L E T T E R F R O M T H E E D I T O R
Skaters show resilience in face of tragedy
In the wake of tragedy, Caitlyn DelMoni-
co and Robert Garbee showed fortitude in the same way: They put on their skates and pushed forward. Caitlyn and Robert, both 14, tragically lost
their homes to the Black Forest fire just north of Colorado Springs, Colo. The June fire was the most destructive in state history; 486 homes were lost, 14,000 acres charred and two people died. The devastation came less than one year after the Waldo Canyon fire, which destroyed 347 homes in northwest Colorado Springs. Caitlyn and Robert escaped the blaze with
their families but lost everything they owned. What they didn’t lose is their passion for the sport.
“The Sunday right after the fire I came and
I tested here [at Sertich Ice Arena] and I passed the European Waltz,” Robert said. “That was ab- solutely the best thing I could have done — get away from everything and come skate. I got an entire day to keep my mind off of it.” With little but the clothing on her back,
Caitlyn was determined to compete in the an- nual Broadmoor Open, held just a week after the fire. Her determination was met with sup- port from the skating community. “We found some dresses from anoth-
er skater, and all the coaches stepped in and helped out,” Coach Tiffany Hyden-Dombeck said. “We just said, ‘We are going to be there for her. Don’t worry about it.’ That was really cool. It was a week or so later that she got out there and competed under those circumstances. I think that showed a lot of strength.” When U.S. Figure Skating’s Juliet Newcom-
er heard Caitlyn and Robert’s stories, she rallied an effort to replace all of their test certificates and pins lost in the fire. Newcomer also collect- ed figure skating gear, hockey gear and workout attire for the high school sophomores. On July 11, Newcomer and coworker Barb
Reichert, whose family lost all of their belong- ings in the Waldo Canyon fire, presented Caitlyn with a box full of skating items at the Colorado Sports Center in Monument. “The gifts for Caitlyn were a great sur-
prise, and she has been wearing her new gear ever since,” her mother, Delcine, said. “Skating
Delcine DelMonico, Caitlyn DelMonico, coach Tiffany Hyden-Dombeck
has been an important part of our lives for a long time, and having the test certificates again means so much to us. Thank you for being a bright moment in this difficult time and know we appreciate what you did more than we can say.” On July 18, Newcomer traveled to Sertich
Ice Arena in Colorado Springs to present Robert with a box full of skating items. “Everyone has been amazing and support-
ive here at the rink,” Robert said. “So many peo- ple have reached out to me and given me hugs. It’s the most family I have outside my immediate family.”
Both teens have shown courage and ma-
turity during and after the fire. Hyden-Dombeck said that during the fran-
tic evacuation process, Caitlyn’s parents trusted her with a family car. “They [firefighters] started going through
the neighborhoods yelling on the loudspeakers for residents to get out now,” she said. “Her par- ents gave her the keys to the Ford Focus and said, ‘Caitlyn, you’re driving.’ She drove all the way out of Black Forest, down Powers [Blvd.], at 50 mph, following her parents with a carload full of stuff.” Robert’s mother, Karen, a standout volun-
teer with the Centennial Figure Skating Club, said her son has been a calming force. “He said, ‘Mom, don’t worry. We have the
cats and we have each other and we are going to rebuild,‘” she said. “He just has never asked for much, never really gotten upset, except when he saw where his room was and started seeing bits and pieces of melted metal. It’s hard, but he wants to move forward.” Hyden-Dombeck and her husband helped
the Garbees by sifting through the ashes, look- ing for anything of sentimental value. “I found a Japanese doll that was import-
ant to Karen that was in one piece,” Hyden- Dombeck said. “They are so emotional. It’s hard for them to get their hands in there and pick things up. It’s a little easier for us to do that.” Hyden-Dombeck said she’ll never forget learning of the families’ losses. “Hearing that sadness and complete hope-
lessness in their voices was really hard on every- body,” she said. “That was an emotional week for all the coaches and all the skaters at the rink.” Both families are in the process of rebuild-
ing and making a new start, and Caitlyn and Robert continue to skate.
Karen Garbee and son Robert 4 OCTOBER 2013
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