5 Years of Sistering Support
Sistering Support has come a long way in the last five years!
April of 2025 marks five years of offering Sistering Support - our mutual aid program for Mind & Mountain Training Programs.
Four years ago, we published our 1-year update for Sistering Support. Now that we’ve hit the five-year mark, I figured that it’s time to reflect on what we’ve been able to do in our first five years.
We’re really proud of this program and all we’ve been able to accomplish with it!
Before we get carried away with all of the updates, let’s take it back a notch and cover some basics.
What is Sistering Support?
“Sistering” is a term from construction: when a beam is bearing too much weight, it's reinforced by adding support beams alongside it. That’s the image we’re working with—offering support to those carrying more than their share, especially folks who are BIPOC, queer, disabled, in bigger bodies, or otherwise underrepresented in outdoor spaces.
In a just and equitable world, no one would be prevented from moving, maintaining their health, or spending time outside due to financial constraints. And if we truly want a more inclusive and diverse outdoor recreation community, we must ensure that the pathways to thrive in it are open and accessible to everyone. Offering financial support and equity pricing is one of the ways we’re putting that commitment into action.
What’s changed in the last five years:
Over the last several years, we’ve encountered opportunities to expand the Sistering Support scope to help meet the moment as our community has faced unforeseen challenges.
For example, when Hurricane Helene wreaked havoc on much of the southeastern US last year, we were able to support community members with funds who wanted to opt into some of our newer somatic nervous system regulation programming– something we probably all already need, but after a climate disaster like that, definitely.
Even more recently, we have opened the fund to Canadians facing the impacts of these wild tariffs and US federal workers facing job insecurity. We love our friends in Canada so much. And so many of our Ski Babes and Summer Strong Stars have been or are employees of the National Park Service and the US Forest Service.
As the political landscape changes, so do the needs of our community members. It’s been incredible to have a simple program in place that we can adjust as needs arise.
Let's talk numbers:
Since April 2020, by the numbers – here’s how the last 5 years of Sistering Support have gone:
- 155 individuals have applied for and been granted funding
- $20,680 has been distributed
- The majority of these awards went to BIPOC, LGBTQ2S+, queer, fat, aging, and neurodivergent individuals
- Recently, awards have also gone to community impacted by climate disaster, tariffs, and federal employees facing job insecurity
Community-funded mutual aid:
As a values-led, woman-owned small business, it’s essential to us to strike a balance between helping those in need and maintaining a healthy business operation that pays our team well. We’ve been able to balance these priorities through community-funded mutual aid.
In our first year, funding came from a combination of fundraising efforts (by-donation workouts, apparel orders, etc) and from donations from members of our Summer Strong and Ski Babes communities.
We continue to offer the option to contribute to the Sistering Support fund when folks sign up to participate in Ski Babes & Summer Strong (you can donate here!). We’ve also gotten creative with fundraising! Community members have voluntarily donated the refunds they could have received, discounts they would have gotten, and a variety of other creative contributions from members of our community.
Lastly, we have an online storefront where you can purchase Mind & Mountain apparel. It’s a print-on-demand kind of situation, so we don’t incur any costs for making it available and 100% of the profits from the sales that happen there are put directly into the Sistering Support fund.
What’s next:
We are proud of how successful this program has been and are excited for it to continue growing!
As our program and community expand, we hope that this fund and its applications will grow too. As we spread the word about the opportunity for Sistering Support, we hope to contribute to removing barriers of entry for individuals whose identities are underrepresented in the outdoor recreation community and create safer avenues for all to recreate outside.
I want to extend a huge thank you to everyone who contributed to five years of success with Sistering Support. This community effort would not have been possible without the generous contributions of donors and the openness of applicants to ask for support when needed.
Thanks for reading and for making a program like this possible. I firmly believe that together, we can make outdoor and recreational spaces more equitable and inclusive. Oh, and if you want to read more or apply for support, here’s where you can find Sistering Support on our website.