Superior Search and Rescue is one of dozens of nonprofits taking part in the Copper Shores Community Health Foundation’s Giving Tuesday campaign, which will help fund training and equipment for the volunteer group that searches for people in need across Houghton and Ontonagon counties.
Dense forests cover much of the Keweenaw Peninsula and the western Upper Peninsula. Many residents and visitors spend their time exploring the outdoors, but time in nature carries risks. When an emergency occurs in Houghton or Ontonagon County, Superior Search and Rescue volunteers work tirelessly to find the person in need.
Wes Miller, vice president of Superior Search and Rescue, said the group’s volunteers serve the community out of dedication.
“We are an all-volunteer organization as a 501(c)(3), and so nobody gets paid. We do this out of the love of our hearts for the organization, for the community. And we’re responsible for essentially exactly what it sounds like, looking for people who are in need of finding,” Miller said.
Throughout the year, the group hosts training programs with area law enforcement and fire departments. Volunteers prepare for a range of rescues, from ice rescues in winter to vertical lift rescues for incidents near cliffsides.
Miller said the group works regularly with Keweenaw Search and Rescue and Baraga Search and Rescue. It also has mutual aid agreements with Marquette Search and Rescue. “When law enforcement calls for us, those are our main folks that we work with,” Miller said.
Superior Search and Rescue joins the Copper Shores campaign alongside several other outdoor-related organizations. In 2025, the community donated $3,700 to the group. The organization used those funds to train new K-9 units and improve its drone search capabilities.
Paige Lewendowski, communications and donor relations coordinator for Superior Search and Rescue, said the group’s canine team includes dogs with different skills.
“So part of it was meeting our canine lead, Amber, and I’ve learned a lot since. So he’s specifically an air scent [dog], and his biggest job is to work the wind. So he’s always nose in the air, essentially. So the wind will push that scent around. Versus, we also have trailing canines, and they’ll be nose to the ground,” Lewendowski said.
Giving Tuesday enters its 10th year of helping the Copper Country support nonprofit causes across the region. The 2026 campaign includes close to 70 causes, including Superior Search and Rescue. Funds raised through Giving Tuesday also receive an extra boost from the Copper Shores Foundation’s amplification fund, which is shared among all participating nonprofits.
Learn more about the Copper Shores Community Health Foundation Giving Tuesday campaign online. Readers can also find more Giving Tuesday spotlights from Keweenaw Report and My UP News.
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