Kawkawlin family travels for Tennessee Titans cheerleader daughter’s games

Detroit Lions up next
Justin Engel
MLive.com
September 21, 2012

KAWKAWLIN TOWNSHIP, MI — Attending her daughter’s performances — whether it be a dance number, musical recital, beauty pageant or play — has been a regular routine for Kawkawlin Township’s Sonya Rouech and family since her child was in grade school.

These days, the daughter is 28 and her stage is an NFL football stadium in Tennessee.

The distance isn’t dissuading the Rouechs.

Three of them will make the 10-hour trek to Nashville, Tenn., where daughter Angie Rouech will perform as a Tennessee Titans cheerleader during the Detroit Lions game at 1 p.m. Sunday.

“She’s always been involved in everything,” said Sonya Rouech, who will drive with her husband, Kim, and adult son, Nick. “We’ve always been there for her. It’s no different now.”

The Rouechs have been regulars at Titans games since the youngest sibling clinched a spot on the 27-woman cheerleading roster in 2011.

Earlier this month, both parents attended a Titans pep rally there, just a few days after traveling to watch a preseason game against the New England Patriots.

“We make it a point to attend every game she has,” the mother said.
Angela_Rouech_1.JPGView full sizecourtesy Tennessee TitansAngela Rouech, a Kawkawlin native, now is a cheerleader for the NFL’s Tennessee Titans.

That means at least 10 Tennessee trips yearly over the course of the NFL’s 7-month season.

“It’s exciting to see her on the field,” Sonya Rouech said. “We watched her cheer in high school, too (at Bay City Western).”

The family plans to return home Monday. Rouech may bring back more Titans cheerleading swimsuit calendars — with her daughter on the cover — in an effort to sell copies.

Rouech said she’s glad the family has made time over the years to watch their youngest develop as a performer, from taking dance classes as a 5-year-old to winning Miss Bay County in 2005 to landing a spot with the most profitable sports league in the world:

“She turned out really great, didn’t she?”