Skateboards For Hope

08/22/2026

Vans Warped Tour Montréal 2026. 🤘🔥

The Simple Plan line was SO LONG I couldn’t even see where it ended. 😂
Yeah… no. Love you guys, but I have limits. 🤣

Instead, I wandered around and confirmed a few very important things:

🖤 Punk is ALIVE AND WELL.
🕸️ Fishnets are apparently mandatory.
🛹 A black Thrasher tee will always get you through the door.
😂 And somehow… I fit right in.

Got stopped a couple of times, picked up some souvenirs, people-watched like it was an Olympic sport, and had an absolute BLAST.

Turns out you don’t age out of punk. You just get smarter about which lines you’re willing to stand in. 🤘😂

08/20/2026

08/15/2026

For years, we have talked about empowering youth. Sometimes empowerment also means knowing when it’s time to pay people for the work they do.

This month marks an important milestone for Skateboards For Hope in Gulu, Uganda.

After years of consistently showing up for their skate community, Kenneth and Patrick are now officially receiving monthly compensation from Skateboards For Hope for their leadership and work.

For us, this is bigger than adding two people to payroll.

It’s recognition.

It’s believing that youth leadership has value. That consistency has value. That mentoring the next generation has value. And that young people shouldn’t always be expected to give their time indefinitely simply because the work began as volunteering.

We’ve spent years investing in skateboards, transportation, equipment, events and opportunities in Gulu. Now we’re investing even more directly in the people who make the community possible.

Kenneth and Patrick earned this opportunity by showing up.

And perhaps that’s the message for the next generation of skaters watching them:

There is somewhere to grow. There is an opportunity to lead. And your contribution matters.

This is a small step for our organization, but a very meaningful one.

We’re incredibly proud of them. 🛹❤️🇺🇬

08/11/2026

08/04/2026

☀️ Summer is made for moments like these.

Today we’re at Martin Luther King Park in Côte-des-Neiges, introducing young people to skateboarding through free beginner lessons while others are getting creative with our Redeck Art painting activity.

Right beside us, Jeux de rue is filling the park with traditional sports and games, bringing together hundreds of children for a day of movement, laughter, and community.

It’s a beautiful reminder that the best summer memories are often made outdoors—trying something new, making friends, expressing your creativity, and simply being active.

Thank you to everyone helping make these spaces welcoming, inclusive, and full of possibility. 💙🛹🎨☀️

07/25/2026

What a day! ☀️🛹🎨

Today we spent the day at Martin Luther King Jr. Park in Côte-des-Neiges, introducing kids to the joy of skateboarding and letting their creativity run wild through our Redeck Art Project.

It was HOT. It was busy. It was absolutely worth every minute.

Watching kids step on a skateboard for the very first time, cheering each other on, and transforming old skate decks into colorful works of art reminded us why we do what we do.

To make the day even more special, we surprised three amazing kids with their very own complete skateboards so they can keep rolling long after today. ❤️

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, painted, skated, laughed, volunteered, and helped make the day unforgettable. Special@shoutout to Alex Boivin for his amazing teaching skills. Every smile, every high-five, and every push down the pavement is another reminder that skateboarding changes lives.

See you at the next session! 🤘

Community Youth Art SkateboardingForAll SkateLife

07/18/2026

INAUGURATION - Skatepark du parc À-Ma-Baie
Skatefest Pierrefonds-Roxboro

Le vendredi 7 août 2026, de 17 h à 21 h, joignez-vous à nous pour célébrer l'ouverture officielle du tout nouveau skatepark de Pierrefonds, en collaboration avec l’Arrondissement de Pierrefonds-Roxboro Borough

Au programme :

• Démonstrations de skateboard
• 1 500 $ en Cash for Tricks
• Best Trick Contest
• Compétition de Hippie Jump
• Courses et animations pour tous les niveaux
• DJ Robinthezoo
• Food trucks sur place

L'événement sera également couvert par Éric Lemay (photographe) et Paul McKay – les parcs

Un immense merci à la Ville de Montréal, à l'arrondissement de Pierrefonds-Roxboro ainsi qu'à tous nos partenaires pour leur confiance et leur implication dans ce projet.

