FREIDA HECHT not only manages to take
care of her own 11 children, but she also
helps many others, especially special-needs children of all ages, through her
organization Circle of Friends.
Hecht, a rabbi’s wife who lives near
Westport, Connecticut, says, “As a com-
munity activist and educator, I noticed
that children with special needs and their
families are mostly isolated within the
community. These children never get
invited to birthday parties, have play dates
or are included in group sports. Having a
child with special needs creates an invisi-
ble barrier. It’s lonely and painful.”
It began as a desire to help one little
Peak performance
Costco members doing
their part to help make the
world a better place
Changing
THE World
MEMBERCONNECTION
RYAN KERRIGAN is introducing underprivileged and at-risk teenagers in the
Pacific Northwest to outdoor adventures
only miles from their homes but a world
away from their daily lives.
The Costco member is the founder and
executive director of Peak 7 Adventures
(
peak7.org), a faith-based nonprofit that
provides opportunities for Washington
and Oregon youths to explore wilderness
through backpacking, whitewater rafting
and mountaineering adventure trips that
also build belief in their own self-worth
and abilities.
“We utilize the adversity the outdoors
naturally has to teach kids that adversity
used well can lead to a lot of growth. We
try to make challenges that are achievable,” says Kerrigan, noting wilderness
activities foster teamwork, trust and
self-confidence.
While Peak 7 is an outdoor ministry,
Kerrigan points out that faith is “why we
are doing what we are doing. It is not
exactly what we do. We work with
non-Christian groups as well.”
Kerrigan, who has a degree in parks,
recreation and tourism management,
founded Peak 7 in 2006, a year after the
software company he had been working for
relocated. Rather than leave Spokane,
Kerrigan intertwined his wilderness skills,
faith and love of working with youths to
form an outdoor adventure company. His
goal was to expose teens to the wonders of
nature, just as he had experienced them
with his father, a Navy surgeon who also
spent nine years as a medical missionary.
Since 2006, Peak 7 has grown to
include regional offices in Seattle and
central Oregon and has served more than
20,000 youths. In 2016, a record-setting
4,000 young people participated in trips.
John Tibbetts, teen program specialist for
the Tacoma (Washington) Rescue
Mission, has witnessed firsthand
the impact of Peak 7 programs on
teens living in the mission’s
emergency shelter and transi-
tory housing facility.
“The opportunity kids
receive on these trips is the gift of
not having to worry about what’s
going on back home,” the Costco
member says. “They are just able
to be kids. They are able to learn
and grow with their peers. It’s an
opportunity to do something that
is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for most people.”
—Andrea Downing Peck
Peak 7 Adventures offers youths the opportunity to explore the outdoors, through
mountain climbing, whitewater rafting,
backpacking and more.
Creating
a circle
OUR DIGITAL EDITIONS
Click here to watch Peak 7 founder
Ryan Kerrigan talk about his nonpro;t.
(See page 14 for details.)
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