This Saturday, April 18, Washington Jefferson Park is the place to be for skateboarding competitions, snacks, live punk rock and mental health resources, all putting on a huge party for Ben Moody’s Birthday Skate Celebration. Ben Moody died by suicide March 9, 2022, at age 17 and this would be his 22nd birthday. He was a skilled and beloved member of the Eugene skateboarding community, and the Washington Jefferson park is where he spent most of his time. The day begins with free skateboard instruction before two skateboarding competitions. The first is the Money Jones Street Session, named for Moody’s nickname, and will honor his street skating preferences with skateboarding on stairs, rails and flat ground. The other is the Steezy Bowl Jam, named for Silas Strimple, a Eugene skater who died at age 18 in 2021. This competition takes place in the skate park bowl. The prizes are $100 and a skateboard featuring Moody’s art. The party will be amped with a DJ throughout the day and Moody’s favorite snacks: Cosmic Brownies, KFC and peach rings, before an evening concert by punk rock bands Sargent Pitviper, Final Choice, Finger Trap and Haunting. Five weeks after he died, Moody’s friends organized a gathering with cupcakes and a balloon release. “It was really beautiful,” says Summer LeMay, Moody’s mother. “My favorite part about that was hearing the kids skate down the road.” In 2023, LeMay started the Ben Moody Foundation to help suicide loss survivors, but “we still wanted to be in the skateboarding community as well,” she says. This will be the foundation’s second year hosting his birthday party. Mental health resources such as the City of Eugene Youth Empowerment Program, which is sponsoring the event, as well as the Trauma Intervention Program, Radical Alternative Development and many others will table at the event.

Ben Moody’s Birthday Skate Celebration is 11 am to 6 pm Saturday, April 18, at Washington Jefferson Skatepark, Washington Street to Jefferson Street. The event and competitions are all-ages and open to all skill levels. For more information visit Zeffy.com/en-US/Ticketing/Bens-Birthday-Skate-Competition. Free. No registration required.