LOUISVILLE Ky. - A skate park may be the last place you would expect to see uniformed members of the military, but the Kentucky National Guard has other ideas.
As skateboards rolled by on the slope and edges of the park, Soldiers and Airmen gathered around a large mural in its final stages of completion.
Kentucky’s adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Edward W. Tonini and Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, 75th Recruiting and Retention Command were on hand April 20 at the Louisville Extreme Park for the painting and installation of the piece, a new National Guard mural.
"The Guard is looking to expand our efforts into the action sports market, as we have realized there are great candidates for military service in the non-traditional X-Game type sports," said J.C. Newton, Marketing Director for the Kentucky National Guard. "We are working with BMX, skateboarding, snowboarding, skiing, etc. to let those participants know that the Guard could be an option for them. They have the strong individual attitudes and fearlessness that can make great soldiers."
Kentucky along with four other states was selected to house the Guard murals based on a nationwide competition among the National Guards of the 54 states and territories. Louisville’s Extreme Park was chosen due to the uniqueness of its full pipe and historical significance in the skating world. The date was decided upon to coincide with all the festivities of Thunder Over Louisville.
"The murals are part of a social media campaign," said Newton. "I submitted a one-page paper on why Kentucky deserved a mural and we were selected. The ability to link the painting with Thunder, through the efforts of our marketing office and the Kentucky Derby Festival was too good to pass up."
New York-based Zoom Media and Marketing worked with the National Guard Bureau to create unique and fitting images for each location around the country. Guard murals will also be installed at locations in Colorado, Iowa, Missouri and Oklahoma.
The patriotic visuals of the mural include the state capitol and a horse image. Tonini contributed to the mural by adding his own finishing touches with the spray paint.
Newton said the murals are a way to reach out to the younger generation and hopes to expand into the X-Games scene with a newer avenue of advertising and branding. The idea fits with Zoom Media’s concentration in the fitness industry and the artists contracted to make the images a reality.
"These paintings are a great way to get in touch with our youth," said mural artist Nick Accuroso. "They are a way to appeal to a great amount of people."
The mural, measuring 8 feet high and 12 feet wide, will be housed at the outdoor skate park for two months and will be transferred to an indoor skate park in Louisville permanently.