DENVER — March 28, 2026
With three days left in the application window, Denver-based Rocky Talkie is awarding $150,000 in grants to volunteer search and rescue teams across the United States and Canada through its 2026 SAR Award. It is the largest funding pool the program has offered to date, and applications close on March 31.
Now in its seventh year, the program has awarded $260,000 to 27 SAR teams since launching in 2019.
The funding goes directly toward the operational needs that teams identify themselves — equipment, training, communications gear, and other costs that volunteer-run organizations struggle to cover through local budgets alone.
How It Works
The SAR Award is funded in part through Rocky Talkie’s pledge to donate $2 from every radio sold to search and rescue teams. The company designs and tests its backcountry radios in the Colorado Rockies, and the SAR program has been a core part of its brand identity since the beginning.
Teams can apply for funding to support essential gear, operational projects, advanced training, and other critical needs. To be eligible, a SAR team must be registered as a nonprofit in the U.S. or Canada, or partner with a nonprofit that can accept grants on its behalf.
Grants are usually awarded in $5,000, $10,000, and $15,000 amounts, and past funding has covered everything from technical rescue equipment and rope systems to avalanche training, medical certifications, and communication tools.
The program is made possible in part through partnerships with the Mountain Rescue Association, the American Alpine Club, and the National Association for Search and Rescue.
Colorado Teams Have Benefited Directly
Colorado SAR groups including Chaffee County Search and Rescue, Summit County Rescue Group, Lake County Search and Rescue, and Alpine Rescue Team have all been previous recipients of the award.
Chaffee County Search and Rescue — North, a 2025 grantee, is a 50-member all-volunteer team operating under the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office. They specialize in land search, high-angle rescue, swiftwater rescue, and winter operations including avalanche response. If that team name sounds familiar, it’s because they were the ones who responded to a March 7 overnight rescue on Mount Columbia after blown snow crystals impaired a hiker’s vision during descent.
That’s the kind of team this funding supports — and a reminder that SAR operations don’t stop during the off-season.
How Hikers Can Help
If you know a volunteer SAR team that could use funding, the application is open through March 31 at rockytalkie.com/pages/sar-awards. Share it with them — many teams don’t have dedicated grant writers or the bandwidth to track down every funding opportunity during their busy season.
Beyond that, there are straightforward ways for any Colorado recreationist to support the SAR system:
Buy a CORSAR card. The Colorado Outdoor Recreation Search and Rescue card costs $5 for one year or $20 for five years. It directly reimburses SAR teams for mission costs. You can purchase one at cpwshop.com.
Get a Keep Colorado Wild Pass. The $29 pass — available with your next vehicle registration — directs $2.5 million in annual sales to backcountry SAR programs statewide.
Practice responsible recreation. The most effective way to support SAR teams is to reduce the chance they’ll need to come find you. Check the weather. Know your turnaround time. Carry the ten essentials. Tell someone your plan.
And if you’re in the market for a backcountry radio, Rocky Talkie’s pledge means $2 from every unit sold goes back to SAR. We reviewed the 5-Watt model and found it to be a strong option for Colorado mountain use.
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