The athletic achievements of Cindy (Wilson) Todd will never be forgotten.
Not by the Stouffville Figure Skating Club. Not by the Canadian Figure Skating Association.
The then-diminutive teen not only dazzled audiences and judges here, but went on to compete in pairs competitions at the national level.
She teamed up with Glenn Buddingh of Nobleton, scoring a fourth in novice and a sixth in junior.
The two had earlier won eastern Canadian sectional and divisional titles, allowing them to advance to the Canadians.
That was 30 years ago. While the cheers of crowds have long since grown silent, the memories remain. Yet sometimes, unconsciously, those glory days return as she watches daughters Christie, 15, and Ashley, 11, go through the routines she once knew.
Cindy is the skating club’s vice-president. The treasurer is Lesley English; the secretary, Susan Kaunismaa and registrars are Lesley Sutton and Anita Cargill.
The position of president, held for the past two years by Tom Macpherson, hasn’t been filled.
Cindy is a life-long resident of Stouffville and graduate of Summitview Public School and Stouffville District Secondary School.
After completing Grade 13, she received her bachelor of business administration degree at Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo and, later, a certified management accountant’s degree at York University. Before assuming accounting responsibilities with Stouffville’s Todd Bros. Contracting Limited, she was employed with IBM.
Ross and Cindy Todd have four children, sons Braydon and Casey and daughters Christie and Ashley. Christie and Ashley are following their mother’s penchant for figure skating. Braydon and Casey, while figure skaters earlier, have since turned their talents toward hockey.
At age two, while most children were still learning to walk, Cindy was wobbling her way around the old arena on skates.
“I would skate with my mother,” she recalls. “I always knew it was something I wanted to do.”
Cindy says she owes whatever success she has enjoyed to her supportive parents, George and Flossie Wilson, plus a host of excellent instructors including Jean Barclay, Victor Irving, Hans and Judy Ahlgren, Brenda Evelyn, Michael Bradley, Roy Bradshaw and Sandra Bezic.
She fondly remembers spring ice shows during those formative years, an excitement, she says, that still exists with young skaters today. Later, during pairs competitions at sectional, divisional and national levels, she found fulfillment skating with a partner rather than solo.
On two occasions, she suffered injuries — a skate-cut to her leg, followed by a painful landing on her chin during an unsuccessful lift.
“It’s not a sport for the faint-hearted,” she claims.
Rather than turn professional, Cindy chose to further her education, a decision she has never regretted.
“I was 19 at the time,” she recalls. “For me, education was more important.”
But her love of figure skating hasn’t diminished. She somehow finds time to manage the position of club vice-president along with the dual responsibilities of raising a family and working, all with considerable success.
The skating club now has a membership of close to 400, with 2008/2009 registrations set for Aug. 20, Sept. 4 and Sept. 11 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the arena.
The age range is three years and up.
“We have a terrific executive,” Cindy says. “We want to move the club forward in new directions.”
She feels the proposed new arena with two ice pads will greatly benefit their program.
But Cindy’s efforts aren’t focused entirely on decision-making. She’s also part of a weekly adult class that takes to the ice Mondays from 9 to 10 a.m. Other participants include Jean Barclay, Chris Berry, Patti Skelton, Jackie Pugh and Kim Devine.
Their coach is Judy Ahlgren.
Cindy firmly believes there’s a place in the town’s sports program for people of all ages, whether it be hockey, softball, soccer, lawn bowling or figure skating.
She also contends it’s essential for adults, such as herself, who once benefited from helping hands, to give something back.