“Duane and I are both so grateful that 2 of our 3 boys who attended
Principia Upper School decided to go on the Teton Trip. It was truly a
once-in-a-lifetime experience. Each of the boys came back with
tremendous enthusiasm and joy after their time there. As parents we are grateful for several things about the trip.

With 4 boys, we have not had the funds to do a lot of travelling, so we
are thrilled that the two who went on the Teton Trip got to see a
beautiful part of the country that they might not have had the
opportunity to experience otherwise. Even better, they got to learn
experientially—about clouds, animal adaptations in the snow,
how they fit into communities, and ways to record their discoveries through art and journaling. They also had the chance to learn to cross country ski, which they both enjoyed thoroughly. They
got to experience wildlife up close (bison, elk, moose, coyotes, pine
martins), deeper snow than they ever imagined, and make friends with
kids they would not have gotten to know otherwise. Both Teton Trip
groups contained very diverse groups of students, and our boys came back with new friendships that continue to this day. For one of our sons who has never enjoyed traditional school, learning in this way was, in his
words, ‘one of the best experiences of my life.’

Both of our sons are members of sports teams and had to miss some
practices and even a game or two to attend the trip. Both felt that the
sacrifice was definitely worth it. Duane was the assistant coach of the
girls’ varsity basketball team this year and noted that the team member
who went on the Teton Trip this year played her best basketball after
returning from Jackson Hole. We will always feel incredibly grateful
for what our boys took away from the Teton Trip experience and highly
recommend it!”

Susan Thomas, parent
St. Louis, MO

(Samuel Thomas, 2007 Teton Trip
Christian Thomas, 2009 Teton Trip)

“All three of my children went on the Principia Upper School Teton Trip; Dan in 1998, Lizzie in 2000, and Jason in 2003. For each of them, it was an amazing experience, unlike anything they had ever done before. The unique perspective you get in wilderness, the combination of times alone and then time together where you can share with your friends. Jason especially enjoyed doing this with a group of people he already liked and trusted, that pre-trip bond strengthened the experience.

They learned a lot about what to do in snow, how to be out in cold, how to be okay with whatever came out on the journal page. It’s hard to know if this particular skill set will come up in their lives again, but the trip is an amazing tool for creating a broader mind, a deeper perception of things, a way to appreciate life that can’t come out of classroom work. All three of my children took trips to various places that I feel made them better students, better people, better friends.

From a parent’s perspective, I think that even before the trip, just making the commitment to participate in the Teton Trip was a growing experience. We sat down together and looked at the cost of going, and the equipment list, and said, ‘Now, something creative is going to have to happen to make this possible, because we’re already doing all we can to pay for private school tuition.’

In Dan’s case, he asked many relatives to give him money to make the trip, borrowed gear from many friends, and then did some work to earn the rest of the money. In Jason’s case, he got a job at a fast food place, and arranged his life so he could keep up with school and get the job in. He was highly successful at balancing work, school, and the rest of life, and continued to have jobs when he got back. Even though I would never have encouraged him to get a job while in school, it turned out to be something he was good at.

For Lizzie, this was her first (aside from Middle School week away) school expedition. After this one, she signed up and earned money for a trip to Europe during the summer with an educational group outside of school, where she saw much of the art that she afterwards studied in Mr Beim’s course. Then she did her senior project with a friend and her dad in Ireland, and she brought home a love of Irish music which she afterwards sang all thru college with her friend Laura. Then she did a college PE course in the Bahamas, another in Colorado, and finally went to China in her college senior year. Oh, and now she’s working on a sailboat in the Caribbean.

So in a sense, the Teton Trip launched Lizzie’s love of travel as adventure, and buried forever the idea that a trip is expensive and most people can’t afford to go. It also launched an enduring love of journals, and especially journals that are beautiful.”

Sue Loomis, parent
St. Louis, MO

(Dan Loomis, 1998 Teton Trip
Lizzie Loomis, 2000 Teton Trip
Jason Loomis, 2003 Teton Trip)