News
April 6, 2008
SCOB gives back through Ice Chips Show of Champions
The skaters and families of The Skating Club of Boston presented the 96th annual Ice Chips Show of Champions at Harvard's Bright Arena, performing three sold-out shows on April 5th and 6th. Headlined by 4-time World Champion Kurt Browning, current US Bronze Medallist Stephen Carriere, and former Olympian and current Harvard freshman Emily Hughes, this longest continuously-occurring ice carnival featured a cast of hundreds of skaters ranging from learn-to-skate beginners to regional up-and-coming champions.
"Most of the time in figure skating the skater is focused on what the judges want," said Ice Chips artistic director and former Olympian Sheryl Franks. "In this show we celebrate the joy of skating and try to share that with our families and the community."
Indeed, the community has become the real focus of Ice Chips. The SCOB Junior Activities Committee, made up of active young skaters in the club, votes to select a group of local organizations that will benefit from the proceeds of Ice Chips. This year's beneficiaries include Children's Hospital Boston - one of the nations top pediatric hospitals - and Project Bridge for the Homeless - a Harvard School of Dental Medicine program that offers much needed dental care to the homeless.
In addition, The Skating Club of Boston donates a large block of tickets to the Girls Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts. The Girl Scouts explored winter sports and figure skating during National Skating Week in January. At the show they got a peek into the backstage production and completed merit badges, then were treated to an exclusive autograph session with Browning, Hughes and Carriere.
"I am very honored to participate in this event," said 4-time World Champion Kurt Browning, who also is credited with successfully landing the first quadruple jump in international competition. "Where I come from we don't have this kind of rich history behind our skating clubs. The Skating Club of Boston has been the home to many of my personal idols. I am really glad to be part of this."
"It's always gratifying to see this show come together," says longtime Ice Chips co-chair Warren Naphtal who, together with Dr. Jarshen Lin, oversees the show. "We have over 200 parent volunteers working for months on costumes, publicity, sets, and logistics. It says a lot about the importance and momentum of Ice Chips, both in the figure skating community and to the Boston area."
For more information on Ice Chips Show of Champions, visit www.scboston.org.
