Josh Hodsdon of Rangeley holds a pair skis for a 3-year-old, one of 100 pairs purchased from a recent trip to Vermont that will be available at Sunday’s ski and snowboard giveaway in Mexico. Bruce Farrin/Rumford Falls Times
MEXICO — Roxbury native Josh Hodsdon’s love for skiing will be on full display Sunday at his ski and snowboard giveaway for children in the River Valley ares.
River Valley Kids Ski Too will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 102 Harlow Hill Road.
“Some of the kids need to upgrade their gear as they grow,” the 23-year-old Rangeley resident said. He encourages them to donate the gear they’ve outgrown.
Eventually he’d like to have an exchange program before the giveaway.
This year, those who provide gear will have first opportunity for available equipment.
“I do test the bindings and make sure the springs are good and (for liability purposes) have them sign a piece of paper that says you’re going to take (the equipment) to a ski shop that will make adjustments to their height and weight to make sure they’re safe and good to go,” Hodsdon said.
He said they also help parents with equipment so they could ski with their child.
Hodsdon said his love for skiing began at Black Mountain of Maine when he was 12. The friends he made there became his support group when he lost his father, Archie, to cancer when he was 14.
He said Jeff Marcoux of the Angry Beavers of Black Mountain gave him his first real pair of skis at age 12.
The Angry Beavers is dedicated to creating and maintaining glades at Black Mountain.
Hodsdon is in his eighth season working in ski patrol and other roles at Saddleback Mountain in Rangeley.
He has also been in contact with Maine Adaptive Sports & Recreation, which promotes year-round education and training for individuals with disabilities to develop skills, enhance independence.
“They’ll be here with a booth and talking with people” Sunday, he said.
“I would like to find parents of local handicapped or special needs kids to get in contact with,” he said. “I just hope those kids show up. That’s the hardest part, to get them here to start that process.
“Skiing isn’t just clicking in and going down the hill,” he said. “There’s lot of obstacles in the way and Maine Adaptive takes those obstacles and they break it up, and they let people who can’t ski on their own go.
“It’s just a very cool event and hopefully by me running this program and that cost of, through all these bottle drives and everything, we can help get a River Valley kid who isn’t as fortunate to just go click in and needs the extra support to get out on the hill and enjoy it in his way,” he said.
The first giveaway last year proved to be a success.
“I opened the doors and I had lines of people getting their skis, their snowboards, their boots, clothing, and then they were out the door,” Hodsdon said.
Ten of his closest friends helped him in giving away equipment to 70 children. His goal this year is 110.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
