Gold Foundation reports growth in events, volunteerism and community aid in 2024

Troy, a representative of the Gold Foundation, presented the organization’s 2024 annual report to the Ogden City Council work session on March 11, 2025, summarizing last year’s events, community impact and plans for growth.

The Gold Foundation said it staged 65 free community events in 2024 and ran the Ogden Marathon and related races, reporting 6,658 total registrations for the marathon (about 350 more than 2023) and an estimated economic impact of $1,870,000. The foundation reported roughly 20,000 people at the marathon finish-line festival, and that participants represented 46 states and 11 countries.

Troy said the foundation’s staff totals six people and that volunteers are essential: the organization reported 7,000 recorded volunteer hours and said actual volunteer participation may be higher. “We contributed over 7,000 total volunteer hours last year,” he said, adding the foundation estimates additional unrecorded hours when including board and informal help.

The report included financial and in-kind community support details: the foundation said it awarded $4,350 in youth camp scholarships, $5,000 in group grants, and $2,812 to the Ogden Untamed scholarship program. It collected just under $2,000 for a green-initiative tree-planting campaign and donated 182 pairs of athletic shoes and 10 pairs of hiking poles to partner organizations. The Kids K race had roughly 500 child participants and Granite served as title sponsor.

Troy described new and expanded signature events, including a trail festival and a mountain-bike race that together drew nearly 2,000 attendees in 2024 with expectations of 2,500–3,000 this year. He also said the foundation moved its marathon expo to the Eccles Conference Center this year to increase downtown engagement and to ease parking conflicts with same-day college graduations.

On future planning, Troy described a pre-Olympic planning committee including Visit Ogden and other local partners. He said the foundation expects to participate in volunteer recruitment and logistics as the Salt Lake Olympic organizers finalize needs and that many details remain to be determined with the Olympic committee and venues.

Council members offered brief praise after the presentation, and Troy closed by saying the foundation will continue to refine its strategic plan and pursue modest growth over the next three to five years.

Less critical details: the foundation highlighted a local artist for marathon art, a volunteer of the year recognition, and a canyon cleanup that retrieved about 5,000 pounds of trash. The organization noted staff transitions and an open operations-manager search.