ORLANDO, Fla. – As a sport and subculture, skateboarding can foster creativity, risk assessment, independence and self-confidence.
And if you listen to this week’s Getting Results Award winner, it can open doors to a successful life.
Drew Campbell started Getaboard, a 501c3 nonprofit, in 2003. The group promotes action sports, like skateboarding and surfing, to at-risk youth ages 6-19.
“We started because we found there were a lot of kids that wanted to learn how to skate, but not a lot of people here to teach them,” Campbell remembered. “One day these kids were asking to borrow my board and I said, ‘Sure,’ and taught one kid how to skate, then another. I ended up teaching six kids how to skate in 45 minutes. It was amazing. They were stoked. I was stoked. That’s when I realized there was a need to be filled.”
Campbell started by placing donation boxes at local skate shops. People could leave their old boards and parts. He would get together with friends to refurbish them and then give them away. His first donation went to the Coalition For the Homeless of Central Florida in downtown Orlando.
Getaboard has donated thousands of skateboards and taught over 10,000 kids to surf and skate, promoting the value of hard work and discipline.
For the last few years, Campbell has helped sponsor a “Skate Day” event in Orlando. Hundreds of riders of all ages showed up at the Central Florida Fairgrounds in late June to ride ramps and obstacles provided by Getaboard.
“People all around the world are out skating today and this is Orlando’s version,” Campbell said, doing his best to talk over the loud music and clack-clack of boards and wheels landing on the smooth cement floor.
“There’s a method to the madness,” Campbell said. “It’s a way to give back to the community. A way to say thank you to everybody that makes our community awesome.”
Campbell and Getaboard give back in a number of ways. Their main programs, including the Getaboard Surf Academy and Getaboard Skate Academy, partner with local homeless shelters and youth organizations to reach an estimated 1,100 children each year.
The nonprofit is working with Stetson University and local public elementary schools for their Read2Ride program. They also work with corporations to promote team-building through their Board Building program.
Campbell remembers when he was given his first skateboard when he was about 10 years old.
“Me and my brother started riding it around on our stomachs before we tried to ride it,” Campbell said with a laugh. “If I hadn’t gotten that board, I don’t know where I’d be. It’s like it’s come full circle.”
The sport, along with surfing, gave him a chance to travel, make new friends and experience new things.
“It opened up a whole new community. A creative community. Now I consider the action-sports community my family.”
And now, kids who were part of the program when they were younger are giving back themselves by volunteering and donating their old skateboards.
Campbell said he doesn’t skate as much as he used to but still tries to surf when he can. He says introducing the sports to others brings him just as much joy.
“This keeps me young. It keeps me stoked on life,” Campbell said. " Seeing kids get excited about skating and surfing is the best.”