Family of Missing Hiker, RSI Founder, Launches Search & Rescue Awareness Campaign, “Dave Gives Back”
The Family of David Cook announces the launch of the “Dave Gives Back” Search & Rescue Awareness campaign. It is a beautiful effort resulting from a tragic event that affected not only the Cook family, but the broader New Mexico and Colorado communities.
Quote from Dave’s wife, Maureen Cook:
“In 2016, my husband and father of our three children went missing in the Elk mountain range near Aspen, CO. Dave was an accomplished mountaineer, summiting over fifty peaks in Colorado. While balancing family life, starting a business and continuously training for outdoor adventures, Dave planned to summit his 47th 14er in the summer of 2016 when an unknown tragedy struck and Dave never returned.”tever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
The Dave Gives Back Mission
The mission of the Dave Gives Back campaign is to raise funds and awareness for Search & Rescue (SAR), an incredibly important but often overlooked organization. Members of Search & Rescue risk their safety nearly everyday. The Cook Family hopes this campaign will inspire a deeper appreciation for the extraordinary efforts these organizations put forth and the importance of SAR on the outdoor enthusiast community.
Search & Rescue quickly became the Cook family’s lifeline during the painful and complicated days, weeks, months, and years of the search for Dave.
Searches of this type are almost always conducted by a substantial number of volunteers who dedicate their time and set aside their own lives to help those who are lost or injured.
In Colorado alone the work they do is overwhelming.
(SAR 2020 missions summarized below):
4,000 search and rescue missions led by 46 SAR Teams and 10 Specialty Teams
45% of the missions involved hikers
SAR volunteers donated 330,000 hours of their time helping people; averaging 118 hours per volunteer
There are roughly 2,800 volunteer professionals staffing Colorado's SAR teams
