Building Community, One Saturday at a Time (the inspo behind Skybound)

Before Skybound, Evan and I lived in Austin, TX from 2020–2022, and moved to Malden in 2023 to be closer to Evan’s family.

In Austin, we started with no community. And when we moved again, it felt like we were back at square one. Luckily, we had a few wonderful friends (shoutout to you, Cat!) who made the transition easier—but outside of that, something was still missing. We craved connection. That "third space"—the place between home and work where you just belong—didn’t exist for us yet.

So, in 2023, we started ART BLOCK: a sketching and writing group that met every Saturday morning at our local coffee shop, More Than Coffee (RIP, iykyk). Slowly, we built our own third space. Seeing familiar faces each week brought a sense of ease and belonging; connection that didn’t require scheduling or planning, just showing up.

The lessons we learned from that experience continue to shape how we build community here at Skybound. We want you to feel that same sense of connection and support—to feel seen, remembered, and part of something real.

———-

That's why we intentionally pace our sessions in a way that we get to know each other while still training intensely.

Over the past year at Skybound, I've seen people:

• Collaborate on Malden farmer's markets and community events

• Motivate each other out loud and inspire others of different fitness levels

• Share a laugh when I know people are going through tough times

I hope you personally have experienced some of that magic—at 1-3x a week, sometimes you see each other more than your friends and family!

During your hardest times this year, this is when community matters most: to keep you grounded in action vs inaction. To remind you that, community is an active word, not a passive one, and that when you put out good energy, the community rewards it back to you tenfold.

—Evan & Erica