Vegas Cheer Authority sets up cheerleading teams for kids with intellectual disabilities

Cheerleaders are supposed to inspire a crowd. None do it better than these kids.

They are the Vegas Cheer Authority Aviators, a team created specifically for those with intellectual disabilities. One member, 18-year-old Shadow Ridge High School student Alexis Lenford, has wanted to be a cheerleader for as long as she can remember.

"She wants to be out there, cheerleading for the Lakers," said her mother, Melba Gordon. "But I know she’ll probably never get there.

"She wanted to be in something so bad. It was neat to be able to give her that."

The team has 15 members, ages 5 to 18, from all over the Las Vegas Valley. They meet two Saturdays each month at the VCA gym, 3630 N. Fifth St., Suite 100, near Interstate 15 and Cheyenne Avenue in North Las Vegas.

The team is preparing for its second competition since it formed last fall. The Aviators and other VCA cheer teams are scheduled to compete Saturday and Sunday at the JAMfest Nationals Series at the Thomas & Mack Center, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway.

The Aviators won first place in their division in December at the American Grand Nationals hosted by the American Cheer and Dance Championships at the MGM Grand.

Lisa Golden is the owner and general manager of VCA. She first saw special needs cheerleading about six years ago in Atlanta.

"It was amazing to watch those kids," Golden said. "We’ve wanted to create a team for the past few years, but we just weren’t able to offer it until this year. We’re trying to get more kids and build it up."

VCA covers the cost of the uniforms for the Aviators, and competition companies do not charge them to compete. There is a $35 annual registration fee to help cover insurance costs, Golden said, but nothing else.

VCA has 10 teams across the valley. All of them practice at the VCA gym.

Saturday practices are run by Golden or other coaches and assisted by several cheerleaders from other VCA teams.

At a recent practice, the kids started with stretches, then practiced toe touches. Some kids practiced rolls, others cartwheels. They also performed stunts, lifting the smallest among them in the air.

The volunteers show tremendous patience with members in the group, some who repeatedly do not do as they are told. Parents appreciate that.

"The coaches are great," said Kevin Rakes, whose 14-year old daughter Amber attends Greenspun Junior High School in Henderson. "They’re very understanding, helpful. They seem to be 100 percent committed to the kids."

Amber is an adopted foster child from a drug-addicted mother. She suffered brain damage and had to be on withdrawal medications for six months after birth.

Rakes said his daughter had been kicked off a gymnastics team at another gym in town before coming to VCA.

"Kids with special needs are so ostracized at their regular school sometimes," Rakes said. "Sometimes this is the thing that lets her know that there’s kids like me. It makes her feel not so isolated.

"In most social situations, she’ll find herself by herself, and as a parent, that is crushing."

Other parents echoed Rakes.

"It feels good, and it gives them confidence," Whitney Sadow said. "They go back to school and they have things in common with other kids."

Sadow’s daughter, 11-year-old Sarah, attends Christensen Elementary School, 9001 Mariner Cove Drive. Sarah has microcephaly and a much smaller head circumference than what is normal for her age. She is in fifth grade and has the learning abilities of a kindergarten student, Sadow said.

Sadow was at the December competition when her daughter and her teammates won first place. She said "there was not a dry eye in the room" and that they received the loudest ovation of any team that day.

Michelle Beck was there, too. Her daughter, 15-year-old Katie, has Down syndrome.

"It literally brings a tear to your eye," Beck said. "Just to see her be a part of that and how excited she gets, it’s incredible."

Several parents said their daughters are still disappointed, though. They want to practice every Saturday.

For information about the Vegas Cheer Authority Aviators, visit vcauthority.com or call 410-4151.

Contact View education reporter Jeff Mosier at jmosier@viewnews.com or 224-5524.