Farewell, Lloyd Center Ice Rink.
PORTLAND, OR — On August 8th, the rink saw a massive turnout for its final day. Returning skaters, rink regulars, and nostalgic spectators all made their way back to the place that started it all to say goodbye to Portland’s only public ice rink.
General Manager Tyler Harvey cuts the ice one last time while the massive audience cheers him on. Photo courtesy of @prjctxlsvn via Instagram
Only one month from its closure, the wound is still fresh. The loss is immeasurable. But at Bridgetown Ice Skating Collective (BISC), we look back at the rink that started it all and feel inspired.
For over half a century, this rink was the launching point for countless talented skaters and hosted fond memories for Portlanders across generations. The rink blossomed as a community gathering space even as the world grew more isolated outside its walls. It was a rare gem and inspires our nonprofit to carry on its legacy.
“Our last day at the Lloyd Center Ice Rink was so powerful. Yes, there was a great deal of sadness, but what stayed with me most was all the joy and love in our skating community,” BISC President Jennifer Gilmore-Robinson said. “It motivates us to work even harder to get a new rink in Portland as soon as possible.”
Skaters of all ages form a “friendship circle” during the last few minutes of skating. Photo courtesy of @prjctxlsvn via Instagram
Throughout the final day, skaters had one last opportunity to perform exhibitions for the mall full of onlookers. Some took the opportunity to perform with a friend while others showed off their competition programs on the ice where they took their first glides.
One of those skaters was Georgia Krugel, who began skating at Lloyd Center shortly before entering kindergarten. It was a family affair, accompanied by her mom who took the Intro class alongside her.
“My memories are kind of fuzzy from that age, but I remember how welcomed and joyful I felt when I stepped onto the ice,” Krugel said. “That feeling never left in the 8 years that I called Lloyd Center my skating home.”
Skating to Wicked’s “No Place Like Home” was a perfectly bittersweet tribute to the rink Georgia learned to skate at. The 12-year-old fought back tears while performing under the sun for 3 levels of spectators.
Krugel resonates with a line from the song: If we just keep fighting for it / We will win back and restore it / There's no place like home.
“Those lyrics always mean something more to me - all we are working for is not lost,” she said. “We will someday find a new rink, and someday it will raise skaters who love it just as much as I loved Lloyd.”
For kids like Krugel, the rink is more than a place to skate. It is a home worth fighting for, even when it leads to heartbreak. In the last few hours of Lloyd, the ice became a stage for both joy and genuine sadness.
Krugel let the first of many tears fall at the end of her program, overwhelmed by the support of the largest audience she had ever performed for, eight years of memories and friendships and the gravity of her loss.
“I really left all of my love for this special place on the ice that day,” she said. “It was such an honor to be able to perform that song for everyone there that day.”
Like all good things, Lloyd’s final day came to an end, along with 66 years of skating history. As staff called out to please exit the ice for the last time, a wave of emotion rippled through the entire building. Friends held each other for one last lap, kids cried in their parents arms, and onlookers readied their roses to shower the ice one last time.
Sky Distelle, Sienna Church, Liz Hardee and Georgia Krugel share a tearful hug on the ice after the last lap was called. Photo courtesy of @prjctxlsvn via Instagram
Jerry and Tally Leonard, the Lloyd Center Sweethearts, were the obvious choice to close out the Lloyd Center Ice Rink. The couple skated at Lloyd for 59 years, putting their devotion to the sport, and to each other, on full display since 1967.
Hand-in-hand, they took to the ice as they have several days a week for most of Lloyd’s history. They smiled at the crowd as their step sequence carried them around the rink’s perimeter, swelling to a big finish as Jerry spun Tally at the climax of Nat King Cole’s “L-O-V-E.”
And, as always, it ended with a kiss.
Jerry and Tally Leonard embrace after their final performance to close our 66 years of skating at Lloyd Center. Photo courtesy of @prjctxlsvn via Instagram
It only makes sense that the rink came to a close with one of Portland’s most iconic sights: a couple in love, sharing their passion with the community.
Roses rained down on the ice, falling from the balconies where generations of families gathered to watch free. General Manager Tyler Harvey and Assistant General Manager Maddii Boggs presented the Leonards with a bouquet and photo album signed by Lloyd Center skaters thanking them for all they’ve done for the rink and for skating in Portland.
Despite the palpable sadness, Lloyd closed its doors on a positive note. Skaters were given one last beautiful day to skate in the sun, be with friends and create a lasting memory to carry them through the next phase of work.
“I love how our Lloyd skating community has become so close through this experience, as hard as it has been. I see so many supportive adults working hard behind the scenes to make this new rink happen and I feel so hopeful and grateful,” Krugel said.
She notes, however, that her optimism in BISC’s future doesn’t come without a sense of urgency.
“That part of not knowing when it will become reality is hard for us kids,” she explained. “It’s hard to be patient.”
It’s not a small job, but one the Bridgetown Ice Skating Collective believes can be done. Seeing the impact the Lloyd Center Ice Rink had on the entire city solidified the importance of this mission.
“Perhaps the most important lesson this rink has taught us: when you fall down, you get back up,” Gilmore-Robinson said. “The closing of the Lloyd Center Ice Rink could have been the end of the story Instead, it became a reason to come together, to imagine what’s possible, and to build something new.”
Until then, all we can say is: Llong Llive Lloyd.
Eli Inam skates in the sun one last time. Photo courtesy of Ahmer Inam
