Two senior skaters and a long-time coach of the Houston Figure Skating Club gave their finale performances at the annual skating carnival last weekend.
Coach Jennifer Austin has led young Houston skaters for nine years. Next season she will bring her talents to skaters in Prince George.
“Jen is the main reason I am the skater I am today,” said high school senior Adam Ells, who also gave his final solo and pairs skates on Saturday.
“She’s always pushing me, whether it’s making me do my program over and over, or having me do half a million double flips, all ending up with me on my back,” he said.
Leigh Siemens, who also gave her graduation performance on Saturday, first won laughs from the crowd at Claude Parish arena with a story from one of her early skating competitions.
“My dad was given a stuffed monkey named Sam to throw on the ice and almost took a judge’s head off on the way down,” she said.
Siemens also thanked her coaches at Houston Figure Skating, as well as her family and fellow skaters who helped her "from bad skates to gold medals."
Photos by Trevor Sowers and Andrew Hudson.