The “Sweethearts for Soldiers” idea was conceived and put into action by Bari Yonkers and Tonya Helman in 2006. They are two former and current NFL cheerleaders who wanted to give other former NFL Cheerleaders and NBA Dancers a unique way to continue their support for the troops. The “Sweethearts for Soldiers” do this by producing a annual charity calendar, boosting morale stateside and overseas with their variety tours, and continually giving back to those who fight for their country on a daily basis.
Got a message from Misty Phillips:
I am really involved with the Friendswood (TX) Lady Mustangs Cheer/Drill program and we are 6 weeks away from our Drill competition and our choreographer quit and we need 2 more dances. If you or anyone you know could help us out. It would be wonderful. It is a group of 9 girls ages 7-13. If you need more info, please call: 832.367.8538, I get off at 5pm and am free to talk at that point. Thanks either way.
By Sam Oshinsky
BlackandWhite.net
Varsity cheerleading has a new coach who plans to push the squad to new heights. The new coach, Christi Weems, won awards cheering at Virginia Tech and now cheers for the Washington Redskins.
Weems started cheering in high school and immediately knew she wanted to take it to the next level, setting her sights on professional cheerleading. Last year, she achieved her goal when the Redskins hired her to be a Redskinnette.
“It’s so exciting to see how energetic and crazy the fans get,” Weems said in a Gameday magazine story.christi weems “It’s kind of overwhelming, but it’s so fun to know that you can help get everyone excited about their school and sports.”
Weems hopes that being a Redskinette and a high school coach will help her achieve her ultimate goal in the sport.
“Ever since I started cheering, I knew that I wanted to continue on to higher and higher levels,” Weems said. “Someday I hope to coach in college.”
When Weems heard that last year’s coach, Jennifer Hyson, had left because she was accepted into graduate school in Minnesota, Weems jumped at the opportunity to coach and quickly got the job.
Team captain Natalie Vernigor said the team members are excited to have Weems lead them. Weems has been a huge hit with the team, already greatly improving the quality of the squad.
“We’re lucky to have Christi,” Vernigor says. “We’ve gotten so far in such a short time, and we’re already putting up difficult stunts.”
Weems uses the experience she gained from Virginia Tech, one of the nation’s top cheerleading schools, and from cheering with the Redskins to help improve the team.
Senior Kimya Farivari appreciates the experience and dedication Weems brings to the team.
“She’s different because she makes us work a lot harder than the other coaches,” Farivari says.
Last year, the squad won its spring competition, and with Weems’ experience, the team members have high expectations for the year.
“I really like how the team is coming together and I really look forward to this year.” Weems says. “We have a great squad, everyone works together so well.”
The Buffalo Jills had their Calendar Release Party this past weekend and our friend Phil was there:
Club Paradise in Blasdell, NY was the place to be Saturday night as the 2009 Buffalo Jills held their annual Calendar Release Party. As if a calendar that hot actually needed any help getting sold, the Jills pull out all the stops for this event every year. In addition to raffles and getting to mingle with Buffalo’s Beauties, fans got to see a hot dance performance that featured many of the Jills dancers in a group of dances that took over 3 minutes in total. Keep in mind that most performances are generally about a minute in length so the Jills put a bunch of regular performances together into one big one. But to top that all off, the big attraction is basically seeing the calendar in 3-D as the Buffalo Jills came out on the Club Paradise dance floor to model the swimwear from the calendar.
Photos and video at Phil’s blog.
This episode of On The Flipside is all NFL Cheerleaders. Aubrey Aquino follows the Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, Oakland Raiderettes on their calendar shoots.
This week the Philadelphia Eagles Cheerleaders are at Maxim.com
See the photos here.
[Philadelphia Eagles Cheerleaders]
By Steve Mazzucchi
Esquire
She may be a rookie pom-pom shaker, but Week Three’s expert has plenty to say about getting better angles than the referee, recovering from bonehead plays, and the secret success behind the color of a football jersey.
