Two Eagle Eye donors share below their reasons for supporting Eagle Eye Institute. Roger Plourde is a consulting forester and Eagle Eye Instructor who is also a donor. Barbara Forté is a partner at the Travel Collaborative and committee member of the Forté Foundation. supporters image

Roger: I try to teach about what foresters do, which is managing the land. This could be for wildlife, timber, or recreation, or all three. I donate for the same reason I teach. It's really self-interest! My work as a forester means stewardship and interacting with the land, figuring out wise uses for the land. Farming or harvesting trees changes your relationship to the land-- you develop a deeper connection to it. The program is a way to bridge the disconnect for an urban population that doesn't have that connection to the land.

What's great about Eagle Eye Institute is that it's so simple. It draws on the community to work, and it doesn't take just one perspective, but exposes the kids to a whole variety of perspectives.

Barbara: Often the needs of inner city youths that teaches them about nature and the environment might be considered superfluous. It would be said by many, 'Let's get all these youths educated and housed, and then worry about how they perceive the world and its environment.' I think this is a shallow perception and an uphill battle that Eagle Eye must face in the world of charitable dollars being granted to organizations.

Having lived in Colorado for 15 years, I am deeply concerned about protecting as much of our environment as possible. I am in support of any organization that has that as a goal. I am also deeply concerned about our youth, their lack of guidance, because either their parents aren't around or because the parents have to work so hard they have no time for their kids. It takes so little sometimes to get a child fired up about something. That ember can carry over into all parts of their lives, making them better students, citizens, and environmental police.