Cari Karns

Interim Chief Advancement Officer

Cari Karns

Cari is a Colorado resident, Montana native, and credits good karma for bringing her to her role fundraising for NOLS. Camping in the Beartooth Mountains as a child, hiking and whitewater rafting all over Montana in adulthood, and a “life-changing” two months backpacking in Asia all honed an incredible appreciation for the outdoors.

After getting her start in fundraising by selling Girl Scout cookies at age ten, Cari has worked in nonprofit development for over twenty years, helping organizations across the country revise, revamp, and revitalize their philanthropic revenue. Most recently, she served as the membership and development director for the new U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum in Colorado Springs, Colorado, helping finish a $90M+ capital campaign to build the facility. An extrovert with a capital “E”, Cari looks forward to getting out across the country to meet alumni and help them ignite a philanthropic passion for NOLS.

A graduate of Carroll College and Montana State University-Billings, Cari followed her husband around the country with the Air Force for over a decade before landing permanently in Colorado Springs with him and her two teenage boys.


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