Portage Family Skate Park Levee Cruise 2015 Recap!!!

Excitement filled the air on September 5th, at Riverside Park in Portage, Wisconsin at 10am.  Community happened; The result was a rewarding sense of meaningfulness and happiness.  The most desired human emotion is that of community.  The 3rd annual Levee Cruise brought an estimated 100 people together for an outstanding expression of what Portage is all about.

The theme of the day was “Positive Relationships are the Key to a Better Future.”  Smiles, encouragement, and high fives set the tone as Nicholas Ramirez of Revolutionary Skateboards opened the event coaching youth in skateboarding.  Many youth participated in a scavenger hunt interacting with positive role models, such as Portage Police Chief Ken Manthey and the Skate Board Cop, Joel Zwicky, of the Green Bay Police Department.  Several families showed up to listen to the bands “Dream” and “4Shame” mentored by Nathan Russell of Soundworks in downtown Portage.  The music groups wowed listeners.  Jared Pierson lead the community as the key note speaker, challenging the youth to “bring their best” to the community of Portage.  “We don’t come to the community of Portage to get the best out of it.  We come to the community of Portage to bring the best to it!”

The Levee Cruise was sponsored by 8 local businesses and registered 19 riders.  Pierson reminded participants that the Portage Family Skate Park is a “family organization” and excited about and committed to the families of Portage; Positive relationships are the key to a better future.

Special thanks to Joel Zwicky and his crew for riding with us, and Police Chief Ken Manthey for attending the event and organizing volunteer civil servants who kept us safe.  Thanks to our sponsors from Blau Family Chiropractic, Don Rick Insurance, Hurry Back Guide Service, Miller, Brussel, Ebben, and Glaeske LLC., New Life Physical Therapy, Revolutionary Skateboards, Sean Malone State Farm, Design 1 Apparel and US Cellular.  A huge thank you to Todd Miller all of the work and donations and Kyle Little for the hours of planning an preparation.  Thank you, Rusty Cline, for the awesome balloons, Andrew Taminga for designing T Shirts, and Brian Nicholson for being part of the clean up crew.  And finally, special thanks to Nathan Russell of Portage Soundworks.

Jared Pierson