Organizations Filed Purposes:
The mission of the Ventana Wilderness Alliance is to protect, preserve, and restore the wilderness qualities and biodiversity of the public lands within California's northern Santa Lucia Mountains and Big Sur coast.
TRAIL PROGRAM: MAINTAINING PUBLIC ACCESS TO THE 300-MILE NETWORK OF TRAILS IN THE RUGGED VENTANA REGION HAS ALWAYS BEEN A SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGE. IN 2016, THE SOBERANES WILDLAND FIRE TORCHED OVER 130,000 ACRES OF THE VENTANA WILDENESS AND DAMAGED OVER 100 MILES OF TRAILS. THIS WAS FOLLOWED BY HISTORIC WINTER STORMS IN 2017 AND A SIGNIFICANT SLIDE ON HIGHWAY 1 THAT CUT OFF ACCESS TO THE SILVER PEAK WILDERNESS. DESPITE THESE MAJOR SETBACKS, THE VWA TRAIL PROGRAM CONTINUED TO CONTRIBUTE THOUSANDS OF CONTRACT CREW AND VOLUNTEER CREW HOURS IN 2019 TO MAINTAIN AND RECONSTRUCT PRIORITIZED SECTIONS OF TRAIL IN THE VENTANA AND SILVER PEAK WILDERNESS AREAS.
THE VWA'S YOUTH IN WILDERNESS EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS ARE DESPERATELY NEEDED BY CENTRAL COAST YOUTH. MONTEREY COUNTY RANKS AMOUNG THE HIGHEST IN THE NATION IN TEEN VIOLENCE; JUVENILE DELIQUENCY AND GANG VIOLENCE ARE DOMINANT FORCES IN MANY LOCAL SCHOOLS. YOUNG PEOPLE IN URBAN AREAS OFTEN HAVE MINIMAL RESOURCES OR OPPORTUNITIES FOR A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE. IN 2019, THE VWA'S YOUTH IN WILDERNESS PROGRAM CONTINUED TO FILL THIS NEED AND INSPIRE FUTURE WILDERNESS STEWARDS BY PROVIDING WILDERNESS ADVENTURES TO HUNDREDS OF YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE REGION. LEADERSHIP, GEAR, AND FOOD FOR THESE EXPEDITIONS WAS PROVIDED AT NO COST TO PARTICIPANTS OR THEIR SCHOOLS.
ADVOCACY: THE VWA ADVOCATES FOR WILDERNESS VALUES AND ECOLOGICALLY-SENSITIVE MANAGEMENT OF WILD LANDS IN THE VENTANA AND BIG SUR REGION BY MONITORING THE US FOREST SERVICE SCHEDULE OF PROPOSED ACTIONS (SOPA), ATTENDING PLANNING AND SCOPING MEETINGS, AND MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS BASED ON THE BEST AVAILABLE SCIENCE. THE VWA'S ADVOCACY PROGRAMS INCLUDED EFFORTS TO EXPAND WILDERNESS AND WILD AND SCENIC RIVER DESIGNATIONS, RETIRE INAPPROPRIATE GRAZING ALLOTMENTS, ENCOURGE ENLIGHTENED WILDFIRE MANAGEMENT, IDENTIFY AND MITIGATE EFFECTS OF WILDERNESS INCURSIONS, EDUCATE THE PUBLIC ABOUT WILDERNESS, AND RESTORE FEDERAL FUNDING TO CRITICAL PUBLIC LAND AGENCIES.
Executives Listed on Filing
Total Salary includes financial earnings, benefits, and all related organization earnings listed on tax filing
| Name | Title | Hours Per Week | Total Salary |
|---|
| Mike Splain | EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR | 40 | $73,556 |
| Maria Ferdin | Secretary | 1 | $0 |
| Al Budris | DIRECTOR | 1 | $0 |
| John Tilley | Director | 1 | $0 |
| David Jacobs | TREASURER | 2 | $0 |
| Tom Hopkins | PRESIDENT | 10 | $0 |
| Greg Meyer | Director | 1 | $0 |
| Betsy Macgowan | Director | 10 | $0 |
| Dottie Massey | Director | 1 | $0 |
Data for this page was sourced from XML published by IRS (
public 990 form dataset) from:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/irs-form-990/202023039349302267_public.xml