The Skate for Life initiative carries a dual meaning. It reflects both a commitment to skateboarding as a lifelong pursuit and the reality that skating can be a literal lifeline. For many young people, even a single skate session can disrupt cycles of isolation, depression, and substance use, providing immediate relief, connection, and a reason to reengage.
The Skate For Life Initiative
What We Will Be Doing
Conducting school-based presentations and engagements focused on decision-making, resilience, and healthy identity. Sharing lived-experience stories that speak honestly about addiction, consequences, and recovery. Connecting students to positive outlets, mentorship, and ongoing community support through skateboarding. Creating consistent, year-long presence in schools to build trust with students and educators
Who Kyle Quilausing Is and Why We’re Bringing Him to Guam
As part of Skate for Life, Guam Skate Network is working to bring Kyle Quilausing to Guam as a special guest speaker.
Kyle is a nationally recognized youth speaker with a powerful lived-experience story. Once an elite junior athlete and six-time state champion, Kyle lost everything after a single bad decision led him down a path of methamphetamine addiction. His addiction resulted in incarceration and years of isolation, consequences he speaks about openly and honestly.
Now more than 20 years clean and sober, Kyle has dedicated his life to prevention work. He has spoken in hundreds of school districts across the country and is trusted by educators to speak candidly with students about drugs, choices, accountability, and hope. His message is not preachy or abstract, it is direct, real, and grounded in experience. Students listen because he speaks the truth without judgment and emphasizes a message that resonates: the choices you make today shape your freedom tomorrow.
Why This Matters on Guam
Guam continues to face a serious methamphetamine crisis. Law enforcement interdiction data shows large quantities of meth entering the island each year, and public health analysis has identified methamphetamine as one of the leading causes of death on Guam. Community leaders and frontline professionals consistently report seeing the impact of meth on families, schools, and youth.
Skate for Life exists to intervene earlier, to reach students before experimentation becomes addiction, and before consequences become irreversible. By combining movement, mentorship, and credible voices like Kyle’s, we aim to meet youth where they are and provide them with tools, perspective, and support when it matters most.
What Is Skate for Life?
Skate for Life is a youth prevention and outreach initiative led by Guam Skate Network that uses skateboarding as a tool for connection, mentorship, and early intervention. The initiative is built around a simple idea: when young people are given healthy outlets, real role models, and honest conversations, they are more likely to make decisions that protect their future.
Through Skate for Life, Guam Skate Network, working alongside community partners, will deliver school-based engagements across Guam’s middle schools and high schools. These sessions combine movement, storytelling, and lived experience to address issues many students are already facing, including substance abuse, depression, peer pressure, and identity.
