Why Tony Hawk skated with the Navajo Nation president

Krysyan Edler
Updated ·2 min read
3
Tony Hawk arrives at the world premiere of “The Spy Who Dumped Me” in Los Angeles on July 25, 2018. Hawk’s nonprofit helped fund a new skatepark on the Navajo Nation.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk surprised children at Monday’s grand opening of the Navajo Nation’s new Diné Skate Garden, which his foundation helped fund.

Hawk helped break in the new skatepark alongside Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren. The Navajo Nation’s youngest-ever president showed off his skateboard skills in front of his childhood hero in Two Grey Hills, New Mexico.

Prior to the construction of the new park, the remote Diné — which is the Navajo Nation’s preferred name — community had “no public recreation space to safely gather,” according to a press release.

“These remote communities need more opportunities to have outdoor recreation,” Amy Denet Deal, the founder of 4KINSHIP, the company that spearheaded the project, told NBC.

Hawk saw the same need for more recreation opportunities in the Diné community.

“For too long, indigenous communities have been overlooked and under-resourced, and this project is an important step towards bringing positive change,” he said ahead of the park’s soft opening in October, according to the Navajo-Hopi Observer.

Related

Hawk’s nonprofit The Skatepark Project provided a $30,000 grant to help with the construction, according to the Observer.

“I am excited for the youth of this community who will now have direct access to a world-class skate park and will be able to participate in our unique sport,” Hawk said. “Skateboarding brings a strong sense of community and teaches life skills, like resilience, determination and the value of perseverance.”

In partnership with Nouns DAO, The Skatepark Project previously donated 100 skateboards and helmets to Diné children, who would be using the new skatepark, the Observer reported.

The Skatepark Project has funded the development of 661 skateparks and donated over $11 million, according to the organization’s website.

“When kids find skateboarding, I think they find something that speaks to them in a deeper way and something that can teach them a lot of life lessons about overcoming your goals, about overcoming challenges,” Hawk told NBC.