In celebration and bring attention to disability awareness month, Steamboat Adaptive Recreational Sports will host its annual STARS Mountain Challenge at Steamboat Resort on March 11. 

Teams of eight or less can assemble and compete in challenges around the mountain to collect points while fundraising money in support of STARS. 

To score points, participants can ride lifts, go on ski runs and partake in photo challenges throughout the day. The team to score the most points and the team to fundraise the most money will win the event. 

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Joining each team will be one Paralympic or Olympic athlete as well as a STARS volunteer to keep track of team scores. 

“Our mission is to empower and enrich lives through adaptive recreational activities,” said STARS development director Susan Petersen. “We hold a few different fundraising events every year to succeed in that mission but this is a really fun one because it’s on the ski mountain and really shines the spotlight on what we do.”

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This is a peer-to-peer fundraiser where participants will reach out to friends, family and colleagues to raise the money in support of the nonprofit organization.

Those interested in participating can register on the STARS Mountain Challenge website. Registration goes through March 6, but with a 150-person capacity, Petersen recommends signing up as soon as possible. 

With a goal of raising $125,000, teams and individuals have already raised almost $50,000 with over two weeks to go before the event. Petersen said donations can be made by anyone, including those who are unable to partake in the event. 

Any donation, large or small, goes a long way for the organization. All money raised and any donations go directly to STARS in support of the organization’s overall operations.

“When people are raising money for STARS, they can be assured every dollar is going right to supporting our programs,” Petersen said. “Whether that is purchasing adaptive sports equipment, providing scholarships for people who can’t afford to participate, or just in general supporting everything we do year-round.”

To reach Tom Skulski, call 970-871-4240, email tskulski@SteamboatPilot.com.