Ways to Give

Together We grow

"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.

2023 Garden Funding Opportunities

Ongoing - Various Levels of Support

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 ProjectSponsorship 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.

Education Center at Betty Ford Alpine Gardens

Vail In Deep Time – Geology Exhibit

Fall 2023
Cost: $30,000

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.

Education Center at Betty Ford Alpine Gardens
Breaking Records Exhibit Sample Poster - Betty Ford Alpine Gardens

Breaking Records Education Exhibit

Summer 2023
Silver Sponsorship Level REMAINS

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

Featured image: Rendering of possible outdoor exhibit sign.

"On the Roof of the Rocky Mountains" Book Cover - Betty Ford gardens

Book 2nd Edition Printing

On the Roof of the Rocky Mountains: 2nd Edition Printing
Available on website and in gift shop.

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.

"On the Roof of the Rocky Mountains" Book Cover - Betty Ford gardens
On the Roof of the Rocky Mountains: The Botanical Legacy of Betty Ford Alpine Gardens, Vail's Alpine Treasure

Columbine Flower - Betty Ford Alpine Gardens

Helen Fritch Endowment Fund

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.

Helen Fritch

Underwriting & Sponsorship Projects

Every level you increase, you maximize impact on the Gardens’ future.

Partial Sponsorships Available

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.

Sponsorship Projects

  • Southwest Waterwise Garden ($65,000) – SPONSORED
  • Tufa Garden - Saxifrage Collections ($20,000) - Partially Funded
  • Water feature repair 
  • Betty’s Market in Children’s Garden (Annual) – ($2,000)
  • School & Family classes supplies ($1000)
  • Staff Professional Development

Contact Development Director, Melissa Ebone at 970-476-0103 ext 5 or email to explore possibilities – small or big.

Bristlecone Pine Legacy Society

Give a Legacy Gift
Protect the Gardens for Generations

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:

  • Cash
  • Closely Held Stock
  • Real Estate
  • Appreciated Securities
  • Tangible Personal Property

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.

Endowment

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.

CAPITAL PROJECTS

Aid in continuing to expand geographic collections, update the gardens, and education facilities.

TRIBUTE AND MEMORY GIFTS

Benches and tribute projects are available. One bench currently exists.

SPONSOR A PROJECT

Choose a specific project to sponsor. Summer exhibits, garden supplies, internships and more.

Gift Memberships

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.

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