(TRINIDAD, Colo.) — The oldest skating rink in Colorado was once set to close down, until one dedicated employee raised the money to save it. Now she provides a place for young people to escape and have fun, all while providing a listening ear and words of encouragement.
“I was homeless and had a bad drug and alcohol problem, and I landed in Trinidad,” said Jaime Johnson, owner and manager of SoCo Skateland in Trinidad. “I ended up coming to Skateland and getting a job here. I started out as a skate guard. I wanted to change my life, I didn’t want to keep living the way I was living.”
With its polished floors and retro ambiance, the skating rink was a soft place for Johnson to land, though it was short lived.
“I moved into the apartment above Skateland and I was here six to eight months before they told me, ‘we’re going to have to shut it down.’ And I was like, ‘oh no,'” Johnson recalled. “The kids that came here, they were upset. And something that I caught right away is, those kids reminded me of myself. Those kids needed a safe place. They needed somewhere where they were protected, where they could feel safe. Where they were loved.”
That’s when Johnson decided to try and rally the community to raise the money to save Skateland, not just for the opportunities it provided her, but for the countless young people who saw the rink, and Johnson, as a safe haven.
“I know if I ever go down a rough path in life, I could always go to her without any judgment,” said Douglas Hessler, a skate guard at Skateland. “And I know she’ll help me because I’ve seen it throughout the years. I’ve seen her help people.”
Courtesy: FOX21 News Chief Photojournalist Dez Rowe
Johnson succeeded in raising the money to save Skateland, and began offering skate lessons and snacks to local kids in exchange for a few volunteer hours. The idea took off and eventually became SoCo Clubhouse–a youth non-profit that provides programming and educational activities to keep kids heading down a productive and healthy life path.
“I got to step up and give them what I wish I would have had,” said Johnson.
Courtesy: FOX21 News Chief Photojournalist Dez Rowe
Beneath the disco balls and flashing lights of the skating rink, Johnson offers a welcoming space that inspires young people to achieve their goals and push through adversity–all the while giving Johnson an invaluable sense of purpose.
“These people who didn’t even know me, they believed in me,” Johnson said, her eyes misting with tears. “They helped me so that my light came back on, and they showed me a love that I never had in my entire life. And it was this unconditional love.”
