Foundation Garden Skating Rink

It’s a quintessential Canadian scene. As the last light of day is fading, figures glide across an expanse of ice against a backdrop of barn, trees, farm fences, and, in the distance, the outline of the Gatineau Hills. Smaller children are just learning to skate, older kids are shooting pucks, and couples are seizing the opportunity to glide across the rink, arm in arm, before the sun sets behind the homes on Ladyfield.

The Hendrick Foundation Skating Rink was established as a pilot project in the winter of 2021. The following winter it was increased in size and the number of skaters who came out to experience joy on ice. This past October a number of coniferous trees were planted to provide a wind break and a more intimate feel. Providing a place for the community to lace up skates and enjoy this most Canadian of activities is a perfect way to make use of dormant garden land each winter.

The ice is almost always perfect for a leisurely skate or a quick hockey game, thanks, in no small part, to a dedicated team of volunteers. Each season they work closely with the Foundation to determine the rink’s footprint, fencing, and the placement of tables.

They create its base and first ice, usually in December, and then maintain the rink throughout each skating season—shoveling, scraping and flooding, often in sub-zero temperatures in the pre-dawn dark or after sunset. 

Interested in volunteering to help maintain the skating rink next winter please email denis_mulhall@hotmail.com