arts&life

skate

Opportunity

On Ice

SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

A

lissandra Aronow
became fascinated
with competitive skat-
ing while watching her moth-
er, Marjorie Fisher, an adult
ice-skating student, realize a
lifelong goal.
As a 4-year-old looking on
from the sidelines, Aronow
could hardly wait to try the
sport and soon was given pink
plastic skates.
Although drawn to lots of
athletic activities, Aronow
ranked skating as her favorite.
She loved the artistry and the
ability to propel herself in dif-
ferent ways by taking to the
rinks.
With a stick-to-it attitude
and lessons at the Arctic Edge
of Canton, Aronow made
notable achievements in fig-
ure skating and joined with

Figure Skating in

Detroit, inspired by its

acclaimed predecessor

in Harlem, will launch

with the help of

passionate supporters.

details

A fundraiser to benefit Figure
Skating in Detroit is being planned
for Monday evening, Feb. 27,
at the Cube in the Max M. &
Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center
in Detroit. For information on
supporting Figure Skating in Detroit
as a donor or volunteer, visit
figureskatingindetroit.org.

44

January 12 • 2017

jn

Collin Brubaker to win first
place in sectional competi-
tions showcasing ice dancing.
Some 20 years after begin-
ning her career, Aronow
recently decided it was time to
move on to other interests for
herself but not away from the
opportunity to inspire young
people with the ice dreams
she has held so close. An art
history major at the University
of Michigan, Aronow has
agreed to serve as a co-chair
of the Champions Committee
now helping to establish
Figure Skating in Detroit
(FSD).
The program, which is
adapting lauded aspects of
Figure Skating in Harlem
(FSH) for the Motor City envi-
ronment, connects the sport
to academic achievement and

personal development. In its
first year outside New York,
the expanded effort is gear-
ing up to include 300 girls
between the ages of 6 and
15 and use the Jack Adams
Arena in Northwest Detroit
as its base. The program will
also use the rinks at Campus
Martius and the Detroit
Skating Club in Bloomfield
Hills and, upon completion,
the new Little Caesars Arena.
“I really wanted to be
involved,” says Aronow, who
attended Cranbrook and
took religious classes at
Temple Israel. “The program
combines three of my big-
gest passions: figure skating,
childhood development and
Detroit.
“Skating is artistic and
creative, but it’s also athletic

and disciplined. I think that
combination allows skaters to
access so many different parts
of themselves. It teaches how
to get up after a fall, literally
and figuratively.”
Aronow was introduced
to the city skating program
by her aunt and uncle, Julie
and Peter Cummings, com-
munity leaders who directed
her to Sharon Cohen, founder
and CEO of Figure Skating in
Harlem.
“It was perfect timing
because I was just retiring
from competitive skating so I
met with Sharon and went to
her gala in Harlem,” explains
Aronow, who also is involved
with NEXTGen Detroit
through her family founda-
tion. “She told me about
starting the first extension