BY ANNELIESE TURCK

Sun Valley alumnus Peter Wolter, who served as the guide for skier Jake Adicoff in the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Paralympics, will be the speaker for the 2026 Sun Valley Community School commencement ceremony.

Forty-seven students will graduate during the ceremony, which will take place at 1 p.m. Sunday, May 31, at the Sun Valley Pavilion.

Wolter and Adicoff won two gold medals at the Para Nordic competition in March, while Reid Goble and Adicoff won two more gold medals.

Wolter is a 2022 graduate of Middlebury College where he earned a degree in Economics and a minor in Psychology.

He captained Middlebury’s Nordic skiing team for three years, was a two-time Division 1 NCAA All-American in 2020 and 2022, was named the 2018 Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association’s Rookie of the Year, and recorded four top-10 finishes at NCAAs including two national podiums.

Following his Nordic success at Middlebury, Peter chose to ski professionally with the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation’s Cross-Country Gold Team with the goal of qualifying for World Cups and representing the USA at the highest level.

He made his first World Cup start in Les Rousses, France, in January 2023 and followed that up with 10 more World Cup starts in the following season, as well as two national podiums in Soldier Hollow, Utah.

In the fall of 2023, Wolter’s teammate and three-time Paralympic medalist Jake Adicoff tapped him to serve as his sighted guide as he worked toward the 2026 Milano-Cortina Paralympic Games. With Wolter and Goble as his guides, Adicoff made history by winning all four events that he competed in.

“While I haven’t been a student at Community School for nine years, it still feels like home to me, and I am so honored to have been invited to be the Commencement speaker for the Class of 2026,” said Wolter. “I just retired from professional ski racing and am now staring at a wide-open world, not too dissimilar from this class.”

Wolter was born in Sun Valley’s old Moritz Hospital. He played soccer, hockey, some baseball and a little tennis before committing full time to the skinny ski lifestyle. He and his younger sister Ella Wolter ’19 are Cutthroats and were members of SVSEF’s Cross-Country team growing up.

When not training on the trails, Peter found time to be a member of Community School’s Middle School Green Team and the Outdoor Leadership Academy in the Upper School.

Since graduating from Middlebury, Wolter has balanced his athletic pursuits with a part-time role at DECKED. As a Digital Marketing manager, he helped the company grow and reach millions of people across social channels.

“We are honored to have Peter as our Commencement speaker this year,” said Head of School Ben Pettit. “He has truly lived our school’s mission since graduating, and he has a unique story of dedication, passion, perseverance, teamwork, and importantly, the willingness to serve others.

“I am sure he will have memorable insights for this year’s graduating class, which will be both poignant, and knowing Peter, humorous. During his days as a student here, Peter never disappointed when speaking to a group or when on the stage. I look forward to hearing what he has to say.”