Katie is our Program Director. She oversees all of the programming for Beyond Boundaries and it’s likely you’ll see her on a trip. In just the short year that she’s been with us, she’s had a huge impact, helping to create the Adventure Guides program and spearheading several other initiatives to make it even easier to adventure with us.

Sara is our new Internal Operations coordinator. She had the privilege of first working with BB in the summer of 2021 through RVA Paddlesports, where she helped coordinate kayaking and rafting adventures.

The gear we use plays a crucial role in facilitating adventures. From kayaking to climbing, a lot of what we do requires us to use the specialized gear. Unfortunately in a lot of cases, that gear is not suited to the needs of our participants. Over the years, we’ve discovered adaptable solutions, specialized equipment, and even ways to make homemade modifications to allow even more people to get out on trips and enjoy the outdoors. Take a look below at some of the adaptive gear that we use to make sure adventure is for everyone.

Shep is the Director and Co-Founder of Beyond Boundaries. He started Beyond Boundaries over 8 years ago with partner co-founder Kyle Burnette. It’s his vision, drive, and energy that help bring our community together on a daily basis.

Meet Alek, our new program director! Meet He's a Mechanicsville native and a graduate of George Mason and Colorado Mountain College. Alek will be helping us manage programming and facilitate trips. He loves whitewater kayaking and skiing and chompin' on burritos. ⁠

This year we’re proud to announce the introduction of our new Adventure Guides program. Adventure Guides are the trained volunteers that make Beyond Boundaries’ programming so special. These volunteers give of their time and energy to accompany us on trips and ensure that our participants have an incredible adventure.

Join us at Vasen brewery, Tuesday, December 6, from 5 to 8 for our second annual gear and beer! Sell, buy, and trade outdoor gear. Want to make some extra cash for the holidays? Need to get rid of some old gear to make room for new gear? Join us on Dec 6th!⁠

10% of all sales donated back to Beyond Boundaries.⁠

Over the course of nine weeks this fall, our team participated in the Thrive Non-profit Accelerator at the Spark Mill. This course is designed to “provide an opportunity to look beyond current challenges and obstacles and plan out a direct and streamlined path forward. Organizations will spend concentrated time planning and executing real-time solutions with guided facilitation.” Our leadership team took this opportunity to plan for 2023 and talk about some of the challenges we currently face in real-time.

We have great respect for those that have served our country and are proud to partner with several veteran organizations to help support their missions. One of those organizations is Veterans and Athletes United. This unique organization focuses on empowering injured and ill veterans by providing outdoor adventures, accessible retreats, and job counseling. Over the last couple of years, we’ve been lucky enough to take several of their groups on rafting, kayaking, and climbing trips. Recently, we spoke with VAU’s President & Army veteran James Howard about the impact Beyond Boundaries has had on their organization.

Unlocking the outdoors takes confidence. As we learned from our partners at the Virginia Rehabilitation Center for the Blind and Vision Impaired, gaining confidence in the outdoors can have a huge impact on everyday life. In our latest partner features, we chat with Melody Roane the Director at VRCBVI about how white water rafting trips impart lessons of confidence and self-advocacy.

Founded in 2004, the McShin Foundation works daily to combat Substance Use Disorders and help Richmonders in recovery. As part of their peer-oriented social model program, the McShin Foundation offers experiences to individuals in recovery to help build confidence and open avenues for stress relief, community building, and adventure.

Beyond Boundaries is dedicated to offering individuals of all ability levels no matter physical, cognitive, or economic situations the opportunity to experience outdoor activities with the surrounding community. We facilitate adventures including fishing trips, paddling trips down the beautiful James River, hiking, climbing at both indoor and outdoor climbing walls, and more. 

Our volunteers are a huge part of what makes Beyond Boundaries so special. People from all walks of life take time out of their busy schedules to serve their community and help our participants experience new things, challenge themselves, and learn about the outdoors. We recently sat down with a few of our volunteers to determine why they dedicate their time to Beyond Boundaries and what it means to them.