Talk about a seesaw battle. All nine scores in yesterday’s Texans-Jaguars clash resulted in lead changes. And while Jacksonville’s last touchdown came with a full fourteen minutes left, Houston squandered its final three possessions in a 31-24 loss with two punts, a touchdown negated by an offensive pass-interference penalty, and a goal-line fumble. We asked Brandi, a skydiving, weight-pumping Louisiana native, for her take on the Texans’ last stand, the key to a turnaround (“It’s about time we put it together”), and her not-so-ho-hum day job (“I run a sixteen-bed neurological rehabilitation center — a very courageous group”).
ESQUIRE: Rough loss. What was the team’s biggest problem on the field?
BRANDI: It’s hard to pin down one thing. I thought we put in a good effort, but we made a lot of simple mistakes here and there. The pass-interference call that cost us a touchdown and the fumble that cost us the game really stand out.
ESQ: What was going through your mind during that fumble, with just two minutes left on the clock?
B: Oh, wow — a lot of emotions. We challenged the call. I’m not sure if that was wishful thinking or nerves, but I just knew there wasn’t indisputable evidence. Waiting for that ref to come back, I was biting my nails I was so nervous. The fans made their opinions very clear, but it’s hard to say if they were upset about the call or the play in general. A fumble at the goal line is a sticky situation; no one likes to be there. We’ll move on from that. Hopefully we learned something from it.
ESQ: Going into the game, the Texans were 7-2 when wearing their Battle Red uniforms. Do you think the color makes a difference?
B: There’s been a lot of research about that. In college I studied psychology, and we did a study about whether the color of a team’s jersey affects a referee’s calls. We found that a dark-colored jersey, like black, is associated with being the bad guy, so you may get more flags than a team wearing white jerseys. But winning in red uniforms, I think that’s probably a coincidence.
ESQ: Maurice Jones-Drew, whom Jaguars cheerleader Kelli Schaible told us last week was a fantasy-football stud, rushed for 119 yards and three TDs. How can the Texans bottle him up when they face the Jags again in Week Thirteen?
B: That’s a tough one. I have to give credit where credit is due. He’s good. He’s fast. We need to fill those holes and not let him get that initial break. Once he gets through to the secondary, it’s tough to catch him.
ESQ: Did you see any encouraging signs from the Texans?
B: I thought Matt Schaub came out more aggressive — it was encouraging to see him move out of the pocket and run if necessary. Andre Johnson, we love him — he’s a favorite. And Steve Slaton is ready to break out — I think we’re going to see more and more from him. We need balance in our offense, and he’ll do that for us.
ESQ: Got a fantasy sleeper for next week?
B: Jacoby Jones. Johnson keeps the defense guessing, and when opposing teams double-team him it opens up opportunities for Schaub’s other options. Jones has two touchdowns in his last two games.
ESQ: While we’re dropping names, your squad has three Ashleys, identical twins Larisa and Marisa, a Randi, a Candy, and a Brandi. Ever get mixed up?
B: Well, the three Ashleys go by their last names. Larisa and Marisa, some of the girls who’ve been on the squad a long time can tell the difference, but I can’t. I just say, “Hey, Twin!” or “Larisa!” and judge by the girl’s face if that’s right or wrong. With Randi, Candy, and Brandi, we just have to listen a little closer. But when I go to appearances with Candy or Randi, I can feel people looking at us funny, like, “Come on, are those really you all’s names?” We get a Sandy and a Mandy, that’ll be half the squad.
ESQ: Before the season, a lot of people were again saying this was going to be the year the Texans finally broke through and made the playoffs. Did they over-hype the team?
B: I wouldn’t say we’re over-hyped. We have the potential — that’s what the hype is about. It’s just about tapping into it. We’re still a relatively new team, but it’s about time we put it together and make it happen.
ESQ: The team’s 1-2 and at home against the Raiders next week. Is that a must-win game?
