Friends of the Dillon Ranger District

Friends of the Dillon Ranger District is a Colorado 501(c)3 Nonprofit Corporation whose mission is to promote stewardship of the White River National Forest in Summit County through partnerships, volunteer service, education, and support.

Friends of the Dillon Ranger District was established in the summer of 2005 by diverse users of public lands in Summit County Colorado USA as the nonprofit partner of the Dillon Ranger District, a district of the White River National Forest within the U.S. Forest Service, an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture.

FriendsDRD focuses on the following goals and objectives:

(1) Create collaborative partnerships between the Forest Service and a diverse group of local organizations, individuals, and users of National Forest lands;

(2) Encourage community-based forestry by increasing volunteerism in Summit County, Colorado;

(3) Create excellent educational programs for visitors and residents, in order to promote, protect, and preserve our National Forest lands; and

(4) Develop broad support for the Dillon Ranger District by increasing donations, developing visitor information services, and recruiting volunteers for both field and office positions.

FriendsDRD Volunteer Resources include:

(a) Forest Stewards Program

(b) Volunteer Calendar

(c) Service Projects

(d) Trail Projects

(e) Documentation

Initial funding for Friends of the Dillon Ranger District was provided by a grant from the National Forest Foundation, but has expanded to include a variety of sources including grants from The Summit Foundation, direct funds from Copper Mountain Resort for environmental stewardship, and direct funds from ResortQuest through the FriendsDRD Lodging Donation Program.

FriendsDRD Lodging Donation Program is a voluntary $1 guest donation per room night to raise funds for FriendsDRD and its stewardship efforts. Year 2008 Lodging Donor Partners include ResortQuest, Lakepoint Lodging, and Brinkman Mountain Real Estate.

Results
"Nearly 5,300 hours of volunteer efforts in 2006"

- U.S. Forest Service Partnership Project Success Story

"One group singled out by Rick Cables, the Forest Service's regional forester, is the Friends of the Dillon Ranger District, which raised $1 million in the past four years for programs such as trail maintenance and ranger patrols."

- Steve Lipsher, Denver Post, Denver, CO

Awards
"FDRD was awarded the 2006 Rocky Mountain Region "Caring for the Land Stewardship" Award, one of three external awards presented annually to organizations partnering with the USDA-FS in each region."

- Lindsey Krusen, Summit Daily News, Frisco, CO

"The Friends of the Dillon Ranger District was recognized for its efforts to protect and improve the important resources within our national-forest lands. Through the hard work of its small staff and numerous committed and dedicated volunteers, nearly 9,000 hours of labor was contributed to a vast number service project on public land, and forest-stewardship programs have benefited residents and visitors to Summit County."

- STAFF REPORT, Summit Daily News, Frisco, CO

Participation

 * Biggest projects are with Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado, a partner, supporter, and mentor to FriendsDRD.
 * Smallest projects are the Forest Cleanups after lower elevation snowmelt in May.
 * Funnest project is the Volunteer Celebration in September.