But Amanda Cameron says contest, Super Bowl experience were winners
By Dan Bennett
The North County Times
Landing the job of NFL Director of Fandemonium is good work if you can get it, and Solana Beach resident Amanda Cameron came awfully close.
Cameron, 29, was one of two finalists for the honorary position, finishing second to Miami Dolphins fan Ralph Lanier Jr. when the winner was announced during pregame festivities for Sunday’s Super Bowl in Miami. Though the NFL Director of Fandemonium is not an actual job, the contest winner receives $100,000 and travels to numerous high-profile NFL games and events during the next year, representing football fans everywhere.
Lanier and Cameron spent the week leading to the Super Bowl participating in a variety of competitions designed to demonstrate their love for football and their total dedication to the game.
“I’m bummed that I didn’t win, of course, but it was an amazing experience and once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Cameron said Monday just before boarding a return flight to San Diego.
“It was a fantastic week,” she added. “I had a couple of friends with me and we went to parties and had a great time, then the game itself was fantastic. Really, it was everything I could hope for.”
The contest was a promotional partnership between the jobs board Web site Monster.com and the National Football League. The winner was chosen by fans who voted on a Web site dedicated to the contest, and the competition also included interviews with former NFL players and other game experts.
As runner-up, Cameron receives $10,000.
A San Diego State University graduate, she works in brand management and media relations at Sea World and is a member of the Padres baseball team cheerleaders the Pad Squad.
In the Fandemonium contest, she started as one of 200,000 hopefuls and eventually made it as far as the final two, using Web sites such as Facebook and Twitter to publicize her campaign and lobby for votes.
Even though she didn’t win the honorary job, she said the contest may have shaped future career possibilities.
“I’ve realized even more how much I love sports,” Cameron said. “I think sports marketing is something I might want to get into.”
For now, she said, she’s just savoring the opportunities the contest brought her.
“I went to New York for the first time, and the Pro Bowl and Super Bowl for the first time, so I’m not going to cry in the corner,” Cameron said. “The entire experience has been a blessing.”
The Baltimore Mariners Cheerleaders have a new name, new uniform, new director and back on January 31st they picked their new 2010 squad.
The New Director is good friend of the blog Elizabeth “Liz” Guardalo, who also taught the choreography for the tryouts.
Heather Jessee (right) and Liz. Heather danced for the Wizards and cheered for the Redskins, representing her squad at the 1999 Pro Bowl. She was also coach of the UMBC Dance Team where she coached Liz.
In addition to the performing the routine, hopefuls performed a kickline and answered interview questions from the judges.
The judges from left to right: Meghann: former UMBC Dance Team, Heather, Rachel: former Baltimore Blast Cheerleader, Kristen: Redskins Ambassador and Capitals Red Rocker, Ashley: current Baltimore Blast Cheerleader, David: Commissioner of the ISL (Bermuda’s Island Soccer League)
The new squad will make their debut at the Mariner’s first home game on Sunday, March 14th.
[Mariners Cheerleaders Auditions Gallery]
As a New England Patriots Cheerleader Elizabeth Hanson cheered her team to victory over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII.
Now she’s an actress living in California and yesterday she starred in a Super Bowl commercial; she plays the weeping girlfriend.
From HorseChannel.com
A horse named Warpaint has earned honors from the American Paint Horse Association after her home game appearances this season.
The fastest and most colorful run down the football field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City this season cannot be claimed by any NFL gridiron star. Instead, that honor goes exclusively to the flashy horse-and-rider team of Chiefs Warpaint and Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleader Susie Derouchey.
To the thundering applause of about 70,000 Kansas City fans at each home game, Derouchey and “Warpaint” sprinted down the middle of Arrowhead Stadium after every Chiefs touchdown and successful field goal kick. In all, more than 540,000 people at the stadium witnessed their celebratory rides for the 2009-2010 season.
