DesLauriers encourages others to 'pursue balance' with nonprofit

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

By Sam Petri

Jackson Hole, Wyo.-You may have received a large red, non-traditional, super fancy envelope stylized with Buddhist overtones in the mail last week from Jackson’s new nonprofit, Pursue Balance.

The organization, founded by ski mountaineer Kit DesLauriers, has the mission to “provide information, education and grants to help people move toward achieving balance in their lives.” Kit’s vision is to “offer the gift of discovering what is possible – it is up to you to go big or go small, just go somewhere.”

A wee bit confused by the ambiguity of such statements, we decided to catch up with DesLauriers and find out who Pursue Balance is for. As it turns out, it’s for everybody.
You know Kit because last October she skied off the summit of Mount Everest, becoming the first person to ski off all seven major summits in the world, the first American to ski from the summit of Everest, and the first female to ski from the peak’s summit.

Kit always had it in her to accomplish this goal, but it took the help of many people for her to get there. One unnamed individual came into her life a few years ago and helped her finance her ski mountaineering feats, which, as many Jacksonites know all too well, are far from cheap.

Now, with Pursue Balance, DesLauriers wants to help others achieve their personal goals and visions, and the first people to have that opportunity will be Jackson Hole residents. With an application deadline of Sept. 15, locals who demonstrate a financial need to achieve their goals will be considered for a grant from Pursue Balance.

“People come up with their own idea’s of what to do,” said DesLauries. “You can imagine the gamut.”

She sited examples such as the need for financial aid to learn about photovoltaic systems, someone wanting to canoe and write poetry on the boundary waters of Minnesota – what ever will bring balance into your life.

Eventually, as Pursue Balance grows, grant applications will be available to people outside of Jackson Hole. Right now, DesLauriers wants to help her local community.
The nonprofit is unique in that in it focuses on individual needs rather than a large group, so it is able to have a very powerful impact on people as well as the people who surround them. 

But only 20 percent of Pursue Balance revolves around granting people aid. There also are plans to build a center in the future where people will be able to come and research to learn more about their goals.

Pursue Balance will host its first event at at 7 p.m. on Aug. 10 at the Center For the Arts. Reincarnate Tibetan Lama Phakchok Rinpoche will speak on the topic of balancing Eastern Spirituality and Western Living.

To learn more, visit www.PursueBalance.org.
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