Ask kids about their holiday wishes and chances are many would include something related to Disney. On December 6, 22 preschoolers from Warren Village Learning Center in Denver got an early Christmas surprise from Disney On Ice and the Downtown Denver Partnership.
To kick off the new Disney On Ice presents Follow Your Heart, (at the Pepsi Center December 7-10, 2017) the four and five-year-olds took a private ice skating lesson at the rink at Skyline Park with the help of two skaters from the show.
“It was so much fun skating with the kids today,” says Ella Hulse, a performer with Disney On Ice. “They started out slipping and sliding, but they very quickly got their balance. It’s amazing how quickly little kids adapt to skating.”
Before the lesson was over, Mickey and Minnie Mouse surprised the kids with a special meet and greet and tickets to the opening night show.
This is the eighth year that the Downtown Denver Partnership has produced the Downtown Denver Rink at Skyline Park.
“Every season we think of creative ways to use this amazing place to bring special experiences for our communities,” says Brea Olson from the Downtown Denver Partnership. “We brought Warren Village in because we really wanted to create a special experience for the special kids in our community.”
In addition to the Learning Center, Warren Village provides low-income, single-parent families with affordable housing, early childhood education, and after-school programs. The program is designed to help families gain personal and economic self-sufficiency and to sustain it when they leave.
“Today was all about making magic in downtown Denver,” says Olson. “And we did that today for 22 wonderful preschool kids.”
Downtown Denver Rink at Skyline Park is open daily November 22, 2017 through February 14, 2018. Hours can be found at downtowndenverrink.com. Bring your own ice skates and skate for free, or rent skates on site for $8, or $6 for kids 12 and under. Double blade child skates (size 8-13) are available for beginners.
Disney on Ice presents Follow Your Heart follows Dory (from Finding Nemo and Finding Dory) and her new pal Hank as they set out to find her parents and discover the devotion of family. During the show, families will have the chance to explore emotions with Joy, Sadness, and the rest of the emotions from Disney•Pixar’s Inside Out. New favorites from Frozen and classic characters such as Cinderella and Rapunzel will also make an appearance. December 7-10 at Pepsi Center; tickets available through Altitude Tickets.
