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skate for jamaica
-PRESENTED BY STOEFS STUDIO-
By luis Phenosa
"The 4,244-square-mile nation of Jamaica, which had a freaking bobsled team, still doesn't have a skatepark!"-Creative Loafing
Stoefs Studio teaming up with Concrete Jungle foundation plan to change that. Donating a $120,000 Skatepark to Jamaica. The first in the country. In January of 2020 the 1000 sq meter park will be built in the heart of Kingston and will give a safe place to the youth of the country to skate within the realms of the law and & continue to enrich the skate culture.The skatepark design was developed by CJF in consultation with the local skateboarding community and New Lines Skateparks. The park includes both transition and street features as well as an area for spectators. Additionally, a community center and parking will be added to the “ Freedom Skatepark”. Some 20 international skatepark builder volunteers are expected to partake in the construction.
The night had something for everyone.
The evening started with big tricks and big hits as the Half Pipe competition unraveled. With over 40 competitors from Pro skaters to the local skate scene battling it out for the $2000 worth of prizes on the line. Three separate competitions took place with each getting more intense then the last. The venue is use to a good drinking crowd on a Saturday night but when you add a portable halfpipe to the mix, live performances from 4 different bands, a DJ, raffles and vendors from the local surf, skate and music scene the turn out was astonishing. "The larges we've ever had" stated the owner of the venue space. For those that didn't have any luck winning any prizes the night came to a close with smiles on everyone's faces, as the remainder of the merchandise was tossed off the roof into the crowd.
After talking with the Owner of stoefs studio we found out Why he used st. petersburg, Fl. of all places for the international fundraiser location.
Ayden Stoefen Painter/Photographer/Designer and Owner of Stoefs Studio gave a minute of his time to answer a few questions we had on the day of the event. After returning home from Morocco a few months prior and hearing about CJF wanting to get him involved, he thought it would be a great time to get his own local community involved with this project as well. With St. Petersburg's new installment of the largest skatepark in Florida just one year prior to the event, he found the city to be a prime location to host an event such as this one. On top of the growing skate scene within the city, St. Pete is a college town with a lot of creative character and he thought this would supply the preferred crowd who would enjoy and appreciate a fundraiser such as this one.
what's next?
On top of continuing his work supporting and growing the skate community around the world, he states he has no plan to limit himself to just that. He will continue find ways to use his creative outlets to benefit underprivileged communities around the world. Hosting events, shows, and fundraisers to spread awareness and working to improve these communities on sight and at a far. This is just one of the reasons I found this 21 year old so intriguing to conversate with.
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