The outdoor adventure foundation is helping dreams come true.
Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, we all face the reality that life, as we know it on earth, is fleeting. What’s more, life on earth is far from fair. Every year, thousands of young individuals are diagnosed with and face life-threatening illnesses and disabilities and, as a result, are forced to face the harsh reality of life’s fragility. However, the Outdoor Adventure Foundation is helping as many children as it can in their hunt for purpose in the face of adversity.
This really gives the kids something to look forward to. When you receive a very serious diagnosis and you’re going through all sorts of treatments and things like that, there aren’t always a whole lot of things to look forward to.”
-Brian Solum
How to help:
It takes a significant amount of resources to make a significant impact like the Outdoor Adventure Foundation does. Like most 501(c)(3) nonprofits, the Outdoor Adventure Foundation relies nearly entirely on contributions.
Financial Contributions
Financial contributions, of course, are at the pillar of what keeps the Outdoor Adventure Foundation ticking as it costs the organization $15,000 for their annual fishing trip alone. Imagine what it takes to visit the Minnesota Wild, Minnesota Twins and the 20 or so big game hunts that they do every year!
Donate at give.usoaf.org/p/ndoaf
Other ways to contribute
Among the other ways to help the Outdoor Adventure Foundation includes donating land for hunting.
“Over the years, so many great landowners have come on board,” Solum said. “We have terrific people who let us come out and hunt on their land. Sometimes they even let us stay in their house. Other times, we will find lodging nearby.”
The Founder
A real estate developer by trade, Outdoor Adventure Foundation Founder Brian Solum has always had a deep passion for hunting and the outdoors. However, his path to starting the Outdoor Adventure Foundation started while he was watching the Outdoor Channel.
“There was a hunt on there for an organization called Hunt of a Lifetime (an organization based out of Pennsylvania that helps grant hunting and fishing dreams for children age 21 and under who have been diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses or disabilities),” Solum said. “I was really inspired by it and became a chapter ambassador and did that for four years before starting Outdoor Adventure Foundation in 2006.”
In starting his own organization, Solum made it a point to ensure the nonprofit helped with a few important things, including:
- 90% of the money goes toward the kids and veterans
- Kids up to the age of 25 are allowed to participate.
- Disabled veterans up to age 40 who are wheelchair-bound or have lost a limb due to combat are also allowed to participate.
“This really gives the kids something to look forward to,” Solum said. “When you receive a very serious diagnosis and you’re going through all sorts of treatments and things like that, there aren’t always a whole lot of things to look forward to.”
“I had it legislated into law about 10 years ago where we can use any weapon during any season to fulfill our tags,” Solum said. “Meaning we can use a gun during bow season. That really helps us work with our land owners because a lot of them are obviously hunters as well and want to use their land during hunting season. But when it’s not hunting season, that’s when they’re willing to lend their land to us.”
Since its founding in 2006, the Outdoor Adventure Foundation, which now has eight chapters across six states, has helped thousands of children and veterans experience the outdoors in a way that would be fairly difficult outside of the organization. Whether it’s a group of wheelchair-bound individuals with permission to hunt through a car window or teenagers going through chemotherapy, each and every one of those trips or hunts has a huge impact on its participants.
To learn more, visit outdooradventurefoundation.org.
