Владельцы катка Kilgore Skateland в Техасе продают бизнес после 25 лет работы

Kilgore Skateland owners retiring after 25 years, rink now for sale KILGORE, Texas (KLTV) — It’s hosted generations of kids, but the owners are retiring and hope someone else will keep it rolling. Kilgore Skateland is going up for sale, but the owners feel the rink isn’t done with birthday parties yet. Kilgore Skateland owners Cheryl and Terry Houk have pretty much opposite histories with skating. “My sister took a Girl Scout skating class,” Terry Houk said. “And after that class, the teachers there asked me to come back and join the figure skating club. And I got drawn along through all of it so eventually I wanted to do it as well.” Terry Houk grew up skating. Cheryl Houk did not. “I’m not a skater,” Cheryl Houk said. “I was not a skater. I married a skating man. So, we moved here to take over the rink in Gilmer. Things didn’t work out. We were kind of stuck here.” But about 25 years ago, they talked with the owner of Kilgore Skateland: “And she was like, ‘I don’t want to do this anymore. Y’all want it?’” Cheryl Houk said. They rolled the dice, or wheels actually. “We leased it for a while, then we quit for a couple of years,” Cheryl Houk said. “And then we came back and we bought it.” Terry Houk doesn’t figure skate like he used to, but he’s trained a lot of kids in that and hockey. “Where he is hockey, I’m more like a Friday, Saturday night birthday party person,” Cheryl Houk said. And although Cheryl Houk won’t put those wheels on, she said: “I learned from him, the basics, and he’s probably taught tens of thousands. I’ve probably taught a thousand myself,” Cheryl Houk said. They say the social media comments are heartwarming. “Some of my best memories were at that skating rink, and we’ll miss you so much, happy retirement. That just really, really touches our heart,” Cheryl Houk said. Even so, they feel it’s time to slow their roll and pass the skate keys on to a younger generation. It won’t be long before they host their last limbo. The Houks say they’ve had about 15 inquiries about the rink and, at this point, plan on staying open until the new owners take over. Copyright 2026 KLTV. All rights reserved.