Supporter Spotlight: Ryan Shepard By Ryan Shepard and Carissa Milliman Ever since I was a kid, living in Western New York and growing up with lake effect snow, I thought harsh weather was incredibly cool. There is nothing like witnessing incredible feats of weather and how nature affects day-to-day life. And frankly, who doesn't just dig snow days, both as a student and then (sometimes) as an adult? I still remember snowstorms from the late seventies, and the ice storm that hit my area back in the early nineties. When I moved to the Mount Washington Valley in 2021,

Supporter Spotlight: Erik Rider By Wendy Almeida For Erik Rider, supporting Mount Washington Observatory comes from a lifelong fascination with weather and how it shapes daily life. Growing up along the Massachusetts coast, he remembers being introduced to “lovely hurricanes,” an experience that stayed with him. When he moved north and began recreating in the White Mountains, discovering the Higher Summits Forecast deepened that connection.  “I’ve used pretty much all of the Observatory's resources,” he says. As a self-described “weather geek,” he attends Science in the Mountains programs to keep learning. And he always makes a point to “check

Supporter Spotlight: Colleen 'Coco' Gendron By Wendy Almeida In the 1970s, Colleen 'Coco' Gendron was introduced to hiking by a close friend’s father, an avid hiker and Appalachian Mountain Club instructor, who shared stories of Mount Washington and the White Mountains. Her first hike up the mountain was memorable: “I was completely unprepared and naïve, but fortunately in the company of a few seasoned hikers, we made a successful trip.” That experience “gave me the hiking bug,” she says, and soon she learned more about the Observatory during a visit to its North Conway office and speaking with curator, Dr. Peter Crane. She then signed up

Supporter Spotlight: Angelo Decrisantis By Wendy Almeida For Angelo Decrisantis, Mount Washington has been a lifelong connection. It began in 1965, at age 15, on a family drive to the summit. “My first experience with the Observatory was in 1965 when I drove to the summit with my family while on vacation. I instantly fell in love with the mountain and everything else about it,” he recalls.  Angelo became a member soon after and has supported the Observatory for nearly 50 years, hiking to the summit in all kinds of weather -- even sub-zero winter climbs with his son.