Warpaint is a registered American Paint Horse and Derouchey is an active APHA member who has a long history of owning and showing Paints. In appreciation of the stellar performances by the duo, the American Paint Horse Foundation awarded its “Legendary Achievement Award” to Warpaint and Derouchey before the start of the Chiefs last home game of the season at Arrowhead Stadium.
Derouchey and Warpaint received the award at Arrowhead’s “Fan Zone,” while their faithful followers cheered and applauded the well-deserved honor. The Foundation also presented a silver APHA commemorative belt buckle to Derouchey.
“I felt like that whole day was just a dream come true,” said Derouchey. “I will forever cherish the award, the buckle and all the memories.”
It turned out also to be a busy day, with Derouchey and Warpaint making six scoring celebration runs, plus the grand entrance, for a total of seven sprints down the football field. Derouchey said she looks forward to every score, not only because it means the Chiefs are doing well, but because she can spend more time riding Warpaint.
Reviving a tradition
The appearance of Warpaint actually follows a long Kansas City Chiefs tradition of bringing a Paint Horse on the field for scoring celebrations. In decades past, a different American Paint Horse nicknamed “Warpaint,” played a similar role.
Although the most recent Warpaint was retired in 1989, he made a guest appearance during an old-timers game, according to reports, and received a standing ovation from the sellout crowd at Arrowhead.
The Chiefs decided to revive the tradition of the horse-and-rider scoring celebration in 2009—the 50th anniversary of the Chiefs’ beginning in the American Football League as the Dallas Texans. Formed in 1959 by AFL founder Lamar Hunt, the team made the move from Dallas to Kansas City in 1963.
Leading today’s charge
With this season’s revival of the tradition of running a Paint Horse down the field after successful scoring drives, fans are once again treated to the thrill that comes from seeing a dynamic horse-and-rider team perform.
Derouchey and Warpaint make their appearance before the crowd at the start of every home game when the “Warpaint” chant begins. Rushing directly onto the field from an entrance known as “the tunnel” come cheerleaders, flag bearers, and drummers. Then out of the shadows of the tunnel emerge the Chiefs’ American Paint Horse, Warpaint, and Derouchey.
“It’s the biggest adrenaline rush you could ever imagine,” said Derouchey. “It’s absolutely surreal. To have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to incorporate my love for cheerleading and performing in front of a crowd with my passion for horses is such a unique opportunity. I thanked God every time I got to run this year.”
The cheerleader is confident that Warpaint enjoys the runs as well.
“You can just tell when a horse is content and happy and she definitely is. When she comes out during the Warpaint chant, she’s just fun to watch. Her ears are always forward. She’s excited. She knows her job, and she just does it.”
Training camp for an NFL horse
The two people entrusted with ensuring that Warpaint knew her job this year were Brian Flynn and Kenny Fisher, both of Grandview, Mo.
Flynn said he searched far and wide for the proper horse when he was contacted by the Chiefs to revive the role of Warpaint.
“I wanted a registered Paint. That was a given,” said Flynn, who reasoned he would be more successful in finding a horse with the right conformation, attitude and proven abilities, if he started his search among registered horses.
“I was looking for a horse that had a lot of experience and had been around a lot—cutting, barrel racing, team roping, show experience, and being around crowds. The horse we found had done it all,” said Flynn, adding that the horse had also participated in parades and gymkhanas.
Out of 30 prospects, the one Flynn finally decided on got the job after a tryout on the turf of Arrowhead Stadium itself.
The 11-year-old mare performed admirably, said Flynn. They accustomed the horse to cheerleaders kicking and waving pom-poms, marching bands on the field and more.
“What we couldn’t practice was how she’d be in front of 80,000 people,” said Flynn. “But the Chiefs gave us CDs of crowd noise, and we’d take her out back of our property and crank up the sound. We even shot guns off of her. She was great,” said Flynn.
“She really has been a jewel of a find for us.”
After finding the horse in May 2009 and having only about four months to prepare the mare for her Sept. 20 game debut, Flynn sought the help of Fisher, a friend who had ridden and trained cutting horses for 30 years.
