History

Rob Katz became the Chief Executive Officer of Vail Resorts in 2006 and led the company through fifteen years of significant growth and success; he continues to serve as the Executive Chairperson of the Vail Resorts Board. Since 2016, Rob and his wife, Elana Amsterdam, a best-selling author and leading wellness and lifestyle blogger at Elana’s Pantry, have actively supported organizations focused on mental health, voting rights, community vitality, reproductive justice and civil rights.

With a contribution that totals over $200M, the couple formally launched the Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust in 2017 and the Katz Amsterdam Foundation in 2018 to support the communities and issues they care about deeply, with an emphasis on the needs of communities of color.

Rob and Elana are deeply committed to giving back. They have worked to focus the Foundation’s efforts, hoping to be a stronger partner and have greater impact. Both Rob and Elana have a great passion for justice and are committed to helping our country realize the promise of a multi-racial democracy – one that ensures voices from communities of color are heard. In addition, Rob and Elana have known that mountain towns face tremendous community and personal impact from mental health and substance abuse issues, which has been amplified by a lack of services and stigma that is very real. And, because millions of women now live in states where they cannot access reproductive health care, Rob and Elana chose to include reproductive justice in the Foundation’s work.

With the utmost respect for the complexities involved in such critical issues, the Katz Amsterdam Foundation partners with community-based organizations to tackle the challenges that exist in each focus area. The Foundation hopes to be part of the solution in partnership with non-profits that put meaningful programs in place to have a direct impact on the people that need it most.