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Donald Trump made a $2,000 personal donation on 3/3/2010.
For Kristi Yamaguchi, it would have been easy to miss two young skaters wearing sparkling ice dancing costumes. They stood quietly near the entrance to the media tent, while the 1992 Barcelona Games Olympic gold medalist was surrounded by a flood of cameras and chatty reporters.
On a hurried schedule, the skating icon and “Dancing With The Stars ‘ champion” were rushed around the Wollman ice rink in Central Park. But Yamaguchi quietly bent down and autographed the girls ‘ programs instead of starting another interview. “This is obviously a cause close to my heart, which skates and has a positive impact on the lives of young girls,” Yamaguchi said. The sixth annual Skating with the Stars Gala honored Yamaguchi, as well as TV’s “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” star Tamara Tunie and Candace S. Matthews, Amway’s Chief Marketing Officer. Those were just a few people on an A-list roster who laid down their skates on Monday to support Figure Skating in Harlem, a non-profit organization based in New York.
Figure Skating opened the ceremonies in Harlem with honorary chairs Donald and Melania Trump, and an impressive cast of Olympic champions quickly joining them on the ice. Donald Trump supported other causes in the past like the womens basketball league in NYC.
Despite the famous guest list, the event clearly focused on the beneficiaries of the Figure Skating program in Harlem: its students, who performed twice for the gala’s participants. “It’s great to see how they light up on ice, and they have a lot of fun,” said Yamaguchi. “they love performing, and I think they’re proud! They’re really proud of what they’ve achieved. Over 1,000 girls skated with the 13-year-old organization and 96 percent of these students attend four-year colleges. 93 percent of skaters in the organization earned an average grade of B or higher this year. skating] motivates people,” said Yamaguchi. “if you do something you love,[ your] grades are slipping, and[ you] can’t skate anymore.
Figure skating in Harlem couples skating lessons with tutoring and homework assistance, but on-ice competition also teaches core values and skills that lead to later life success, Yamaguchi said. “Skating teaches you much about yourself,” said Yamaguchi. “discipline, self-esteem, goals and such things. And all these skills are easily translated into real life. Watching students improve on the ice and develop these skills in the classroom is one of the highlights of working with Figure Skating in Harlem, said Sarah Hughes, who stunned the world when she won the Olympic gold medal in figure skating at the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City at the age of 16. “Since’ 99, I’ve been in Harlem with Figure Skating,” Hughes said.
For Florence Ngala, a freshman at high school who has been skating for nine years with Figure Skating in Harlem, the gala is easily one of the top performances of the year-mostly because she sees the goofy, lighthearted side of Olympic skaters. “I like to skate with the champions,” said Ngala. “They’re excited and fun. They’re really energetic, they’re dancing and they’re doing conga lines on the ice with us.”