This weekend, the streets of Carbondale will again be bustling with the excitement of 5Point’s 15th Annual Flagship Festival. It’s an event that many people associate with thrill-seeking outdoor recreation. The five tenets of 5Point, however, are lessons to live by daily. (Adderall) These are: purpose, respect, commitment, humility and balance.
For over a decade, 5Point has invited high school students from Parachute to Aspen to apply these principles in pursuit of realizing a personal dream. Proposals have varied from building a skatepark at a Navajo reservation to hosting a Valley-wide LGBTIQA+ dance (which became an annual tradition). Each year, a handful of applicants are chosen to receive a $1,500 scholarship toward making their dream a reality.
5Point Executive Director Luis Yllanes informed The Sopris Sun that serving on the jury for the Dream Project was his first connection to the organization. “It really inspired me,” he said. “Leaders deal in hope. And these are our future leaders.” Yllanes stepped off the jury panel when his son, Makai, decided to apply for the scholarship in 2021.
Ultimately, Makai was selected along with six other students. Over the course of a year, Emma Boucher got involved with Theater Aspen to explore her passion for acting; Emma Hostetler led teen artists in the creation of social justice murals in New Castle; Angelika Minoli shone a lens on the ongoing refugee crisis in her natal Greece; Bryn Peterson teamed up with Kayo Ogliby, his geology teacher at Colorado Rocky Mountain School, to climb a tower in Utah and produce a YouTube documentary series; Makai hosted a free rock climbing camp for underserved middle school students; and Ellie Urfrig and Willa Schendler teamed up to take action on their climate concerns, rallying students to lobby at the State Capitol.
During a banquet on Wednesday, April 13, several of the students announced that leftover money from their scholarship would be donated to the organizations that helped them with their projects.
In 12 years, the program has awarded close to $95,000 to aspirational teens. Since 2014, the application has been available in Spanish to promote inclusion. The 2021 jury consisted of Michael Stevens, Gabriella Sutro, Beatriz Soto, Zoey Steel and Tracy Wilson, and the program’s sponsors were Alpine Bank, Coldwell Banker Mason Morse, ValleyOrtho and 2757 design+build co. In 2022, applications will be solicited in the fall to coincide better with the school year.
5Point audiences will have the opportunity to congratulate the 2021 Dream Project recipients on Friday, April 21, at the Carbondale Rec Center from 6 to 6:45 p.m.
5Point schedule at a glance:
Thursday, April 21
STUDENT FILM PROGRAM
1:00 – 3:00 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
VAN LIFE RALLY | FESTIVAL KICK-OFF
4:00 – 7:00 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
LIVE MUSIC BY ELK RANGE
DREAM PROJECT RECEPTION
6:00 – 6:45 PM
Carbondale Rec Center | Stio Community Lounge
THURSDAY NIGHT FILM PROGRAM
7:00 – 10:00 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
LATE NIGHT TACOS & MORE
10:00 PM – 12:00 AM
Axkawa
Friday, April 22
5POINT CONFLUENCE
FINDING FLOW WITH JEREMY JENSEN
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Thunder River Theater
FRIDAY FEATURE FILM: AN ACCIDENTAL LIFE
10:30 AM – 12:30 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
5POINT CONFLUENCE
BACKBONE POV: THE ROAD TO AN EQUITABLE OUTDOORS
1:30 – 3:00 PM
Steve’s Guitars
5POINT CONFLUENCE
QUESTION THE SELF PODCAST – LIVE WITH JEDIDIAH JENKINS AND TAYLOR REES
3:30 – 5:00 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
FRIDAY NIGHT FILM PROGRAM
7:00 – 10:00 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
FRIDAY NIGHT OUT ON THE TOWN
10:00 PM – 12:00 AM
Various Locations – Batch, Carbondale Beer Works, Tiny Pine Bistro
GUEST ARTISTS SETS BY DJ BENNY (Carbondale Beer Works) AND GRIM NYMPH (Batch)
Saturday, April 23
5POINT ADVENTURES — ART IN THE OUTDOORS
9:00 – 11:00 AM
North Face Park
5POINT ADVENTURES — 5POINT TRAIL & FUN RUNS
9:00 – 11:30 AM
Red Hill & Road Loop
5POINT ADVENTURES — 5POINT BIKE RIDES
8:30 – 10:30 AM
Local Mountain Bike Trails
5POINT ADVENTURES — ROARING FORK RIVER CLEANUP
8:30 – 10:30 AM
Meet at Carbondale Rec Center
5POINT ADVENTURES — FLY FISHING COMPETITION
9:00 – 11:00 AM
Gazebo @ Carbondale Rec Center
SATURDAY FAMILY FILM PROGRAM
11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
ICE CREAM SOCIAL + COMMUNITY ART ACTIVITIES + NON PROFIT MIXER
12:30 – 2:30 PM
Carbondale Rec Center | Stio Community Lounge
GUEST ARTIST: LIVE MUSIC BY LOW END FAMILY COLLECTIVE
5POINT CONFLUENCE
THE ADVENTURE FILMMAKERS PITCH EVENT
1:00 – 3:00 PM
Thunder River Theater
5POINT CONFLUENCE
New Voices, Fresh Perspectives
3:30-5:00 PM
Steve’s Guitars
SATURDAY FEATURE FILM : THE RIVER RUNNER
3:00 – 5:30 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
SATURDAY NIGHT FILM PROGRAM
7:00 – 10:00 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
AWARDS CELEBRATION AND AFTER-PARTY
10:00 PM – 1:00 AM
Craft Coffee House
GUEST ARTIST: DJ PINTO AND PERFORMANCES BY DANCE OF THE SACRED FIRE
Sunday, April 24
CHANGEMAKERS FILM PROGRAM
11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
Carbondale Rec Center
SUNDAY FEATURE FILM: TORN
3:00 – 5:30 PM
Carbondale Rec Center