Fisher said his secret to success in training Warpaint was simple, “I spent a lot of time in the saddle with her.”
That time included trail riding, an activity that Fisher said cleared the horse’s mind and settled her down.
“I’ve been training since ’71,” said Fisher, “and I know that nothing beats just spending a lot of time with a horse.”
Chiefs Warpaint was ridden every day during the football season at Kenny Fisher Cutting Horses ranch, by Fisher himself. In addition, Derouchey rode the horse three times a week, in addition to her daily practice sessions with the cheerleaders.
“Susie’s show experience really helps in this deal,” said Fisher. “She knows how to ride and react to whatever comes at her. She’s a good hand and makes me look good.”
Team players
The American Paint Horse Association and its Foundation echoed the same sentiments about the rider and the special horse with whom she performs.
“When it comes to showcasing the beauty and talent of the American Paint Horse and spirit of our members, we couldn’t think of anyone more deserving than Susie and Warpaint,” said American Paint Horse Foundation Director Jerry Circelli.
“We’ve seen Paint Horses at a lot of show venues over the years, but witnessing this special horse and this talented rider race down the football field before the roaring approval of tens of thousands of fans was both inspirational and historic.
“I suspect a lot of Paint Horse owners will become Kansas City Chiefs fans when they see that an APHA member and an American Paint Horse play such key roles on the team.”
By Adam Zuvanich
Avalanche-Journal
Miami might be the hottest spot on the planet this week, and Travasha Winfrey has been at the center of the sizzle.
The Indianapolis Colts Cheerleader has been busy with guest appearances and photo shoots since arriving in South Florida on Tuesday, and she’s done her fair share of shopping and lounging on the beach. Winfrey also has taken advantage of Miami’s night life. She was a VIP at a party hosted by the Kardashians, and she’s mingled with countless other celebrities and famous athletes, including former Dallas Cowboys Terrell Owens and Deion Sanders.
Winfrey figures to have even more fun today, when she’ll perform on the field during Super Bowl XLIV between the Colts and New Orleans Saints.
“Right now it’s, like, surreal. I don’t know how to explain it,” said Winfrey, who even got a tattoo to commemorate the occasion. “I’m just kind of in a dream, just passing along slowly. I think it won’t hit me until I walk out on that field and look up and realize I’m at Super Bowl XLIV.”
It’s already been a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the 2006 Coronado graduate, but it nearly passed her by. Winfrey considered not making the trip to Miami with the rest of the Colts cheerleaders, because her heart is back home in Lubbock.
Winfrey’s grandmother, Priscilla Gilmore, died of breast cancer on Jan. 28. Her funeral was Wednesday in Lubbock, and Winfrey would have been there if not for the blessing of her family.
“She was really struggling with coming back (or not), because it’s a big opportunity in Miami,” said Winfrey’s mother, Betty Gilmore. “Her grandpa actually called her and told her that this is what her grandmother would have wanted. I know it relieved her a little bit, but I know her heart is still here.”
The 21-year-old Winfrey, who visited her grandmother last month, said she makes it back to Lubbock about four times a year and still keeps in touch with some of her friends from Coronado. She also stays plenty busy in Indianapolis, where she’s more than an NFL Cheerleader.
Winfrey is a college student at Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis, where she’s majoring in tourism, conventions and events management, and she teaches at Butler University’s Jordan Academy of Dance and at the Indy Dance Club. She’s also delved into modeling, acting and singing.
“It’s just so exciting,” said Winfrey, who appeared on the Price Is Right game show during a summer vacation to Los Angeles. “I just don’t want it to stop. It’s like a roller coaster that keeps going up.”
Her part-time job with the Colts has been a highlight, and it gave Winfrey the chance to tour Europe and the Middle East last year while entertaining American soldiers. But she knows she can’t roam the sidelines forever, saying, “It’s one of those things where you reach your prime pretty fast.”
