The 2025 Sam Aden Kindness Fund Community Impact Report

Carrying Sam’s Light Forward

Sam had a way of noticing people — and responding with kindness and action. That instinct continues to guide the Sam Aden Kindness Fund, housed within The Get Grounded Foundation, as we work to turn kindness into meaningful support for youth mental health.

In 2025, Sam’s light showed up in both quiet moments and bold investments: more than $75,000 directed to grants and partnerships, 4,300+ comfort items delivered to pediatric mental health emergency rooms and numerous community-driven initiatives supporting crisis care, school-based mental health spaces and prevention programs across Colorado and beyond.

100% of donations go directly to support youth in our community. The Sam Aden Kindness Fund operates with no overhead. From a shared mental health day on the mountain to resources placed directly into the hands of kids and families during their hardest hours, each effort reflects the same belief Sam lived by—that showing up with heart can change how people feel in the moments that matter most.

On January 31, 2025, our community came together for the second annual Sam’s Day of Stoke—a joy-filled Friday honoring Sam, his love of the mountains and his simple philosophy: when you fall, you pick yourself back up.

More than a ski day, Sam’s Day of Stoke is a collective mental health day and an invitation to pause and reconnect. More than 40 people gathered in person at Arapahoe Basin, while dozens more participated through Sleep In for Sam, honoring rest as an equally powerful form of self-care. As the sun rose over the East Wall, the day unfolded just as Sam would have loved it: relaxed, connected and full of laughter.

Thanks to this extraordinary community (and event organizers Jim Licko, Ramonna Robinson and Jon Woods) more than $28,000 was raised, far exceeding our goal. Again, 100% of funds go directly to youth mental health programs in the mountain communities, including support for the Vail Health Behavioral Health’s Mobile Crisis Co-Response Program which operates 24/7, 365 days a year, with two licensed behavioral health clinicians on staff per shift. The day, and its deeper purpose, was also captured by The Colorado Sun, helping amplify why youth mental health support matters now more than ever.

In March 2025, Sam would have turned 16. Birthdays like this are held a little differently and to honor Sam’s deep love for music and his instinct to help others, the Sam Aden Kindness Fund gave a $10,000 seed grant to help launch In Tune, an innovative mobile music program designed to bring music education directly to kids where they are. This gift represents more than funding—it represents belief. Belief in creativity as care. In joy as medicine. And in the idea that honoring Sam’s legacy means helping young people find their own voices. On a birthday that could have been heavy, this investment transformed remembrance into momentum and put Sam’s kindness on wheels, headed straight toward the kids who need it most.

In the same spirit, Sam’s Gotcha Day also sparks acts of kindness far beyond Colorado. On December 1, Sam’s family invited 150 friends and loved ones to take part in the 3rd annual Random Acts of Samness—each person receiving $100 from his family and a simple invitation: notice someone and act with kindness in Sam’s name.

What followed was a wave of generosity across the country and beyond—from Dallas to Denver, Oklahoma to Arizona, Los Angeles to London. Samness showed up in joyful ways: toy carts filled for local drives, burritos shared at schools to brighten hard afternoons, and playful gifts chosen through a very “Sam” lens (yes, including Hungry Hungry Hippos). It also showed up in quieter, deeply human moments—wish-tree tags pulled for a four-year-old hoping for a baby stroller, a lined hoodie purchased for an 18-year-old facing winter, and spontaneous acts of generosity offered to strangers simply because kindness felt right.