9/24/05

Fundraiser was big success; Thanks to all who helped

The Michael Weiss Foundation event was a great success. My entire family was involved which made it all the more special for me.

Some of my great skating friends and the help of wonderful sponsors will make a difference for some young skaters.

The people at SkateQuest in Reston, Virginia couldn’t have done a better job. I couldn’t believe how many people fit into that place. We must have had at least 100 children sitting on the floor right at the edge of the ice!

Lisa and my mom worked hard almost around the clock. When I would get home from training Lisa would turn Annie Mae and Christopher over to me and she and my mom would work late into the night.

My dad was so disappointed he couldn’t be here. He made a commitment to be in Poland for a month.

I’m really happy with how much money was raised. The eBay and silent auction were terrific.

Camping out at the Weiss House

All the skaters donated their time. They gave up staying in hotels and other amenities to help raise as much money as possible.

We opened our house to them. and we had 15 people staying with us at one time. My mom gave up her room, Annie Mae and Christopher stayed with a relative, and we used all available space. Some people said just give them air mattresses and they were happy.

My selling point was "Let’s come together and have a good time and hang out." We would play cards, games and air hockey. We’re all competitive and there was a lot of competition going on. I think we were up to about 5:30a.m. the night after the show.

All the skaters had a good time

When I asked the skaters to participate I told them "I want to spend as little as possible and make as much as we can."

My friends and I all remember when we needed help from others when we were younger. We realize that it’s our turn to help young skaters try to help them reach their dreams.

The Foundation isn’t about me. Now that I have gained some kind of influence I have the opportunity to help others in the sport. When you build your name in a sport you’ve established your connections.

I’m very grateful for what the skaters did for me.

Saturday night Nicolas Castaneda (a former pairs skater and one of our sponsors) rented a limo to take about 20 of us to dinner at the Kennedy Center. It had to be the biggest limo I’ve ever seen or been in. There was a full moon that night. We had a great dinner and it was a fitting end to a great event.

Thank you to everybody involved.