Winfrey said she aspires to be a model or actress, and her passion for performing was evident early on. Her mother said she used to walk around the kitchen using a spoon as a microphone, and Winfrey was often working on dance moves and trying to emulate performers such as Beyonce.
“This is what she’s always loved,” Gilmore said. “She’s made us very, very proud – not just with cheering for the Colts but overall. She’s been a great kid.
“She’s living, I guess, the beginning of her dream. I know it’s just the beginning.”
Speaking of beginnings, Winfrey’s were fairly humble. She was a cheerleader at Irons Junior High but not at Coronado, where she tried out twice for the pom squad but didn’t make it.
Instead she became a mascot for the Mustangs – “I was the first and pretty sure the only mascot to be homecoming queen,” Winfrey said – and she also played basketball and volleyball and ran track. She participated in beauty pageants as well, winning a crown as Miss Teen North Texas.
Winfrey said her experience with the Coronado pom squad made her hesitant about trying out with the Colts cheerleading squad, but after spending two years on the dance team at IUPUI and receiving constant encouragement from her parents, she worked up the nerve to give it a shot.
According the Theresa Pottratz, the Colts’ cheerleading coordinator, Winfrey was an immediate hit because of her dancing ability and personality.
“I never thought I would be doing dancing as my profession. I couldn’t even make the Coronado pom squad,” said Winfrey, who has survived two, fiercely competitive tryouts with the Colts. “It made me persevere for more, and I’m doing a lot now.”
Now Winfrey is living her dream, and she’s only one Colts win away from earning a Super Bowl ring. But if the Colts beat the Saints today for their second championship in four years, Winfrey might have to keep that ring under lock and key.
“If she does get a Super Bowl ring, I’m trying to see if I can bribe her to give it to her mother,” Gilmore joked. “So far, it’s not working.”
By Sheila Stroup
The Times-Picayune
When Lesslee Fitzmorris stands on the sidelines at Sun Life Stadium tonight, she’ll be watching the Super Bowl in a whole new way.
Fitzmorris, who has managed and directed the Saintsations since 2001, has been producing Super Bowl pregame shows and cheerleading clinics for the NFL since 1986. She has worked with everyone from Willie Nelson and Paul McCartney to Tina Turner and Beyonce.
So she’s still getting used to the idea of going to Miami just to watch the New Orleans Saints play.
“At the end of the Vikings game, I thought, ‘Oh, my God, my home team is going to the Super Bowl!’ I still can’t quite believe it, ” she says.
Fitzmorris’ parents were Saints season-ticket holders from the beginning, and when she was in junior high, she started going to games with her father, Bob Fitzmorris.
“I think about my dad all the time, ” she says. “On those drives from Slidell, I’d complain because nobody ever asked me out. He’d tell me, ‘If you want boys to notice you, you’ve got to learn to talk two things: fishing and football.'”
She was on the Slidell High School dance team, and after she graduated, her dad, who was the St. Tammany Parish clerk of court, encouraged her to try out for the LSU Golden Girls.
“I tried out just because he asked me to, and I made the team, ” she says.
Fitzmorris was packed to leave for Baton Rouge and her first dance team practice when her father died suddenly of a heart attack.
“He was only 41, ” she says. “I drove to that first practice, and then I drove home and we buried my dad.”
What got her through the difficult days that followed her father’s death was dance team practice and working with members of the LSU Tiger Band.
“Everybody just embraced me and kept me going, ” she says. “I couldn’t have made it through my freshman year without them.”
As a college student in need of money, Fitzmorris started working with high school dance and drill teams, putting on dance camps and teaching them routines. It was a natural progression. When she was a young girl, she liked to organize the kids in her neighborhood and put on little shows.
“People who grew up with me say I was always bossing people around, ” she says.
She was attending law school at Loyola University in 1985 when a bout with bacterial meningitis changed the trajectory of her life.
“I was in the hospital to have my spleen removed, and the doctors told me I had a 65 percent chance of not surviving, ” she says. “I learned at a very young age that time is precious.”
