Ojai Valley School Trip to Patagonia

Hello! My name is Ted Tambakis and I work at the Ojai Valley School.

We are currently fundraising for a school trip where a group of high school students and teachers will visit the Patagonia Region of Chile in February 2024. The trip is in honor of Jennifer Ridgeway, who passed away from cancer in 2019. She was my mother-in-law, and she loved this part of the world very much. She served as the founding Director of Photography for the Company Patagonia and is credited for originating the aesthetic of the iconic brand. This was especially done through her unique display of photographs in which the goal of the photo was "to sweep people away, to inspire them-- To let them visualize what its like to be "out there", not stuck at a desk or in front of a TV...The message is to get out here and do stuff". Jennifer inspired the careers of some of the top photographers and videographers in the outdoor industry, and was a mentor and friend to so many around the world.

A small group of students and teachers will travel to Southern Chile in late February 2024 to hike and backpack through National Parks, meet with local conservationists and educators, perform service work, and be inspired by this incredible landscape to be change makers and environmental stewards of this next generation.

Ojai Valley School has a long history of connecting students to nature and the outdoors through its robust and storied outdoor education program. At the school students in preschool through grade 12 will engage in hiking trips throughout the year, and students will begin camping overnight in first grade. Middle and high school students will spend time every year backpacking, kayaking, rock climbing, rafting, and more through the National Parks and other protected wilderness areas offered throughout the region and beyond. In the classroom land and climate studies are integrated into the curriculum, and students regularly engage in hands-on science learning through field studies and volunteer/restoration work. It is essential that students develop a personal connection to nature and the outdoors. There are lifelong lessons embedded within each aspect of an outdoor education trip, from planning to execution, and learning does not always need to place within the four walls of a classroom.

On the trip, we will be traveling with backpacks and will be prepared to "rough it" by cooking meals and camping as we go. However, there are still considerable costs that are required to make this trip possible, and we could not make this possible without your help. All of the proceeds from this fundraising effort will go to covering teacher/chaperone costs, paying our local guides, as well as towards transportation and lodging for the group.

Thank you for all of your support, we could not make this happen without your help!

-Ted Tambakis, Zach Byars, and all of the Ojai Valley School Community