"line-height: 115%; font-family:">BAY MINETTE, Alabama — Cheering

means long hours of practice, exercise and stretching, as well as

memorizing choreography and chants. Friday nights are spent on the

field, afternoons fill with rehearsals and, for the fortunate,

weekends become championship games, cheer competitions and special

events.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">While many 14-year-olds spend

free time in front of the television, playing video games or

texting their friends, one Bay Minette freshman can see years of

hard work begin to pay off.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Kristian “Kricket” White started

cheering at age 6 with the city of Bay Minette summer leagues and

PeeWee Cheerleading, she recalled. She has continued with the

junior varsity squad at Atmore’s Escambia Academy from seventh

grade through her current, ninth-grade year.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">She was chosen as one of 500

elementary, junior high and high school cheerleaders and dancers

from across the U.S. to perform in the UCA/UDA Thanksgiving Tour at

the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Kricket said she remembers the

news well.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“I found out on the last day of

UCA Cheerleading Camp that I was picked as one of the few to cheer

in the Disney Thanksgiving Day Parade,” she spoke with excitement.

“I was immediately thankful for the opportunity, and eager to

receive my uniform and routine DVD.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Her mother, Anita White, also

remembers Kricket’s joyous day.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“There were eight J.V. and six

varsity cheerleaders from E.A.,” she recalled. “There were hundreds

of girls that tried out, but Kricket was the only one chosen from

the EAJV Squad — I was very proud!”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Anita has seen her daughter

dedicate herself to the sport.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“Kricket is small for her age,

and has always loved to be the flyer — thrown in the air; she has

no fear,” she said. “She also has a broken arm right now, not from

a stunt, and the cast is supposed to come off (yesterday) before

Thanksgiving.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“We are keeping our fingers

crossed. Even with the cast on for the last four weeks she has been

cheering, sometimes in pain and yes, doing stunts,

too.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Kricket explained that many have

worked hard to strive for such honors.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“As a small but extremely

competitive squad, our sponsor, Mrs. Bobbi Sasser, has done nothing

less than shown us that if we want something, we need to work for

it,” she said. “This was proven to be true after hours of practice

with the material needed to try out for UCA

All-American.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“This parade will definitely be a

marvelous reward for the practice, as well as a beautiful

memory.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Kricket divulged that her

schedule fills quickly when it comes to the extracurricular

activity.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“I get the very first week of

summer off, and after that we have practice in the academy’s

basketball gymnasium at least once each day,” she explained. “I

also practice at home, and during seventh period of the school

day.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Anita agreed that much time is

taken in the pursuit of perfection.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“Practice is a beast; this past

summer they only had two weeks of no practice,” she said.

“Needless, to say, we plan our family vacations around

cheering.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“They practiced all summer in

Atmore, three to five days a week, and then a month before camp

they practiced four days a week, two times a day. Oh, and those

last four weeks were in the school gym, which does not have an air

conditioner.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">And that’s only the summertime

schedule, according to Anita.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“During the school year they have

practice three times a week after school,” she explained. “J.V.

games were either on Monday or Tuesday evening and the J.V. squad

cheers at those games, and then they ‘worked’ at the varsity home

games on Friday night.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“A lot of their games are far

away — Monroe Academy, Sparta Academy, Patrician Academy, there’s

lots of travel on school nights.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">While cheering takes up much of

her time, Kricket remembers that academics are most important,

Anita said.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“Kricket is on the honors track

at school, taking advanced classes and she has kept her grades up

and made the A-B honor roll this past nine weeks,” she spoke with

pride. “Kricket studies very hard, and is very conscious about

keeping her grades up.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Kricket said that grades and

other personality aspects drew her to cheering as much as the sport

itself.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“I became interested in

cheerleading early in my childhood, simply by watching movies of

cheerleaders and seeing the opportunities that they have to set

good examples in their community, influence the behavior of their

peers and to be an all-around nice person to hang out

with.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">Both mother and daughter believe

these life choices will make other dreams become realities, they

said.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“I think being a part of the

E.A.J.V. squad for the past three years has had a tremendous impact

on Kricket — she loves her squad and would do anything to protect

them,” Anita said. “The other J.V. girls are more than ‘sisters,’

they are best friends that look out for each other and encourage

each other.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“Our family has never been to

Disney, and we are taking this opportunity to go and spend the week

of Thanksgiving there. We probably would not be going, but the

package offered because she won this honor and is marching in the

parade is very affordable. We are also taking our 6-year-old

grandson, Maddox White, for his first trip to

Disney.”

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">A new experience for herself and

her family is another encouraging part of the trip, according to

Kricket.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“I’ve never been to Orlando; my

parents and my nephew, Maddox, have never been either — for that

reason alone, this should be a very wonderful experience for the

four of us,” she said. “We will be in Orlando a total of six days,

which gives us a big amount of time to do the things we wish to do,

and to have fun.

"line-height: 115%; font-family:">“This honor has changed my high

school life because it has made me realize how much fun

cheerleading truly can be. This experience will affect my future

because it has been brought to my attention just how important it

is to work hard for things that you want to succeed in. Also,

depending upon which profession I pursue, it may look good on my

college applications or job resumes. Who

knows?”