Locals head for Bhutan hike

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

In the remote Himalayan mountains of Bhutan, a small, landlocked nation between India and China, a group of local residents will be climbing for cash in the Summit for Danny hiking expedition.
Thirty people are participating in the biannual event that raises funds for the Daniel Bryant Youth & Family Treatment Center, a nonprofit outpatient center for local teens with alcohol and substance abuse issues.

"Every dime that is donated, 100 percent goes directly to the center," Bob Bryant said.
Now in its fifth incarnation, the hiking fundraiser started in 1999 when Bryant and his wife Patty climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro in an effort to raise money to open the treatment center, receiving an outpouring of support from the community totaling $500,000. Their son, Daniel, died in 1995 from a heroin overdose.
"There is nothing more painful than losing a child," Bryant said. "My goal is to try to keep that from happening to any other parents in our community."
After eliciting donations from friends, family and community members, the 30 hikers will depart for Bhutan on October 8 and return 14 days later. They hope to raise at least $350,000 that will go to purchase a permanent home for the center, which currently occupies rental space.
About half the group will be participating in Hiker's Paradise, a batch of day hikes that are relatively easier than Sacred Summits, a rigorous hiking expedition reaching an elevation of 13,268 feet. In Bhutan, a largely Buddhist nation that has only been open to tourism since 1999, mountains are considered sacred, fitting for the group's philanthropic mission.
"I've been wanting to do it for a long time," Marie Ann Strait said. "Bhutan is such a beautiful, spiritual place, and I felt like I wanted to get in touch with that part."
Strait is a member of the board of directors for the Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse (CADA), which manages a wide array of treatment and prevention programs in Santa Barbara, including the Bryant treatment center. Since Strait and the other hikers will be paying for their own trip costs, all donations they garner will go to the center.
Pledges of support are offered at five different stages of the expedition, with donations increasing along with the elevation up to $5,000 for Jitcho Drake, the highest point of the hike. Donors can write in any amount of money as well.
Mountain Air Sports, a sporting goods store in Santa Barbara, is donating profits from any gear the hikers purchase to the treatment center. An anonymous supporter is also matching funds, donating 50 cents for every dollar raised, which is already up to $126,000.
Strait said she has raised about $8,000 so far and expects to bring it closer to $9,000 by the time she departs. Although the hikers have to raise a minimum of $1,500, many participants go far beyond that level. Strait said even her friends and family outside of Santa Barbara have been generous.
"They know it's for children and they know it's for the terrible problem that we have," she said. "That's been really heartwarming."
At the heart of the problem Strait mentioned is the fact that one in four students in Santa Barbara, Goleta and Carpinteria need substance abuse treatment, Bryant said. The center has treated more than 1,300 teens aged 12 to 18 since opening in March 2001 and serves as a nationwide model for outpatient treatment.
"We have a success rate of over 80 percent," Bryant said, comparing it to a 3 percent success rate for imprisonment.
In addition to group counseling, drug testing and acupuncture for adolescents, the center provides support and counseling for parents. Getting families involved is key to defeating addiction, Bryant said, rather than treating children individually and sending them back to the same environment.
"What they do there is just phenomenal," Strait said. "We're so lucky to have this in Santa Barbara."
Bryant hopes with funds raised this year and from previous hikes — in the Canadian Arctic, Peru and Ecuador — the center will be able to find a permanent location in Santa Barbara. With well over $2 million in the coffers already, the problem is finding property for sale in a central location.
"We're searching all the time," Bryant said. "We need to find a location downtown because a lot of the kids we work with, we need to have bus service for them."
Although donations for the Bhutan trip will go to purchasing a home for the center, money raised from the local Summit for Danny, an annual community event that will take place about a week after the hikers return, will go directly to treatment programs, Bryant said. This year's local climb, planned for October 27, will take place at Skofield Park and is expected to bring in about 300 hikers.
Kate Schwass, director of media and special events for CADA, said participants will be able to choose from a variety of trails ranging in difficulty from a strenuous 10.6-mile climb to a one-mile children's hike.
"We wanted to allow as many people to participate as possible," Schwass said.
Participants will need to raise a minimum of $100, Bryant said, adding that the annual event usually brings in several hundred thousand dollars. To find out more about the Bhutan trip and the local Summit for Danny, or to donate to either, visit www.summitfordanny.org.