Fantastic tryouts were held in the Spring of 2003, but soon lead to dismay. We were informed shortly after tryouts, by the Athletic Director, that the cheerleading program would be removed from the Athletic Department due to budget cuts. Ultimately, this meant that there would be no funding for scholarships, uniforms, travel, or a coach. Due to that unfortunate circumstance, we lost six of ten cheerleaders. However, the four remaining cheerleaders, rather than backing down and quitting, re-held tryouts in the Fall of 2003. Thankfully, we were able to find cheerleaders willing to dedicate their time without scholarship funding as well as three volunteer sponsors. Through the combined knowledge of the squad members, we are a self-coached squad.
As we’re sure you know, without funding comes the need for fundraising. Each cheerleader was responsible for raising $500 for uniforms and equipment—quite a fete for busy college students, but, due to our dedication, we reached our goal much faster than we all had imagined. Thanks to the number of fundraisers -- a car wash, bake sale, cheer clinic, No-Show Banquet, and cookbook sales -- we now have the uniforms, shoes, bags, warm-ups and poms for which we worked so diligently.
Our fundraising duties are not over, we will now focus our efforts to fund expenses for travel to
competitions, as well as to get an early start for funds
needed for the 2004-2005 season. We send our deepest gratitude to all who helped us financially and spiritually to achieve these goals. We invite all St. Gregory’s fans to show the same support for our teams while attending sporting events.
Thank you again for your time and support!!
Cheers!
Alexis Berland
Vice-President
