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Show IFF WTYI F I SECTION 2mhtHcratft SATURDAY, JULY 14, EDITOR Elyssa Andrus 2007 eandrushefaldextra.com 344-255- LaRae Free Kerr Easy Does It r Nrl GENEROUS HISTORIANS Lrir Kathleen Mcgrory MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS ri IAMI At first glance, Ulises Frallicciardi 1 V U seems more punk rock than pious. His messy black hair peeks out from beneath a trendy trucker cap. He wears black canvas sneakers with pink and white skulls near the toe. "V L. l If statement many times. Evidence indicates it's truth. People I've never met and hardly corresponded with have sent files with generations of documented family members. Others have forwarded copies of newspaper articles, naturalization papers, marriage certificates and other documents. I've received pictures and histories, family Bible records and analyses. Thank you to all who have helped me in any way. And thanks to all who have ever helped any other family historian in any way as well. Some of these generous y Sound unique? It isn't. More than 200 skate ministries have popped up across the globe, including Sk8 4 God in California, King of Kings Skate Ministry in Arizona, and Saved Skaters irr upstate New York. The movement has spurred an industry of specialty Christian skateboards and inspired a flurry of Web sites and YouTube videos. "In the past, you could expect people to attend services in a church setting," said David Kling, a professor of religion at the University of Miami. "Now if you want to reach people, you have to seek them out in their own particular culture." The warehouse site at 6290 NW 27th Way isn't glamorous. There is no air conditioning; a series of industrial-strength fans carries air through the building. But punk rock blasts from the speakers and the snack bar is always stocked with pizza and candy. There's also a tables. . healthy crowd around the The skaters study the Bible at 7 p.m. on Tuesdays and hear Saturday-mornin- g sermons from Frallicciardi. In the far corner of the skate park, more than 100 folding chairs are lined up in front of an old wooden lectern. The paperback Bibles are stored in huge Tupperware bins. When it's time for the Bible study to start, scores of and a few girls skate over and file teenage boys into the rows. Most leave their helmets on. They stow their boards underneath the seats and open their Bibles. A couple of moms and dads join in, too. r i g people on VJ earth." I've heard that fifth-grade- But several times each week, Frallicciardi, 32, ministers the Gospel to hundreds of Tony Hawk wannabes at Ramp 48, a Christian skateboard emporium that's part of Calvary Chapel in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., bristling with ramps, stairs, half pipes and grind rails. "Basically, we're trying to spread the word of God by reaching out to skaters," Frallicciardi said on a recent busy night. "We're bringing the Bible to them." ping-pon- enealogists are the most m generous On a recent Tuesday, Ramp 48 manager Joe Ferraro read a verse from the book of James: What good is it if a man claims to have faith, but has no deeds to express that faith? "You guys need to go out there and do the deeds, you know?" said Ferraro, who was wearing a blue soccer jersey and jeans. "You have to serve the Lord. That's what's important, guys." Afterward, the skaters returned to their boards. "This is a lot better than regular Bible school," said r Matt Palumbo, a at Ramblewood Elementary in Coral Springs, Fla. "It's more fun. The atmosphere is cool." . . The teens do more than skate and study. Sometimes, and even overseas to they travel around the state help build new ministries. The trips, like most day4o-daoperations, are subsidized by Calvary Chapel. (The skaters pay a small fee, too, although Tuesday night Bible study and Saturday morning lessons are free.) "This is the perfect place for me," said Andrew Wiley, 18, who recently moved to Fort Lauderdale from California. "I can come to learn about the Bible and use my talents to glorify the Lord." Beyond Ramp 48, local skaters can choose between a home study offered at Frallicciardi's Pompano Beach, Fla., home and a fledgling skate ministry at Miami Youth for Christ, at 9350 SW 79 Ave., Miami All three are affiliated with Christian Skaters www.christianskaters. com the