She went into the back to grab the box; it was so big it couldn’t fit into the South American Beacon Projects postal box. As she set the
box rather heavily on the counter I read the return address, Vancouver. This was the box we had been waiting for; and this is what 34 beacons look like.
Thanks to MEC and Salomon, and one really determined employee, Scott Winston (Z.) we have the opportunity to put 30 + beacons into the hands of South American workers who cannot afford them. Mountain Equipment Coop, Vancouver, was changing their demo fleet for this season and Scott knowing about the mission of the South American Beacon Project saw this as an opportunity.He found which hoops he needed to jump through to convince MEC to make this happen. And then thanks to the new Salomon store in Vancouver they were shipped to us at no cost to our project. The ski community is a tight one, we all share the same passion for the mountains so support from MEC and Salomon is not a surprise but still very appreciated.
Mountain Equipment Coop was started in the early 70s from the idea of 4 people sitting in a tent at Mount Baker. They saw the need for a distributor of climbing gear in Vancouver. Because it just 
wasn’t available or was too expensive in the Vancouver area. We at the South American beacon project have similar roots; the idea was formulated while hitchhiking in the back of a pickup truck from a backcountry ski zone called Santa Teresa. South Americans simply need more avalanche awareness and workers more protective gear which simply isn’t available or far too expensive. While MEC is obviously a retailer making profit and we are an organization working not for profit our similar pasts make this partnership and understandable one.
Salomon is one of the Leaders in high quality sport equipment. Their innovative designs are made to help athletes of all levels push harder, perform better, and go farther. They understand that when
athletes push farther a lot of times that means into the backcountry and uncontrolled zones with potential hazard. Salomon transporting these life saving tools to us is just another testament to their commitment to the sport and multiple levels.
Most of us go about our daily lives worrying about our spouses, payments, that lady who was just a jerk in the 7 11. For most of us our good deeds are helping the old lady who dropped whatever she was carrying pick it up, letting other people out of the elevator first. For Scott he did in a matter of months what many of us don’t do in a life time, he acquired the life saving tools for 30 + people. The next season they will be handed down to another 30 + people, and so on. While many might go into the Salomon store and see him as just a sales person, you can’t look at him in one dimension. Tens of thousands of North Americans who go to Chile every year, Scott’s never been there. But next time you walk into your West Vancouver Salomon store know that the manager, possible your salesperson, has done more for the Chilean ski industry workers than the majority of the tens of thousands of skiing tourists who go there every year.
SO, the South American Beacon Project would like to sincerely thank:
MEC, The new West Vancouver Salomon store, and Scott!!