Be the Change
BE THE CHANGE: This is who we are, it’s what we’re all about, join the movement to "Be the Change"! We have taken our 10th Annual Skate for a Cause ON THE ROAD with a 10 stop tour giving away $10,000 "Be the Change" grants at each stop! The first half our our tour is done, check out stops 1 - 5 in the recap video.
10th Annual - 10 Cities - $10,000 Grants
In 2012, we launched our “Be the Change” initiative. This web-based program allows our supporters to enter a cause where they want to see change occur in the lives of children and injured action sports athletes. The Sheckler Foundation will come alongside the winners giving them a $10,000 grant and help make their plans a reality! We love that our supporters now have a voice and a platform that help guide our fundraising and giving.
So, in 2019 we took the show on the road. 10 "Be the change" Winners at 10 Skate for a Cause Tour Stops!
Donate TodaySkate for a Cause Tour
- Friday May 10 - Tempe, AZSkate After School
On May 10th we kicked off our Skate for a Cause Tour in Phoenix, AZ presenting Skate After School with a $10,000 "Be the Change" grant! We had a killer time and are stoked to support the amazing work Ryan Lay and the Skate After School team are doing to be the change they want to see in the lives of kids through SKATEBOARDING. We hope to see you on tour! Thank you Oakley for your support!
Skate After School is a nonprofit providing innovative after school programs to underserved youth in the greater Phoenix area. Skate After School began as a community project nearly seven years ago. Today, it is a nonprofit that serves roughly 240 students per week across eight low-income schools in the Valley with a team of over 30 qualified volunteers.
- Friday June 7 - Sacramento, CAProject Lifelong
On June 7th we headed to Sacramento, CA presenting Project Lifelong with a $10,000 "Be the Change" grant on stop #2 of our Skate for a Cause Tour! We had an amazing time with Sean LaTour, the Project Lifelong team, presenting sponsor Vivint Solar, Oakley, Red Bull and all the family and friends who made the trip to join us! Thank you Project Lifelong for all you do to be the change you want to see in the lives of kids. We hope to see you on tour! "There are so many life lessons in skateboarding." - Sean LaTour
Project Lifelong's mission is to empower youth through skateboarding. Our shared dream and vision is to help make skateboarding accessible to any child, from any neighborhood designed to connect with marginalized youth from underserved areas.
- Thursday June 27 - New York, NYHarold Hunter Foundation's Legacy Program
On June 27th we headed to Harlem, New York presenting The Harold Hunter Foundation with a $10,000 "Be the Change" grant on stop #3 of our Skate for a Cause Tour! We had an amazing time with Jessica Forsyth, Alberto Correa, the HHF team, Chaz Ortiz, Fabrizio Santos, Oakley, Red Bull and all the family and friends who made the trip to join us! HHF’s Legacy Program provides essential support and resources, while harnessing and developing potential within the community through a combination of skateboarding activities, mentoring, case management, life skills workshops, and psychosocial support. Thank you Harold Hunter Foundation for all you do to be the change you want to see in the lives of kids. We hope to see everyone on the next stop of our Skate for a Cause Tour!
- Saturday June 29 - Trenton, NJFreedom
On June 29th we headed out with Ryan Sheckler, Fabrizio Santos and Chaz Ortiz to Trenton, New Jersey for Stop #4 on our Skate for a Cause Tour! The rain didn't stop us from having an amazing time with Jake McNichol and the Freedom NJ crew at the Trenton Social as they wrapped up their Trenton Go Skateboarding Day with a mini ramp, live music, food, art and incredible families. We are stoked to present them with our $10,000 "Be the Change" grant to help them continue the work they are doing in the community through skateboarding. We love how skateboarding continues to bring us together! Join the movement to be the change! We hope to see you on tour.
Freedom is an all-volunteer 501c(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to giving more people the opportunity to learn the life lessons skating teaches. Freedom’s work to provide a safe space for skating and to provide skateboards to youth who would not otherwise be able to afford them are crucial to creating positive opportunities for kids who need them most.
- Wednesday July 31 - Minneapolis, MNWiggle Your Toes
On July 31st we headed to Minneapolis for Stop #5 of our Skate for a Cause Tour to present Wiggle Your Toes with a $10,000 "Be the Change" grant. Words cannot describe the incredible time we had, but these photos will give you a glimpse! What a wonderful group of kids, volunteers and supporters we had participate in this Adaptive Skate clinic, it was truly something we will never forget. Thank you to the X Games for your hospitality! Thank you to Louisiana Hot Sauce for being the presenting sponsor of this stop of our tour and to Oakley, Red Bull, Direct Edge, Sandlot Times and Foot Plant Skate for your loyal support!
Wiggle Your Toes is a small but mighty non-profit in Minneapolis, MN that was founded by an amputee for the limb loss and limb difference community by providing peer support, financial assistance, and sport specific prosthetics (which insurance companies still refuse to pay for considering them not necessary).