By then, her dance team camps had evolved into a business, American All Star Dance, and had spread all over Louisiana and to other states. When she was lying in her hospital bed, minus a spleen but happy to be alive, she had an idea: She knew a lot of young dancers with talent, and the Super Bowl was going to be in New Orleans in 1986. She could put on a little show in the Superdome.
“I called information and said, ‘Give me the number for the NFL, ‘ ” she says.
She figured she had nothing to lose. She got through to the director of special events. She talked. He listened. She went to Manhattan to meet with league officials. They said yes. And she put on her first splashy pregame show at Super Bowl XX.
After graduating from law school, she practiced law in Covington for a few years, but her dance team business and work with the NFL soon took up most of her time.
“I said, ‘I’m just going to do this until they quit calling.’ And they’re still calling, ” she says.
By the early 1990s, she had directed and choreographed the International Special Olympics closing ceremonies, an Academy Awards show and two Emmy Awards shows, along with her Super Bowl pregame shows. And she and her husband, Royce Mitchell, had a daughter, Caroline, and a son, William.
“And then the years just kept going by, ” Fitzmorris, 51, says.
When the Saints hired her company to produce and manage the Saintsations nine years ago, she wanted to make them “the best in the league.” She knew, from growing up a tall blonde dancer, that people have certain ideas about cheerleaders and dance teams.
“It’s not just about dancing, ” she says. “They are successful young women who will go out into the world and become leaders.”
Her Saintsations go through a three-part application process: First, they have a dance audition. Next, they have a formal interview with community business leaders. And to make the final cut, they have to pass a football quiz.
“They have to know the positions. They have to know every team and every mascot, and what division each team is in, ” Fitzmorris says. “I want them to know as much about football as the fans do.”
Most of them are college students or are starting careers. As Saintsations, they’re involved in community-service projects.
“They work with Angels’ Place and the Susan B. Komen Foundation, and they make dozens of public appearances, ” Fitzmorris says. “Some of them have been to Mexico. Some have gone to Iraq and Afghanistan.”
The Saints cheerleaders also put on workshops for Junior Saintsations.
“They’re role models for little girls, ” she says.
They learn how to dodge players, referees, camera operators, and those guys who run around with the flags when the Saints make a touchdown. They learn what it means to be celebrities, too. The 10,000 2010 Saintsation Swimsuit Calendars that were printed are nearly sold old. People constantly ask them for autographs. And they saw country superstar Kenny Chesney snapping pictures of them during a recent Saints game.
“They figure out that celebrities are just people, ” Fitzmorris says.
She calls this season’s Saintsations “the dream team.”
“There’s something really special about them, ” she says.
She started the season by taking them on a three-day retreat in Destin, Fla., last spring.
“It was 34 girls and three bathrooms, ” she says. “And I took their cell phones away, so they had to connect with each other.”
It ended up being a wonderful experience for them. They shared the bathrooms and their lives, and they vowed to be there for each other on and off the field.
“They’re good girls, ” Fitzmorris says. “I’m strict with them, but they know I love them and care about them.”
And she’s thrilled that her dream team is going to have the best seat in the house for Super Bowl IVXL.
“I’m proud of them, and I’m proud of our football team, ” she says. “Now, we just want to bring that Vince Lombardi Trophy home.”
Fitzmorris already knows what her favorite part of the Super Bowl will be: watching the faces of the awe-struck Saints players and cheerleaders while they listen to Carrie Underwood sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” and realize the final football game of the season is about to begin.
“The national anthem is always very moving, ” she says. “I think when people go there and see it, they’ll understand why I’ve been going back for 25 years.”
By Ted Sillanpaa,
Napa Valley Register
Don’t try to tell Napa native Jackie Rowan that the cheerleaders will be a mere distraction during Super Bowl XLIV today in Miami.
“Cheerleaders play an important role in the atmosphere surrounding the game and the franchise,” said Rowan, who will be on the sidelines today as a member of the New Orleans Saints cheerleading squad. “To refer to us as sideline ‘eye candy’ fails to account for the countless hours we spend at appearances for charity and as volunteers in the communities.”
