Love for Skating Starts Locally By Amy Hughes
We moved to Great Neck in 1982, and my husband John, a Canadian hockey player, discovered the town’s Parkwood sports complex, specifically the rink in that complex, in short order. We put our oldest daughter Rebecca on the ice that season and John started playing in adult leagues. One by one, each of our six kids and four grandkids learned to skate at the Parkwood ice rink. Since 1982, someone from our family has skated on that rink in the Parkwood Sports Complex every season consistently, from the hockey leagues to the figure skating programs. Currently, my 17-year old granddaughter Alexandra skates on the freestyle sessions there before school. We were so lucky to have had that kind of access to sporting facilities. Though some of my kids became elite figure skaters and hockey players and traveled to many rinks, their time at the Parkwood complex with their friends remain some of their best memories. Right across the
John Hughes with his granddaughter Charlotte
street from the middle school, the kids would just walk over to Parkwood. John called it “backyard play” because growing up in Canada, there were so many backyard rinks where kids would play pick-up hockey after school. No referees, no supervision – just play. The Great Neck Park District gave our family that, and continues to give. What did one of my granddaughters want to do for her 11th birthday in February 2022? A party with her friends at the Great Neck rink, now called the Andrew Stergiopoulis Rink. Charlotte is a travel hockey goalie who, of course, also started figure skating and then playing hockey at that rink. Her party was a family affair as it usually is, with various members of the Hughes family lacing up, including my sons David and Matt, former college hockey players who like to test Charlotte’s skills between the pipes. The Great Neck rink is home to us. Over the years, my daughters Sarah and Emily have skated with their nieces in Skate School performances. They
Sisters Sarah and Emily Hughes
26 The Voice | Spring/Summer 2022 • nysrps.org
hosted the rink’s 50th Anniversary celebration and have participated in Great Neck’s wonderful therapeutic skating program. My youngest daughter Taylor, and Rebecca, have taught skate school classes, helping the youngest kids experience the joy of skating. World and Olympic judges came to Great Neck to evaluate Emily and Sarah as they made her way up the figure skating ranks. When each went to the Olympics – Sarah in 2002 and Emily in 2006 - they enjoyed an outpouring of support from the community, with watch parties for their performances and celebrations when they returned. The facility has improved over the years, with more and more amenities and an expanded schedule, providing even more value to our town. The Great Neck Park District is a jewel of the community, and for us, the rink is the center stone. Physical fitness, community building, fun – you can find it at our local rink.
Sarah and Emily Hughes (back row) with Charlotte and Alexandra Parker (front row)
