The Canora Skating Club presented its annual carnival with the “lucky theme of Las Vegas” on March 17 at the Canora Civic Centre.
About 150 people of all ages were in attendance, said Candace Doogan, one of the organizers.
Skaters who performed in groups were: Paisley Wolkowski, Heidi Parmley, Isabelle Chabun, Rhianna Stefanyshyn, Madison Dutchak and Marah Collingridge (Poker Face, Let’s Go To Las Vegas); Erika Sweeney, Jania Predinchuk and Callie Sznerch (Leaving Las Vegas, Rich Girl); Rori Love, Chloe Doogan, Sam Collingridge, Reid Kitchen and Emmett Demchuk (Vegas Golden Knights theme, The Gambler) and Drew Kitchen, Ethan Chabun, Talia Collingridge, Mya Dutchak, Kaley Swetleshnoff, and Travis Brown (Viva Las Vegas, If I Had $1,000,000.)
Duet performers were: Hayden Parmley and Paisley Wolkowski (Queen of Hearts), Reegan Stefanyshyn and Rhianna Stefanyshyn (Money), Katherine Hauber and Irena Yannoulis (Vegas Girl and Sin City) and Courtney Sheptak and Heidi Parmley (Pretty Vegas.)
Solo skates were performed by: Maranda Donovan (Ace of Hearts), Hayden Parmley (Vegas Baby), Kaylie Donovan (Money, Money, Money) and Mya Wolos (House of Cards, Waking up in Vegas.)
The guest skater was Sydney Kotzer of Yorkton, the granddaughter of Leonard and Winnie Kopelchuk of Canora.
“She did two numbers,” said Doogan, “and joined in the Grande Finale with the entire Club.” Costumes for the carnival included an Elvis, a Michael Jackson, a cowboy, the Junior Showgirls, and the Vegas Golden Knights hockey team.
Doogan said the event would not have been possible without the efforts of Leona Kitchen, instructor, “who spends countless hours teaching Canora and area youth to learn to skate whether it be in figure skating or hockey. She definitely is a pillar in our community and always wears a smile. The kids adore her.”
Miranda Donovan, Kaylie Donovan, Mya Wolos, Hayden Parmley, Courtney Sheptak and Reegan Stefanyshyn were program assistants.
Doogan said Carmen Wolkowski, another program organizer, played an important role in the success of the carnival.
“She put in a lot of time and effort collecting costumes and the beautiful dresses from her friends in the community,” said Doogan. “The club does not own much for costumes so we as a group try to make it as cost-efficient as possible for our skaters and their families. The connections that Carmen has with dance groups and others is a huge benefit to our club.”
Flowers were available at the carnival, for those in attendance to buy as gifts “for their special skaters.”
Doogan acknowledged all the skaters for putting on a wonderful show and the volunteers for putting the carnival together.
She said the club is looking for new members for the 2019/2020 season.
“It is very economical, we don’t do a lot of fundraising and the carnival is only one of the highlights. As a group, we plan to expand on our numbers and perhaps introduce some new ideas for next year. Every child should have the opportunity to learn how to skate, and the club accepts children as young as three years of age.”
“Looking forward to next season already,” she concluded.
