Meet Candice Livingston | EPIC 4×4 Quest Co-founder, VP and Treasurer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Candice Livingston and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Candice, every day, we about how much execution matters, but we think ideas matter as well. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
One day after driving home from Moab, UT where we had been offroading and my husband, Nathan Livingston, said what if we take our passion for offroading and planning trips to give back and create a nonprofit organization. Nathan and I have been offroading the majority of our lives and our entire relationship of over 20 years. We had been part of offroading nonprofit organizations and events, but in that moment we decided we were ready to do more to give back and it started the brainstorming and planning process.

We decided that helping law enforcement should be our cause. Why did we pick law enforcement? We saw a need, even back in 2018 when we started planning, to support those that sacrificing so much to put the wellbeing and safety of others, their communities, first. To give back to those that give so much. Additionally, growing up my family had experience with law enforcement, and to some maybe not what would be considered good experiences. I, however, am thankful for those interactions and experiences, because in reality it helped my dad find his sobriety. Additionally, Nathan’s grandfather was in law enforcement and he has many memories from those times and stories his grandfather shared with him.

At this point we had the idea we would have a mission of helping law enforcement and would use offroad trips to raise funds for our mission. We wanted to be different from the other offroading events and so the idea of a quest came about. Taking participants on a trip offroading location to location where they don’t know where they are going or what they are exactly doing. This lead to the name idea, EPIC 4×4 Quest. EPIC is an acronym for Endorsing Police In Colorado, 4×4 for offroading and Quest for our mission and how we would host events.

We however weren’t sure if we should move forward with this idea, so we went to a few of our offroading friends to present the idea. We all talked and shared more ideas and ultimately Nathan and I made the decision we should actually make this nonprofit. The hard work started at that point from researching, writing the 20+ pages of bylaws, and going through all the logistics of becoming a nonprofit

Nathan and I, as co-founders of EPIC 4×4 Quest, could not do it on our own. So we back to the group that helped us with ideas and encouraged us to move forward and asked if they would willingly join our board of directors. We have been lucky to maintain two of those that were there from day one on the board and grow and add two more amazing people. Without their support not only would we likely not have moved forward with creating EPIC 4×4 Quest, but we definitely would not be where we are today.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am MSN RN by trade. The many years of schooling, 20 years in the medical field, and expectances and knowledge that has provided has helped in may ways in the development and coordination for the nonprofit. Each of those on the Board of Directors brings their own set of skill sets and assets to the table to help this organization. However, the development and day to day requirements of the nonprofit are anything by easy. It was a lot of research to determine all the steps needed to become a 501c3 and getting through all the steps both nationally and at state level. Additionally, each year has brought challenges and hurdles that we have had to preserver through. Year one was difficulty with government closers and getting 501c3 approved followed by largest snows and avalanches blocking trails needed for events. Year two were issues with fires and risk of trail closers as well as insurance hurdles. Year three was COVID-19 and mandates. Each year between our hard work, help of our supporters, dedication and a bit of luck on our side we have able to proceed forward allowing us to exceed our goals for funds raised each year. We also have been able to add additional ways to help our law enforcement members.

We started out having one main event, the Annual Event, and two Law Enforcement Run/Ride-alongs. The Annual event is where participants join us for four days and three nights of not knowing where they are going, staying, or doing comprised of an offroad adventure with nonoffroading elements. We work to arrange all hotels, activities, games, and more. Our Law Enforcement Run/Ride-alongs are local trails we take law enforcement members, who are active or nonactive, sworn in and non sworn in, out on the trails either in their own vehicles or riding along with us in one of our offroad vehicles. We have now grown to have two main events, the Annual and what we have named the M.O.A.B. (Maximum Offroad Adventure Backing-the-BLUE) Event, and 4 day runs. Additionally, we have been able to do a mini-jeep build for a medically retired officer to help provide a smoother ride when offroad. One thing we are super excited about for 2022 that we will be able to giveaway a paid in full slot for our 4th Annual Event to a law enforcement member.

