Skateboarding is known for its community as much as it is for kickflips. That sense of community is something Chantel McDougall has experienced as a longtime skateboarder and certified coach.
She is also a crisis and addiction nurse who has seen the physical and mental health benefits that activities like skateboarding bring to patients. Seeing that impact inspired McDougall to launch Bluebird, a new organization that uses skateboarding for athletic development and mental wellness.
“Essentially, it’s programming to work with kids and youth on confidence and resilience skills. I really try to take what I learned in mental health and bring it into skateboarding, which is the vehicle for building these skills,” McDougall said.
Bluebird offers paid and free programming across Waterloo Region and Wellington County. This summer, Bluebird partnered with the City of Kitchener to provide skateboarding skills and confidence-building programming. The programming was offered through Skatium, the city’s mobile skatepark that travelled between Centreville-Chicopee Community Centre and The Aud Skatepark.
In addition to the programming with the City of Kitchener, Bluebird holds skate meetups at skateparks across the region.
“There are people from seven to forty. It’s all ages, all levels welcome. We’ve done them in Guelph, Albert McCormick — all over. I try to do one at a different park every week,” she said.
Beyond the ‘push, kick’ and community of skateboarding, McDougall said the sport is a creative outlet that attracts people of all ages and backgrounds.
“Whether you’re into the art or how you skate, the music that comes with it, the filming—there are so many subcultures. When you put all those pieces together, skateboarding is super holistic. There are so many ways to bring positivity to life through it, and it just naturally helps your mental health in a lot of cases,” she said.
Waterloo Region’s skateboarding community has grown over the last few years with the opening of Workshop Skateboard Club, Bright Side Skateboard Supply and new skateparks in Cambridge, Waterloo and Kitchener. McDougall is also a board member of Waterloo-Wellington Skateboard, a not-for-profit collective that advocates for the skateboarding community in Waterloo Region and Wellington County.
“There are so many great people in this community, and I’d say the community was definitely there for Bluebird. Finding my spot within the community was something I had to do, and the support I’ve gotten from people has been incredible—the engagement, the skate meet participation and the positive feedback,” she said.
As McDougall looks back on her first year, she said one of her priorities is securing funding to offer programs like Bluebird’s Confidence + Resilience series to more people. The feedback from this past year’s sessions has given her more insights into what is working and where she can increase her impact.
“Working with another organization was wonderful, but I’d like to have more autonomy and build my own programming. Next summer, I’m hoping to run my own programs,” McDougall said.
Her time with Bluebird is also funnelling back to her work as a nurse.
“There are so many people who come into the hospital, and you’re listening to their story and thinking, ‘this is so avoidable’—there are kids out there who don’t go outside, who don’t have many friends, and there are a lot of reasons behind that. So, I always bring that back to the hospital—movement, connecting with the outdoors, connecting with other people,” she said.
Leave a Reply