Skaters Unite & Change Our World!

Dedicated, With Much Love, to Natalie Hawkmoon.
(1970~2004) We Love & Miss You, Dearly

“For it is in Giving that we Receive”
~ Saint Francis of Assisi ~

“More and more I come to value charity and love of one's fellow being above everything else...”
~ Albert Einstein ~

“We make a living by what we do, but we make a life by what we give.”
~ Winston Churchill ~

“If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.”
~ Booker T. Washington ~

“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”
~ Aesop ~

Citizen service is the very American idea that we meet our challenges not as isolated individuals but as members of a true community, with all of us working together. Our mission is nothing less than to spark a renewed sense of obligation, a new sense of duty, a new season of service…”
~ former U.S. President, Bill Clinton~

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtfull, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
~ Margaret Mead, anthropologist ~

“Everyone can be great because anyone can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t even have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve… You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”
~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. ~

“You cannot help someone get up a hill without getting closer to the top yourself.”
~ General H. Norman Schwarzkopf~

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”
~ Anne Frank, Diary of a Young Girl ~

“Give what you have. To someone, it may be better than you dare to think.”
~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ~

“Generosity is giving more than you can, and pride is taking less than you need.”
~ Kahlil Gibran (1883 - 1931) ~

“Charity sees the need not the cause.”
~ German Proverb ~

“It is better to give than receive.”
~ Mark Twain ~

“Giving is more a dictate of the heart than a command of the brain.”
~ Henry A. Rosso ~

“I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver.”
~ Maya Angelou ~

“If you can't feed a hundred people, then just feed one.”
~ Mother Teresa ~

“The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.”
~ Mitch Albom ~

“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.”
~ Albert Pike ~
(American Lawyer, Journalist and Soldier, 1809-1891)

“To leave the world a better place...to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

“Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.”
~ Buddha ~

We started Skate My World with the best intentions, with the desire to unite skaters to come together and make a unified difference in our world, by participating in monthly charity raffles and raising funds for others in need. Our first mission was to help the over 12 million African Aids Orphans, and participation only cost $1. And, skaters had the chance to win some great prizes from industry sponsors.

We truly believed that skaters would rise to the challenge, and with great passion we pursued our goal. What we discovered is that most skaters, including those in the industry, simply don't seem to care!

·	Although we were able to get some industry sponsors willing to give prizes, they weren't willing to add our link to their site, put an article in their magazine, or help us get the word out to their consumers (skaters).
·	Then there were the industry leaders who came right out and said that our mission wasn't in line with their "marketing strategies", ie: making money, money, money, money.
·	When we tried to get the word out in message boards or forums, we were banned for spamming, while postings with the nastiest language on some of the most debasing topics were rampant. I couldn't even get "Skater Moms" to respond to emails for their assistance in this project, but they sure did talk up the latest trick accomplishment.
·	We found that Skate Shops just didn't want to be bothered with hanging a flyer, collecting donations, adding our link to their site, etc. I mean helping Orphans in Africa doesn't help them sell more merchandise, does it?
·	The Pros that we approached wouldn't get back to us at all, or when their agent did, simply weren't interested in coming on board and helping out, at this time. Ironically, these same Pros don't do anything at anytime to help others in need, yet have more money than most of us could imagine.
·	Ultimately, we recieved over 30,000 hits on our site and not a single skater participated. The only donations raised were those from the personal friends (skaters) of my skater boys. Yet, these same skaters will spend hundreds on decks, name brand apparell, and the latest DVDs.

To say that we are bummed is putting is mildly. This endeavor has given us an insight into a group that we truly believed didn't deserve the longstanding reputation it had acquired. Unfortunately, what we found is that they do. While skating is quickly becoming a billion dollar industry, it is apparent that skaters are extremely self centered and take pride in not just the artistic skill of the sport, but the "punk ass" attitude that seems to go along with it.

While there are those in the industry that do good things, many of these causes are centered on skating (like building new skateparks and getting decks into the hands of needy kids, etc.) That's great, but there are many in our world who can't even afford the luxury of eating and children dying before they even get to the age of 13. How much of a difference does a skate park or deck make to these children?

With much sadness, we leave behind Skate My World, but my boys and I will continue to give back on our own, donating our time and money to causes helping people less fortunate than ourselves. We have learned alot in this process and feel blessed that we are on this side of the equation. Giving feels good and it truly is "in Giving that we Receive."

View more of CNNs photos of those most vulnerable

Please visit AIDvillageclinic.org for more information

We'd like to thank the following for their willingness to help our cause and get the word out. We wish there had been more like you.

While we were grateful for our Sponsors willingness to gift prizes, we were disheartened by their unwillingness to place our link on their sites, an article in their magazine, or help get the word out in any way.

Our sincere apologies are given to those organizations that we believed we could raise funds for. We will be sending our personal donation, but are saddened by the lack of human compassion we found within this industry. Thank you for all that you do.

Thanks for skating the other way!