On Jan. 29, an American Airlines plane collided with a Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River killing all passengers onboard both aircrafts. 

The plane was carrying 60 passengers and 28 of them were members of the figure skating community that included skaters, family members and coaches. They were returning home from a skating training camp in Kansas City. 

“U.S. Figure skating sent an email that many of the figure skating clubs on the east coast were planning on holding a vigil on Monday. They wanted to share that with the rest of the clubs in the U.S. so that they could all hold one day of mourning together,” said Emily Johnson who is on the board of directors of the Cottonwood Heights figure skating club.

The Cottonwood Heights Figure Skating Club board members organized a memorial vigil on Feb. 3 to honor the skaters, coaches and families who lost their lives in the recent plane crash. It was held at the Cottonwood Heights Recreation Center.

 “We opened the vigil to all skaters in the valley so we had skaters from several clubs come to join the vigil,” Johnson said.

“All the skaters came out on the ice,” Jane Cogswell, president of the Intermountain Interclub Association said. There were roses placed in the center with candles. Then the rest of the skaters lined up and placed 28 roses which were in remembrance of the 28 skaters, coaches and family members that were lost.” 

“Emily Johnson read the names of the skaters and families and the coaches who were involved in the crash and took a moment to bring attention to the loss and heartache that is for our family because figure skating is a close-knit community. She brought all of our attention to the individual lives. Then all the skaters came together in a circle with their flameless candles  and stood there for a moment of silence for three minutes,” Cogswell said.

“Even if you didn’t know someone who died you could see the feeling of reverence in the room. It brought tears to my eyes to see the solemn moment,” Cogswell added.

Johnson said “seeing the individual roses that represented the 28 lives that were lost was like the most shocking and moving part of it. Seeing all of those together really resonated how many 28 lives were.” 

The Intermountain Interclub Association governs over 10 figure skating clubs that go from Logan to Provo in Utah. They start with basic skill skaters on up to those competing with Olympic aspirations. “You will compete against the same skaters and we become friends through all this process,” Cogswell said.

The skating club was not at the Kansas City high development camp but some of the Park City coaches and skaters had just returned from this camp.

“Park City Figure Skating Club held a memorial as well but because they had members that attended the same Kansas City camp, they kept it very private. They brought in a psychologist to talk to the skaters because some of them were very close to the other skaters,” Cogswell said.

The tragedy hit close to home. U.S. Figure Skating has provided hotlines for the skaters and teams to talk to if needed.

“We have all traveled to competitions, and I can’t imagine the loss that those skating clubs are feeling now,” Cogswell said.

Johnson said the biggest impact was opening lines of communication among the skaters allowing them to share their experience. 

“After the vigil most of them just sat together and cried together and it was really therapeutic,” said Johnson.

“It is a moment of healing,” Cogswell said. “Not only to mourn for their loss but how we can celebrate their life. How we can live their legacy and carry that flame and torch with us. We can remember them as we progress and honor their work and dedication and continue to do that in our skating journey.” λ