Mark Jannetta
“I’m originally from England and started skating when I was about 11. Skateboarding died out when I was about 13 in the early 90’s, but it never stopped being a huge part of who I was. I started skating again when I was about 18 and at 19 really made a decision to put my life in God’s hands and follow him where he led….
After working for a homeless charity for a year outside London, I ended up in New York doing inner-city children’s Sunday School Ministry. It was a great training ground and from there I went to Tampa, FL with a dream of building a skate park ministry. It didn’t come easy, but after a couple years of persevering finally got a park built in 2004 and secured significant funding in 2005. It seemed the only way was up, as I moved to Missouri to strategically partner Splinter with some great organizations… but sometimes Gods view of success is very different from mans…. In the end I walked away from the ‘dream’ and all I built, moving to Memphis, to regroup and refocus my life on discipleship which I believe was Christ’s final marching orders in Matthew 28. I intend to use all my past experiences, mistakes and successes to build a truly refined and excellent skate ministry in Memphis”.
Aaron Shafer
Aaron is a scientist at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. He grew up surfing and skating in California and ironically looks kind of like Tony Hawk. He continues to skate with his own boys, often at Greenlaw or on the mini ramp he built in his back yard. He started Skatelife Memphis, back in 2006, to promote Memphis and the health of Memphians by serving as an advocate for public skate parks. Skatelife advocates for skateboarding because the sport provides a much needed positive physical outlet for Memphis youth and it’s an activity that naturally forms friendships among skateboarders coming from a wide range of socio-economic backgrounds.
Aaron continues to serve as an ambassador for Sidewalk Skate Ministry, promoting, planning and establishing events as well as finding funding and networking opportunities. Memphis skateboarding owes a lot to Aaron and his hard work, as he secured funding for a $400,000 public skate park to be built in 2011.
Dustin Mallory
“I was introduced to the gospel of grace by my Great Grandmother Marie Singley at the age of 20. She gave me a book titled “The Raggamuffin Gospel” by Brennan Manning and being that I was a homeless skateboarding drug addicted criminal at the time, a book for “ragamuffins” sounded interesting. After ending up in jail and on my way to prison again, I had plenty of time on my hands to read it. My deepest awareness of myself became the fact that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I had done nothing to earn it or deserve it… even with all my many mistakes and character flaws. During that time I began to ask God to change me, and he came through in a way I never expected. My Mother told me I should go to Teen Challenge (a 12 to 15 month intense discipleship program) and after confirming that this is what I believed God wanted me to do, I decided to go and all the doors were opened for me to do so. I spent 13 months there and graduated with a heart for helping people, especially for the beat up and burnt out ragamuffins like myself.
Now here I am, within the multitude who so want to be faithful, who at times get defeated, soiled by life, and bested by trials, wearing the bloodied garments of life’s tribulations, but through it all cling to faith. I skateboard, and I am so thankful that even skateboarding can be used as an act of worship and a platform to give God glory. Im soon to be married to Berenice Corral, an incredible woman with a passion for Christ and skate ministry. Together in partnership with Sidewalk Skate Ministry, it is our vision to reach out to the world and to expand the skateboarding community, while encouraging social change and spiritual growth through the sharing of God’s unconditional love through Jesus Christ’.”
Scott McFarland
Scott McFarland can’t skateboard, let’s get that out of the way on the front end, but he has a testimony of a Savior that radically altered his life and a desire to share with others the life changing gospel of Jesus Christ.
Scott’s introduction to Sidewalk Skate Ministry began at Greenlaw Community Center, now MAM Greenlaw, about 5 years ago when he answered a call for support from a former Memphis Tiger basketball player, Detric Golden. Golden and his wife April were living for Christ in the corner of a community center and showing the kids of that community what being a Christian is all about in a tangible way. The Lord blessed that ministry, which became MAM Greenlaw, and it was there Scott met Mark and caught the vision of skate as a platform to share the love of Jesus.
And who knows, we may get him to skate yet…
