Rockie Talkie 2026 Awards Announced
Rocky Talkie distributed $150,000 in grants to SAR teams in the U.S. and Canada, including several MRA teams. Since 2019, the company has been setting aside $2 from every radio it sells and using that to fund grants from teams that apply. In 2026, the company made grants ranging from $25,000 to $5,000 to 20 different teams.
Squamish Search and Rescue in Canada and Unicoi County Search and Rescue in Tennessee both received $25,000. Squamish SAR said it will use the funds to complete work on its new facility and gives it members more time to focus on SAR rather than fundraising. Albuquerque Mountain Rescue received $10,000 that it plans to use to replace ropes and hardware. Nevada County SAR also was the recipient of a $10,000 award, which it will use to send several members to more advanced rope rescue training, which will help the team operate more safely in high-risk terrain.Other MRA teams that received funds included San Diego County Mountain Rescue Team and Ventura County’s East Valley SAR team, which both received $5,000 each.
New MRA Sponsorship Chairperson
Dawn Wilson is stepping down as Fundraising and Development Committee Chair after seven years, and will be working closely with new chairman Andy Hayt through the transition. Hayt, who has been a member of Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit for almost three years, is excited to learn the role and have the opportunity to give back to the MRA. “Dawn built something really great here and I hope to just continue that work,” Hayt said. Hayt attended the recent MRA Exercise in Alaska and spent time getting to know some of the sponsors. The Fundraising and Development committee works to get companies to sponsor the MRA at different levels and Hayt hopes to bring even more companies on board.
Alaska Mountain Rescue Group Receives Statewide Award
Alaska Mountain Rescue Group was a co-recipient of the Mel Nading award for its participation in the 2025 Twentymile avalanche recovery mission. In March 2025, three people were caught in a large avalanche and swept into a large canyon. With burial depths estimated to be as much as 40 meters, recovery was not possible until late summer. The terrain was challenging and AMRG described conditions as “once in a career.” The Mel Nading Award is given by the Alaska Search and Rescue Association for members “performing search and rescue operation either on an individual or team level in difficult, dangerous, or complex situations while going above and beyond the call of duty associated with routine SAR missions.” AMRG also recognized other agencies who they partnered with on the incident: Girdwood Volunteer Fire Department, Chugach Powder Guides, and the State of Alaska DPS aviation unit based at Lake Hood.
MRA Grants Used to Fund SAR Projects
At the meeting in Juneau, the MRA’s Grants Committee reported on two projects that were funded by MRA grants. Clayton Auld from Alaska Mountain Rescue Group is leading a project that is developing a long-range radio device that syncs with CalTopo and allows for tracking without wifi or cellular networks. The device is in beta and they are testing with 15 devices. Andy Dietrick from Juneau Mountain Rescue is leading a project to develop a cost-effecting RF geolocation system (CERF). Another proposal was submitted and is being reviewed to create a field trauma intervention system for hemorrhage control in the pelvis and extremities. The Grants Committee encourages teams and members to apply for grants with just a letter describing the idea. Requirements are that it be rescue related and not previously published, that results are published for other MRA teams to learn from and the MRA grant be less than $4,000.
