Grinding for God
Heather Smith, staff writer
About two years ago,
Link Ministries received an old cotton mill that sits on 22 acres of land
donated by Archer Daniels of the Midland Co.
The plan went in to
action to open a ministry-based skate park for the local youth. On Oct.14
2004, Link Ministries was able to open its doors. The old warehouse that was
formally part of the Southern Cotton Oil Mill is known today as the One-9
Skate Park.
One-9 is open Wednesday
through Sunday and is located at 205 E. 19th St. and Avenue A in
Lubbock.
One-9 Skate Park takes
its name from 1John 1:9 – “If we confess our sins,
he is faithful
and just to forgive us of our sins, and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness.”
On Wednesday and Sunday
nights, the park has skate church from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., followed by free
skating as a reward for the kids who attend.
The One-9 staff divides
the kids into different age groups on Wednesday night. “Our mission is to
reach out to the kids and draw them into a relationship with Christ,” said
Ron Mercer. “Our bible study groups on Wednesday nights are about real life
issues and how to deal with them through Christ,” he said. Mercer adds that
normally 30 to 40 kids attend the skate church every week.
The skate park is on its
way to being a state of the art facility. The skate and bike section consist
of 14,000 square-feet of ramp area within that area are quarter-pipes, mini
half-pipes, vert ramps, steps with hand rails, lips, launch ramps, and grind
rails, among the other attractions. The ramps were designed by American Ramp
Co. from Joplin, Mo.
“These are some of the
best ramps in West Texas by far,” said Mercer. “We have kids coming from all
over West Texas just to skate.”
The latest addition to
the park is the Pro Shop. The Pro Shop sells items such as shirts to some of
the top name brands of skateboards and supplies. It is one of the better
skate shops in town, according to some of the local skaters.
J.P. Vasquez Jr., 22,
of Lubbock has been coming to the park ever since the doors opened last
year.
“ I come up here and
ride my bike ever chance I get,” Vasquez said. “This is one of my favorite
places to ride in town.”
Some of the regular
skaters such as Coti Davis, 14, and Black Brooks, 14, like to come up to the
park to practice olling over each other and many other tricks.
One-9 has a 9,000
square-feet recreational area that is set up to accommodate a variety of
events. The kids can play video games, basketball or even pool. One section
of the recreational area has been set up to have Christian concerts. The
stage is 20 feet x40 feet, with professional lighting and a professional
sound system.
“We try to have two
concerts a month and a skate competition every other month,” said Jarrod
Dugger. “The kids out here need things to do, so we try to keep them busy
with positive activities.”
One-9 is a large
supporter of the local Christian music scene and is willing to book bands to
perform for upcoming events.
“Plains for expansion
are in the near future, if we receive enough contributions, like we are
hoping to,” said Mercer.
For more information
about the upcoming events or about the park, you may contact the park at
806-765-9171 or go to
www.one-9.com.
