local organization that focuses on environmental education and leadership, regenerative agriculture, healthy forests, and much more. Wow, what an organization. As the rain fell lightly on the roof of the tent, the guests made it rain for ACES inside. In full disclosure, my family invests time and money to support ACES and, boy, did we choose a great organization to back. Last year, I attended the summer event for one of our very local organizations, the Chris Klug Foundation, which educates and lobbies for greater organ donation in the US, inspired by our community’s own Chris Klug, an organ transplant recipient himself. Wow again. It is impossible to hear the stories of lives changed by organ donors without pretending you have seasonal allergies to account for your red, watery eyes. All of these events play a valuable community-binding role, bringing longtime locals, part-time residents, visitors, and new residents around an important mission. It’s easy to snag an invite or ticket to almost all of the nonprofit events. And each of these organizations appears to be as grateful for a $50 contribution as they are for a $5,000 contribution.

While some step up with dollars, others step up with time. If you don’t get Pitkin Alerts, please subscribe. In the summer, on a daily basis, you will read about the genuine heroism of Mountain Rescue volunteers. They get called at all hours to launch themselves into dangerous rescues in the high mountains. They might literally save your life one day. Other volunteers get out early in the season to improve the trails that we all enjoy, some organize and deliver food to those in need, and others teach English to new members of our community.

But since it’s the end of the peak summer season, this column is directed toward our great part-timers. As you leave the valley for your annual out-migration home, I want you to know: we appreciate you. Are there implications to the limitless demand for Aspen real estate? Yes, unquestionably. But do many of you step up to offset the impacts of owning real estate from afar? Yes, unquestionably. So next summer, bring your big hats and your big stack. We need great people who do the work. We also need great people who fund the work. In this valley, everyone can find an incredible organization that supports a cause that inspires them. Reach deep to help.

Greg Goldfarb lives in Aspen.