TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Dynamic Xplosion Cheer is going full out to put the capital city on the map with their first ever Black Culture Cheer and Dance Competition.
Co-owner Keyunna Thomas beamed with pride when she said, "Listen, our girls are amazing!"
The Dynamic Explosion Cheer squad started with humble beginnings back in 2016.
"We only had 12 girls," Thomas said. Since then, she says they've seen exponential growth. "Now we're servicing over 150 athletes."
That growth is now hoisting them toward the higher goal of hosting their own competition; one that, while inclusive, will have a focus on what co-owner Dreunna Holland say makes black culture unique.
"Our attitude, our passion for what we're doing, our sassiness at times, and our smiles, and our body language, and how we just make things so much more spontaneous." Holland says, it's about more than just cheer. After dealing with her own depression, she says, "I decided that we should come together and make sure to curate the minds of our athletes."
In addition to having an in-house mental health therapist for children in the program, Holland says, "we do one on ones with our cheerleaders, we do one on one dates, we check in with them once a month, we also extend it out to the family."
It's support moms like Melissa Siplin say they appreciate. "It's given her a sense of belonging," she says of her daughter's participation in the program. "It's given her a sense of a place that she can be where she can be herself, where she's learned coping skills for when she doesn't do well, how to cope through that, how to be a winner despite her deficiencies or challenges that she may have, and it's also given her a place where she learns to encourage others."
People who attend their inaugural competition will have access to supportive mental health resources as well. "We will have mental health therapists on site, mental health counselors on site," Holland said. "We have Aveda Institute Spacoming out to give massages, so that's part of the mental health area."
Cheerleaders like Kenna Siplin say they can't wait to give it everything they've got. "My favorite part is dance. It's very fun. And, I think it brings all the life out of me."
Kenna and her squad will be giving you life in their routines, plus those from more than 20 other teams this Saturday at the Al Lawson center starting at 8am.
