Ice-skating Scouts plan a day at the rink
Gold Award project melds scouting and skating
BY ERIN O. STATTEL Staff Writer
As the days grow shorter and Old Man Winter settles in, many people scale back their usual physical activities, but two Girl Scouts are helping to promote a favorite winter sport.

PHOTOS BY CHRIS KELLY staff Above: Youngsters and novice skaters take the ice Jan. 3 at the Gold Coast Ice Arena in Wall for a National Skating Day event hosted by local Girl Scouts Faryn Pearl and Lauren Lechner as part of their Girl Scout Gold Award project. Below: A large crowd turned out for the day of free ice skating lessons and informational seminars.

Faryn Pearl, a junior at Holmdel High School, has been a Girl Scout ever since she was in kindergarten. She has also been ice-skating since the age of 3.

"She has done a number of things with the Girl Scouts," said her mother, Anne. "She has held bingo in nursing homes, done art projects, served as a moderator in a conflict resolution course for people with different views, and she has done lots of volunteer work over the years, including teaching ice-skating to autistic children from Camp Robin in Old Bridge."

Faryn Pearl's true passion is iceskating, the 16-year-old said.

"I love the feeling of being on the ice," she said. "I have become so attached to that feeling that now I feel like I can't live without it."

Faryn is not the only Girl Scout who loves the ice.

Lauren Lechner, 16, of Tinton Falls also loves ice-skating and has been skating since the age of 5.

The two paired skates to work on their Girl Scout Gold Award and hosted a day of free ice-skating at their local ice rink.

As a founding member of the Holmdel High School Skating Club, Faryn was a part of the club's second year of competition, in which club members earned first place in the public school division, her mother explained.

Faryn's concentration has been freestyle skating and artistic figure skating, which is a mix between theater and ice skating, she said.

"I have been to the national showcase three times now and I just love it," she said. "There is an adrenaline rush in competing, but it is great to hang out with my friends at the rink and go out to dinner after we skate."

CHRIS KELLY staff Faryn Pearl gives directions to a group of youths who attended the National Skating Day events, which were aimed at promoting interest in the sport of ice skating.

Lauren, a junior at Monmouth Regional High School, focuses on freestyle competitions and represents her school at local and regional competitions.

Naturally, the idea for this year's Girl Scout Gold Award project would focus on ice-skating.

"I know Faryn from skating, and she is a Girl Scout as well," Lauren explained. "So, we decided to work together on this project."

Lauren explained that the committee that oversees the Gold Award projects required the girls to each have her own set of responsibilities.

"I was responsible for getting volunteers and setting up the ice time," Lauren said. "Faryn took care of the advertising and the publicity in preparation for the day."

Involved with the Girl Scouts since the age of 5, Faryn said she still enjoys the camaraderie that comes with participating in community service with other girls her age.

"I enjoy working with the community and the great friends I have made," she said. "I also enjoy all the various projects we do throughout the area."

Through her participation in local skating clubs and teams, Faryn met a kindred spirit in Lauren, who has been involved with the Girl Scouts since she was in the first grade.

The two organized the free National Skating Day held Jan. 3 at the Gold Coast Arena in Wall for their Girl Scout Gold Award project.

"It was a lot of hard work, but we really had fun organizing everything," Lauren said. "Our work really paid off because the turnout was great."

She estimated that more than 400 people came out to the rink for ice-skating lessons.

"We decided together that we wanted to combine the two and promote both ice- skating and the Girl Scouts," Faryn explained. "We wanted to let other people find out why both activities are so great. Ice-skating promotes a healthy lifestyle, and Girl Scouts promote doing the right thing and helping both friends and people in need."

According to the Girl Scouts of the USA Web site, the Gold Award is the highest award that a Girl Scout between the ages of 14 and 18 can achieve.

The site describes the project associated with earning the award as "The culmination of all the work a girl puts into 'going for the gold.' It is something that a girl can be passionate about — in thought, deed and action."

"We presented our ideas to a committee made up of senior Girl Scout leaders, and it was accepted," Faryn explained. "Then we got to work organizing the day itself and approached volunteers, promoted the day within the community, and advertised it on shirts and fliers and local newspapers."

The two Scouts even managed to get recognition for their event from the U.S. Figure SkatingAssociation.

"We registered with the association, and so now our event is nationally recognized as a part of National Skating Month," she said.

Included in the Scouts' efforts were information sessions about ice-skating and several free ice-skating sessions during the day, including free lessons and practice time.

Seminars were available for participants to learn about the different aspects of ice-skating.

The sessions included "A Parents' Guide to Skating," hosted by arena coach Adriana Ryan; a fitness and nutrition session; an equipment, safety and etiquette session, and a ballet and stretching session.

"Overall, I think the whole day was great," Lauren said. "A lot of people came and took lessons. People even signed up for additional lessons at the rink."

Information about hockey and synchronized skating was available at a table hosted by the Junior Titans Hockey Club, the American Eagles Monmouth Youth Hockey Association and the Ice-lantics Synchronized Skating Team.

"There were lots of children that came to the rink for lessons," Lauren said. "That was great because it meant more people were finding out about ice-skating and how much fun it is. It was really crowded in the rink, but that is a good thing."

Finding a location for the event proved simple, Faryn said.

"We approached the owners of the Wall Sports Arena where I skate and they said that they had always wanted to do a skating day," she explained. "In the middle of the planning, the arena changed ownership and now it is called the Gold Coast Arena, and the new owners said they would still do it. We were surprised at how willing everyone was to participate in this."

Some 150 people registered, but they were expecting more to participate in the event, for which the arena donated ice time.

"This is something that is a win-win," she said. "It helps everyone: it is good for the business at the ice rink and it is good for people to come out and learn about ice-skating."

"They donated two hours of free skating," she said. "That is really very generous, considering ice time is around $400 an hour."

Anne Pearl said the girls' work enabled those who attended to enjoy a day of learning about the physical benefits of ice-skating.

"I am proud of Faryn, but I know that it is a lot of work," she said. "Both she and Lauren managed to pull this project off and they brought ice-skating to the community, making it affordable for a day."

According to Lauren, the girls have to fulfill 65 hours on the project and are currently near completion.

"As soon as we had approval for the project, we got to work," she said. "We have almost 20 hours to go, and we still have to send out thank-you notes to volunteers and present a final report, as well as tie up some loose ends. Those 20 hours will fly by."

The Scouts said they hope the successful day can continue for years to come.

"It was small last year, so this year was a major success and next year we want to do the same," Lauren said. "It was a great event, and I want to see it be successful again next year."

To learn more about National Skating Month, visit www.usfigureskating.org.