Skating snapshot: Laura and Nicole Faulkner

Spokane residents Laura Jaeger Faulkner, 45, and her daughter Nicole Faulkner, 10, both volunteer – on the ice – at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

Laura: I assisted the skaters in opening ceremonies and I’m also here assisting the sweepers – the kids who pick up the toy bears. As a member of Lilac City Figure Skating Club, Nicole participated in the opening ceremonies. She rehearsed for 12 weeks.

Nicole: I was really excited. It’s a once-in-lifetime thing. When they started clapping, I got so happy.

Laura: I started at the old Five Mile rink at age 4. I was a member of Lilac City Figure Skating Club and trained at Eagles Ice-A-Rena. I was with the Ice Capades for three years. I still skate on a regular basis. It’s fun being on Arena ice, knowing that the best skaters in the country are also going to skate on it.

Nicole: I skate three or four times a week. I would like to be in the Olympics – at least once. And if I don’t, I’ll just try my best. I’ll probably skate women’s, because my mom told me if she saw me as a pair it would just freak her out. If I fell, she would just be so nervous.