HOLY ROLLERS

By Kevin M. Smith

Anna Faltermeier/The Kearney Courier
Don Hamlin reads from the Bible during a break from skateboarding Tuesday, July 8, at Renner Brenner Park in Riverside. Hamlin leads a skate club ministry through First Baptist Church in Kearney. This is the second year for the youth-based program.

With the QUEST Skate Club in its second year, Don Hamlin is still learning the jargon of the skateboard world.

But that’s not the point of the club.

The club’s purpose is what Hamlin, First Baptist Church minister of education and outreach, hopes to teach dozens of kids in Kearney: God’s love and how to be responsible young people.

Each Tuesday and Thursday youth from around Kearney show up at First Baptist Church to skate. The kids, ranging from 8-year-olds to teenagers, load onto a bus that takes them to a nearby skate park.

There is no skate park in Kearney, and city ordinance prohibits the use of skateboards on city streets and sidewalks. That leaves just parking lots that don’t have a sign forbidding skateboard use.

“I needed a way to be able to go to skate parks,” said Hunter Cunningham, 11, of Kearney.

There are parks built specifically for skateboarding, in-line skating and BMX bikes in nearby Excelsior Springs, Liberty and other cities

“Doing some of the moves and getting out in the open to skate” is what Caden Ritter, 10, of Kearney said he likes about skateboarding. “It’s fun. I have some friends in it; we get to go to different parks.”

There are two groups in the club: younger and older. The younger group includes elementary school and middle school students; the older group has mostly teenagers.

“I think it’s a good idea because we get to have fun and learn about God,” Cunningham said.

There are 28 members total.

The idea started last year when Hamlin said he saw a need.

“We had boys coming to our church to skate,” Hamlin said. “We decided to do organized activities with them.”

Those activities include Bible studies and socialization in addition to finding a place to skate.

The skate club, which also includes a few in-line skaters and BMX bikers, has been to Excelsior Springs, Penn Valley and Smithville. Earlier this month, the group loaded onto a bus for Riverside.

As skate club members were getting their stuff together, they discussed various stunts and tricks on the skateboard. A few minutes later about 15 kids loaded onto the church bus.

Once the bus was parked at Renner Brenner Park, the kids got off and made a beeline for the skating area. Within a couple of minutes of the bus being parked, kids were buzzing around all over the skate equipment.

The club members help one another out by teaching skating tricks and techniques. Many of the younger club members have not been skating long.

Clayton Chisam, 9, of Kearney has been at it about three months.

“Everybody else is doing it,” Chisam said.

He said his favorite part of skating is going fast.

The skating time was short-lived on this day because of rain.

“Well, we got 15 minutes at it anyway,” Hamlin said.

The group then went to the shelter in the park for Bible study.

“Get an apple and a piece of ice and give me 15 minutes of your attention,” Hamlin said to the kids.

Cold apples are a favorite snack of the group, Hamlin said.

The Bible study reviewed an assignment from a couple of weeks ago: Honor their parents, make them happy and proud.

“How did you do?” Hamlin asked. “OK, I see thumbs-down. Any thumbs-up?”

Some thumbs popped up.

“Part of the club experience is making right decisions, being men of honor,” Hamlin said.

Hamlin read the story of the rich man and Lazarus, from the book of Luke.

He explained what things meant and translated how phrases are applied today. When he read the passage, “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen,” Hamlin explained, “That’s like wearing silk and Armani in today’s world.”

Hamlin asked what they have learned about heaven. Answers included that heaven is wonderful, peaceful and the promised land. One answer was “wealthy.”

“Heaven is full of riches,” Hamlin said, “but not like here on Earth.”

He asked the same about hell. Torturing, pain and suffering were common answers.

“All these are frightening things,” Hamlin said.

Hamlin talked to the kids about making decisions for Jesus.

Then they prayed.

The rain had stopped during the Bible study, and the skating area had mostly dried, so they went back to skating.

Pete Rivard, 68, is one of the adult chaperones who accompanies the club sometimes and was there last Tuesday.

“We didn’t have anything like this when I was a kid,” Rivard said.

He said he spent most of his time playing baseball.

But the trend now is skateboarding. It’s become so widespread, Fellowship of Christian Athletes has a skateboard director.

On July 1, the QUEST Skate Club met with FCA Skateboard Director Nate Girratano and his staff at Penn Valley Skate Park in Kansas City. The club skated and then had a Bible study with Girrantano and his crew.

Skateboarding is FCA’s newest sport-specific ministry.

Eddie Stahl, 13, of Kearney is in the older group that meets on Thursdays. His uncle got him interested in skateboarding.

“Kearney is pretty strict about skating,” Stahl said. “What Don does is pretty awesome.”

For more information about the club, call the First Baptist Church at 628-5693.

Kearney editor Kevin M. Smith can be reached at 628-6010 or kevinsmith@npgco.com.