Skateboard community in downtown San Mateo rallies for Maui

When wildfires devastated the island of Maui, Hawaii in August, Motzek and his team kicked into high gear, partnering with two Bay Area nonprofits to gather general supplies, such as food and clothing.

“Maui was in need, and we wanted to find a way to help,” said Motzek, co-founder and co-owner of the shop.

Soon after, professional skateboarder Mark Suciu reached out to Motzek, suggesting a donation drive for skateboarding gear after learning about the scale of residents’ losses. They soon connected with a Maui local who had secured a lease on a retail space to open a skate shop. But instead of purchasing the items, shoppers could take them home free of charge, selecting from goods donated from several participating businesses, including Atlas. 

“Anybody that is affected by the disaster would be able to go in there and shop as if they were shopping in a regular store and get geared up,” he said. “It’s everything from clothing to footwear to accessories to skateboarding goods.”

Atlas has been collecting donations since August and plans to send a large shipment of donations in the next few days. While the shop has always prioritized giving back, the Redwood City native said the initiatives ramped up with the onset of COVID-19.

“We are a business, and we sell product, but that’s not really the driving force behind why we are doing this at the store,” said Motzek. “It’s really to be a community hub for people to get a little taste of art, some culture and experience something that is authentic and skater-owned and operated.”

And with numerous fundraising projects under their belt, the Atlas team has a well-established system for gathering supplies and connecting with those in need. The store orchestrates annual toy drives for underprivileged youth during the holidays, as well food drives which were particularly helpful during the pandemic. When someone in the community dies, the Atlas team is quick to provide support for their family. 

“When it comes to donating, we’re here to serve our local community, and we use our skateboarding community to help the general community also,” said Motzek. 

Go to shop.atlasskateboarding.com to learn more about Atlas. The store is at 209 Second Ave., in San Mateo.