When raising funds for a skate park, however, do not overlook your most important resource: the skaters. The facility's future patrons should share in the responsibility for securing money and should be given a leadership role in the process.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ATHLETICA, INC.

Skate park in Haldimand County, Ontario

In Haldimand County, Ontario, the county built four parks throughout the rural area—all of them with the assistance of the youth committee. The kids were told once they raised $2,500 to prepare the parks, the county would give them $10,000 in seed money.

Each park had its own committee with roughly seven to eight core members. They organized fund-raising events such as field trips to local parks and spent hours picking up recyclable glass bottles at the local speedway. They also solicited money from the merchants who desperately wanted them to stop skating on their properties.

"Some business said, 'Here's a hundred bucks, now stop hanging out in my parking lot," says Kelly Reichheld, an assistant planner with Haldimand County.

One group even paired with the local Crimestoppers to help raise money. A sign now hangs outside the facility touting the collaborative effort between skaters and law enforcement. "Skating isn't a crime," it reads. "Vandalism is."

The kids' dedication gave the project a bigger boost then they realized. County officials and would-be benefactors warmed to the project after they saw the skaters' enthusiasm. Their passion for the project assured supporters that this would not be a passing fancy or something to be taken lightly.

"The kids have proven themselves to be a legitimate group," Reichheld says. "They've shown they have a legitimate project that they care about."

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ATHLETICA, INC.

Skate park in Haldimand County, Ontario

Keeping the kids' interest, however, often proved a daunting task for Reichheld, who worked directly with the four youth committees. In two cases, the fund-raising process took three years. Some kids grew tired of the effort, while others graduated from high school and went on to college during that time.

"It was hard," she says. "I've seen a lot of faces come and go over the years."

Reichheld tried to maintain the teens' interest by promoting something bigger than a skate park. She told the skaters up front that the facility might not be completed before the graduated from school. It's possible, she said, that some of the volunteers would outgrow the sport before the park opened.

Still, she stressed the fund-raising effort was a chance to give something back to community. She promoted it as a way to ensure that future generations wouldn't struggle to find a place to skate.

Reichheld considered the parks a chance to develop future Kiwanis or Rotary Club members, the citizens who would spend a lifetime giving back to the community and volunteering their talents.

Her message must have been heard. Several former volunteers took a break from college studies to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremonies. One ex-committee member, spurred by his involvement in the skate park committee, had gone on to study design and now plans skate facilities across North America.

"More than anything," Reichheld says, "their involvement is a way of giving something back to the community and doing something positive."