Posted: 03/07/07

Cutting loose with Burton Chill
Program teaches disadvantaged young adults values through snowboarding

Kaitlin Couillard | contributing writer
kcouillard@smcvt.edu

Carve, fall, and get up. Carve, fall, and get up. Twelve-year-old Alfonse Mikalonis’ friends cheer him on and he glides downhill. As he reaches the bottom of the ski trail a smile of relief and pride spreads across his snow-covered face. After six weeks, he’s made it down the trail without taking his snowboard off and walking. It’s been a pretty chill day.

The children in the program are brought to the Burton offices in Burlington every week to get outfitted before going to the mountain. Kaitlin Couillard, photo

Founded in 1995 in Burlington, Vt. by Jake Burton, the Burton Chill program brings snowboarding to children who would otherwise not have the opportunity, according to the Burton Web site.

Derek Freeburn, national coordinator for the Chill program in Burlington, Salt Lake City, Utah, and Toronto, says the program is unique.

“It’s something that’s able to connect with these kids in a way that other things don’t,” he says. “Whether it be the classroom environment, an after school program, or an athletic program, it’s another way to connect with them outside of traditional means.”

The program operates in 14 cities across the U.S. and Canada and focuses on self-esteem, which is at the core of its mission.

Burton, Bolton, and boarding basics

According to the Burton Web site, Burton works with social service agencies across the country which help select participants based on their level of need. The children are selected from group homes, foster care, and the juvenile justice system and many suffer from addictions and emotional issues. The children who are chosen are considered to be individuals who will benefit most from the experience. Overall, the program accepts about 40 children from each city and operates four days a week. The program is free of charge and provides equipment, transportation, lift tickets and lessons, according to the Web site.

In Burlington, the children are brought to Burton’s warehouse and are outfitted with all the necessary gear and equipment before getting on a bus to go to Bolton Valley Ski Resort.

Freeburn says the program employs two local coordinators from each city. Coordinators must have at least two years of college and three years of snowboarding experience. The program looks for individuals who are involved in social services and will be positive role models and instructors, he says. The coordinators are full-time seasonal employees and work for the program from December to March. Training for the coordinators is held for one week in December.

The program also accepts the help of volunteers and chaperones. According to Freeburn, chaperones tend to be individuals who have an understanding of the history of the selected youth and the chaperone-youth ratio is roughly one to five.

Patrick Scheld, a 2006 graduate of St. Michael’s and an AmeriCorps member, was a chaperone for Chill this winter. Scheld, who works at the Essex Teen Center and Essex Community Helping to Inspire People to Succeed center (CHIPS), helped to select four children from the Essex and Essex Jct. area for the six week program. The program runs on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays, with each group attending one of the days. Scheld and his group attended on Sundays.

Scheld, an avid skier, had never snowboarded before getting involved with the program.

“It was great because I was able to come down to the level of the kids because I had never done it before,” he says. “I was falling down on my butt right next to them and I was sore and hurting with bruises and stuff just like them.”

Derek Freeburn, national coordinator for the Chill program in Burlington, Salt Lake City, and Toronto, says the program is unique. Kaitlin Couillard, photo

The chill kids in town

The children are first required to take lessons and stay on the bunny slope. Then, they must be able to be in control while linking turns before they are allowed on the chair-lift, Scheld says.

The young adults learn more than moves, they learn a life lesson. Each week has a theme. Themes include patience, persistence, respect, integrity, courage and pride. At the end of the day, a child who has exemplified the theme wins a prize, Freeburn says.

Mikalonis was selected to participate in the program by the vice principal of Essex Middle School. He had never participated in Chill, and had never been on a mountain. Despite this, he says he did not allow himself to be overcome with fear. Mikalonis won a Burton hat for demonstrating courage by not being afraid to go up on the lift.

“I came out more confident,” he says. “[I was] more verbal as in trying to help other people. As in trying to get them back up if they fell down.”

At the end of the program, Mikalonis says he showed his appreciation by bringing in chocolates for everyone. He says he is proud of everyone for doing such a good job and not giving up.

In addition, Mikalonis says he did not give up despite his cousin’s taunts of failure.

“I dug my heel into the board really bad. I wiped out and I really did a number on my back, but I got back up,” he says.

Adam Trudo, 13, already knew how to snowboard, but says he was afraid of chairlifts after being stuck on one for over an hour and a half.

“I’m fine riding lifts as long as they don’t stop," he says, "When they stop I get nervous, and Pat [Scheld] helped me overcome that fear. On the last day I took the quad up and that’s about a 20 minute ride.”

Trudo admits to having been in trouble in school. He says that he was suspended twice last year but has not been in trouble yet this year. In addition, Trudo says that although the program was great, it did not fix his problems in school. He had already worked them out prior to entering the sixth grade, he says.

Yet Freeburn says he believes the program encourages the youth to have hope that situations can improve.

“These kids realize nothing is out of reach in their lives that they want to dedicate themselves to," Freeburn says, "It makes them aware of what hard work can do.”

Because of this, Freeburn says he hopes the program gains an international presence. In 2006 the program ran a successful test run in Sydney, Australia, Freeburn says, and he hopes to extend its reach for the future.

Values are fun

The program also supports a peer leadership program for alumni participants. The opportunity teaches them leadership and responsibility, Freeburn says.

The enrolled youth participate in events other than trips to the mountain. According to the Chill Web site, Brett Dennen’s “Love Speaks Tour” performed at Higher Ground on Feb. 3. Dennen chose Chill as his one of his favorite non-profit organization, allowing the program to receive a percentage of the ticket sales.

Scheld says he knows the program has a positive impact on the children’s lives.

“To be able to get kids off the couch and get them outside and to give them something to look forward to every week is great,” he says. “A lot of these kids don’t even have snow pants and you’d think [they would] living in Vermont,” Scheld says.

Chill is free of charge and provides equipment, transportation, lift tickets and lessons for the children. Kaitlin Couillard, photo

Although the program is in full swing now, Freeburn says it would not continue without the help of its contributors. The Burton Chill website (www.burton.com/chill.aspx) lists Motorola, Cliff Bar, Sobe, Ben & Jerry’s and Green Mountain Coffee as sponsors of the program.

With the collaboration of sponsors, chaperones, volunteers, coordinators and the youth, one day of the week is guaranteed to be enjoyable, at least until it ends.

At the end of the day, as Mikolonis puts his board into the bus with the rest of the children, he keeps a smile glued to his face. The day is done, the perspiration has dried and the gear is returned, but the lesson remains. He has overcome his fears and learned to stay motivated. He's a real snowboarder now.