After a VERY stressful Friday, the Cookson Snow Trek happened without much of a glich! I-70 and Berthoud Pass, the main roads going to the event, were closed most of the day on Friday due to snow and wind and it looked like we might have to change the date of the event so people could get there. I spent most of the day in tears trying to figure out what to do, but I also knew how much Kevin would have loved that it was snowing!! I even thought to myself that he planned that so everyone would have fresh snow to play in. The road finally did open at 635pm on Friday, so I was hopeful that the event could go on as scheduled. And luckily it did!!

I was there with a few friends to set up the day lodge at the ranch at 8am, with everyone else starting to arrive around 10am. We had fresh coffee, hot chocolate, snack food and lunch waiting for everyone when they got there. Some people lingered in the lodge for awhile before hitting the trails, others went straight out to enjoy all the fresh snow. People were cross country skiing, snowshoeing, or just playing in the snow. Devil's Thumb Ranch was just beautiful and the weather was great! The fresh snow made it that much more beautiful and that much more meaningful to me. Snow was Kevin's favorite thing. He was always so happy when it snowed and would get a huge smile on his face and say, "honey, snowing!!"

Around 2pm, it was time for the door prizes. There were lots of different door prizes from local stores and restaurants, tee shirts and water bottles, personal training sessions, a fly fishing excursion, and a Patagonia jacket. The community was very generous in their donations and I couldn't have been happier with all the door prizes I had to give away. Everyone was very excited and surprised!

Towards the end of the day, I decided to get on my cross country skis that Kevin had given me for Christmas years ago and enjoy the day and the memory of him. I thought the day would be sad and lonely, but it was so nice to be doing something in honor of him and to be getting the word out about Marfan syndrome. He would have loved the event, the food, the people, and the door prizes!!! I am sure he was there with me with a big smile on his face very proud of what I had done.

I never thought I could be someone who planned a fundraiser, but now I think this will be an annual event. Everyone had a great time! It gives me something to look forward to and makes me feel like I may be making a difference in someone else's life who may have Marfan syndrome. And, most importantly, I think it is something that Kevin would have loved and wanted me to continue.

I raised more than $3300 for the National Marfan Foundation and donations are still coming in! I call that a success!!

Special thanks to our Corporate Sponsors!

Whitewave/Horizon Dairy
Patagonia
Blue River Anglers
Strings Restaurant
Mountain Sun Restaurant
Steve’s Snappin’ Dogs
Christie Sports
The Appliance Warehouse
Watercourse Restaurant
Alex Gil (personal trainer) and RallySport
Serioz Pizza
Steuben's
Tattered Cover Bookstore