Leadman gives back
Pinehurst Elementary School principal Leah White accepts a check for $4,000 from Rotarian Sid Armstrong for the work that PES volunteers did during the annual Leadman Triathlon in April. The $4,000 donation was the largest amount awarded this year and will go toward furnishing the three new classrooms that were recently constructed at PES.
Courtesy photo
KELLOGG — When the annual Leadman Triathlon was established two decades ago, the goal was to create an event that brought people to the Silver Valley and gave local organizations an opportunity to volunteer in order to raise funds.
Through partnerships between the Rotary Club of Kellogg, Silver Mountain Resort and Dave Smith Chevrolet, Leadman 2023 was recently able to distribute $14,000 that was raised during the April event.
Silver Mountain Resort Event Coordinator Gus Colburn spoke to the level of challenge that comes with putting on the Leadman event, a race that begins at the top of Silver Mountain and ends at the resort base, with skiing, biking and running intervals in between.
“It’s organized chaos,” Colburn said. “We have kids running around with skis and bikes, making sure they get to where they need to go. It’s a huge effort for everyone and a huge event for the community.”
There are not many opportunities in Shoshone County for volunteer-based fundraising. Leadman is one of just a handful of those events, and without that volunteer base, it would be near impossible to pull off.
“It’s always great to get the community involved in big events like this one,” Colburn said. “With Leadman and SilverHoops being two of the biggest events in the Silver Valley, it’s cool when locals want to be a part of putting the event on and be as involved as the tourists who come to participate.”
Among the groups who received funds were Pinehurst Elementary School, the Kellogg Storm Football program, Kellogg High School’s music programs, two different graduating classes and the D.C. or Bust middle school group.
Other groups also received funds, but these six received the larger sums that benefit local children, and the children benefiting from the money got in on the volunteer efforts.
“These funds can be huge for kids,” Colburn said. “We want to be able to give kids opportunities to experience educational and impactful things outside of the classroom, but those things are never free. Like the D.C. or Bust group, a lot of times this trip is a kid’s first time being on an airplane, which is just as important as the things they get to do and see once they get to Washington, D.C., but plane tickets and museum tickets cost money. We love being able to give them an opportunity to raise some of it themselves.”
Funds are raised through registration fees and sponsorships, and through 19 events over the years, Leadman has raised over $182,000 that has been reinvested in the community.
Leadman 2024 is scheduled for April 20, 2024. For info on how to get involved, email gusc@silvermt.com.
Total distributions from Leadman 2023:
Pinehurst Elementary School: $4,000
Storm Football: $2,500
KHS Class of 2027: $1,500
KHS Class or 2026: $1,000
KHS Band and Choir: $1,000
DC or Bust: $1,000
Silver Valley Cat Wranglers: $800
Shoshone Pet Rescue: $800
Shoshone Fire District No. 2: $700
Shoshone Medical Center Foundation: $700