Boards for Bros is a group of skateboarders working together to collect and refurbish skateboards so they can be redistributed back into the community for children who cannot afford their own.

By helping the skateboard community give skateboards to those without the opportunity to ride one otherwise, Boards for Bros works to show that skateboarding can help children learn discipline, respect, and perseverance that will assist them throughout their entire lives, while having fun and exercising.

Boards for Bros is the natural extension of an idea that formed one day in 2006 at the historic Bro Bowl in Tampa, Florida. Some skateboarders, their families, and their friends were skating and the usual crowd of local kids stood by, watching excitedly. Since the park had been built in 1979, the locals never seemed to have their own skateboards, but were always stoked to borrow one of the visiting skaters' boards.

This original group of skaters was Paul Schmitt, Ed Womble, and Ryan Clements. Realizing they could be the ones to make a change in these kids’ lives, this group of skaters, and by extension, the entire family at Skatepark of Tampa, organized the collection of used skateboards, refurbished them, and gave them out to kids in some of the sketchier areas of Tampa around the holidays. Boards for Bros was born.

Since that first year, Boards for Bros has been collecting and refurbishing hardgoods for the kids in Tampa, and many folks in the skateboarding industry have noticed, taking up their own collections and even donating complete boards.

In 2010, Emerica’s Wild in the Streets in Tampa was held to benefit Boards for Bros, raising money, awareness, and a bunch of gear to give to kids. That event led to the formation of a long-term partnership between Emerica and Boards for Bros. Wild in the Streets is about empowering kids, and by aligning with worthy causes Emerica encourages kids to be part of something bigger than themselves, and even bigger than skateboarding. All Emerica events will benefit Boards for Bros, and the 2011 Wild in the Streets event in Los Angeles will be the launch of the first Boards for Bros donation outside of Florida.

Boards for Bros Mission Statement: To inspire kids to use skateboarding as a gateway to a healthy life by giving them refurbished skateboards through a joint industry effort.

Participating Shops

The shops below are giving 10% off Emerica gear on the day you donate hardgood to Boards for Bros.

Active Ride Shop - all locations
Ambush, Kennsaw, GA
BC Surf & Sport, Littleton, CO
Billy's, Newhall, CA
Blue Tile Skateshop, Columbia, SC
Church of Skatan, Santa Barbara, CA
Clockwork Skateboards, Macon, GA
Epidemic Ride Shop, Cathedral City, CA
Escapist, Kansas City, MO
Fifty-50, Azusa, CA
Furnace, Cypress, CA
Goodtime Boardstore, Grass Valley, CA
Homebase Skateshop, Bethlehem, PA
Huntington Surf & Sport, Huntington Beach, CA
Identity, Anaheim, CA
IDS Boardshop, Los Angeles, CA
Index Skateboarding, Dallas, TX
K-5 Surf & Sport, Encinitas, CA
Kinetic, Wilmington, DE
Krudco, Rochester, NY
One Way Boardshop, Santa Maria, CA
Pacific Drive, San Diego, CA
Pharmacy Boardshop, Las Vegas, NV
Pharmacy Boardshop, Palmdale, CA
Pit Crew, Frederick, MD
Plus Skateshop, Fort Walton Beach, FL
Pride Surf and Skate, San Diego, CA
Rukus Boardsports, Baton Rouge, LA
Society Ride Shop, San Carlos, CA
Solstice, New Bedford, MA
Subsect, Des Moines, IA
Surfride, Costa Mesa, CA
Uprise, Chicago, IL
Vertical Urge, Raleigh, NC
Westside Skateshop, Tarpon Springs, FL

Boards for Bros 2010: Distributing the Boards

Thursday, December 23, 2010

By Rob Meronek
Footage by Colin Clark

After the assembly line put together over 200 skateboards last week, we piled them into Clem's truck and headed over to St. Pete to give them out. Colin Clark filmed and I shot photos. Thanks to everyone that contributed to Boards for Bros during the year that made this all possible. I hope every one of these kids experiences the same things that skateboarding has done to all of us. Merry Christmas.

We started with a truckload of about 200 boards. It's amazing how this all came together from collecting used parts all year. We also got plenty of help from art shows that benefit Boards for Bros and our annual Free Day.

We went to St. Pete this year to change it up. Our first stop was at the plaza.

Everyone who gets a board is instantly interested in the ollie.

Now we're just taking a drive through random neighborhoods and stopping whenever we see kids.

The SPoT Ghetto Christmas Party is over so I'm not sure why Schaefer still has his tech head going, but we did run into a kid who matched him.

There were about three people on this street corner when we pulled up. Five minutes later, this is the crowd.

I hope those boards don't get used for firewood in that front yard blaze they got going back there.

This girl was very eager to have her photo snapped and had the full pose to go with it.

When we asked for a group photo, she shoved her brother out of the picture.

I wonder if that shower cap counts as a helmet at skate parks that require one?

Like "The People of Wal Mart," someone should start a blog called "Whips of the Hood." You always see the most amazing things. I missed this dude laying down on the dropped down bed gate while they were driving down the street.

An entire family spilled out of the front door at this stop.

The fresh odor of burning marijuana was in the air as we passed out boards here.

You don't even need to come downstairs. We got you.

We need more girls skating. Hopefully this makes a small contribution.

I wish we could find him in a decade to see what happens. Is he going to fall in love and change his life like us? I hope.

Our last stop was Fossil. Merry Christmas, everyone. If you contributed to Boards for Bros in any way over the years, we can't thank you enough. Get more information on how to contribute at BoardsForBros.com.

Colin Clark's Video Footage