From My First Squatters Meeting to My First WFR: A Full-Circle Journey

I was a sophomore in college when I found Backcountry Squatters. For some, a club can be a fun, light hearted way to get involved; for me it was absolutely instrumental. You see, at the time, I had just finished my freshman year of college in complete Covid lockdown- the already jaw-grinding stress of finding community in college felt exponential as people scrambled for friend groups like moths to a distant flickering light. As a result, I was in a sorority trying to sniff out those who were maybe sorta interested in going for a hike or getting outside here and there. I found a couple but it was slim pickings. Then I went to the first ever meeting of the University of Utah’s Backcountry Squatters club.

Claire Shepard, an amazing woman and now dear friend of mine, was standing in front of a group of curious women all sitting cross legged drinking the homemade hot chocolate provided by the generous club founders (namely five 20 year olds paying out of their own pockets with time and resources driven by sheer passion for community). Claire cleared her throat, looked out at the fifteen or so of us and asked “have you ever been interested in a sport or activity and found that the only people there to teach you are men?”, she went on “I learned how to climb from a man, how to bike from a man… but what if instead, we women taught one another”. She explained the strength and delicacy in learning how to move a female body in ways that feel most empowering. She expressed the ferocity and stoke of reaching an objective surrounded by a community of like minded people. She explained how being a person in the outdoors can be fragile and introspective and does not have to rely solely on “summiting”. Then with passion and excitement and love in her voice she said: “that’s why we are creating this club”.

I was hooked. Before long I found myself attenting more events with Squatters than with my sorority.. Squatters was grassroots; the climb nights, craft events, and trip planning clinics were homemade by women my age in their spare time between school, jobs, and friends. Squatters was an act of love, not profit. By the end of the year I had dropped my sorority and texted Claire with jitters asking her if there were any openings on the club’s board. To my delight, she said yes.

The following two years of college on the squatters board taught me some of my most formative lessons as a recreator, a planner, a woman, and friend. While many of our weekly meetings were giggles and ideas spitting around a college dining room table, they were also diplomatic; they were structured and organized- we were leaders.

This story may seem unrelated to my acceptance of the Backcountry Squatters scholarship, but I felt I couldn’t voice my appreciation as a recipient without expressing where my desire to be taught by strong badass women about complex outdoor conditions came from without sharing the story of my “Squatter” genesis. I was awarded Backcountry Squatter’s generous Spring Scholarship for Outdoor Education. With this scholarship I took a Wilderness First Responder course through Desert Mountain Medicine (would highly recommend btw), taught by two grossly knowledgeable women.

The class was actually a recertification required by my summer job working as a backcountry river guide. In that class, and honestly, in many other instances in my life, I hear the words of Claire Shepard as she says, “let’s learn from each other, gain skills, be tough, and also celebrate when we are soft”… let’s get curious. For me, that’s what courses are for, getting curious. Whether you are educating yourself about backcountry medicine, how to repel from steep canyon walls, taking an art class, or getting down and curious about some flora and fauna, the important bit is to never stop learning. That’s what scholarships like this one exist for… so apply! Get involved in your community, whether that’s an outdoor community or not. Apply for a scholarship, maybe this one, and go connect and learn. I am so grateful to Backcountry Squatters. Not only did the institution provide the framework in which I blossomed in college, it continued to reward me by providing me with the financial means to enhance my outdoor skill set. Most importantly Squatters, taught, and still teaches me, there is nothing more powerful than an individual with the desire to create, teach, and empower those around them all in the name of community!

-Ren

Fall 2023 Scholarship for Outdoor Education Recipient

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