Zion Climbing and Event Center, one of the featured businesses on season four of \u201cSmall Business Revolution,\u201d closed its doors this spring in response to COVID-19 concerns and a decline in business upon students\u2019 return to their homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCOVID was the initial reason as far as discontinuing back in March, and because of the nature of climbing and having your hands over everything,\u201d Sean Hudkins, former owner and program director of Zion, said. \u201cWe lost a lot of volunteers when Harding closed, and it really wasn\u2019t practical.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Following the gym\u2019s closing, Daniel Ockay, a friend of Hudkins and former advisor at Zion, chose to step in to help reopen Zion\u2019s doors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve worked with Zion since 2005, and it\u2019s something I have always been passionate about,\u201d Ockay said. \u201cI talked with Sean \u2026 at the beginning of the semester just to see where things were at, and it ended up being something I thought was worth putting the time and effort into.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even though Zion\u2019s ownership is changing, Hudkins remains Zion\u2019s executive director. Hudkins said he believes Zion\u2019s mission and goal will remain intact throughout the reopening process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are keeping the core values of safety and relationship building but with new eyes and new energy,\u201d Hudkins said. \u201cOur desire is to still have a place where people can hangout and feel like they belong under the umbrella of rock climbing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ockay said he is learning from some of Zion\u2019s past mistakes in order to bring in new faces and customers to the rock climbing gym.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cZion has struggled with being accessible to new climbers in the past, and that\u2019s something we are hoping to change up,\u201d Ockay said. \u201cWe want to make it so there are fewer reasons to not come in here, and that there\u2019s less of a distinction between volunteers and customers who come in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Several Harding students have volunteered their time to help Zion reopen and feel like it will be beneficial for students in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cZion is a great atmosphere for all students whether you want to climb or not, and it\u2019s honestly one of my favorite atmospheres in Searcy,\u201d junior Sam Chester said. \u201cWe have space where you can do homework and chill, listen to music and vibe, or throw on some shoes and give climbing a shot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zion is open seven days a week from noon to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday and 6-11 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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