- Friday October 11 - Rapid City, SDProcess Skate Ministry Indoor Skatepark
On Friday October 11th we headed to Rapid City, South Dakota for Stop #6 of our Skate for a Cause Tour to present Process Skateboard Ministry with their $10,000 #BeTheChange grant! Due to the snow, we had a last minute venue change where Rushmore Mall stepped in and provided a fun place for us to skate! We enjoyed skating and hanging out with so many great people, Rapid City is an awesome community. We look forward to going back and skating in Process Skate Ministries new indoor skatepark! Thank you to Oakley, Red Bull, Direct Edge Media, Sandlot Times & Foot Plant Skate for your loyal support on this tour!
After making a huge impact with Grace & Peace Skatepark in Colorado Springs, Process Skate Ministry plans to build another indoor skatepark in Rapid City, South Dakata to provide a safe, sober, year-round facility that skaters could come do what they love in a fun, encouraging environment. Process Skate Ministry focuses on at-risk youth in the areas of building relationships, finding community, overcoming fears and pushing themselves.
- Saturday October 12 - Lincoln, NEThe Bay
On October 12th we left South Dakota and headed to Lincoln, Nebraska for Stop #7 of our #SkateForACause Tour to present The Bay with their $10,000 #BeTheChange grant! We had a great time participating in their "Skate School" program we're Ryan Sheckler and our skateBOARD members Manny Santiago, Fabrizio Santos and Oscar Loreto Jr all helped teach kids to skate. We look forward to visiting Mike Smith and all our new friends at The Bay again! Thank you to Oakley, Red Bull, Direct Edge Media, Sandlot Times & Foot Plant Skate for your loyal support on this tour!
The Bay is Nebraska’s only public indoor skatepark, and the largest in the region. The Bay provides access to cameras, high-end computers and other digital arts equipment, helping to close the tech gap for kids living in poverty. All-Access Pass holders qualify for free/reduced lunch, or are involved in the juvenile justice system, have either experienced homelessness, come from single-family homes or foster care, and/or are come from newly immigrant households.
- Saturday November 9 - Houston, TXSouthside Skatepark
On November 9th we had an AMAZING time in Houston for Stop #8 of our Skate for a Cause Tour to present Southside Skatepark with a $10,000 "Be the Change" grant! Thank you Eric Visentin for your hospitality and all you’re doing to BE THE CHANGE you want to see in the lives of kids in the Houston community. Thank you Kip Moore & Kips Kids Fund for being our presenting sponsor of this stop, thank you Oakley & Red Bull for your loyal support on this tour and to Tillys for the 🕠PIZZA! Thank you tStormTrooper Coaches & 1daywraps.com for meeting us in Houston to get us #OnTheRoadWithTheShecklerFoundation !
Southside Skatepark Skateboarding Day Camp will give 50 scholarships to kids to attend their skate camp teaching them perseverance, self-reliance, exposure to cultures outside their own and to never, ever give up.
- Wednesday November 13 - Miami, FLSurf. Skate. Science.
On November 13th we headed to Miami, Florida for Stop #9 of our Skate for a Cause Tour to give Surf Skate Science - South Florida Homeschool Co-Op their $10,000 "Be the Change" grant! The kids proudly displayed their dream skatepark projects to Ryan Sheckler, Chaz Ortiz, Fabrizio Santos, David Reyes & Oscar Loreto Jr.. and we were blown away by their hard work. We got to meet many amazing people, skated and had pizza provided by this stops presenting sponsor Tillys! Thank you Oakley, Red Bull, StormTrooper Coaches, 1daywraps.com, Direct Edge Media, Sandlot Times & Foot Plant Skate for your support!
Designed to enrich your child’s school curriculum, our coop classes offer physical activity through surf and skate lessons. Create your own skateboard deck, learn how a skateboard is created, and find out what science has to do with landing a trick. At our classes, students are not just skaters in a park or surfers in the water but scientists talking about motion, Newton's laws, simple machines, and the environment.
- Saturday November 16 - Nashville, TNMaple Built
That’s a wrap! We closed out 2019 with the final stop of our Skate for a Cause Tour in Nashville! Be sure to stick around at the end to see a few behind the scenes moments of the tour. We had an incredible time in Nashville giving Maple Built their $10,000 "Be the Change" grant with Ryan Sheckler, Chaz Ortiz, Fabrizio Santos, David Reyes & this stops presenting sponsor Shipt. Thank you #MapleBuilt for your hospitality & for all you’re doing to be the change you want to see! Thank you Red Bull for joining us, Oakley for all your support on this tour, and to Direct Edge Media, Sandlot Times, Foot Plant Skate, StormTrooper Coaches 1daywraps.com Michael Custodio!
Maple Built is a non-profit apprenticeship program utilizing woodworking to shape the future for young men in Nashville, TN. One of the primary avenues through which Maple Built creates jobs for the young men of Nashville, is through Salemtown Board Co. (SBCo.). SBCo. is a skateboard manufacturing company that was started in October of 2012 as a means to provide on-the-job training for the youth of North Nashville.