ABOUT US

 

On July 7, 2007, JD and Nikki Carabin opened their garage to skaters on what would become the first Friday Night Skate.  He started small: going out to area skate parks with a cooler of water and a love for these kids no one else seemed to want.  JD and his wife Nicky began to invite skaters on Friday nights to skate in their garage.  Soon, close to 20 came each Friday night.  Many of these kids would show up right after school and stay till midnight. No one was calling to see where their kids were. No one was checking to see if they had eaten.  JD confessed, “My wife and I sold anything we had of value to fund the ministry. Eventually, we sold our home as well.”  Over the next few years, a dozen kids stayed with the couple to escape substance, physical and emotional abuse.  

 

Over the years Serious JuJu has had it's ups and down.  At it's hardest moments, community members, faith organizations, and local business were there to support and lift up Serious JuJu.  We are blessed.

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"I'd searched everywhere for this thing called love. I went through life seeking something that would be the ultimate."  -Christian Hosoi

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Today, JuJu meets in a new space at the Gateway Mall. We are excited to welcome skaters to our new space. 

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Our Vision:  To celebrate and strengthen community through skateboarding.

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Our Mission:  Serious JuJu is an indoor skatepark that creates a safe and healthy space.  We see, feed, and strengthen youth and families through the actions of God's love.

 

For hundreds of youth,  Serious JuJu is the only safe space they can connect. At Serious JuJu community gathers. Serious JuJu is a dynamic and diverse community drawn together by our love for skaters and our desire to see, feed, and strengthen the Flathead Valley.  Every day of the week, kids show up at our skateparks to exercise, care for their mental health, emotional health, and often with JuJu, their spiritual health too.  

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​Skaters are amazing athletes who have much to teach.  Skateboarding is a way of life.  The community struggles to make enough space for people of all different skills and abilities, to honor boundaries, and to build each other up.  In fact, when individual join our ministry they often discover their lives enriched and their spirits restored through personal relationships with our skaters.  Serious JuJu is committed to sharing and celebrating life together and seeing and feeding those not often seen or valued in our communities.  

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"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children."  -Nelson Mandela

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Serious JuJu is a community ministry: serving skaters and so many more!   Serious JuJu's community has grown to include so many more than our 400 skaters and their families. Volunteers, community leaders, donors and partners, moms, dads, grandmas, and step-parents also consider Serious JuJu part of their family.  Together, we are a better tribe for the kids and skaters of our community.  This wider community makes us better.

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