Rowan, who has been in Miami through the week leading up to the showdown between the NFC champion Saints and the AFC champion Indianapolis Colts, actually believes she and her peers are part of the much larger team.
“We cheer and hope alongside Saints fans,” Rowan, 24, said. “We are a constant reminder of the special bond between New Orleans and the Saints.”
Today’s kickoff might be a bit of a breather for Rowan and her cheer teammates after a hectic week.
“Our schedule is crazy! I’ve never been to Miami before, but the city has just been buzzing with excitement,” she said. “There isn’t a place I go without overhearing someone talk about the Super Bowl.”
Rowan spent hours involved in Super Bowl media appearances and other events.
“Some of us did a swim suit show and after that it was press, press and more press,” she said. “We practiced in the hotel ball room until Friday and then practiced in the stadium.”
She’s excited about the opportunity to be part of the biggest game of the National Football League season.
“Each cheer team performs a pregame dance, and then of course we’ll be on the sidelines dancing the whole game,” Rowan said. “It’s amazing to think that I’m going to have the best seat at the Super Bowl … on the field right on the 50-yard line.”
Napa High grad Jackie Rowan, shown signing autographs as a 49ers Cheerleader Ambassador, has spent the season on the cheer squad for the NFC champion New Orleans Saints.Rowan, who danced at Napa High School for four years before graduating in 2003, began as part of the San Francisco 49ers cheerleaders.
“I was working in San Francisco and thought the opportunity would be exciting and challenging,” Rowan said. “I wanted to apply my passion for dance to a professional yet heart-pounding environment. I tried out and was thrilled to be placed on the 49ers Gold Rush Ambassador Squad.”
Rowan moved to New Orleans to attend Tulane University, where she studies anthropology.
“More specifically, I’m studying primatology,” she said. “I decided to pursue job opportunities after high school. I do envision graduate school in my near future.”
Rowan went through the challenging process of trying to earn a spot on the Saints cheerleading squad after arriving in Louisiana.
“We went through a series of intense auditions, evaluating our dance abilities, physical fitness, and personalities,” she said. “The panel looked for energy, confidence, enthusiasm, and the willingness to work towards a common goal. I made it through the rounds of selections and, before I knew it, I was at the new team orientation retreat on the beaches of Destin, Fla.”
Between school, a job and cheerleading, Rowan has been busy.
“I must balance school, internship, and cheerleading in what often seems like an impossible schedule,” she said. “Most days I’m running out of class to head to the practice facility or squeezing in a late workout after a long day at my primate internship. This has certainly been a wild ride, but provided important lessons in time management.
“Cheerleading dominates Tuesday, Thursday and often Saturday nights in addition to Sunday afternoon or evening home games. We put in extra practice time for prime-time games on Sunday and Monday nights and for the playoffs.”
Rowan is a football fan, but acknowledges that devotion to the sport is different in her new hometown.
“I have always enjoyed the game of football, but the experience is incredibly different in Louisiana,” she said. “From the ear-piercing screams from fans in the Superdome to massive block parties before and after games, I have grown to love the excitement and hype surrounding football.”
Still, she admits that her love for dancing drew her to the Saints.
“The opportunity to dance and cheer under the spotlight was at the core of my interests,” Rowan said.
Saints cheerleaders are especially busy on game day.
“We generally arrive at the stadium up to six hours prior to game time,” she said. “We have some time at our lockers to do some essential touch-ups before dealing with press appearances, etc. We will go through some progressions of player introductions, quarter-break dances, and halftime entertainment.”
It’s harder than some might believe to keep pace as an NFL cheerleader.
“We’re constantly and rapidly learning new dances with different alignments and positions,” Rowan mentioned. “We have to have flexible memories to master dances for stadium and television audience in just a few days.”
Her year with the Saints cheerleaders has been rewarding.
