Charity skating gala in Danbury CT, Oct 4, 2003 | Golden Skate

Charity skating gala in Danbury CT, Oct 4, 2003

Jaana

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Country
Finland
(This is a copy of my earlier post, which I was not able to bump up from the archive. As more skating fans have come from vacations back, maybe there are those who have not heard about this charity show?)

Got the original info from FSU, but link to their thread does not work any more. The following link works...

Details: http://www.cmmskating.com

Exerpts:

>Olympic Champion, Viktor Petrenko will host an all-star cast of Olympic Figure Skaters in a charity skating gala, VIKTORY FOR KIDS>

>VIKTORY FOR KIDS will be held at the Danbury Ice Arena in Danbury, CT on Saturday, October 4 at 7 p.m and will feature skating’s brightest stars including; Olympic Champion Brian Boitano, Olympic Pairs Champions Oksana Kazakova & Artur Dmitriev, two-time Olympic Pairs Champion Ekaterina Gordeeva, Olympic Champion Illia Kulik, Olympic Silver Medalist Evgeni Plushenko, Olympic Bronze Medalist Timothy Goebel, World Silver Medalist Elena Sokolova, Ukrainian National Ice Dance Champions Elena Grushina & Ruslan Goncharov and the Acrobatic team of Vladimir Besedin & Oleskiy Polischuk. >

>VIKTORY FOR KIDS will also feature a VIP fundraising reception with a celebrity auction at the Colorado Brewery and Steakhouse in Danbury. All proceeds from the event will benefit the Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund (CCRF), an award winning charity that has delivered over $50 million in medical technology and humanitarian aid to children’s hospitals and orphanages in Ukraine.

Tickets will go on sale beginning August 1st at the Danbury Ice Arena 203-794-1704. >

Marjaana
 
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Joined
Jul 11, 2003
It's nice to see all these Pro skaters getting gigs. In the case of this charity gala, are they donating their talents to the cause or are they getting more than expenses?

Joe
 

Jaana

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Country
Finland
Joesitz said:
It's nice to see all these Pro skaters getting gigs. In the case of this charity gala, are they donating their talents to the cause or are they getting more than expenses?

Joe

I have no idea, but generally speaking it is always mentioned that skaters donate their talents and time for a good cause. Good for them!!!

Marjaana

P.S. What does "getting gigs" mean, please? BTW, in this charity gala there are about as many eligible skaters as pros.
 
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berthes ghost

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 30, 2003
gigs are jobs.

It's used mostly by musicians. A job playing one night in a club for example, is a gig.
 

Jaana

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Country
Finland
Thanks for the explanation! One always learns new words and expressions, LOL.

Marjaana
 

windspirit

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Well, I won't be going after all. The tickets are quite pricey. The cheapest ones are for $100... I'm just hoping they're going to sell them all.
 

Ptichka

Forum translator
Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
Joesitz said:
It's nice to see all these Pro skaters getting gigs. In the case of this charity gala, are they donating their talents to the cause or are they getting more than expenses?
Joe,

This is more than just a "gig". Victor has made helping Chernobyl kids his own personal mission. He has donated a lot of time and money to this cause.

Also, note please that a disproportionate number of participants come from the former USSR. I can tell you for a fact that for all of them Chernobyl kids is a much more close and intimate problem than a generic charity (please do not construe this as anything against other charities or people who support them). When looking at those kids, we all (by "we" I mean former USSR residents) can only say "There but for the grace of G-d". Any one of us could have been a victim of such criminal negligence on the part of the governement and the system.

17 long years have passed since that reactor exploded. Those born that year are almost adult now. And yet the problem persists, with thousands of babies born every year at incredibly high risk of cancer, birth defects, and other radiation related deseases.

Victor does not simply help existing charity. He truly breathed new life into it (he is an honorary board member of CCRF). Besides raising money, it has gone a long way toward raising people's awareness of the problem that many consider... well... last century's news. I mean, who wants to help children who are simply at risk of cancer when we do have millions of starving children in Africa!

There are many reasons why skaters participate in charity events, and not all of them are noble. In addition, I believe an average Russian tends to be far more cynical about charity and such than an average American. However, I am certain that for most Russian and Ukranian skaters participating in this event it is far more than just a "gig".

OK, I'll get off my soapbox now. Sorry for such a rant -- I really did not mean it to become one. :eek:
 
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lulu

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 4, 2003
OK, I'll get off my soapbox now. Sorry for such a rant -- I really did not mean it to become one.

Don't worry! I understood what you meant. I think that it was great all of these skaters are performing for such a worthy cause.

I remember reading BOI about how much Victor gives to the Chernobyl charities.

Sounds like a great show.

Too bad it won't be televised.:mad:
 

Gardenkitty

Rinkside
Joined
Jul 29, 2003
Here is a link to an article about a young photographer who was sponsored by CCRF to travel to the Ukraine in an effort to promote awareness of the overwhelming medical issues that the region is still dealing with.

It is incredibly touching and it is easy to see why many skaters, both Russian and American, want to do what they can to help with this worthy cause. Viktor has worked with this charity for a number of years and his commitment is very impressive.

http://www.artukraine.com/photoart/ukrforg.htm
 

Brandenburg

Rinkside
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Yet more...

Just to make great cast of skaters even better, Oleg has confirmed that he and Angelika will be skating in Danbury next weekend. It's just gettin' better...
 

lulu

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 4, 2003
Just to make great cast of skaters even better, Oleg has confirmed that he and Angelika will be skating in Danbury next weekend. It's just gettin' better

Sound like such a great show!!!

I so wish I could go.:cry:

Well hopefully (hint hint) there will be many wonderful reviews on the net to read from people who got to go!
 
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