I caught up with JP in Montreal at IF3 and got the lowdown on what’s cooking in his pot.

How has your Summer been? What have you been up to?

I spent most of my summer at Poorboyz, helping out with the new movie "Reasons". So even though I was at the computer most of the time, I did score some of the best waves I’ve ever gotten in California. After editing, I went to New Zealand for a quick Armada team shoot where I got to ski a lot of pipe.

I saw "Reasons", the new Poor Boyz film, in Montreal at IF3, and in all honesty, the opening Japan segment with Chris Benchetler and yourself is an immediate classic. Anything to add on what that trip was about or like?

Man! Thank you! It was amazing. Two weeks into the trip, I decided that it was the best powder skiing trip of my life and it kept going for another 2 weeks, it was amazing. Right then, I knew that whether or not the seggy was going to be good was all going to come down to editing. It made me a bit nervous to think about it. I wanted to make sure I was going to do it justice. It makes me happy to hear you enjoyed it though. Ultimately, this is what movie making is all about, getting people to enjoy themselves, escape and feel things.

I hear you are headed to Africa. Now that sounds like trip and a half. What is going on there?

Mikey Hovey, Seth Koch, Chad Fleischer and myself just put together a non-profit organization as a tool to unite the snow-sports community and to get everyone working together on different projects that will have a positive impact on our world. For our first project, we will head out to Kenya to build a community home for orphans.

From where did the inspiration or motivation to form your own none profit come?

For the last couple years, I have been thinking about ways to change my life style to one that would be a little less self-serving. Over the last decade, most of my decisions and goals revolved around skiing and around my career. I always wanted to be more involved with humanitarian projects and different things outside of skiing but I didn't really know where to start. Talking to friends about it, I realized that I wasn't the only one who felt that way. Mikey Hovey and Seth Koch, who I both met in Haines, Alaska, also wanted to give back. Mikey's mom was already involved with a group in Kenya called International Peace Initiatives and after looking into it, we realized what amazing people they were and we committed to help them right away. In the mean time, Seth Koch had traveled back to Colorado and gotten ex US Downhill Ski Team member Chad Fleischer on board with us. Helping IPI meant that, on top of our personal expenses (plane ticket, lodging, food, etc.), we were going to have to come up with a minimum of $20 000 to pay for the required materials to finish the home. We agreed to each pay for our own expenses and we decided to build a website to share information about our project and to raise money for it. While we were trying to set everything in place we all felt like we should keep this “thing” going beyond the Africa trip. We were spending so much energy into it and it felt so right. So we decided to give it a name and to work even harder on it so that Alpine initiatives will be there to stay. The trip to Africa will be the first of many projects to come. We are currently working on getting our Tax exempt status (501(c)3).

I know myself, having looked into volunteering or working abroad in developing countries, there are a lot of hoops to jump through, and a lot of cost that doesn't necessarily go into the project.

We believe in the hands on approach. Giving money is cool but it's always difficult to know how much of it will end up with the people you are trying to help. It becomes a question of trust and it feels distant. Giving your time and energy is very rewarding and everyone involved in the project has already gotten something out of it. We have learned new skills, we have connected with new amazing people as well as reconnected with old friends. We haven't even left for Africa yet and this project has already given us so much.

What are you actually doing in Kenya?

The home we are going to work on is called Amani Community Home and here is how IPI describes it:

"Amani Community Home, the first Community Home IPI is constructing, distinguishes itself from other home care projects in that it strives to be a model for the community—a demonstration project—for education, enterprise, and empowerment. The cornerstone of this concept is the Network of Enterprise that makes the home both self-sustaining and links it inextricably with the community. A network of enterprise is a carefully created strategic plan, comprising several income-generating projects, which are interdependent and which, taken together, provide the income and products needed to make the community home self-reliant."

Helping with the actual building is what we have committed to so far but the vision for the ACH program goes further then that. Here are some of the income generating projects that will be put in place:

"Establish Farms: Establish a farm that keeps goats, cows, rabbits and poultry. The poultry farms shall grow chickens as layers which will produce meat and eggs. Part of the produce of egg and meat shall be used to feed the children in the centre and sold in the market to generate revenue. Goats and cows will provide meat and milk for the center as well as for sale in the local market. The latter will supplement income generation for the Community Home. Children will be encouraged to keep their own animals from which they can generate income and save their own money.

Cottage industries: Set up industries for production of selected products for the local and international market (wool works – hand made wool items; t-shits and cap printing; wood work – making wood items such as furniture; bee-keeping; tailoring – making of school uniforms for our children; jewelry making using local materials; etc.)"


So the $20 000 we have committed to raise will be enough to finish the building but if we can raise more, we'll be able to help them with cows, goats etc. It truly is an amazing concept and I can't wait to get there to see it all come together.

Who else is involved with it?

So far, besides the four founding members, lost of friends and family members have contributed. Mikey's mom, Michele, is the one who introduced us to Karambu Ringera from IPI, they both have been helping us plan the Kenya trip. Iannick B made the website happen, Janine Bouchard, Jeff Tatham and Rachelle Belliveau have been helping out with the editorial content of the site. We have also teamed up with Lisa Benjamin and Emmanuelle Vitale from Evo Design (www.evodesign.biz), an innovative landscape design firm from Steamboat Springs, CO. Lisa and Emmanuelle will be coming with us to Africa to gather more info about the Amani Community's specific needs, the land, needs for solar systems and clean burning stoves, micro-enterprise development, etc. Pro skiers Sven Kueenle and Lynsey Dyer have both booked plane tickets to Kenya as well.

When do you leave and how long are you gone for?

We're leaving on the 1st of October and we'll come back on the 4th of November.

Can people reading this become involved?

Oh yessss! We need everyone's help. We need to raise a minimum of $20 000 in order to finish the community home. We have until the end of October to come up with that amount and we are not half way there. A lot of people have asked to be involved in big ways; they want to come with us to Kenya etc. Making a donation might not seem like a significant gesture but people have to look at the bigger picture. The "donation" part of this project is the biggest kind of gesture that we are hoping for. At this point, money is all we are missing to make this thing happen.

Once you get back and have dealt with the culture shock, what are your plans for the winter?

Yeah, good point… Who knows what I'll want to be doing once I come back from this trip.. At this point, my plans for the winter are to travel as least as possible and ski in BC as much as possible. I registered for and Avalanche Operations Level one with the Canadian Avalanche Association that will take place in January. Towards the end of the season, I’ll drive up to AK. Generally, I plan on furthering my mountain education, improving as a skier, as a person… I plan on having fun, hanging out with friends, shredding lines...

Any thing you might want to add?

Go check out www.alpineinitiatives.org and if you're into the project, please donate and get the word around. Lots of people have visited the site so far and we have been getting lots of positive feedback. But most people don't donate because they feel like they don’t have enough money to make a difference. Au contraire! The concept behind Alpine Initiatives is that ALL TOGETHER, we can achieve great things. For this to happen, we need everyone’s involvement.

We also have a blog on our site and if the internet connection permits it, we will be posting updates on the site while we will be in Africa so keep visiting!

Well, thanks for dropping in and bringing us up to date on what is happening in your world. Good luck in Kenya and I’m sure everyone is looking forward to hearing all about the project.

Thank YOU.