Members of the Lakeland Rustlers Women’s hockey team and kids didn’t care that the wind cut across the ice at Bud Miller All Seasons Park , stinging their exposed cheeks, they just laughed and carried on for over a half an hour of skating.
Last Thursday afternoon was cold but the skating pond at Bud Miller became a classroom, a playground and a meeting place between generations, as Grade 2 and 3 students from Father Gorman Community School laced up alongside members of the Lakeland College Woman’s Rustlers.
The visit, was part of a giving-back initiative that brought Rustlers athletes out to skate, play and spend time with local students. Gloves were tugged tight, skates were retied again and again, and the wind did little to slow the energy on the ice.
College athletes knelt in the snow to tighten laces, steadied wobbly beginners and joined in games of tag that zigzagged across the frozen pond. Others chased giggles, filmed on their phones and shared quiet encouragement with kids still finding their balance.
For Rustlers assistant captain Kylie Perry, the day was about presence as much as participation.
“It’s just fun getting out to see all of them, and just helping, giving back,” Perry said. “This kind of stuff never happened when I was growing up, so I guess giving the kids the opportunity to hang out with older people who have gone to college and play sports and that sort of thing.”
Perry is in her fourth year of a Bachelor of Commerce program and still has one year left at Lakeland. On the ice, though, her role was simple. Be there. Skate. Help. Laugh.
“We’re 14-1, and it’s pretty fun,” she said of the Rustlers’ season. “We have a pretty fun team, good culture, and work together really well.”
That sense of teamwork translated naturally to the pond, where the Rustlers athletes worked together just as easily to keep kids upright, warm and smiling.
Coach Morgan Mann said the players enjoyed it just as much as the kids did when contacted after the event.
Father Gorman Grade two teacher Laurie Bender said the outing fits perfectly with the school’s focus on hands-on learning and community connection.
“We’re all about hands-on learning, so it’s awesome,” Bender said. “This is all about teaching the kids, getting out there, doing it, and showing them that we’re doing it with them, so there’s healthy living and what it looks like and what it feels like.”
The day was made possible through community support, including donated hot dogs from Westridge, giving students something warm to look forward to after their time on the ice.
“I hope they take home just the awesome resources that we have in the community and things that we can do around the community,” Bender said. “It’s great to have that community connection.”
For many of the students, the highlight was not just skating, but who they were skating with. Seeing college athletes up close, laughing, falling, helping and playing alongside them made a lasting impression.
“It’s a big role model thing,” Bender said. “The kids were so excited to get to meet them, but not only meet them, get to skate and share that passion and love for sports.”
On a bitter winter day at Bud Miller Park, the ice held more than skaters. It held connection, community and the simple reminder that sometimes the most meaningful lessons happen outdoors, with cold hands, warm hearts and someone steadying you as you learn to glide.
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