Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. ~ Rachel Carson

In July 2005, Sara Leone, a vibrant young woman from Edgecomb, lost her life in a car accident.  In an instant, a family of four became a family of three. Her parents, Bob and Carol, and sister, Lindsay, and their community, lost a remarkable spirit that touched everyone who knew her.  In an attempt to find their way out of their profound grief and toward a new life, the Leones turned to the one thing that had kept them grounded and connected as a family for years, a deep love for the outdoors.

Their strongest and fondest memories of Sara were connected to the years they spent together hiking and camping, kayaking and biking, diving and backpacking. They wanted to honor Sara and to share the kind of love they had as a family for being outdoors. They reached out to their community that was also looking for a way to transform its pain from the loss of an extraordinary young woman into something positive and life-affirming.  Together, they created Teens for Trails (T3.)   This year, T3 celebrates its tenth year of helping foster a love for the outdoors in young people. The charitable nonprofit is a testament to the power of love and healing, by connecting young people to the Maine outdoors.

Bob and Carol’s vision hasn’t wavered from their initial concept, summed up in T3’s mission statement: “Teens to Trails is dedicated to increasing the opportunities to experience the out-of-doors through the systematic creation of and support for high school Outing Clubs. T3’s goal is for every Maine high school to have an active Outing Club that is both enthusiastically supported by and beneficial to its community.” 

High school outing clubs are often formed by teachers volunteering their time to take students into the out-of-doors. Club members can experience hiking, camping, birding, canoeing and kayaking and learning outdoor skills.  T3 believes strongly in unstructured play as a key building block in a young person’s education. The organization wants to spread this core value to other teachers, administrators and parents and work hard to assist schools that may have more funding difficulty than others, for costs such as transportation to an outing club event.

"When we moved to Maine, we thought everyone was playing outdoors, like we were, but we were wrong. We are committed to getting young people outdoors just to play ... they need to play," said Carol.

A number of Maine schools already had outing clubs when T3 formed, but many more did not. T3 has been working for 10 years to address that need through information, increasing awareness,  a Grants-to-Clubs program and other programs. The spirit of their daughter, Sara, also plays a role with Sara’s Scholarship – Engaging Teens in the Outdoors.  The scholarship, often matched with funds from the Chewonki Foundation and the Quimby family, awards a three-week wilderness trip to one Maine sophomore girl and boy each year.

Historically, operating funds for T3 have come primarily from grants, but three years ago, recognizing it needed to look beyond that source to continue the mission, T3 created the Bowties to Bean Boots Gala. It is a wildly popular and successful fundraiser. This August, T3 launches its first Life Happens Outside Festival.  A website for the event is in the works and will be public soon.

To learn more about Teens to Trails or to make a contribution, visit www.teenstotrails.org.  Teens to Trails also has a Facebook page.