CCA and REI, Partnering to Support Crystal Cove State Park
You may know REI, as we do, as a top retailer of outdoor gear that stands behind everything they sell like very few retailers today do. You may know them from their outdoor school which provides opportunities for people of all abilities and experience to get outside and play. You may also know REI, as we do, as a generous supporter of nonprofits that care for the wild places we all love to visit.
REI has been partnering with CCA since 2014 to support projects at Crystal Cove State Park that may otherwise be impossible to complete, including the replacement of a restroom located in the backcountry in El Moro Canyon, support for trail maintenance in the Park and support for CCA’s education initiatives.
Imagine the challenge in pitching the replacement of a restroom miles from a main road to a potential funder – it’s not one of CCA’s most glamourous projects. REI, however, immediately understood the value of this facility to a hiker who’d been on the trail for hours, and the care that had to be taken for the environment during its installation, because they, like so many of CCA’s members and donors, are outside, miles from a main road, all the time. They are cyclists, hikers, backpackers, kayakers and climbers, and they want to do everything they can to encourage all of us to be as well. REI makes outdoor recreation accessible and safe to the inexperienced as well as the most experienced while supporting the organizations that care for the trails, habitats and natural resources that we all love.
In addition to the backcountry restroom, REI has also made a significant contribution to support trail maintenance at the Park, providing funding to improve and maintain trails while protecting the natural environment and sensitive habitats, as well as supporting new interpretive and way-finding signage.
All REI funding starts with the local store, its team members and customers, supporting organizations in their community that steward the outdoor places where REI customers and team members recreate. CCA is grateful to be counted among them.