By Rachel Lightner
Jorge Diaz first heard about Adventure Risk Challenge his freshman year of high school from two of his friends who had completed an ARC summer course. They spoke highly of the program and suggested he look into it, but it didn’t spark his interest at the time. It wasn’t until his junior year, when he was feeling a disconnect from his love for the outdoors and a void in his own relationship with himself, that he realized ARC might be exactly what he needed to reconnect with these lost parts. And it was.
Born in Jalisco, Mexico, Jorge’s family moved to L.A. when he was young, then found themselves calling Truckee home soon after. Jorge grew up spending the majority of his childhood time outdoors. “I hated being inside; I was outside all the time as a kid,” said Jorge. “But starting in my teen years I began spending more time inside and being antisocial. I started hiding away and stopped appreciating the outdoors.” It was this distance he created with the natural world that in turn made him start to feel distant with himself and, therefore, affected his overall well-being. Then he decided to give ARC a chance and attended a weekend retreat, camping and hiking in a State Park near Nevada City. During this trip he became excited about doing the 40-day course in Tahoe. “Being away from all the noise and people of everyday life, I knew I definitely wanted to experience this sort of peace and simplicity for 40 days”.
Jorge went into the course with the hopes of not only reconnecting with himself, but with nature and education as well. “I’ve never been a fan of school, and being indoors doing something I don’t want to do all day was hard. But at ARC, learning outside while you’re truly living that class was so beneficial for me,” said Jorge. “It feels so much better to be learning outdoors and it keeps me attentive to the information I’m learning.” ARC is built off of an interdisciplinary style of education, combining leadership and literacy. It was through this method of integrative learning that Jorge was able to experience a newfound love for his education through a natural setting. He thrived during the course, and was an essential team member to his group, creating meaningful friendships and carrying a contagious positive energy.
His compassion and love for others was apparent, so much so that he was presented with the Steve Giovenco Compassion Award (the award winner is selected by the ARC staff, in memory of a long-time ARC volunteer). “I wasn’t expecting the Compassion Award,” said Jorge. “They called me up, and I was speechless. It was an honor to receive the award.” Along with receiving the Compassion Award, Jorge says graduating from ARC was a huge accomplishment for him. “I felt like I completed something crazy, which I did – 40 days in the wilderness. A sense of accomplishment is pretty rare in my life. I don’t get it often, so it felt really good to complete the course.”
Jorge continues to use the skills and lessons he learned at ARC in his everyday life. He believes his life would not be the same today if it wasn’t for the program. Although it was a difficult transition for him to go from the course back to life at home, he reminds himself of his experiences and his major takeaways. “[Being home] is a different challenge, but I can use the tools I learned at ARC, like maintaining a positive mindset and taking every day as it comes. I have a rediscovered love for the outdoors. What ARC is doing is great, and I would love to be a part of this family as long as I can.”
Jorge is actively looking for a job in the Truckee area to better support his family and his healthy lifestyle, and he is on track to graduate high school from Placer County Community School this spring. He intends to attend Sierra College.
If you would like to see and hear Jorge and other ARC summer alumni read inspired poems, share stories about their lives, and provide insights from ARC’s wilderness programs, Alpenglow Sports and ARC invite you to the 2nd annual Voices of Youth, Now and Beyond on Thursday, November 1st. The evening will begin at 6:30PM at Alpenglow Sports in Tahoe City. Please RSVP to this free event at our Eventbrite page, as seating is limited.