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Snowboarding and skiing lessons don't just teach kids to ride a mountain - snow sports also have the ability to teach kids valuable life lessons.

Two programs - CHILL and SOS Outreach - are using snowboarding and skiing to boost disadvantaged kids' self esteem and confidence and to teach them the value of persistence.

CHILL, founded 14 years ago by Jake Burton Carpenter of Burton Snowboards, has made a difference in the lives of 12,000 kids in 14 North American cities. Thanks to partnerships with ski resorts, youth in cities from Los Angeles, CA to Burlington, VT have the chance to take part in the program.



Every week for six weeks, CHILL buses children (ages 10 - 18) to a mountain near their home, outfits them in Burton snow gear and teaches them to snowboard.

"Snowboarding is just the vehicle," says Ryan Townsley, CHILL's national coordinator. "Anything you can do to help kids find success will help them build self-esteem."

SOS Outreach, a Colorado organization, aims to teach skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing to 5,000 kids this ski season alone and will also be offering wilderness programs beginning this summer.

"When someone gets to the top of the mountain and conquers the mountain," says SOS program founder Arn Menconi. "That has a profound effect on developing their self-confidence."

Indeed.

“Kids want to learn to snowboard because it is fun, but it takes several lessons and lots of hard work to learn,” says Michele Boguslofski, Director of Chill on the Burton website. “We use snowboarding to help kids accomplish goals they never thought they could achieve while teaching them some of the most important lessons of life: patience, persistence, respect, integrity, courage and pride.