(September 12, 2007)

The Mariposa School of Skating’s 18th annual charity gala was held Thursday August 9, 2007 at the Barrie Molson Centre in Barrie, Ont.

Organizers reached the million-dollar milestone with this year’s event. The money raised since the first gala in 1990 has been used for different charitable projects in the Barrie-Huronia area. Proceeds from this year’s gala went to the Royal Victoria Hospital Simcoe-Muskoka Regional Cancer Centre Rotary House and was dedicated to the memory of Brian Orser’s mother, Joanne.

The 2007 gala included many skaters that currently train at Mariposa in Barrie, including 2007 Canadian champion Jeff Buttle, 2007 Canadian silver medallist Chris Mabee, and pair team Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay. Alumni from Mariposa School of Skating also participated in this year’s gala including Olympic and world silver medallist Brian Orser, and six-time Canadian champion Jennifer Robinson.

The 2007 national bronze medallist synchronized skating team, black ice, also performed, in addition to 2007 world bronze medallist from Korea Yu-Na Kim and rising international skater, Turkish champion, Tugba Karademir.

Violetta Afansieva and Peter Dack, a pair team who use hula hoops in their routine and won the World Extreme Championships, were a real hit along with the Ice Men synchronized skating team.

Next year’s gala will be held Thursday, August 7, 2008.

A few images from this year’s gala:

Chris Mabee		Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay		Jeff Buttle
Jennifer Robinson		Violetta Afansieva and Peter Dack		Joanna Lenko and Mitchell Islam

black ice		Ice Men