Lauri Roach joined the First Descents team in January 2009 and has lived in the Vail Valley for over four years. Prior to joining the FD team, Lauri specialized in sales, marketing and corporate sponsorships for 11 years with ignition of Atlanta, GA.  Lauri enjoys hiking, biking, skiing and hanging with her family & friends. Originally from Georgia, Lauri still hangs on to her southern roots by enjoying Georgia Bulldog football every Saturday in the fall.  Lauri is looking forward to her first time at camp this summer in Glacier National Park!

Although Kelley Brupbacher was raised in Louisiana, the Vail Valley has become “home” now for the last 10 years. Kelley has been involved in non-profit organizations for over a decade, in both leadership and volunteer roles. Her track record includes volunteer work with the Red Cross in Mexico, employment with the Vail Valley Foundation and Founder of the Central America Foundation. Kelley has volunteered for First Descents for the last 2 years and is now proud to be the Development Director; helping young adults with cancer.  You will most likely find Kelley with a car full of dogs and kids with only one dog, Leroy, belonging to her.

Whitney Lange, Program Operations Manager for First Descents, is truly a product of the outdoors. Raised in Glacier National Park, Whitney moved on to compete for the Chico State women’s track team before transferring back home to graduate from the University of Montana in 2003.   As a fly fishing and whitewater rafting guide, Whitney spent eight years sharing the beauty and adventure of Montana's waters with global visitors.  Before coming to First Descents, Whitney co-owned and operated a land title company in rural western Montana. Today, Whitney is thrilled to live in the Colorado Rockies and on her days off she enjoys skiing, fishing, trail running with her beloved pup Charlie, and traveling home to Montana. 

 

Emily Prock is the Program Coordinator and Recruiter for First Descents. As a Wisconsin native Emily loves the outdoors and the Vail Valley is the perfect place for her to call home. With a degree from The University of Wisconsin-Madison in Rehabilitation Psychology and 8+ years in human services, Emily truly cares about helping others. Prior to First Descents Emily worked as a case manager for young children with developmental disabilities. On her free time you can find Emily skiing, hiking, mountain biking, camping and playing with her dog Louie. 

 

 

First Descents lost a great friend and leader.

Allan will be missed tremendously by his FD family and the Vail Valley.  He dedicated his life and passion to helping people with cancer and was an instrumental leader in the FD organization and mission. 

We love and miss you Allan.

 

Please find a letter from his family below.

 

Dear Friends -

As Allan says, “In the big game, you can lose with a full house and win with a pair of threes… you just never know.”

We are extremely saddened to share that our loved one, Allan Goldberg, passed away this morning. As many of you know, over the past few years Allan had been fighting cancer for the second time in his life. In recent months, it had spread but Allan continued to fight bravely while focusing on all of the positive things he was doing with his life. He spent the last week with his family on vacation at the beach in North Carolina. He returned home to D.C. on Friday and passed away this morning. His family was with him.

We know that Allan went on his own terms — focusing on living life, enjoying family & friends, and not allowing cancer to get in his way. We will miss him deeply. Allan was looking forward to moving back to Washington, D.C. to be closer to his family and friends. He spent the last two years in Colorado as a leader of First Descents, a non-profit organization focusing on survivorship of young adult cancer patients. Allan’s whole life has been dedicated to building upon his experiences with cancer to enrich the lives of everyone else who has been touched by the disease. He has inspired countless people through his optimism and courage. He was one of our heroes.

The memorial service will be held at Danzansky-Goldberg Memorial Chapel at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 25th, located at 1170 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD, 20852. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to Camp Okizu or First Descents.

Please forward this message to anyone you feel would want this information.

And to close with another Allan saying, “Life is crazy; make sure you bring a jacket.”

Love,

Allan’s Family