Desiree a.k.a. "Desi"
CEO/Webmaster of SkateGroove.com
Skater for 51 years
Skate webmaster 24 years

Photo Credit: Photography by D Michael

Technical Certifications

• Comp TIA Certified (A+), Bethesda, MD
• Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP), Arlington, VA

Professional Background

• Advanced Photographer

• NASA Grant Manager for undergraduate and graduate students preparing for science and aerospace engineering careers in space exploration, working at a NASA center.

.• Academic Diversity Program Coordinator for undergraduate underrepresented minority interns at all the Big Ten Institutions and the University of Chicago.

• Website Designer (Intranet and Internet, Private Industry and Government Agencies)

Academic Background

• BS Marketing, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
• Post Baccalaureate Studies: Cellular and Molecular Genetics, Microbiology, Chemistry and Physics; Tulane University (Uptown and Medical School Campus), New Orleans, LA
• Post Baccalaureate Studies: Photography and Graphic Design, The Ohio State University, School of the Arts, Columbus, OH

Professional Photography Experience and Organizations

• Member of the African American Photographers of North America, Columbus, OH
• Phoenix Black Photographers, Phoenix, AZ
• Yearbook Photographer, The Ohio State University, Sports and Event Photography

Skating Background
I began skating at the age of three with a pair of adjustable Fisher Price skates. My two older sisters started me skating in our family basement, and later, they took me to the rink. As years passed, my siblings put away their skates but I continued through my teenage and adult years.

In 1994, I moved to New Orleans, Louisiana for three years. This is where I really began to sharpen my skating skills and develop my own style of skating. A style that had a touch of Dayton, Cincinnati, and the Big Easy. While living in New Orleans, I was employed and enrolled at Tulane University Medical School. This is where I learned Web Design. In 1997, I took both my skating skills and my Web design talents, packed up and relocated to the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

How SkateGroove was Created
While in the District, I found myself once again searching for a rink to skate. Naturally, I would turn to the Internet. I found a few sites out there but none of them gave me the information I needed about local rinks. I began meeting a lot new skate friends and asking them where they went to get their roll on. This is when I met Necothia "Nikki" Bowens-Robinson and Khannie Butler. Nikki suggested I hit the road and try Elsmere Skating Rink in Wilmington, Delaware. It was the cleanest and friendliest rink I had visited so far. Over the next few months we began to travel to different rinks on the East Coast meeting new skaters. With all of these discoveries in place, I knew I finally found what I was looking for and wanted to share this information with the world. A year later, I decided to make the Internet work for me. On January 1, 2000, I merged my passions: skating, photography and Web design. After 10 days of cranking out pages, SkateGroove.com was officially launched and Elsmere Skating Center became the home rink for SkateGroove.com.

Ms. Bowens-Robinson was very instrumental in getting the word out about SkateGroove.com to each skater they came in contact with and the word began to spread like wildfire. There have been several skaters along the way who have made SkateGroove the success that it is and their help is greatly appreciated. Through the World Wide Web and the national roller skating events, we have all come together and created an International skating family who congregate frequently to enjoy each others company and most importantly, get our groove on.

It has truly been a pleasure meeting skaters who share my passion all over the world, either in person or through the Website. I am looking forward to continued camaraderie and future events with you. Kudos go out to our International Skate Family. You can't get much more love than that!