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Vail Valley Foundation
The Vail Foundation was established in 1981 as the Vail Valley Foundation to enhance quality of life in Colorado's Eagle County through initiatives in arts,...
Vail Valley Foundation
The Vail Foundation was established in 1981 as the Vail Valley Foundation to enhance quality of life in Colorado's Eagle County through initiatives in arts, athletics, and education. President & CEO Mike Imhof directs operations, while Chris Jarnot, a former Vail Resorts executive, chairs the board and John Arnold oversees the investment and finance committees — linking the foundation's governance directly to regional corporate leadership and asset-management discipline. The foundation deploys capital through a hybrid structure of direct program operation, grantmaking, and a portfolio of owned performance venues. Its commercial real estate assets include the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater in Vail and the Vilar Performing Arts Center in Beaver Creek, which generate earned revenue while serving as platforms for community programming. The grantmaking arm distributes funds through the Vail Valley Foundation Community Fund, and YouthPower365 delivers year-round education and wellness programming to local youth. Corporate cornerstone partners include Vail Resorts and the Town of Vail, anchoring the foundation's co-investment posture in the regional economy. John Arnold chairs the finance and investment committee, joined on the board by Sam Bronfman, co-founder of Bacchus Capital Management — a pairing that suggests a boardroom capable of evaluating illiquid and alternative investment strategies for the foundation's endowment. The foundation maintains its headquarters in Avon, Colorado, and operates an Early Learning Center that extends its physical footprint into early-childhood education infrastructure. The organization is also an active member of the Vail Valley Partnership, the area's chamber of commerce. Structurally, the Vail Foundation's differentiator is its operating-company hybrid: it is not a pure grantmaker but an owner-operator of commercial entertainment venues that produce programmatic revenue, reducing reliance on annual fundraising cycles. This real-asset-backed model embeds the foundation deeply in the local tourism economy while giving its board latitude to manage an endowment through market cycles — a governance posture more typical of a private operating foundation than a community fund.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
1981
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Avon
Corporate office
90 W Benchmark Rd #300, Avon, CO 81620, United States
Principals
Mike Imhof
President & CEO
Chris Jarnot
Board Chair
John Arnold
Finance/Investment Chair
Sam Bronfman
Board Member
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at the Vail Foundation?
John Arnold chairs the foundation's finance and investment committee, overseeing the endowment portfolio and investment policy. He is joined on the board by Sam Bronfman, co-founder of Bacchus Capital Management, bringing direct alternative-asset management experience to the committee. The foundation has not publicly disclosed its investment committee's full membership or its external advisor relationships.
Does the Vail Foundation operate its own programs or solely make grants?
The foundation is a hybrid operator: it owns and manages commercial performance venues — the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater and the Vilar Performing Arts Center — and runs direct programs including YouthPower365. It also maintains a Community Fund that makes grants to regional nonprofits, but its primary identity is as a program operator with owned real estate assets that generate earned revenue.
How is the Vail Foundation related to Vail Resorts?
Vail Resorts is a Cornerstone Partner of the foundation, providing major corporate sponsorship and operational support for foundation-run events. The relationship is further embedded through board leadership: Chris Jarnot, the foundation's Board Chair, is a former Vail Resorts executive. The Town of Vail serves as an additional municipal cornerstone partner for venues and community programming.
What is the Vail Foundation's real estate footprint?
The foundation holds at least three commercial properties: the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater in Vail, the Vilar Performing Arts Center in Beaver Creek, and its headquarters in Avon. It also operates an Early Learning Center in Avon. These owned venues form an operating-company layer that generates event revenue, distinguishing the foundation's balance sheet from a traditional grantmaking endowment.
Is the Vail Foundation's endowment invested in traditional public markets or alternatives?
The foundation has not publicly disclosed its asset allocation or endowment size. The presence of John Arnold as Finance/Investment Chair and Sam Bronfman — whose firm Bacchus Capital Management specializes in private equity for the wine industry — on the board suggests familiarity with illiquid and alternative investment structures, but no specific portfolio holdings have been publicly reported.
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