Selway Bitterroot Frank Church Foundation
Visit Partner SiteMission
The Selway Bitterroot Frank Church Foundation assists the Forest Service in providing stewardship for the Selway-Bitterroot and Frank Church-River of No Return Wildernesses and surrounding wildlands through on the ground work, public education, and partnerships.
About
The Selway Bitterroot Frank Church Foundation is a community of wilderness minded and hardworking individuals dedicated to bringing citizens and youth to wilderness to work, live, and play. Since 2006, SBFC has helped steward the 4-million-acre Selway-Bitterroot Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness, across Idaho and Montana. We ensure recreational use by opening trails and maintaining trail connectivity. We also protect the natural conditions of wilderness ecosystems through wilderness character monitoring, campsite obliteration, invasive species removal, and erosion mitigation.
Events & Projects
Programs
Connie Saylor Johnson Wilderness Education Grant
The Connie Saylor Johnson Wilderness Education Fund was established in 2019, to honor the memory of Connie Saylor Johnson. This fund enables the Selway Bitterroot Frank Church Foundation to provide incentive grants for educators and educational organizations to incorporate the stewardship of wilderness and natural ecosystems into classroom and/or outdoor curriculum.
Volunteer with SBFC — Hosting
The Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Volunteer Cabin Hosting Program offers volunteer opportunities to help care for USFS backcountry stations in partnership with the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests and the Bitterroot National Forest. Volunteers serve as “hosts” at several historic cabins and a lookout, while providing support to the U.S. Forest Service and other professional wilderness staff and volunteers. Volunteers assist with backcountry communications and greet, educate, and help backcountry visitors, including pilots and backpackers. Volunteers also provide maintenance and general upkeep of these historic structures, as well as assist with seasonal openings and closings.
Volunteer with SBFC — Pack Support
SBFC is in need of experienced packers with stock (horses, mules) to pack food, tools, and gear for volunteer projects. Packers help us educate our volunteers about the importance of traditional stock use in Wilderness, while assisting our projects to accomplish maintenance of trails, further ensuring access for private stock use. While packing for SBFC projects, volunteer packers are considered USFS volunteers and are covered under USFS workers comp during that time. Contact volunteer@selwaybitterroot.org to learn more about packing opportunities.
Volunteer with SBFC — Trail Work
Join us on one of our multi-day trips in the Selway-Bitterroot and Frank Church Wilderness areas to assist the USFS in maintaining and opening trails for public access. Working as a volunteer with SBFC is one of the most rewarding wilderness experiences you can have!
Volunteer with SBFC — Trail Head Ambassadors, Artists-In-Residence, Etc.
In 2021, the Selway Bitterroot Frank Church Foundation launched a new St. Mary Trailhead Volunteer Ambassador Program on the Bitterroot National Forest in Montana. In partnership with the Forest, the SBFC Trailhead Ambassadors educate trail users about trail safety, how to be prepared for their hike, responsible trail use, and Leave No Trace principles. Trailhead Volunteer Ambassadors also record visitor use information and may perform routine trailhead maintenance. Trailhead Ambassadors will be stationed at the St. Mary trailhead on weekends in July and August, 2024. Additional days may be added to the calendar depending on demand and volunteer availability. No experience necessary! Training is provided.
Wilderness Ranger Fellowship
The SBFC Wilderness Ranger Fellowship (WRF) program provides an immersive experience in Wilderness trail conservation and management through hands-on stewardship. The fellowship will provide you with the opportunity to learn: 1) Wilderness trail maintenance skills, wilderness campsite inventory skills, and practical in-the-field decision-making; 2) The ability to safely and proficiently live, travel, and work in a backcountry setting for 8+ days at a time; 3) From SBFC staff wilderness trail professionals and US Forest Service wilderness trail technicians; 4) alongside other WRFs and volunteers from the public, and; 5) to be an on-the-ground advocate for Wilderness access, education, and protection through your words and more importantly, your actions.
Youth Wilderness Expeditions
The Youth Wilderness Program is a new opportunity for teens to immerse themselves in Wilderness. We are dedicated to cultivating in youth an appreciation for Wilderness, public land, and public service, fostering the next generation of Wilderness stewards. Through hands-on conservation work, experiential learning, and plenty of recreation, youth will engage the land and learn the true meaning of Wilderness. Our immersive, multi-day expeditions will challenge youth, teach them how to travel, live, and work safely in the backcountry, and expose them to possible careers in stewardship and conservation. Our program removes the barriers for youth to access and enjoy Wilderness by providing the gear, food, expertise, and leadership necessary to experience the backcountry safely, at no cost to participants.
How To Support
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Impact
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