High School students take time out to coach Pop Warner football players and cheerleaders.
By: Melissa Hayes
Several South Brunswick High School students are remembering their roots by lending their time and expertise as coaches to Pop Warner cheerleaders and football players.
"I love working with little kids," said Brian Holder, a senior and captain of the high-school football team.
After his own rigorous football practices, he heads over to Crossroads South twice a week to coach Junior Pee Wee football. He also attends all their weekend games unless he has a game of his own.
Brian said he began coaching four years ago when someone suggested he get involved.
He said he’s always liked giving others tips and helping them improve their game.
"My friends used to call me coach because I used to give them tips and help," he said.
Brian said he is thinking about studying sports medicine in college and would like to continue coaching in the future.
The Junior Pee Wee coaches appreciate his dedication to the kids.
"This is a really great young man," coach Dave Olcott said. "He’s broken his butt for these kids," he said.
In addition to the gridiron, high school students are helping their younger peers in other ways. The Pop Warner cheerleaders have several junior coaches, and Charlotte Quigley, program director, says it would be difficult to run the program without them.
"In cheerleading, we rely heavily on their skills to make our teams competitive, since not too many of our adult coaches are active cheerleaders," she said.
The junior coaches help teach the teams how to perform certain stunts such as jumps and lifts.
"Some of our junior coaches choreograph routines and cheers for their squads," Ms. Quigley said.
Kerry Quigley, a junior and Charlotte Quigley’s daughter, is one of the junior coaches.
Kerry, who has been coaching for four years, choreographed this year’s half-time performance as well a routine for the Central Jersey Pop Warner Cheer Competition, which took place Oct. 16 at the Sovereign Bank Arena.
Kerry is not a high-school cheerleader, but is a member of a competitive cheerleading squad.
She got involved when her mother asked for her help.
"She asked me to help teach a cheer to the teams and I stuck," Kerry said.
Kerry said all of the coaches are volunteers and some of them have never been cheerleaders. With her experience, she is able to bring new cheers and dance routines to the team she works with.
Lindsay Heimlich, a senior, hadn’t been a cheerleader since seventh-grade Pop Warner but was more than happy to get involved two years ago.
"It’s giving back to the community," Lindsay said.
Lindsay said she and the other junior coaches attend a 2- to 2 ½-hour practice three times a week on average. The junior coaches also attend their team’s competitions and football games on the weekends.
"It would be very difficult to run the cheerleading program without the expertise of the junior coaches," Ms. Quigley said.
Kristina Bonfiglio, a sophomore, who is in her first year of coaching the Mitey Mite Cheerleaders, Alexandra Chinsky, a senior, who has coached the Midget Cheerleaders for three years, and Brittney Mickens, a junior, who has coached Pee Wee Cheerleaders for two years, were unavailable for interviews.
All of the junior coaches were program participants when they were younger.