Fostoria cheerleaders perform at Disney World

Fostoria Junior/Senior High School senior cheerleaders Evelyn Guernsey, Trinity Jackson and DrewAnn Miller have been privy to a few perks in the past year. And, for what they've loyally put into the school's cheer program since they were seventh-graders, why not? "They deserve it," Fostoria cheer coach Melissa Mason said. Mason recently accompanied the three local students on a four-day expense-paid trip to Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, where the girls were among more than 800 cheerleaders who were selected to take part in representing Varsity Spirit camps, hosted by the Universal Cheerleaders Association, in the Varsity Spirit Spectacular. On consecutive days in late November, the cheerleaders, divided into two groups of about 400, performed while marching along Main Street USA in the Magic Kingdom, which is one of four Disney Parks in Orlando, Florida. Fostoria Order of Eagles 430 and the Tri-County Dental Center sponsored the local girls' trip. This experience came on the heels of last February's trip to Disney's Universal Studios, where Fostoria finished second in the small varsity, traditional division of the Americas Cheerleading Cup Championship. Fostoria plans to again compete this year, on Feb. 8 and 9. The opportunity for the November experience arose when Fostoria hosted a Varsity Spirit summer camp and Universal Cheerleaders Association representatives gave the seniors application forms for the event. Cheerleaders had to be seniors, captains or co-captains to be selected. And not only were the Fostoria seniors selected, but each was given All-America recognition. "It's cool," Miller said. "There are other events, too, that, as an All-American, you're welcome to go to. There's one in Hawaii, one in London, and at the Cheez-It Bowl. Disney was a fun experience, to be there with a whole bunch of other cheerleaders. The first night, we had, like a five-hour practice." With about 800 cheerleaders present, divisions into groups were a necessity. "They had to split us up because there were so many girls, so there were Team Mickey and Team Minnie," Jackson said. "Team Mickey performed on Saturday; Team Minnie performed on Sunday. It depended on your state. We were Team Minnie, so we performed on Sunday." Two days before their performance, the cheerleaders were fitted for uniforms, had photographs taken and went through other preliminary activities before actually practicing. "There were so many of us, we had to sit for, like, an hour and a half and we got to know each other," Guernsey said. "We separated into groups of 25. Then, we had a UCA member who was in charge of us and we played games and we got lined up in two different groups and we practiced our routine. We learned different counts and we learned how to march it, so we had to go around this ballroom, like, four times, and the parents came in and watched." The cheerleaders enjoyed the sort of star turn they took while performing on Main Street USA. "It was definitely really cool to see all the little kids on the side," Miller said. "And then, after the parade, little kids would come up to us like we were famous. They wanted to hold our poms and talk to us. They were, like, 'Cheerleaders!' They saw us in the parade and they looked up to us. It was cool. It was definitely very fun." The girls' third trip to Florida will have them aiming at a finish higher than last year's at the Americas Cheerleading Cup Championship. "Be ready for us in February," Jackson said. "I think we can get first place, our whole team." Added Miller: "We're getting that ring this time."