Gabrielle next to the event banner

Summer in the South is hot.  And sticky.  Most days when you walk outside, it feels like getting hit with a too-warm, wet blanket.  You know what the remedy is?  Ice.  Lots of it.  However you can get it.

We know one way you can get your ice fix that is not only fun, but will benefit Go Jen Go (a win-win, right?)  Come out to the Brighter Than The Sun Ice Show this Saturday, August 2, at the Extreme Ice Center (4705 Indian Trail – Fairview Road in Indian Trail) from 6 until 7:30pm.  If the heat’s not enough to bring you indoors to an ice rink, let us tell you how the event got started in the first place.  We guarantee you won’t want to miss it then!

Gabrielle Gorman is a rising senior in high school and is a terrific figure skater as well as a certfied junior coach.  Gabrielle and her mom, Jodi, closely followed Jen’s blog and kept up with Jen as she detailed her journey through life with breast cancer.  They wanted to do something to honor Jen’s memory and to support her cause so they came up with the idea for the Brighter Than The Sun Ice Show.  Gabrielle asked the Carolinas Figure Skating Club to pay for the ice time so that all the proceeds will go to Go Jen Go.  Then Gabrielle and her friend Alli Lawhon (along with a few other high school students) set about planning the event.  The performances will range from higher level students through expert coach-level skaters.  And we can pretty much surmise that Gabrielle is going to be one of those expert skaters.  You know how we know that?  Have you seen her skating picture?  Can you get YOUR leg that close to your face while standing up?  We thought not.

Gabrielle performing

Anyway, what a touching story, huh?  And how can you not admire this fantastic group of high school students!  They’re worked hard to organize this event and, at the end of it all, they are donating the proceeds to the memory of a woman who inspired them.  A women who inspired us all.

Tickets for the show are $5 for kids ten and under, and $8 dollars for adults. That’s cheap family entertainment for a Saturday night, folks!

So you have to go.  You need to get out of the heat and it’s an excuse to wear jeans and a long-sleeved shirt (and pretend that fall is coming).  But you’re going to have to refrain from actually laying yourself down on the ice.  Those skate blades are sharp!