Capital Campaign
Franklin Outing Club
Current Fundraising Plan - 2025
Franklin Outing Club volunteers work diligently to provide and improve outdoor recreation opportunities at the Veterans Memorial Recreation Area, aka “The Vets”. These include activities such as mountain biking, hiking, and disc golf. However, our core identity remains our winter offerings for downhill skiers and snowboarders. What truly makes our community mountain unique is that we typically provide free skiing on weekends. This, combined with our easily accessible location in central NH, makes The Vets an ideal spot to develop new snow sports enthusiasts.
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Over the past few years, a significant investment of volunteer labor and financial resources enabled us to develop snowmaking capabilities and improve our overall mountain operations. As a result, we were open 24 days last season, compared to only six days the prior season! Also, our newly invigorated ski and snowboard lessons grew substantially and we are now able to offer them at a very low cost. To build on this momentum for the coming 2026 season we have two needs that will allow us to more effectively and efficiently serve beginner and experienced skiers and riders alike.
The following items are our primary needs for the upcoming season:
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CARPET CONVEYOR LIFT $110,000
This 100’ lift will be located adjacent to our Rope-Tow and will enable us to provide a safe and convenient ascent for ski and snowboard lessons. It will also be a significant improvement for all other beginner skiers and riders, allowing easier access to our beginner terrain.
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SNOWMAKING EQUIPMENT $60,000
An upgrade to our water pumping capacity is essential for allowing us to take full advantage of our two fan guns. This will let us open more ski-able terrain, open it earlier, and keep it in use throughout the season.
Combined, these two infrastructure improvements will truly let the Franklin Outing Club excel at introducing new people to the thrill and enjoyment of sliding on snow. Although everyone is welcome to participate, our real niche is in serving youth throughout the region. Physical and mental health of children (as well as all individuals) is greatly boosted when participating in outdoor pursuits and having free access to our mountain makes it a perfect fit for serving this need.
Long-term Needs at The Vets
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Our Board of Directors is committed to continued improvement on all fronts and a primary goal is to ensure that these recreational opportunities are sustained well into the future. Their hope is to pass this legacy on to future generations of users and that they will maintain the same level of dedication to sound stewardship of this natural resource. Our current choices and actions will determine if we will have a thriving operation 10, 20, 30-years from now, and well beyond...
We have many thoughts and ideas of how to move forward and hope that all who have a connection or interest in this community resource will provide their input and support as we develop a Master Plan and, subsequently, embark on the most significant Capital Campaign since the Outing Club began running The Vets, nearly 65 years ago.
Some projects that have already been discussed and proposed could potentially include:
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Lodge improvements, including new bathrooms on the main floor
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Rope-Tow conversion, from gasoline to electric
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Development of a free ride area with park features
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Beginner & youth friendly mountain bike trails
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Disc golf course improvement and expansion
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A permanent covered stage for community events
However, the most significant infrastructure improvement that we need, in order to continue our mission, is to replace our existing T-Bar with a new or more modern surface lift. A reliable surface lift within the same alignment is critical for our operation. It runs approximately 1,300 feet and gains 230 feet of elevation, providing guests with access to our full complement of 20 trails that offer opportunities for all levels of skier. The Board did not come to this decision easily as the T-Bar is a beloved and integral component of our ski area. It was originally installed at Mount Sunapee in 1953 where it ran until being decommissioned in 1967 and then moved to its current location and installed for the following season. It has been running ever since but is now at the end of its life span. Any regular guest is aware that our current T-Bar is prone to breaking down during the ski season, thus eliminating lift service to the summit and upper trails.
Fortunately an inspection of our T-Bar cable indicated that we will get one more season of use out of the lift. This will provide us with the time to properly prepare and conduct our Capital Campaign for lift replacement and other potential projects. We are in the process of getting estimates but it will likely cost anywhere from $500,000 to $1,000,000! This will be a major undertaking that will need everyone possible to help get it done. We hope that you will join us in our journey to benefit The Vets far into the future!