Kensington ice skating program offers safe, affordable opportunity for kids

KENSINGTON - A youth program in Kensington is working to get young people off the street and on the ice, by making a popular winter sport more accessible to everyone.

Scanlon Figure Skating is giving kids a safe and affordable option to hit the rink. Skaters there are more than friends – they’ve become family.

"Honestly, if I didn’t have this sport, I have no idea where I’d be today," skating coach Channely Valverde said.

Valverde learned to skate at the Scanlon Rec Center when she was just 6-years old. Now she teaches other inner-city kids, just like her. "The city providing the opportunity to have free ice time is a blessing, because if you just get your own skates, and it’s like, and you’re here and we’re here, then we’re going to help you," Valverde.

It’s part of a program called Learn to Skate and, for just $5.00, kids get ice time with coaches like Channely.

"Kids across the city don’t get on the ice a lot, especially kids of color, so to get them involved in skating, whether it’s through hockey or figure skating, or just learning to skate, it’s a big deal," Deputy Commissioner of Parks and Rec, Bill Salvatore, said.

Learn to Skate Coordinator, Sultana Muhammad, commented, "Allows the children to have something constructive to do to stay off the street, stay busy, get off the computers, off the phones and use their bodies."

"I think it’s awesome and I think it’s a great way to just skate. The teachers are really helpful. Michelle is awesome," skater Litzy Turtios said.

Michelle Shaw runs the program at Scanlon and says the low-cost sessions truly make a difference in the lives of so many parents who say they could never afford these lessons without the city’s help.

"During the pandemic, we went to other rinks. It was like $16.00 an hour. So, to pay $5.00 for a class, for a 45-minute class, half hour class, is great!" parent Carol Neisser exclaimed.

"It’s more than just a skating program. It’s more like family. A community that we’ve built together," Michelle Shaw stated.

The Skate-to-Learn program extends to all five city rinks. Anyone who is interested in the skate program at Scanlon can get information at the website, here, or in any of the other rinks in the city, that information is on the city’s website, here.