Dear Greater Richmond,

The unjust death of George Floyd and so many before him has stopped us in our tracks. And by "us" we mean the leadership of Peak Experiences. The ongoing protests have tripled the gravity under our feet, forcing us to pause and reflect deeply. These events have made the topics of equality and justice inescapable for our company leadership. We have been listening. We have been trying to understand. And we are in the process of coming to grips with opportunities we've missed to be better. 

We provide some pretty incredible opportunities for people to explore, challenge, connect, and succeed in countless ways. Generally, we take great pride in what we do and how we do it. For years we've had a Vision Statement for the company. We've kept it as an internal document for use at staff training and guiding our big decisions. We haven't put it up on the wall just yet because there's an uncomfortable distance between where we are and where it requires us to be. At times we have achieved its lofty ideals in dramatic fashion, and we've been terribly inconsistent at other times. This is one of those times. 

Peak Experiences is not here to tell you what you must do. Truthfully, we are struggling to determine what we need to do. We also welcome respectful dialogue on our social media platforms which recognizes that no single path will bring us to a better and more just place. We believe that Black Lives Matter, but we also know that uttering three words is not enough.

We are presently searching our hearts for the opportunities we've missed and the reasons why, as well as things we can do about it. It is no secret that people of color are wildly underrepresented in the sport of rock climbing. We have to do what we can to lower that barrier to entry in our own communities. As an initial start towards that end, we have created 25 Peak Experiences memberships that will be shared with disadvantaged people of color in our surrounding communities. This is one small measure we can implement quickly to encourage greater connection, dialogue, and understanding in our own “home”. Reality set-in for us however when we realized we didn't precisely know who to share these memberships with. We could only think of a small handful of organizations off the tops of our heads who might be able to help us distribute them. That too was an eye-opener and something we have to come to terms with. We would welcome your input.

There are vast numbers of folks in our community in great pain. It is more clear than ever that they have always been in pain. We do not pretend to know what that feels like and perhaps we never will. However, that does not absolve us of the responsibility to seek greater understanding and a deeper commitment to doing our part to alleviate that pain.

Sincerely,

Kevin Tobin - Owner, Peak Experiences, Inc. tobin@peakexperiences.com
Scott Powell - Owner, Peak Experiences, Inc. scott@peakexperiences.com