First Skate Night - 2-2-2009

First Skate Night – 2-2-2009

At 4:10, I left work with no clearance from the insurance company. It looked as though we were going to have to call it off for this week and try again next week. At 4:15, I made the call to Julie at Church Mutual in a last ditch effort to get the O.K. Julie took my call and said all was O.K. We were good to go! We were in! Praise God for getting the insurance handled.

The schedule was for me to meet Micki at the church at 5pm, so I drove home quickly within the speed limit, changed clothes, let the dogs out, fed the dogs and cats, jumped into the van after loading the last couple of items, and hurried down to the church driving the M.A.D. Mobile for the first time! There’s nothing quite like making your maiden voyage when you’re in a hurry.

Larry (from Bethany Bible Church) arrived at 5pm to let us in and go over a few details. Micki, Wes, and I set up the gym while Bev ran for some pop since I had forgotten the pop back at the office. It took about an hour to get everything set up, and soon after we finished, Connor and Kory showed up. I let the guys move the ramps around, putting them where they wanted them. Throughout the night, this proved to be a huge a success as we continued to let the youth play with the layout. Praise God for the Freshpark ramps we have! They are light and easy to move, and as an added bonus, they fit in the van!

The pizza arrived at 6:20 as scheduled. Papa Johns stepped up and gave us a discount on the pizza, and I believe they are going to give us a couple of pizza delivery bags to keep the pizza warm. A big shout out to Papa Johns!

Dominic arrived a little later and the three boys enjoyed a lot of open skating as no one else came last night. Honestly, I feel this was God’s plan as we needed a good dry run to get our feet wet, figure out how to set up and run everything, and there was really no pressure since we only had the three guys.

Even though we only had 3 guys, I felt it was important that we stay on schedule, and so we did our 7:30 break for Bible time. After a quick High/Low, the Bible Drill seemed to be a big hit with the guys getting a little competitive with each other. I gave a very short message on God’s provision and how He cares about the big stuff and the little stuff. I shared the last minute provision of the insurance and the story of my buddy J.D. and how God provided money to cover all his bills as well as providing his heart’s desire for pizza and Mt. Dew. I encouraged the guys to invite God into their skating and every aspect of their lives, because God cares about them and what they are doing.

I quickly talked about our Discipleship Program, which I think is going to work out very well. Micki will be the main point of contact on that on a weekly basis, so it was good that she was there to meet the kids. We will start awarding points next week.

At 9pm, we shut the place down. Kory instantly volunteered to help put the ramps away. A shout out to Kory and Connor for helping pack everything up. Larry came back at 9:30 to lock up the building for us, and we’ll be getting our own key for next week. I’m hoping to pick that up this Thursday.

To anyone looking to come out next week, please remember there is a waiver that must be signed in person by a parent/guardian in front of a staff member or notarized if signed off site. A form may be obtained by calling or emailing me, and I will email one to you. I am hoping to get a waiver online soon. As a side note, helmets are always required at M.A.D. Skates events.

THANKS
I am incredibly thankful for the support I have received from family and friends. Thanks to Katie for coming out just to say, “I’m here to support you.” Thanks to Micki for your commitment to this ministry; I’m looking forward to seeing how God uses you. Thanks to my mom, Karen Bennett, for coming down from Mt. Vernon to help wherever needed and take a few photos for us as well as driving back to my house to grab my helmet so one of the kids could skate. Thanks to Wes & Bev for helping set up and selling snacks. I’m glad you’re part of the team long term. Thanks to Larry for everything. You have been a huge part of us getting to use the gym, and I can’t thank you enough. Thanks to my husband, Jason, who has given up a lot of “us” time in order for me to pursue this ministry. You are my heartbeat and the one who always keeps me smiling. I love you. Sincere thanks to everyone who donated to us in order to get the insurance in time. Last but not least, thanks to everyone who diligently supported us in prayer; we could not have popped a single ollie without you.