National Ghost Ranch Foundation, Inc.
Grants Awarded
Ghost Ranch's Community Day Camp (GRCC) offers experiential outdoor and environmental education to youth in Rio Arriba County, aiming to prevent summer learning loss and support rural families. By providing enriching activities in a stunning natural setting, GRCC seeks to close the opportunity gap, enhance STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education, and foster respect for local natural resources among underrepresented youth.
Ghost Ranch aims to become a Certified Base Medical Education Center, enhancing outdoor recreation and wilderness medicine training for participants across New Mexico and beyond. This initiative will not only provide valuable educational opportunities but also promote the local community as a premier destination for outdoor activities, fostering economic growth and environmental stewardship.
The National Ghost Ranch Foundation (NGRF) plans to construct 1.75 miles of wheelchair-accessible trails, enabling individuals with mobility challenges to explore the picturesque desert landscape and serene backcountry of the ranch. This initiative will enhance access for participants and promote inclusivity within the local community, benefiting over 45,000 guests who visit annually.
The National Ghost Ranch Foundation (NGRF) is a nonprofit education and retreat center located 60 miles northwest of Santa Fe, near the northern New Mexico community of Abiquiu. Established in 1955, the mission at Ghost Ranch is to steward a place of great beauty to nurture the human spirit and mind, discover the sacred, and care for creation. The 21,000-acre ranch is owned by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). In 1976, it was designated a Registered Natural Landmark by the National Park Service. Since 2017, the ranch’s facilities and programs have been leased to and managed by The National Ghost Ranch Foundation, Inc., an independent, 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Ghost Ranch invites people from diverse backgrounds across the globe to explore the arts, outdoor recreation, geology, ecology, the globally renowned archaeological and fossil quarries or simply to rest and renew their spirits. Ghost Ranch welcomes over 45,000 visitors from around the world annually. In 2022, a total of 33,781 individual guests purchased day passes to take advantage of the facilities of Ghost Ranch, including 16,370 guests at the anthropology and paleontology museums, 1,976 outdoor adventure guests, 6,531 tour guests and 5,069 horseback riders. An additional 991 guests took part in 93 week-long programs. A variety of groups also use Ghost Ranch for corporate meetings and retreats, weddings, reunions, school trips, scouting activities, and church events. Hikers on the Continental Divide Trail rest and refuel at Ghost Ranch. The Whitaker (Coelophysis) Quarry is listed on the State Register of Cultural Properties and Federal Register of Historic Places, and active quarry sites are reserved by universities across the country for geological, archaeological and paleontological training and research. In 2024, NGRF plans to make Ghost Ranch THE destination for outdoor recreation and wilderness emergency management training for all of New Mexico. In collaboration with Base Medical (www.base-medical.com), an Albuquerque-based wilderness medicine and search and rescue (SAR) training organization, NGRF will create an annual schedule of Wilderness First Aid (WFA) and Wilderness First Responder (WFR) training and recertification.