What makes us different? The Board of Directors and all those that volunteer are just that 100% volunteer. No payment is ever made to those that help the origination. Additionally, we so strongly believe in the mission that we pay into events to cover cost as well as adding on dotation to areas in need to hold the events thought the year or overhead expenses equaling what our participants pay or often more. We have been able to cover our operating expenses including but not limited to meals we provide to our officers on runs, insurance, business cards and challenge coins, and have had excess to donate to local nonprofits that share similar missions. Our first year we were able to donate $1,520.00 to Colorado FOP and Badge2Badge for a PTSD program. Last year, we were able to donate $4680.00 to MC1Foundation to use to help first responders injured in the line of duty. This year we extremely thrilled that it looks as though we will be able to exceed last years excess funds allowing us to donate to both MC1Foundation and C.O.P.S.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love this question because this is basically what we do with our nonprofit, we host others out in our beautiful back country. I will share basic itinerary for one of our Annual Events, using this year the example, as well as one of our day runs for a comparison.

Our Annual Event started in Lake City, CO this year. When we start an event we have a meet up location where we go over all the important elements and have a quick drivers meeting. We then line up and head out to the trails where we travel as much as possible offroad from one location to the next. From Lake City we took Engineer Pass where we stopped for lunch at the ghost town of Animas Forks. We then traveled to trails to our dinner location in the Red Mountain Mining area. We played an Offroad version of Clue that we made up and named 4×4 Who Did IT? At the end of the game we had an amazing taco buffet dinner at the historic mine. We closed out the day with our stay at the Box Canyon Inn and Hot Springs. The next morning we got up and hit the road going over trails into Telluride, CO where we stopped at a beautiful lake call Alta Lakes for lunch. After lunch we used one last trail to end us in Silverton, CO where we had a great baked pasta dish and salad for dinner at another historic mine. We closed out the day walking around downtown Silverton with stay at the historic Grand Imperial Hotel. Day three we got up and headed to the Old Hundred Gold Mine for a tour, this was our big nonoffroading element for this years event. Then we again used a trail to get to our next location. We had a BBQ dinner by the North Clear Creek Falls and then traveled to South Fork for our stay at the Quality Inn & Suites. Our last day, we woke up and went back out on trail. We had a class over recovery with a fun challenge to follow to reinforce what was learned. We then completed the historic Bachelor Loop where we ended at the Cottonwood Cove Guest Ranch for our final dinner of chili together, giveways and awards. There were multiple games and activities that were optional to play along the way as well, such as Scavenger BINGO, Town Scavenger, Best Poker Hand. Dear I say it was an EPIC trip?!?

In contrast to a longer event we hold day runs. For these runs we give out a location to meet. At the meeting spot we gather all together to be able to caravan to our trail for the day. We often will offer some form of pastries for breakfast before we head out. Once we get to our location we air down our tires, any of our law enforcement members/first responders that need assistance we help with this process. Airing down tires just allows for a slightly smoother ride as well as better traction offroad. We then head up a trail, for example this fall we started with Mosquito Pass. We stop and take in the history/scenery as we travel. We either offer lunch on trail or dinner at the end on trail as we air up. We also hand out radios to everyone to use while on trail together to allow for better commutation. In the event there is a spot that requires help with finding the line and tire placement, our crew gets out and assists to help guide. Just to list some of our favorite trails we have and enjoy taking others out to see would be Red Cone, Holy Cross, Wheeler Lake, Bill Moore Lake, Saint Elmo area including Tin Cup, just to name a few.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My husband, Nathan Livingston, deserves a ton of credit for his heart, desire to help and give back to other, and wiliness to step out into something new and unknown to build this nonprofit. Huge thank you to those that are currently on our Board of Directors and go above and beyond every day in every way, Kevin Hansen Co-Chair, Kimberly Rose Secretary, David Reiners Director at Large, Jason Strother Director at Large. Our Thin Blue Line/Law Enforcement deserve a lot of recognition as their oath to serve and protect is what ultimately let us to where we are today in working to give back to those that give so much to everyone else.

Additionally, we have had several supporters and sponsors along the way that have helped with our missions of helping law enforcement and first responders along with their families; while there are too many to name we appreciate each one of them. Special call out to few sponsors that have been with us from our first year/event and committed for future as well: The Edge Automotive, The Telephone Man, J8-Custom Fabrication, Lyft Offroad, On Trail Training, Teraflex, Adams Driveshaft, Insure Colorado, and Jeep Daddy Inc.

Website: www.epic4x4quest.com

Instagram: instagram.com/epic4x4quest

Twitter: https://twitter.com/4x4epic

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EPIC4x4Quest

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/epic4x4quest

Other: https://epic4x4quest.smugmug.com/