“I have so many friendships that I developed with my fellow teammates,” she said. “These amazing girls gather from all corners of the state of Louisiana, and come together to form a family. We have all grown so close over the course of this remarkable season, and have made memories that will last a lifetime.”
Rowan knows her time at Tulane will lead to her ultimate career goal.
“I would like to continue to work with animals, and specifically primates, in a research capacity,” she said. “I want to explore the intersection of primate behavior and environmental change, and address issues relating to captivity habitat management.”
When the New Orleans Saints go marching into the Super Bowl this Sunday, one fortunate local woman will be with them every step of the way.
Rachel Selzer, a former Pearl River Community College student from Carriere, excelled in the three areas of competition to win a coveted position on the prestigious Saints’ Cheerleaders Saintsations team.
In addition to advanced dance technical skills, applicants were judged by area professionals in one-on-one interviews, and tested on football fundamentals.
Rachel is currently attending Loyola University of New Orleans where she is an accounting major. She is on the Dean’s List, dances with the Loyola Ballet, is an active member in Alpha Chi Omega Sorority, and volunteers with Loyola Community Action Program.
Besides being on President’s List at PRCC, she served as president of both Student Government Association and the Iota Mu chapter of Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society. Rachel also served as co_captain of the fall squad of String of Pearls Dance Team.
Rachel is also a 2006 graduate of the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science located in Columbus.
Rachel was a 2009 summer intern at the New Orleans office of Ernst & Young. She works at the Joseph A. Butt S.J. College of Business at Loyola University during the school year.
Rachel’s success with Saintsations and life in general goes back to her loving family and her wonderful experiences at Leisha’s School of Dance in Picayune. Her family and fellow dancers have continually pushed Rachel to do her best and work hard to achieve her dreams.
Anyone close to Rachel knows it has always been her dream to represent the city of New Orleans by cheering on the Saints. Rachel elaborates that, “Even though I still don’t know what it truly means to be a Saintsation, I am learning and growing as a dancer and as a young women while doing my best to fill these great shoes with which I have been blessed.”
In addition to performing at NFL Saints home football games, the Saintsations have traveled to Iraq and Afghanistan to visit troops and were recognized for their community service efforts by the Louisiana Legislature.
The Saintsations support community projects through the “Saintsations Inspiration Program.” The primary focus of the 2009 program is to promote positive initiatives geared toward women and children. They have worked hand_in_hand with Angel’s Place in New Orleans. This non_profit organization provides care and comfort for terminally ill children.
According to team manger, Lesslee Fitzmorris, “the Saintsations are influential role models to the youth in our communities and the judges felt that Rachel could live up to the expectations the fans have come to expect from these young ladies.
“We look for young women who are committed to leading a healthy, productive lifestyle both on and off the field. Rachel is a true representative of the youth and talent in the New Orleans area. We are proud to have her as a member of the 2009-2010 team.”
Rachel is the daughter of Jerry and Bonnie Selzer of Carriere, and granddaughter of the late Jerry and Mabel Selzer of Slidell and the late Jean and Frances Milloit of Metairie.
Candace of the St. Louis Rams Cheerleaders
Raven of the St. Louis Rams Cheerleaders
Raven earned a Bachelor of Science in Public Affairs from Indiana University-Bloomington and her Juris Doctorate from St. Louis University School of Law.
Jade of the Cincinnati Ben-Gals
Jade is a civil litigation attorney who earned her J.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Law and her B.A in Political Science from Xavier University.
Betsy of the Minnesota Swarm Performance Team
From Betsy’s Bio:
By my senior year of college I decided to go to law school and put my love of dance and performing on hold. I originally attended law school because of my interest in politics and public policy. After graduating I decided to put my degree to use and practice as an attorney instead of going into the government sector. I currently practice in a small firm in several different areas of law. I am constantly challenged at my job and stay busy running from depositions to arbitrations to the courtroom. I enjoy my days the most when I have several things to juggle at once.
Our ever growing list of attorneys is here.
The Philadelphia Wings have updated the Angels website with new photos and bios of the 2010 team.
Check it out here.
