"A society grows great when [people] plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in.”
Betty Ford Alpine GardensBetty Ford Alpine GardensBetty Ford Alpine Gardens
"A society grows great when [people] plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in.”
Your gift supports the beauty of Betty Ford Alpine Gardens and the conservation, education and research to further this mission.
Admission is free and we ask Garden visitors to consider a $20 donation during your visit. If you are inspired in being more involved, a membership gift is a great way to begin.Your gift brings world-class exhibits to life. You fund the future interest in horticulture and education science by supporting our internship program. You inspire families and young people to create a curiosity in nature that lasts a lifetime.
The annual budget of the Gardens is $1.7 million. Your gift today, of any size, empowers the Gardens to continue the mission of conserving alpine plants and fragile mountain environments.
Together, we grow.
In a world of dwindling resources and rising tensions, the alpine and Betty Ford Alpine Gardens, are newly relevant. The gardens are more important than ever for the beauty and calm they impart to visitors and their essential work preserving a critical piece of the world’s environment.
Betty Ford Alpine Gardens has embraced a new vision to engage people in the resilient, creative, adaptable and incredibly powerful world of alpine plants and environment through a dynamic and revealing approach to high-altitude science.
The following projects are in need of funding in 2023. Read further down this page for information on some of these funding opportunities.
| Sponsorship Project | Sponsorship Amount |
|---|---|
| Project FeederWatch | $1,500 |
| Betty’s Market Children’s Garden Sponsor | $2,000 |
| Labels for Scientific Plant Identification - SPONSORED | $3,000 |
| Chefs in the Gardens Summer Series (6 events) Naming Opportunity | $3,000 |
| Science Elevated Workshop Summer Series (6 events) Naming Opportunity - SPONSORED | $3,000 |
| Handheld GPS Unit & Spot – Conservation Equipment - SPONSORED | $3,600 |
| Summer Visitor Experience | $5,000 |
| Member Breakfast Sponsorship | $5,000 |
| Sustainability Zero Emissions Gardens Equipment - SPONSORED | $5,000 |
| Winter Propagation Project | $5,000 |
| Science Elevated Speaker Series (5 events) - SPONSORED | $7,500 |
| Garden Protector | $10,000 |
| Tufa Garden (Saxifrage) | $20,000 |
| Summer Volunteer Program Support (Naming Opportunity) | $10,000 |
| Breaking Records Exhibit Bronze Sponsor - SPONSORED | $20,000 |
| Breaking Records Exhibit Silver Sponsor | $30,000 |
| Breaking Records Exhibit Gold Sponsor - SPONSORED | $50,000 |
| Permanent Geology Exhibit (Vail In-Deep Time) | $30,000 |
| Endowment Chairs for Key Position |
If you are interested in sponsoring a project, please email our Development Director, Melissa Ebone or contact her by phone at 970-476-0103 x5.
Betty Ford Alpine Gardens has determined that a geology exhibit will help us tell another part of the story of this mountain ecosystem.
The mountains of the Vail Valley tell the story of over 1 billion years of earth’s history. Continents drifted, recording evidence of the first bacteria to present-day plants and animals in the surrounding rocks. Explore one of the few places on earth where so much time and history is right before our eyes. The Vail in Deep Time outdoor exhibit will illustrate five significant rock formations and the plants and animals that flourished when they were laid down.
Betty Ford Alpine Gardens brings dynamic and changing exhibits to the summer Vail experience each year. In 2023, all exhibits and themes are centered around Breaking Records, based on phenology, the changing of nature over time. The indoor exhibit is an interactive tundra explorer family experience. The outdoor exhibit allows garden visitors a look into the lives of the explorers who climbed the highest peaks and the furthest tundra and how their records have changed through time. This education series will be supported by a Science Elevated Speaker and Workshop Series ( Sponsored) along with family activities and interactive ways for visitors to discover the Gardens.
Sponsorship Levels
Bronze Sponsor – $20,000 - SPONSORED
Silver Sponsor – $30,000
Gold Sponsor – $50,000 SPONSORED
On the Roof of the Rocky Mountains offers an intimate view of Vail’s treasured botanic garden, Betty Ford Alpine Gardens. Written by Colorado-based author and landscape architect, Sarah Chase Shaw, the book examines the extraordinary effort of community-minded citizens developing a world-renowned botanic garden devoted to alpine plants. Named in honor of former First Lady Betty Ford, an avid gardener and part-time resident of Vail, the Gardens showcases over 3,000 species in individual garden collections devoted to alpine environments around the globe. Purchase to have this timeless piece in your home or as a gift for a friend.
In 2020 Jeanne Fritch, Nancy Fritch and Leslie Chapman created the Helen Fritch Endowment Fund and Matching Challenge. In honor of their mother, our founder Helen Fritch they committed to support the forever future of the Gardens.
Current Progress: $120,000
This fund supports education, gardens and conservation.
Thank you to all who have contributed.
There are a few special projects that can be sponsored and named each year. We look for individuals to underwrite these special opportunities for the community.
Contact Development Director, Melissa Ebone at 970-476-0103 ext 5 or email to explore possibilities – small or big.
With more and more pressure on the environment, the need to educate people about the importance of plants and our beautiful mountain home is paramount. The Gardens is holding one of the most important collections of alpine flora in the world and is leading a national action plan to protect North American’s alpine flora.
There are multiple ways you can support the Gardens with your estate planning.
Leaving a gift to Betty Ford Alpine Gardens in your will is the most common way that individuals ensure the work of the Gardens’ continues for the next generation.
These gifts often take the form of:
Your tax advisor can guide you on the best way to take care of your family and the mission of the charities you hold dear. Oftentimes, with strategic planning, you are able to do more with your assets because of the tax implications of different types of giving.
Our gift acceptance policy states that all undesignated gifts to Betty Ford Alpine Gardens are put into capital reserve fund. If you would like to discuss different plans for your gift, please reach out and let us know.
Our Tax ID # is 74-2395097
*If you have made a plan for the Gardens in your estate plans, we would love to know. We want to be able to celebrate with you and understand your goals and intentions to make sure your wishes happen.
Longevity, Resilience, Beauty
Endowment gifts will secure the future of Betty Ford Alpine Gardens. An endowed contribution is permanently invested, and only a portion of the earnings is withdrawn. The principal is never spent. Endowment gifts ensure the legacy of the Gardens for future generations. Betty Ford Alpine Gardens has an actively managed investment portfolio to ensure that our investments are protected and allowed to grow.
The Gardens draw a 4.5% distribution annually.
Your gift supports all the beauty you witness when you walk through Betty Ford Alpine Gardens AND the conservation and education research that happens each week to further this mission.
Currently – $4,000,000
Endowment Goal – $13,000,000
The Endowment Fund at this level will fund the current operations of the Gardens in perpetuity.
Contact the Gardens directly to discuss.
Aid in continuing to expand geographic collections, update the gardens, and education facilities.
Benches and tribute projects are available. One bench currently exists.
Choose a specific project to sponsor. Summer exhibits, garden supplies, internships and more.
For the nature-lover in your life, the person who cares about conservation or that person that you really want to give a gift that says I care about what you care about. You can purchase a year-long membership that connects them with the nature cause they love.