FOUNDER

Dara started laying the groundwork for Climb Avy Aware in 2019, after an avalanche killed a Canadian ice-climbing friend, Sonja Findlater.  She founded Climb Avy Aware in July 2023, a month after she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and led it until she succumbed to the cancer on September 14, 2024. Dara knew about the ATES from climbing in Canada and recognized it as a great risk management tool that could work in Colorado. Climb Avy Aware is her memorial to Sonja and her legacy.

Image: Jesse Ramos

PRESIDENT + TREASURER

Robin is a mostly-retired corporate attorney who doesn’t ice climb and who avoids avalanche terrain altogether. Still, he’s a smart guy with a head for numbers and a strong desire to see his wife’s legacy flourish. He merely tolerates winter, and will ski if coerced. In the warmer months, Robin likes to ride his bike, mow the lawn, and sit on the deck at dusk with a glass of rosé and a good view of the hummingbird feeders. Robin lives in Boulder.

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Image: Marla Rutherford

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Kate has over 10 years of nonprofit executive director and Board experience, and 15 years in education. She and CAA’s founder, Dara, worked together at the Boulder Climbing Community, where they became friends. Kate is thrilled to continue Dara’s vision. Her goals for CAA are to connect with community, finish the work, and find a home for the Colorado ATEs Project. Kate is Vice Chair of AIARE and Board Chair of She Sends. She is also engaged in national and local advocacy as a member of the Outdoor Alliance's Grasstops Collective and the advocacy committee for the Boulder Climbing Community.

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VICE PRESIDENT

In addition to serving on the board of directors, Mike Soucy is a contributing analyst for Climb Avy Aware. He's an IFMGA Mountain Guide with decades of experience climbing and skiing backcountry routes in Colorado and beyond. Mike's work with the ATES includes daily operations guiding and instructing for the American Mountain Guides Association, as well as authoring a Beacon guidebook for backcountry skiing in Rocky Mountain National Park. Mike lives in Longmont, Colorado.

Image: Mike Soucy Collection

SECRETARY

Keith is a late bloomer: He started mountaineering and climbing in his 50s. He has climbed all over the West and in Alaska but is focused on the Cascade volcanoes in the Pacific Northwest as well as the 14ers in California and Colorado. He is an AMGA-certified Climbing Wall Instructor, State Director for Colorado Mountain Club’s Avalanche Awareness Education programs, and he teaches basic mountaineering skills for Mountain Basics (Bellevue, WA) and the Southwest Explorers League (Santa Fe, NM). He's a retired senior intelligence analyst/Russian linguist with service in the US Army and as a US Department of Defense civilian. He lives in Golden.

DIRECTOR

Usha’s professional background includes key strategic, operations, and project management roles at leading non-profit organizations and advertising firms across the country.

Her professional career spans 25+ years and includes experience with strategic planning, project management, risk management, organizational policy/process development, fundraising, database management, and direct response advertising.

Usha lives in Boulder, Colorado.

DIRECTOR

Sarah wears many helmets: Rocky Mountain Rescue, AMGA Rock Guide aspirant, ice climber, canyoneer and leader of canyon tours, scuba diver and caver. Oh, and she’s a patent attorney in her spare time. Since moving to Colorado, Sarah has done time in Lyons and Louisville, but eventually found her dream home high in the forest above Coal Creek Canyon.

Aaron started rock and ice climbing in the Adirondacks of Upstate New York, and ever since has been in love with the pursuit of the vertical and the places it takes him. He’s been fortunate enough to climb in unforgettable places like the Bugaboos, the Sierra Nevada, and Joshua Tree, and stand atop the summits of Argentina’s Aconcagua, and Alaska’s Mt Fairweather. He has been a W-EMT, an AMGA Certified Climbing Wall Instructor, has taken avy courses with AIARE and the CAA, and completed High-Angle Rescue Training at the Technician Level.