GAIL WHITE Skater glides to glory with grandpa and grandma's help

"What do two old people do with a little baby?" Vince Lazzara of Austintown asked while thinking about when his grandson came to live with them 17 years ago.
Greg Lazzara was less than 1 year old when his parents divorced. His dad, David Lazzara, had custody of his son, but he worked afternoons and wasn't home to take care of the little boy.
Vince and Betty, David's parents, lived less than a mile away and were glad to help with their grandson.
So what do two grandparents do with a little baby? Take him roller skating, of course!
When Greg was 4, grandma and grandpa took him to a roller skating rink in Austintown.
By the time Greg was 6, he was competing in local roller skating competitions. By 9, he was traveling across the country for national events.
"I was sixth in the nation that year," Greg recalled when he competed in Nebraska as a 9-year-old.
Family cheerleaders
Greg continued to compete in roller skating competitions while his dad cheered him on from home and his grandparents cheered him from the rink side.
"At first I competed at local competitions on the weekends," Greg recalled. "Then we started traveling farther away. I would leave school on a Thursday or Friday to compete."
When Greg turned 13, he traded his wheels for blades.
"I had met a girl from roller skating who had switched to ice skating," Greg said in explaining the switch. "The Ice Zone [Boardman] had just been built."
Greg thought he would try skating on ice.
"Fifteen minutes into the session, I was trying to jump and spin on these rental skates," Greg said, laughing.
He had found his true love.
He continued ice skating and roller skating for three weeks. Then he dedicated himself completely to ice skating.
"It took some getting used to, skating on ice and not on the floor," he admits. "But everything came pretty easy to me."
"His legs were so strong," David said of his son. "Rollers skates weigh a couple pounds. The ice skates were much lighter."
Winning competitor
Six months after Greg switched to ice, he won his first competition in Mount Lebanon, Pa., near Pittsburgh. Once again, Vince and Betty Lazzara were on the road, driving Greg to competitions.
The first couple of years on ice, Greg had Olympic dreams.
"It's natural to have that dream," he said. "After a few years, I realized time was running out and it wasn't a realistic goal."
For the sheer love of the sport, he persevered, however.
Talking with Greg, I truly got the feeling that there is nothing else this 18-year-old would rather do.
Recently graduated from Austintown Fitch High School, Greg was accepted at the Pennsylvania Culinary School in Pittsburgh. He was to begin school on July 9.
His plans changed, however, on June 23.
Back in April, Greg had auditioned for Disney On Ice. He was called back for a second audition in May. Later that month, he was asked to send a videotape of his best work.
'Monsters Inc. On Ice'
That incredible day in June, he received the call that he had been chosen to be a part of the Disney program, "Monsters Inc. On Ice."
"It has been unbelievable since I found out," Greg said, beaming.
He leaves Sunday for six weeks of training in Lakeland, Fla. Then he will travel the East Coast, touring with the show.
"This is an opportunity of a lifetime," David said proudly of his son.
"Grandma is in her glory," Vince said of his wife. "She's on cloud nine!"
For the first time, the grandparents won't be traveling with their grandson for these performances.
"Your destiny is in your hands," Vince told Greg.
Greg knows what his grandfather says is true. He also knows he has reached a destiny he would have never attained without the loving, caring, uplifting hands of grandpa and grandma Lazzara.
gwhite@vindy.com