by Airman 1st Class Michael Battles
51st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
Osan Air Base
12/21/2011

[Hi-Res photos]

OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea — The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders visited Osan Air Base to deliver holiday cheer Dec. 20 as part of their 73rd USO tour.

During their visit, the 12-member team visited with Airmen and some of their younger cheerleading fans, held a free performance, signed autographs and posed for pictures with Osan members.

“It’s a huge honor to come over here,” said Melissa Kellerman, Dallas Cowboys cheerleader. “I’m a military brat, so that’s my motivation for trying out for the show team and traveling with the USO.”

For more than three decades the DCC have spent their holidays with troops overseas rather than their own families.

“I miss being with my family during the holidays, but it’s a great opportunity being out here performing for the service members,” she said.

Kellerman, whose father was stationed at Osan as a pilot, is a fourth year DCC and is participating in her first USO tour.

Airman Logan Kreger, 51st Force Support Squadron food service specialist, said the performance was a definite morale boost and a great experience during the holidays.

Crystal Wood, an Osan spouse, said her daughter loved the experience of meeting the cheerleaders firsthand.

“It really gave the younger girls a closer look at what (the cheerleaders) do,” she said. “These cheerleaders are really showing that you can set a positive example and be a role model for today’s youth.”

“It was awesome to get their autographs,” said Ava Wood, age 6. “Now I can tell everyone back home I got a chance to meet the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders.”

During their holiday tour of the Pacific, the DCC held six free performances and visited 21 installations.

“This is just a little thank you from us to you,” Kellerman said. “I know firsthand all the sacrifices service members and their families make serving our country.”

According to the official USO website, the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders are the most travelled of the USO entertainers and have been supporting service members in countries such as Afghanistan, Bahrain, Belgium, Cuba, Germany, Iceland, Iraq, Japan, South Korea, Kuwait and the United Kingdom since 1979.

For more information on tours hosted by the USO, visit http://www.uso.org.

2011 DCC Holiday Tour

The Cowboys Cheerleaders tour stopped off at U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys in South Korea on December 21, 2011. Click here for photos from their performance for the troops!

12/19/2011 – Kadena Air Base, Japan – Twelve Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders visited Team Kadena as part of their two-day tour of Okinawa. The cheerleaders are visiting 21 installations in the Pacific as part of their 73rd United Services Organization tour. Their signature show, “America and Her Music,” took place at the Keystone Theater Dec. 15 and 16.

[Click here for hi-res photos]

U.S. Air Force Airmen from the 18th Wing have lunch with the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders

U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Tegan Davis, 18th Medical Support Squadron pharmacy technician, and Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader Ally Traylor, talk about their hometowns and an upcoming cheer performance during lunch

The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders sign autographs and talk to fans during a visit to the Exchange

Danielle Hettinger, a Philadelphia Eagles cheerleader and third-grade teacher at Muhlenberg Elementary Center who lives in Ruscombmanor Township, is one of six Eagles cheerleaders headed to Kuwait as part of a weeklong goodwill military tour.

Danielle Hettinger’s family has a strong military background, so she’s thrilled to be on a 13-hour flight to Kuwait today to entertain U.S. servicemen and women.

The Ruscombmanor Township resident is one of six Philadelphia Eagles cheerleaders embarking on the seven-day goodwill tour.

“I think it will be life-changing,” said Hettinger, 24.

She believes the trip will deepen her appreciation for those in the military, including both of her grandfathers who fought in World War II, her grandmother who was in the U.S. Navy’s WAVES division, her brother in ROTC and her mother, Patti Rodgers, also a Ruscombmanor resident and a retired colonel in the Army Reserve.

The cheerleaders will stay in barracks during their tour and meet with soldiers on bases, in hospitals and during their 45-minute performance.

They interact with the audience during their performance. Soldiers will be asked to participate in games and a push-up contest, said Hettinger, a third-grade teacher at Muhlenberg Elementary Center.

Many of the soldiers the cheerleaders will meet have been overseas for more than a year, and many are on their way back from Iraq, Hettinger said.

“The level of duty, honor and loyalty humbles me, and I am looking forward to this opportunity to personally thank them for their sacrifices,” Hettinger said.

She said she hopes to meet soldiers in units from Pennsylvania.

“I think this will really bring meaning to me to just experience what the life of a soldier is really like,” said the 2005 Holy Name High School and 2009 Kutztown University graduate.

Hettinger also received a master’s degree as a reading specialist at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia in 2010.

She said her family and her husband, Scott, are supportive of the trip.

“They are completely behind me,” she said.

Though it’s the third time in four years that Eagles cheerleaders have gone to the Middle East to visit soldiers, Hettinger has never been on a tour like this.

But she said she isn’t nervous.

“I’m just excited,” she said.

The Sweethearts for Soldiers calendar is coming next month. Go here to learn how you can support this endeavor

[Sweethearts for Soldiers]

Two Minnesota Vikings Cheerleaders recently paid a visit to our troops at Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo, Texas. Click here for the story and some ENORMOUS hi-res photos.

Six Chiefs Cheerleaders will spend Independence Day in Iraq with members of the United States Armed Forces

Six Chiefs Cheerleaders began their 4th of July weekend boarding a United Airlines flight at Kansas City International Airport. The final destination: Kuwait and Iraq.

The Chiefs will be represented by veteran cheerleaders Summer (pictured), Krystal, Katie, Liz, Lindsay and Jeron, who departed Kansas City on Friday to begin a 12-day U.S. Military Base tour that spans across multiple branches of America’s armed forces.

While overseas, the cheerleaders will visit hospitals, MWR Centers and multiple locations on bases for meet and greets during the day. The squad will perform a variety show for troops each evening and military personnel will get a chance to meet the women after each show.

In addition, the Chiefs have donated team t-shirts and hats for the cheerleaders to distribute to the men and women of our armed forces throughout the tour.

“We were actually invited by Pro Sports MVP and they called us because there are several Kansas Brigades over in Iraq,” explained Chiefs Cheer Director Stephanie Judah. “They asked for the Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleaders to come visit. We were actually specifically requested by those troops.

“The girls are going to spend Independence Day over in Iraq with our troops, which is an amazing and special moment that they will never forget.”

While in the Middle East, Chiefs Cheerleaders will board Black Hawk Helicopters as well as other military vehicles to travel from base to base. Each show lasts one hour and consists of singing, dancing and other audience-engaging performances.

The opportunity to visit America’s service men and women is especially meaningful for Summer, who is making her first overseas military visit. Summer’s brother, Taylor, is a member of the U.S. Navy and has been deployed overseas three times over the past four years.

“Coming from a military family, I’ve seen him traveling overseas a number of times and it’s going to be interesting for me to get somewhat of an idea of what that experience is like,” Summer said.

Taylor is scheduled to return home from his final tour in three weeks, just a week after Summer will have arrived back in Kansas City.

“I’m just so excited for him to come home,” Summer said. “It’s been really interesting for me because I’ve seen the challenges he’s had to endure being away from his finance and family. He’s gone for months at a time and sometimes all you get is an email of two every few weeks. So I’ve kind of seen what it’s like from a military wives perspective as well.”

Chiefs Cheerleaders have previously toured military bases in Egypt, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Cuba, Spain, Portugal and numerous bases stateside.

Fans can follow the overseas journey on Twitter @ChiefsCheer