Winthrop Viking Youth Cheer: A Season of Success, Teamwork and Community Spirit

Special to the Transcript

Winthrop Viking Youth Cheer is a wonderful 501c3 organization rooted in our community for the last 6 years. Our board of directors and coaches are comprised of 20 volunteers that bring a positive experience to over 120+ cheerleaders in grades K-8.  We foster teamwork, confidence, pride in our town, and a love for the sport. Through hard work and dedication, our cheerleaders are well-prepared for both game days and competitions, and we are proud to watch them flourish both on and off the mat.

Although our cheer season is only 12 weeks long, our board of directors meet year round to plan ahead for the season. Our cost per cheerleader is more than 2.5 times what our organization charges for tuition. By effectively managing expenses and through the generosity of our sponsors, and a grant received this year from Massport, we were able to keep tuition prices flat while purchasing new, elite uniforms for our 7 & 8th grade teams. Many of our cheer families are also amazing supporters of our program.

Our Coaches work tirelessly to prepare their teams for game day and competitions.  Our game day cheerleaders attend football games in all weather conditions and were very appreciative of Winthrop Youth Football providing each cheerleader with a flower to thank them for cheering on the football players.

Competition cheerleading is unlike any other sport where we do not have anyone waiting on a bench to substitute in. Every cheerleader plays an important role and therefore there is a high level of commitment required, including mandatory practice attendance. We are grateful to be able to hold our practices locally thanks to the partnerships we have cultivated with the Pleasant Park Yacht Club and Saint Michael’s Parish. Last year we received funds from the Winthrop Foundation to purchase a set of mats which allows us to have two locations to practice and accommodate the increasing interest in cheer. Without their dedicated support, we would not have a reliable and safe place to practice for our cheerleaders. We are proud to partner with the Winthrop High School Cheerleaders who graciously volunteer their time to support and guide our youth cheerleaders in developing various cheerleading skills and being amazing role models.

All four of our competition teams participated in two different competitions this Fall.  On October 19th, our teams headed to Pentucket Regional High School to participate in the Cheer For A Cure, an amazing event that donates a portion of their proceeds to Breast Cancer research. Our A Team placed 2nd, our C Team placed 3rd, our D Team placed 4th and our E Team placed 3rd.   On November 9th, our teams headed to Boston to participate in the New England Cheer and Dance competition.  Winthrop swept the competition with both E and D Teams placing 2nd, and C and A Teams placing first!  We could not be prouder of our girls and the hard work and dedication they put into this season.