The Harshman Skate Park Project was a product of passion, volunteer work, and significant donations driven by members of the community (youth, parents, and passionate skaters) in the early 2000’s. Following the completion of this incredible project, the community, especially our youth, took a sense of ownership in the facility. This sense of ownership was reflective in the care and respect of the facility. Now, nearly 20 years from its completion we are starting to lose that sense of ownership, care, and pride. Age and our harsh winter climate have also not been gentle on a facility such as this. Acts of vandalism have forced the installation of cameras, and the growth of the community and other aging infrastructure needs have also limited the parks department’s resources to adequately keep up with the necessary maintenance on the Skate Park.

As a result of recent efforts from those mentioned below, we have made a significant shift and positive impact on this facility this fall. Major repairs were done with care by skilled local contractors and users of the facility. More importantly, it has set a precedent that we can use to re-build that sense of ownership, care, and passion for the facility with our current and future local user groups. We hope these efforts will help youth take pride in keeping these types of facilities vibrant, safe, and fun, while countering vandalism and streamlining annual maintenance.

We are thankful to the following volunteers and skilled contractors:

Dustin Schumaker & Brian Hart spearheaded efforts to round up local resources and talent as it relates to contractor skill sets. Their professional skill sets and passion for the park and sport were valuable in getting the work scheduled and complete. Both Dustin and Brian reached out to the McCall Parks and Recreation Department offering their services. Their recent efforts have curved and reversed a maintenance tipping point, putting the facility in a much better position and extending its life expectancy through a lot of sweat and donated time.

Tiger Kime & Angela Staup also made significant volunteer efforts over the past year with this project, donating their time and resources to help.

Brian Klind, Nick Done, and Furel Dummar additionally volunteered their time to help with forming and ensuring the volunteer team could maintain a continuous pour, ensuring a durable finished product to help counter McCall’s climate while maintaining industry standards.

The McCall Parks Department assisted with demolition, cleaning up, volunteer and equipment support, and with material costs. The department will also be working on other minor repairs throughout the facility this fall and into the next season.