The 5 Best Longstanding Nonprofits Around Summit County

Some community institutions can measure their history in generations rather than years. Summit County’s growth has created changing needs in areas such as family support, education, outdoor access, philanthropy and backcountry safety, and local nonprofits have often evolved alongside those changes. Several organizations serving the county today trace their beginnings to the 1970s and 1980s, giving them decades of experience responding to life in a mountain community. The Best of Summit recognizes nonprofits whose sustained work has helped build programs, partnerships and resources that continue to serve residents and visitors.

Family & Intercultural Resource Center

Family & Intercultural Resource Center, commonly known as FIRC, has evolved with Summit County as the needs of local families have changed. Its roots began with the Family Resource Center, while a major transition followed the 2000 U.S. Census, which showed a substantial increase in Summit County’s immigrant population. Summit County government brought together 28 community members for a six-month planning process focused on the community’s changing demographics. Because that effort shared many goals with the existing resource center, the groups joined forces and reshaped the organization as the Family & Intercultural Resource Center. FIRC later moved to Dillon offices shared with Court Appointed Special Advocates, Early Childhood Options and Summit County Head Start, encouraging collaboration among service providers. Today, its work spans food assistance, housing support, health and wellness, parenting education and other resources intended to strengthen Summit County families.

Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center

Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center marks 50 years in 2026, but its story began even before its formal incorporation. Former Outward Bound instructor Gene Dayton and other local volunteers were leading cross-country ski trips for people with disabilities in Summit County as early as 1973. After the first U.S. Ski for Light event took place in Frisco in 1975, volunteers wanted to continue creating adaptive outdoor opportunities locally. BOEC formally organized in 1976, initially relying on volunteers, donated food and equipment borrowed from their own closets. From those beginnings, it developed year-round adaptive recreation and experiential education programs. Today, BOEC serves more than 2,500 participants annually through its Adaptive Ski and Snowboard, Wilderness and Internship programs, supported by more than 300 volunteers. Activities have expanded over the decades to include skiing, rafting, climbing, cycling, paddling and other outdoor experiences for people with disabilities and special needs.

Summit Foundation

The Summit Foundation has spent more than four decades channeling local generosity back into the mountain communities it serves. Since 1984, the community foundation has distributed more than $61 million, supporting nonprofit organizations, scholarships and initiatives that address needs throughout Summit County and neighboring areas. Its grantmaking reaches organizations working in fields such as health and human services, education, arts and culture, environment, sports and recreation and other community priorities. The foundation also administers student scholarships and works with donors who want to direct charitable giving toward local causes. In 2025 alone, 124 local nonprofits received grants and the foundation returned $5 million to the community. Its role has expanded beyond distributing funds to include nonprofit resources, special initiatives and partnerships intended to help local organizations strengthen their own work, creating a philanthropic network built over decades of collaboration.

Keystone Science School

Keystone Science School is celebrating its 50th year in 2026, marking half a century since mountaineer and educator Robert W. Craig founded the organization in 1976. Originally called the Keystone Environmental Education Center, it began on a 40-acre campus with the idea that young people could use the mountains as a classroom for scientific inquiry, leadership and environmental understanding. Craig envisioned students studying the ecosystems of Summit County firsthand and learning to approach future decisions through observation, collaboration and critical thinking. The school initially operated as part of the larger Keystone Center before becoming an independent nonprofit in 2013 following a community-supported fundraising effort. Over the decades, its campus and programs have grown while science-infused experiential education has remained central to its mission. Summer camps, school programs and outdoor educational experiences continue to bring students into the field to investigate natural systems, build leadership skills and learn through direct exploration.

Summit County Rescue Group

Summit County Rescue Group began with a meeting on a snowy December night in 1972. Forty-five local residents gathered at Swan’s Nest on Tiger Road to discuss Summit County’s need for an organized search-and-rescue team. The group incorporated the following July as Colorado’s sixth mountain rescue team. More than five decades later, SCRG remains an all-volunteer nonprofit operating under the statutory authority of the Summit County Sheriff’s Office. Its unpaid members respond to backcountry emergencies throughout the year, 24 hours a day, without charging the people they rescue. The team searches for lost or overdue recreationists, responds to injured people in difficult terrain and maintains capabilities for technical mountain, swiftwater, dive and other specialized rescue situations. SCRG is accredited by the Mountain Rescue Association and also assists neighboring counties through mutual aid. Donations and grants support vehicles, communications systems, medical and technical equipment, facilities and the extensive training required to keep volunteers prepared for mountain emergencies.

– Created or enhanced with ChatGPT