More than 300 people gathered at Sundance Mountain Resort on Wednesday, Aug. 19, to celebrate what would have been Robert Redford's 90th birthday, toasting the late actor and conservationist with brownie sundaes, his favorite treat.

Amy Redford, the actor's daughter and a Sundance Nature Alliance board member, told the crowd her father's true legacy lives in the protected land surrounding the resort rather than his film career.

"Dad knew that this place was going to save his life," Amy Redford said. "I know that when he was nestled in these mountains, he couldn't help but put the bizarre framework of his life into perspective."

She spoke alongside her daughter, Eden August, and resort president Chad Linebaugh, who announced plans to make the birthday gathering an annual Robert Redford Day. Linebaugh said the resort wanted to honor Redford with a celebration rather than a somber remembrance.

"It's important to keep his name, image alive and people understand the impact he had not only on the film industry, but Utah and this area," Linebaugh told the Park Record.

Discounted lift tickets on the Outlaw Express chairlift were sold throughout the day, with all proceeds going to Sundance Nature Alliance, the nonprofit Redford helped establish. The organization, officially formed in 2023, holds restrictive covenants on more than 1,500 acres in and around the resort, according to TownLift. Combined with earlier conservation easements Redford placed through Utah Open Lands, more than 70% of the 2,600-acre resort remains protected land.

Jerry Hill, Redford's longtime right-hand man, has worked at the resort for 68 years. He wears a "66-plus years of service" badge on his chest.

"This place is what it is because of Robert Redford," Hill said. "This place wouldn't exist without his genius and talent."

Bron Roylance, a makeup artist who befriended Redford through Hollywood work more than 30 years ago, moved to the Sundance area in 1991 after hearing Redford talk about the canyon. He has since built multiple homes there, one overlooking Redford's old property. Roylance recalled the morning of Sept. 16, 2025, when Redford died at his Sundance home at age 89.

"I stepped out onto the balcony, and there was heavy rain for about two minutes, and it stopped," Roylance said. "I walked out as a beam of sunlight shined down on his property."

Redford purchased his first two acres in the canyon in the early 1960s for $500. By 1969, he had bought the struggling Timp Haven ski area before developers could claim it, renaming it Sundance. He went on to found the Sundance Institute in 1981, launch the Sundance Film Festival and receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016.

Linebaugh closed the evening by raising a cup of brownie and ice cream. "Here's to Bob!" he said. The crowd echoed back.

No specific date for the 2027 celebration has been announced.