My thoughts on varsity poms: An Urbana pom team member’s perspective
IJAMSVILLE, Md. — I joined community Poms when I was in elementary school and participated in it up until the pandemic. I had an awesome Coach (shout out to Coach Buffy) and loved doing it. Part of what made her awesome was her dedication to being exceptional. “No spaghetti arms!” is a phrase I’ll never forget. As someone in the youth program, I always admired the Urbana Varsity Poms when we did Youth Night and when we went to the football games.They made everyone at the game stop and take notice. They were always incredible performance-wise, but I did not know how incredible the girls were community-wise.
I was so happy to be able to dance with the Varsity team this year. It has taught me a lot – how a team is supposed to work, respect for one another, and especially discipline. Part of being on the team is learning how to work with each other. I admire each and every one of the girls on the team for the top-notch effort they put in – not only to the dances, but the camaraderie of the group and to Coach Sonja who is dedicated to not only putting on a great show, but also making it fun and supportive. Part of being on a team is being there for each other, meaning that if someone was missing something, someone would step up and provide so that each girl would be able to dance with the rest of the team. This is what makes us such a strong team with such strong bonds and connections within.
Another key to the success of our team is our respect for each other, our coaches, and for each other’s efforts and time. Without respect being a key part of this team, I am not sure we would be able to do what we have done.
Poms has brought me closer with some of the girls that I now call my best friends and has provided the best memories – especially game days. Waking up at the crack of dawn to exchange spirit bags before the first game, huddling up, goofing off at practice, and dressing up for school, even including when we had to dress up as trolls for senior night is something that I will never forget.
The energy that comes from all of the girls on game day is just immeasurable. Everyone just lights up. Those 10 minutes that we are down on the track before we perform, running through the dances, stretching, and goofing off – warms my heart even though the weather is often cold or rainy. I am so thankful for the opportunity, the memories, the girls, and the coaches that I have had the privilege to work with this past season and I hope to be back next year.
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