Article Contributed by Sacks and Company
Published on 2026-09-09
Photo: Courtesy of Duane and Lisa Betts
Acclaimed singer, songwriter and guitarist Duane Betts and his wife, Lisa Betts, unveil The Betts Family Foundation, a nonprofit organization created to support the people, ideas and traditions that give local communities their identity.
Built from a life in music, design and community, the Foundation is rooted in a simple belief: the people who create a place’s culture should have a meaningful role in its future.
“We’ve seen firsthand how quickly a place can change when growth begins to outpace the community that made it special,” says Lisa Betts. “This isn’t about resisting change. It’s about making sure the artists, musicians, makers, small businesses and longtime locals who give a place its soul aren’t left behind in the process.”
The Foundation’s first initiative is Horseshoe, the Jackson Hole gathering created by Lisa and Duane around the things they value most: music, food made with love, slow fashion, wellness and genuine community.
What began as an intimate event grew into a larger celebration of the people and creative traditions that make Jackson distinct. Horseshoe became a model for the kind of work the Foundation hopes to support: locally rooted, thoughtfully scaled and built from the ground up.
“Horseshoe showed us what can happen when you put the community at the center,” says Duane Betts. “Music has always been about connection for me. The Foundation gives us a way to carry that idea beyond the stage and support the people who are doing meaningful work in the places they call home.”
For Duane, the mission also carries a generational connection. The son of Allman Brothers Band founding guitarist Dickey Betts, Duane grew up around a musical culture shaped not only by artists, but by the venues, independent promoters, craftspeople, crews and communities that allowed that music to exist and endure.
Lisa came to the work through design. After years in the outdoor and ski industry, she began creating one-of-a-kind jackets and accessories using handmade textiles sourced from around the world, developing a deep appreciation for craftsmanship, slow fashion and the people behind the things we value.
Together, those experiences became the foundation for a broader mission: to protect local culture by investing in the people who create it.
Beyond its own programming, the Betts Family Foundation plans to serve as a fiscal sponsor for other local culture builders and emerging community initiatives, giving locally rooted projects access to nonprofit infrastructure, resources and support while allowing them to remain independent and true to their communities.
The Foundation will initially focus its work in places with deep personal ties to the Betts family, including Jackson, Wyoming, and Sarasota, Florida, while ultimately supporting cultural initiatives in communities across the country.
“At the heart of this is a very simple question,” Lisa says. “How do we make sure the people who make a place worth visiting can still afford, and still want, to call it home?”
The Betts Family Foundation is currently developing its first slate of programming and partnerships. For more information, visit bettsfamilyfoundation.com.
The Betts Family Foundation supports the artists, musicians, makers, small businesses, traditions and grassroots ideas that give communities their identity. Through original initiatives, partnerships and fiscal sponsorship, the Foundation works to protect local culture, strengthen creative communities and ensure that growth gives something back to the people and places that make it possible.
