Frances Mahon Deaconess Hospital donates $30,000 to Siding 45 Skatepark

The Siding 45 Skatepark organization wants to thank Frances Mahon Deaconess Hospital for their generous donation of $30,000 to support building a permanent, professionally designed and built concrete skatepark in our community. In my presentation to the board, I talked about the benefits of a skatepark for the mental and physical health of our young people. Investing in the wellness of our young people is the most valuable thing we can do to help our community grow and thrive.

Thanks to Pearl Jam’s Jeff Ament, comparable towns across Montana have state-of-the-art skateparks. Ament’s Montana Pool Service has already granted Siding 45 a matching grant of up to $75,000. With the matching grant, we have raised $112,791.16! Now that we have established our nonprofit and have local support, we are able to apply for the many grants available to reach our $300,000 goal.

Join us for free skateboarding lessons and open skate day on Saturday, Aug. 19, at the old skatepark at the fairgrounds, sponsored by United Insurance. Although the old ramps will not be replaced, the skatepark will be open all day and we will be there from 2 to 6 p.m. to give beginner skateboarding lessons. Helmets required, pads recommended. Thanks to local generosity, we have four skateboards, two helmets, a pair of roller blades and a set of pads for anyone to borrow and we welcome more donations! We will raffle off a skateboard and some other goodies. Thank you for all the support you've shown.