B: It’s a must-win for me. I would love to go 2-2, get back to .500, and go from there. I don’t think the season’s over if we don’t win, and I wouldn’t discount the Raiders — they’re a good team — but this is it. No more losing at home.
Voting in the The Fifth Annual Minnesota Vikings Cheerleaders Survivor Contest is underway.
First round balloting ends October 10th.
Stephanie and her 2005 MVC Survivor Award
Cast your vote here.
Previous winners here.
[Minnesota Vikings Cheerleaders]
The Boston Blazers are a relatively new team in the National Lacrosse League, starting play in the 2009 season. The Blazers Dance Team, The Sparks, are under the direction and choreographed by Jennifer. Jennifer graduated from Franklin & Marshall College with a degree in Psychology and a Dance Minor, before going on to earn her Masters from the Harvard School of Public Health.
As the Sparks second season approaches (tryouts were this past weekend), Jennifer took time out of her busy schedule to answer a few of our questions.
Q: What was it like building the Sparks Dance Team from the ground up?
A: It truly was an amazing once in a lifetime experience. It’s really exciting to create a vision and see it come to reality in a way that is much better than I could have imagined. The Blazers management has played a key role in our early success through their support and recognition of the dance team’s efforts. I cannot say enough about the talent and dedication of our Sparks dancers, it’s really an honor to be directing them and the friendships we have made and times we have shared through this experience are invaluable to me. It all culminates when we actually get to show off our hard work and get in front of the Boston Blazers fans, they are the best fans in the NLL (National Lacrosse League) and we want to make them proud!
Q: You’re a Senior Financial Analyst with a Masters from the Harvard School of Public Health. What’s the reaction from people when they learn you Direct and Choreograph a Pro Sports Dance Team?
A: I think the reaction is primarily surprise because they may have a stereotypical image in their head about cheerleaders/dancers and then curiosity about the Blazers and indoor lacrosse along with how I have the time to do it outside of work. I am now a finance manager so people tend to see me in a certain context at work which may be very different from my role as a dance team director/choreographer. The reality is that most dancers and dance team directors may need to have full time jobs outside of dance but we dance because we love it and love to perform. I’m happy to do anything I can to help reshape the stereotype and represent today’s dancers and cheerleaders in a new light as both talented and intelligent individuals so thanks to Ultimate Cheerleader for the opportunity to do that!
Q: What does your day job entail?
My typical day at work involves negotiating financial deals with companies who want to do research at our hospitals and making sure my team is running smoothly to provide our core services. As a manger, my role is not unlike my role as the Sparks director/choreographer. While they are totally different content, the roles have similarities in managing your team to provide the best end product for your customers. As you can imagine, it can be pretty intense working in finance at this time but that’s all the more reason I look forward to our Sparks practices and games!
Q: What’s one thing potential members of the Sparks Dance Team should avoid at auditions?
A: Hmm, that’s a tough one and I might turn the question around a little bit to what I would advise for girls to do at auditions, which would be bringing their “A” game and showing us their individual personalities through dance and what they can bring to the table. Show us your “SPARK!”
Q: Anything special you’ve got planned for the fans this season?
A: The Sparks want to build on our success from our first season and keep working hard to provide both new and existing fans with top quality entertainment and raise the bar for the in-game experience. We have a couple surprises in the works that I can’t reveal at this time but I promise we’ll be hard at work all pre-season and hopefully we will see you at the games!
[Boston Blazers Sparks Dance Team]
From FOX2NOW.com
Five St. Louis Rams Cheerleaders have returned from a goodwill trip to Afghanistan. It was the group’s second overseas trip in six months. They visited troops in Iraq and Kuwait last February.Kate, one of the cheerleaders who made the trip, appeared on FOX 2 News in the Morning where she talked about the trip, what the women did, and just how safe they felt in a war zone.
The tour lasted eight days. The cheerleaders signed autographs, posed for pictures and performed for soldiers at their various stops.