organization Frallicciardi founded with his wife. Similar ministries are springing up across the country, said Richard Flory, editor of Gen X Religion and a research associate at the University of Southern California The skaters aren't alone. Christians are turning to moto-cros- s even tattooing and punk rock to and surfing v spre'ad their faith. Helping to fuel the" hype is the youngest Baldwin brother, Stephen, who recently produced and directed a pair of Christian skate and motocross videos. "A lot of it is about being culturally relevant," Flory said. "Churches are trying to change with the times. ' They're trying to make being Christian cooL" Their efforts, however, have drawn some criticism. Some conservative groups believe the Gospel should be ministered in a traditional fashion, Flory said. Other Christian groups accuse extreme sport ministries of being too consumer-driveFor Frallicciardi, though, it's about more than just . skateboarding. Recently, Frallicciardi and Ferraro attended a funeral for a young skater's mother. She had been found dead in a trash bin, apparently of a heroin overdose. "We don't force religion down anybody's throats," Frallicciardi said. "If they're ready to let the Lord in, great. If they just want someone to hold their hand or watch them skate, that's great, too." ' genealogists have taken their largesse another step and organized Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness (RAOGK): www.raogk.org. Researchers in all of the United States and many countries have volunteered to do at least one act of free research per month. This means they do not charge for their time, but, of course, the person making the request must pay for expenses and supplies. Genealogists are generous. On the other hand, I also have received my own family group sheet, typed on my electronic typewriter 30 years ago, reflecting years of hard research, with my name carefully removed and someone else's put in its place. That is plagiarism, pure and simple. If someone copies an article from a magazine and submits it to his teacher as his, as a few of my college students did, it is clearly plagiarism. If someone photocopies a copyrighted song rather than paying for a copy, it an act of plagiarism. Plagiarism is the taking of words, ideas, art, music, movies and research created by someone else and labeling it your own. It is illegal, a crime and easy to prevent, especially in is genealogy. U ru iJ Cm ! The solution is documentation. To document an idea or an item of research, simply add footnotes or endnotes or source notes as done in high school research papers giving the information necessary to locate this material a second time. Since all the data we genealogists locate is not always fully documented when we find it, we may not be able to fully source it. But we should give all the source information we can. that By not plagiarizing is, by fully documenting genealogists receive unexpected benefits. Including sources is the same as saying thank you to the researcher you are quoting or to the county clerk who created the original record in the first t LJLJ Photos by RICARDO LOPEZMiami Herald (center) teaches a Bible study class to a group of kids and parents at Ramp 48 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on June 19. Frallicciardi ministers the Gospel to hundreds of Tony Hawk wannabes at Ramp 48. Ulises Frallicciardi, 32, skater rolls down a ramp next to a cross at Ramp 48 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on June 12. Ramp 48 is a A skating ministry that reaches out to skaters to spread the word of God. See -- s ffl f)s r IrtrilM I I tT r . f . t GRACE? WHAT'S THAT, . . , ) I I K SO NO, NOT AT YOU'RE SAYING BOUNDLESS . - ( ALUjI 17 THIS REFERS TO THE GRACE OF' THE UNMERITED FAVOR THAT HE 'FREELY EXTENDS TO EVERY PERSON ON EARTH! GOD. I "t -- . . . f frs1!r'r TO I h LOVE THAT GOD'S IS AVAILABLE EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE, AND FOR FREE?jV ANYTIME, fj I j ATI " fNJLy YE- S-j EXACTLY! 2--? ! . I S'i .I Hi "lAjJ!,-!VJjroll'g55C?- t" HMM, BUT THAT ALMOST TOO br TO B2 REGARDLESS OF WHO YOU ARE OR WHAT YOU'VE DONE! MERCY AND FORGIVENESS ARE YOURS FOR THE ASKING -J- UST BECAUSE GOD LOVES US SO MUCH! (SOUNDS 600D e KERR, BE TRUE- iTvrrr-- " -I THAT'S WHY IT'S CALLED ) V'Htl b00P jf NEUII s , ?v4 mtMMi f"" l COUNTER... A6AINI |