By Lori Ward, site director, Figure Skating in Detroit
Two years ago, I received a call from a woman representing the world renown National Geographic team wanting to learn more about Figure Skating in Detroit (FSD). She had been following our story and was interested in meeting with me and interviewing our coaching staff of women for a possible docuseries. I was very intrigued.
National Geographic is award winning with an impeccable history of bringing stories of incredible people and places to the world. They allow you to explore and experience through narrative, photography, and film the most amazing and often mind-blowing things. To be interested in speaking with our organization was quite the honor.
Our initial meeting was a discussion regarding Nat Geo’s plan to interview and select women from all over the world who were impacting women and girls. Our organization was built on that; impact.
Figure Skating in Detroit is the first youth development chapter organization in the country to combine the power of education with the grace and discipline of figure skating for inner city girls of color with deep, innovative year-round programs that ignite a process of self-discovery and personal transformation. Our vision is for every girl, regardless of socio-economic background, to acquire the academic, social, and leadership skills to achieve her dreams. Inner strength is the most vital quality our program activates in our students through an exciting process of self-discovery. As a result of our programming, our students experience physical, emotional, and intellectual growth in a supportive girls-only environment. Impact is what we do!
After interviewing our skating coaches and girls of FSD and taking a closer look in person at our I Can Excel after school and Summer Dreams programming, we received the incredible news that we would be selected to be a part of the docuseries! Our skating coach, Kameryn, rose to the top and would now join five other women from all over the world to have their stories told of amazing impact they have achieved touching the lives of countless number of young girls. The docuseries aired April 26 with the FSD segment, “Ice Breakers”, leading the way.
The entire world can now learn more about Figure Skating in Detroit and how we impact our girls. Coach Kameryn featured in the docuseries put it beautifully when she said, “making an impact means paying it forward. I hope I’m giving them something that they can give to somebody else.”
Gal Gadot replied, “Kameryn is a real woman of wonder”!
Support from The Children’s Foundation is also impact on another level! Now in our fifth year, we have provided so many amazing opportunities for our girls to help promote healthy mind, body and soul. With grant support from The Children’s Foundation, we enhanced our healthy lifestyle initiative for our girls introducing ways to stay fit and work out as a family during the pandemic, provided healthy food items and healthy snack demonstrations, improved our gardening project to promote growing healthy fruits and vegetables, secured ice time and skating equipment, and provided more social emotional support than ever through girls leadership and self-esteem workshops as our girls adjust to their new norms.
Gratitude is a guiding principle in life now more than ever before. I am extremely grateful to The Children’s Foundation for continued support and a beautiful partnership where impact is the goal!
You can watch Figure Skating in Detroit’s segment of IMPACT by clicking here.
