BY JEFFREY WEIDEL
Olympic gold medal snowboarder Jamie Anderson is giving back to her sport and her community. Anderson will sponsor three South Lake Tahoe students for her annual “Give Back With Love” sponsorship.
Anderson, who was raised in South Lake Tahoe and calls Sierra-at-Tahoe her home ski resort, announced that this year’s recipients are Justice Ensign, 11, Jeremy Kornbeck, 14, and Jade Smith, 16. Through this event, selected students in the local community have the opportunity to experience what it is like to be a sponsored athlete for a season.
As part of the sponsorship, each student will receive a Sierra-at-Tahoe Unlimited Season Pass, brand new Oakley outerwear, a GNU snowboard, Oakley goggles, boots and bindings, and a camera from GoPro, all together valued at more than $2,500.
Anderson, 24, created the Jamie Anderson “Give Back With Love” sponsorship to provide less fortunate kids with the opportunity to snowboard. With the help of Angie Keil, the Lake Tahoe Unified School District Executive Assistant to the Superintendent, Anderson worked with the elementary, middle, and high school to identify students that showed academic promise and a strong work ethic.
“I’m so grateful to provide this opportunity to others,” said Anderson, an eight-time Winter X Games medalist, and recent Dew Tour champion. “To see the smiles on these amazing kids’ faces when we present them with an entire set up and season pass is so rewarding for me. My goal is for them to be able to ride as much as they can and hopefully fall in love with snowboarding like I did.”
On February 3, Superintendent Dr. James Tarwater, school principals and the three students will meet with the Sierra-at-Tahoe crew at the Fallen Leaf Room in the Student Union at South Tahoe High School. They will receive their snowboard gear and later in the season, spend the afternoon with Anderson.
For more information, visit www.SierraAtTahoe.com or call 530 659-7453.
Jeffrey Weidel can be reached at skiweidel@gmail.com. Visit his winter website at www.tahoeskiworld.com
