On January 5, 2014, Brendon Kerton, counselor and supervisor at The Landing, celebrated six years of 
sobriety. Born and raised in New Hampshire, Brendon looked to head West at a young age, enrolling in classes at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City immediately after high school. He graduated with a degree in history and forged a strong connection with the mountains surrounding Salt Lake. Years later that same connection would bring him to Carbondale, CO, and Jaywalker Lodge, following an intense battle with alcoholism and drug addiction.
Following his completion of Jaywalker Lodge and Solutions Brendon stayed in the valley where he had begun to form deep relationships with other sober men. He started running for exercise with one of these friends. Innocent enough one would think. However, soon he was signing up for his first marathon. Marathons were good, but they just weren’t enough. Today Brendon has completed several full-Iron Man Triathlons and a handful of half-Iron Mans. Perhaps the most impressive part is that during this time period Brendon also completed graduate school at Hazelden, finishing with a Masters in Addiction Counseling and a GPA of 4.0.
Brendon returned to Carbondale after school to be back with his family, including his soon to be wife whom he met in the valley. He started work with an organization in Aspen as a counselor where he was able to touch the lives of those affected by addiction with his combination of personal experience and education. Then the real magic happened, and Brendon began working for Jaywalker Lodge, the very treatment center that had helped give him a new take on life.
I had crossed paths with Brendon before on Jaywalker expeditions, the ski hill, and meetings, so when I started work at Jaywalker under him at The Landing, we were not total strangers. I remember having some anxiety surrounding my first day of work at his program, but he erased that from me within fifteen minutes with a quick joke or two and a hug welcoming me aboard.
The aura surrounding the program that he has created at The Landing not only put me at ease, but most importantly, continues to put our men at ease. Brendon has a gift for combining casualness with professionalism, lightheartedness countered with the seriousness of why we are all at Jaywalker Lodge in the first place. Sitting in on group with him has been and continues to be an incredible learning experience. He has a way of getting through to people unlike anything I’ve ever seen or could hope to be capable of, and it all seems to come so natural to him. I cannot imagine a better person than Brendon to make someone feel comfortable upon arrival at Jaywalker.
Whether it is at work, on the ski hill, or out to grab a bite to eat, I value every minute that I spend with Brendon. He is an asset not only to Jaywalker, not only to his family and friends, but to the community that lives in this valley. We are all blessed to have him in our lives.
Happy Birthday Brendon!
Adam Mink
Landing Tech Supervisor
