“Punks for the Park” music festival to raise money for skatepark this weekend in Franklin 

Written by Stacy Wright-Crawford

When Matt Jackson moved here in 2017 he noticed that Franklin seemed to be decaying with the closure of the Labor and Delivery Unit at our local hospital and not long after, the closure of the bowling alley and then the skating rink. As a real estate agent, Jackson is invested in the growth of this town. He doesn’t skate; he doesn’t have kids but “it’s a shame to see the town stagnating.” He sees so much potential in the skate park for the youth of Franklin; “more potential than just skater kids.” It is with his passion, among many others passion that we hope to have a place for the youth of Franklin to hang out. 

The hardest part of his fundraising journey has been maintaining his full-time real estate job for Keller Williams. But the best part of the journey is that everyone in town has been supportive. Jackson is so proud of the community for coming together in this. When Jimbo Ledford, the owner of Altered Frequencies, was asked to host a fundraising event, he accepted readily. He too sees a vision for the youth of Franklin, thus, “Punks for the Park was born.” 

On July 2 at 4 pm the doors open at Altered Frequencies for an event designed to build community and raise funds for a new skate park, all while having a good time. All proceeds from the music festival will go to the skatepark. Tim Shaw, who has been an integral part of ensuring Franklin’s skate park makes it off the paper of its architectural design and a reality for the community,  says they have already accrued $3,000 dollars in donations and $3,000 in goods and services for the live auction that will be held during the fundraiser, bringing the volunteers hosting the event to already raising over half of the $10,000 dollar goal they had set! The funds raised from the event will be combined with funds from both the town of Franklin and the Macon County Board of Commissioners to construct Franklin’s new skatepark in town. 

Altered Frequencies is located in downtown Franklin at 110 Carolina Mountain Drive. The Punks for the Park event will feature family fun for everyone like a bounce house, kids games and activities, and nine bands performing on stage from 4 p.m. until 12:30 am with a break at 7 pm for a live auction. Tickets for entry are $13 with all proceeds going to the skatepark. For more details, visit the event Facebook Page here.