I would like to thank Arapahoe County and Commissioner Nancy Sharpe, Greenwood Village and Mayor Ron Rakowsky, Susanne and Julie of Parks and Recreation, Team Pain, my wife Devora for starting this project, my daughter Danielle and her husband Paul for putting an emphasis on suicide prevention, Andrew’s friends who helped put together the ROLLMODEL program, and my grandchildren, Asher, Eitan and Aviva who kept my spirits up by laughing at my jokes.

Today is bittersweet for our family…Sad because Andrew isn’t here, but sweet because all of you came to share in the dream and legacy Andrew had for the Skateboard community.

You see from the time Andrew was young and attended the meetings to build the first Greenwood Village Park, skateboarding was his passion, skateboarding was his community, and skateboarding was his home.

In fact, when Andrew moved into his last apartment, he needed to rent a truck just to carry all the broken boards he saved.

Andrew knew what research had proved out that skateboarding was more than an activity. It was a culture, a community of individuals who shared, mentored and relied on each other regardless of race, creed, color, religion. Whatever, it didn’t matter as long as you wanted to skate.

Rain or shine, day or night Andrew was at the Park, often with his 2 dogs, Buddha and Lady. Buddha and Lady are here with us today. Please take a bow or bow wow.

When things were good, Andrew would come to celebrate and when they were bad, he would come to this safe place to try and sort things out. Many times, he thought no one cared or understood the Skateboard community. So, he always wanted to build his company ROLLODEL as a company of Skateboarders to do things for Skateboarders.

Today, I know he’d be looking down with that big smile and letting out his belly laugh, knowing that a County Commissioner and a Mayor plus all of you here came to celebrate a new park with his name on it. He would probably want to show his appreciation to Mayor Ron by showing him how to Ollie or teach Commissioner Nancy how to ride that rail. But most of all, he would be very happy how we all came together to support his community.

Too many young people feel left out or depressed…. often suicidal. But when you see so many people, dignitaries, and the press here today, you know how much we want our young people to succeed, to realize their dreams and just have fun. If you or you know someone going through tough times, please reach out and support them. We have information here and there is plenty more online.

So today with this park, we carry on the dream and legacy of Andrew. And through his company, ROLLMODEL and our family efforts, we will continue to provide support to the Skateboard community.

As Government and Community leaders, plus the citizens of Greenwood Village here today, you should be very proud of what you have accomplished. And for that, on behalf of my family and Andrew, I thank you for letting us be part of this celebration.