Local NFL Cheerleader is Hawaii Bound

Vineland resident to rep Eagles at Pro Bowl Jan. 26

From The Vineland Daily-Journal

City resident and Philadelphia Eagles cheerleader Ivelisse Rivera, who has appeared in several popular magazines over the past six years, is ready to say “Aloha” to her latest accomplishment.

Rivera, 25, was recently selected by the NFL to represent the Eagles at the Pro Bowl, which will be played on Jan. 26 in Honolulu. The Pro Bowl is the NFL’s annual all-star game, held one week before the Super Bowl.

Rivera is in her sixth year on the Eagles’ cheerleading squad, and her second as a captain. When she’s not out on the field on Sundays, she spends the bulk of the week working here as a dental assistant.

The trip to Hawaii would top an eventful season, she said.

“It’s amazing,” Rivera said. “We’ve had the best season in a few years here with Chip Kelly as the (Eagles) coach. The fans are amazing. Hearing them cheering and screaming every Sunday keeps us going.”

Rivera is originally a native of Jersey City. She lived in Hammonton for nearly a decade and is a 2006 graduate of Hammonton High School. She’s lived in Vineland the last two years.

Rivera attends school at Camden County College and aspires to become a dental hygienist. She began honing her dancing skills in middle school, learning everything from ballet, to hip-hop, lyrical and jazz dance.

She was unsuccessful during a tryout for the Eagles in 2007, but made it the following year, becoming a mainstay each year since. She is one of 38 cheerleaders on the team, and one of nine captains.

But remaining on the team each year is a challenge. Each member must try out again each year, and more is expected from veterans such as Rivera.

“It’s stressful,” she said. “People think we automatically make it every year because we’re veterans. But it gets harder and harder every year.”

Things get smoother upon making the team. When they’re not on the field for a game, the squad makes various appearances at charities and other functions throughout the region.

One of Rivera’s most memorable games this season was on Dec. 8, when the Eagles played a home game against the Detroit Lions in Philadelphia. A snowstorm dumped 8 inches of snow on the field during the game.

“It was actually a really fun game,” Rivera said. “We had trouble seeing at times, and it got a little slippery, but it was fun.”

Rivera leaves for Hawaii on Monday and joins the representatives of the league’s 25 other organizations with cheerleading teams to participate in a week full of events leading up to the game.

Along with the game, she will participate in “Ohana Day,” an event in which fans get to watch both the players and cheerleaders practice for the game. She will be present Wednesday during a broadcast of the first Pro Bowl Draft, where players will be hand-picked to teams regardless of the conference they play in. Rivera said she will also visit various military bases in Hawaii, and even make a stop at the USS Arizona Memorial, which is the resting place of a U.S. Navy ship destroyed in the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Rivera said she didn’t see these lifetime experiences coming after high school.

“Not at all,” she said. “I definitely wanted to be on a professional dance team or be a background dancer for a singer. But dancing is what I’ve always done.”