Celebrate Excellence

“My life has been guided by three tenets, to love, to serve, and to do those things in a
community setting.”

James C. Himmes, Eng ’76 and recipient of the Alumni Service to the Community Award, is founder and past executive director of Meet the Wilderness, an adventure education program that introduces young people to the beauty of God’s creation — and the beauty of themselves and others around them — in the spectacular Colorado Rocky Mountains. Meet the Wilderness offers physical, mental and spiritual activities that help young people on the journey to responsible adulthood, using backpacking, rock climbing and challenge courses as mediums for personal growth.

The nationally recognized program works primarily with underprivileged and at-risk youth; it has grown to help more than 2,000 young people from large U.S. cities and the Central Rocky Mountain area each year.

“In the early days of my career,” Himmes says, “my formula for success was to follow your heart and figure out how to make a living at the activities you most enjoy.” In his case, that meant skiing, backpacking and mountaineering.

In 1990, Himmes was honored with the Colorado Marquette Alumni Community Service Award. Meet the Wilderness has received a number of awards in its 32-year history, including an Award for Excellence from the El Pomar Foundation in Colorado Springs.

Himmes retired from Meet the Wilderness in 2005 but remains active in some aspects of the program. He volunteers his time to a number of other nonprofit organizations, including a literacy program and Habitat for Humanity.

“My life has been guided by three tenets,” he says, “to love, to serve, and to do those things in a community setting.” He credits Marquette for teaching him to reach his goals, and the Jesuits for teaching him the joys of exploration.