Lansing, Michigan, February 2010�A Michigan-based artist and ice sculptor will represent the United States of America and the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (EI) at the 2010 Ice Art World Championship, an official 2010 Winter Games Cultural Olympiad event. 
            
Steven Berkshire, CFBE, of Traverse City�s Ice Impressions, and teammate Ted Wakar, a fellow Michigan ice sculptor, will compete against teams of ice sculptors from Italy, Japan, Australia, the USA, France, and Canada in the two-day event, scheduled for February 20 and 21 at the O Zone in Richmond, British Columbia.  The first day of competition will require teams to transform 3,000 pounds of clear ice into artistic, Olympic-themed masterpieces in 12 consecutive hours.  On the second day, teams will compete in a two-hour speed sculpting event. 
            
Berkshire, who earned the Certified Food and Beverage Executive (CFBE) professional certification from EI in 2001, is a former executive chef at the Grand Traverse Resort, and former executive chef and director of catering for Aramark at Northern Michigan College. He has been carving ice for 24 years, ever since he was a food service apprentice at Northern Michigan College.  He has won numerous first, second, and third place awards in U.S. and international ice sculpture competitions, include a first place medal at the 2006 World Ice Art Championship in Fairbanks, Alaska. 
            
�It�s important to do something you love and have passion for,� said Berkshire. �We have to continually challenge ourselves and raise the bar in everything we do, whether it�s providing excellent service or creating art.� 
            
Berkshire said that the theme for the Olympic ice competition is �Hope and Dreams.� He and his teammate will be working with tools including modified chainsaws, hand chisels, hand saws, die grinders, power and hand sanders, and knives to transform thousands of pounds of ice into beautiful sculptures. 
            
The Ice Art World Championship has been a popular event at every Olympic Winter Games since the 1988 Calgary games.  To view some of Berkshire�s work, visit www.ice-impressions.com. 
 
Established in 1953 as a nonprofit educational foundation of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, the Educational Institute�s mission is to support AH&LA by becoming the preferred provider to the lodging industry, hospitality schools, and related hospitality industries both domestically and internationally by developing and providing quality resources to train, educate, and certify hospitality professionals.