HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0385.002 2016-2018 PIPWPRCí
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Murashige, Laura _ ' t
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From: Frank Lemes <doc.lemes@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday,August 15, 2017 9:04 AM 2U UG 15 All 9t 2.!
To: Council Testimony
Subject: Testimony in support of skate park
Aloha County Council,
My name is Frank Lemes. I am a family physician living and working in the Hilo area for the past 8 years. My wife is a PE
teacher at Haaheo school and we have three children ages 2,6 and 7. I apologize that I am not able to be here today
due to my responsibilities with my patients.
My children love participating in team sports and we are blessed in Hilo to have access to beautifully maintained soccer
and baseball fields. Both of my boys have played baseball and soccer and will likely continue to do so for years to come.
Both my wife and I played competitive team sports all the way through college and certainly understand the importance
of team field sports in developing physical fitness and responsibility and sportsmanship.
I have also been skateboarding on and off for 25 years, starting as a teenager trying to find something new for himself
after getting cut from my school soccer team. Later I went back to skateboarding as a way to burn energy and stress at
night after studying during college. In medical school in Saint Louis I came back to skateboarding as a way to stay fit and
surf ready,since I was landlocked and could no longer surf.
While we have gotten our kids into competitive sports from a young age,they have also been surfing and skateboarding
since they were 3 or 4 years old as well. Both of my boys love skateboarding as an outlet for their energy, where there
are few rules,and where no one is telling them what to do. (Other than to wear a helmet). At the end of a
skateboarding session they feel a sense of accomplishment and pride as they usually learn how to do something new
they couldn't do the time before. They are able to set and achieve goals, and usually make a new friend or two each
time they go to the skatepark.
One of our favorite things to do as a family is to go to the Honokaa skatepark on the way to the beach. It has been
amazing to watch the development of kids in that area that just started skating a year or two ago and now are ripping
their way around the very challenging bowl section. Kids that never really had an athletic outlet are now achieving
excellence at something very challenging and feeling great about themselves in the process.
When we go to other islands we always bring a bag full of skateboards, helmets and pads and make visiting skateparks
an important part of our trips. We just got back from Maui where we visited three skateparks that were all full of kids
having a great time. Its amazing to see how skateparks have become a central part of the community in several of these
towns, especially surf towns like Paia, Maui and North Shore,Oahu. They are a great place to meet other families when
we are visiting, and the kids are always treated with respect and support from the local kids at the skatepark.
It has always seemed strange that Hilo,the biggest city on Hawaii island doesn't have a skatepark. Much smaller towns
such as Waikoloa, Honokaa and Volcano understand the importance of a skatepark and have built beautiful skateparks,
and often times they are full of kids from Hilo who would much prefer to be skateboarding in their own skatepark.
While my kids play team sports as well,skateboarding often also appeals to kids who do not enjoy team sports,or who
do not feel that they fit in when they have played team sports,or who do not have the financial means for registration
fees or transportation to all of their team sports. Skateboarding is often a refuge for these kids,who certainly are of
value and should have an outlet for their physical needs.
Comm. No.
Ref. To:. VC.
1 Ref. Date AUG 15 MU
As is likely obvious, I strongly support the building of a skatepark as soon as possible in Hilo. It is certainly very long
overdue, but we can make up for that by supporting and building a beautiful park in Hilo for all to enjoy. I commend the
skatepark coalition for all of their efforts over the past several years to raise funds, however people in Hilo do not have a
lot of spare money for fundraising for something that so clearly falls under the responsibilities of the parks and
recreation department. I really feel that it is time for the county council and parks and rec department to step up and
make this happen. If necessary there are larger corporate donors such as the Tony Hawk foundation that the council can
partner with that can also be of assistance for raising funds and for technical assistance in helping make the skatepark a
reality.
I look forward to a.future of Hilo where all children have outlets for all of their physical and athletic interests and hope
that the county council and parks and rec department feel the same way.
Mahalo,
Frank and Mandy Lemes
Sent from my iPhone
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