Que vous soyez skateur, débutant, amateur ou simplement curieux, venez célébrer avec nous l'ouverture de ce nouvel espace dédié à la communauté.

📅 Vendredi 7 août 2026
🕔 17 h à 21 h
📍 Skatepark de Pierrefonds-Roxboro : 9665 Boulevard Gouin Ouest,
Pierrefonds, QC H8Y 1R4

Au plaisir de vous y voir!

Empire Skateboards For Hope JACKALOPE Pro-Tec Spin Skatepark/Skateshop
Roule les parcs

07/13/2026

JACKALOPE DAY 3: WE SURVIVED. BARELY. 🤘🔥

Three days. A million litres of sweat. Zero regrets.

Zach casually tried to defy gravity on a dirt bike, flipping like physics is just a suggestion. OSHA definitely wasn’t invited.

Then the skate finals happened… and apparently everyone collectively decided gravity could go screw itself. Vert. Skatepark. Absolute carnage (the good kind). Every skater came to destroy their comfort zone and our vocal cords.

And a special shout-out to adaptive skateboarder Ernie Barra. Your demo was a reminder that skateboarding isn’t about limitations—it’s about possibility. Thanks for inspiring every single one of us. ❤️🛹

Massive love to our Skateboards For Hope chaos agents, Paloma and Kassiel. They worked their asses off, made a ridiculous number of new friends, and somehow still had enough energy to keep the stoke alive. That’s JACKALOPE. You show up for skateboarding and leave with a new family.

To every vendor, volunteer, skater, rider, random human who wandered into our tent, bought a shirt, donated a board, shared a laugh, or reminded us why this community is so damn special… you helped us keep putting skateboards under kids’ feet around the world.

Mississauga… you absolute beautiful lunatics.

You didn’t host a festival.
You hosted three straight days of controlled insanity.

JACKALOPE, YOU FU***NG KILLED IT.

Now excuse us while we hydrate, ice every muscle we own, and pretend we’re too old for this…

See you next year. 🛹🔥🍻

07/12/2026

Some people skate for the tricks. Others skate to prove that limits are meant to be rewritten.

This weekend at JACKALOPE Mississauga, we had the privilege of watching adaptive skateboarder Ernie Barra from Phoenix absolutely own the course. His demo wasn’t about what he can’t do—it was a masterclass in determination, creativity, and pure stoke. (Instagram)

I also had the chance to sit down with Ernie for an episode of Betty’s Besties Podcast, where we talked about resilience, adaptive skateboarding, and how a skateboard can change the way you see the world.

At Skateboards For Hope, we believe skateboarding belongs to everyone. Ernie is living proof that inclusion isn’t a buzzword—it’s a mindset.

Huge respect, Ernie. Thanks for inspiring all of us and reminding everyone at JACKALOPE that the best style isn’t just on the board… it’s in the courage to keep rolling.

🛹❤️

07/12/2026

Day 2 at Jackalope and my brain is medium rare. 🔥☀️

The sun has officially cooked us into questionable life choices.

Paloma decided gravity was optional and spent the day auditioning as Wish dot com Superman. Honestly? Oscar-worthy performance. 🦸‍♀️😂

Ran into skate legends Hailey and Casey, my son and daughter-in-law got swept into the circus, and somehow everyone looked way cooler than I did.

Meanwhile, Diego showed up looking at least a foot taller than last year. Either he’s still growing or Jackalope is handing out altitude with the wristbands.

We’re sunburnt, dehydrated, running on bad decisions and overpriced festival food… and somehow having the time of our lives.

One more day left. Somebody please hide my credit card, refill my water bottle, and point me toward more skateboarding.

Jackalope… you beautiful, chaotic disaster. 🛹❤️