Thoughts from the President

Wow, what can I say about God's blessing upon The Fellowship of Christian Cheerleaders. I feel so humbled to be a part of such an awesome event. I feel that each team participating this year did a tremendous job representing your school or church and your community. Even with a troubled economy we were blessed to have another great turnout.

It was also special for me to have Wendy Barrett working side by side with me for the last 15 Nationals. She is a big reason that FCC has remained financially stable during this tough time. We have experienced many memories over these 15 years together. Thank you Wendy for another special year together.

I also want to thank several special volunteers: Tammy Rose, my dear friend from Tyler, TX did an outstanding job as the Event Coordinator. She has been such a blessing over the years as a coach and co-worker. Tammy you did an excellent job "running" nationals this year. Thanks for your professionalism. You are such a pleasure to work with at each of these events. You have been a special blessing to me this year. And a special thank you to Angie Stalnaker who once again took a week off from her job to do all the computer entry of the judges scores. Angie thanks for giving us the new spreadsheets for this year....they were awesome. Thank you Blake Myers for making the FCC and Impact Website so informative and user friendly to our coaches and schools. You have been a blessing over the years. And a special thanks to the many more volunteers who contributed throughout the weekend.

Words cannot express my appreciation to Rick Abasial for putting together the BEST Judges Scoring System in the USA. Thanks my friend for the many hours of work that went into our new system. I am thrilled with the quality of the new system as well as the feedback that our judges can now give our programs. Thanks so much for not only producing the new system, but for being so giving of yourself to coaches through conference calls and personal appearances to make sure that everyone had an understanding of the new system.

We are so thankful to once again have the privilege to conduct this event in the beautiful Rosen Shingle Creek Resort. Our hotel pickup was over 3500 room nights with the hotel being completely sold out on Thursday and Friday evening. The hotel and employees due such a terrific job making each attendee feel special. It was such an honor to meet and visit with Mr. Harris Rosen on Thursday evening and again on Sunday morning prior to leaving. He and his team are such a class act. We also officially made the Rosen Shingle Creek the Home of FCC Nationals thru 2016. I am just sorry that I did not get to hear the "horn" in Leslie's office when I signed the contract. (Inside joke with the sales staff) It is so great to be able to work with Jonathan (sales), Rodger (Convention Services) and Dawn (Catering) again this year and for future years. It makes it so much easier to work with people who know our event and want to make it a special memory for everyone attending.

It was also great to know that our 2007 Entertainment - Tammy Trent and her terrific road manager Anita Rundell were vacationing at the Rosen Shingle Creek as well. Tammy is one of my favorites and if you have not heard her story, it is amazing. On Wednesday evening I sent them a gift basket via the Shingle Creek and she posted a very nice thank you via "Twitter"....

It was great to have one of our own, Frank Byers and the Perfect Peace Band provide the music for the Welcome Party along with the FCC Staff. The band also provide the pre-show for the National Christian Cheerleading Awards Show on Friday evening.

Friday evening was an Awards Show that I will never forget. Big Daddy Weave put on the show of a lifetime. All 2000 plus in attendance were totally connected and engaged. Our 2009 Camp song - "What Life Would Be Like" by BDW was a BIG hit. The Special Awards: Scholar Cheerleaders, Coaches, Amie Roggemann, National Coach of the Year, Marissa Rodriguez, FCC Staffer of the Year and the moving story of 2009 Courage Award Winner - Hank Gregory provided a great memory. Tony Morris, singing his annual tribute to the Coaches, this year "How Great is Our God" is always special to me because he is a former staffer of the year and part of the FCC family. Tony this year provided a memory for the ages...after His song to the Coaches, Tony pulled out a ring, dropped to His knees and asked former staffer Nikki Falana to be His wife. It brought the house down, as 2000 plus people were chanting "Say Yes, Say Yes" and it reached a fever pitch when she said YES...This will be in my top 5 memories of Nationals in 21 years. At the conclusion of the Big Daddy Weave concert it was exciting to see people pray to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior. That is what all this is all about anyway....using cheerleading as a platform to spread the good news of Jesus Christ.

After such a memorable Friday, January 1, 2010, Saturday would be another eventful day. It started with a very competitive "Competitor's Cup" and All-Star competition on Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon was particularly special to me to see 550 plus Impact competitors from 35 programs take the stage. What started as a vision 5 years ago is quickly becoming the training ground for the next generation of cheerleaders. It was the first time in our 21 year history that we had standing room only for Nationals. Even with 2150 seats, the Impact Awards show was maxed out. God once again provided the words to say for His story, His gospel and His good news. It was exciting for me to have my 7 year old daughter Caylin to be part of the gospel presentation. Once again our mission to spread the gospel through cheerleading was solidified as many accepted Christ. Saturday evening once again did not disappoint. The Finals were as close as they have ever been with team after team raising the bar. Congratulations to each team for an outstanding job of representing Christian cheerleading.

One of the special events each year for me is the Saturday evening Judges Dinner. I want to thank the terrific judges panel of Lance and Carol Wager (Owners of ACA), Kevin and Jenn Brubaker (Owners of Cheersport), Susan Clark (former NCA executive), Troy Hedgren (Owner of Magic All-Stars), Rick and Terri Abasial (Owners of Top Dog All-Stars) and the best Judges Coordinator in the industry, Stacey Helfrich for bringing their expertise to FCC Nationals. Everyone in the industry always ask me how we get such a All-Star panel of judges and honestly I can say it is God's blessing over the years. Their input and advice through the years has contributed to the success of the National Christian Cheerleading Championships. Thank you judges for your commitment to Christian cheerleading and for your friendship over the years.

A tradition each year is the LATE night (Saturday) or EARLY morning (Sunday) Staff meeting. It is a chance for me to in some poor pitiful way try and share my appreciation to the FCC Staffers who work 16 hours a day to make FCC Nationals the best in the industry. The "FCC TIGERS" wearing the Black and Blue provide their own transportation to FCC Nationals, work countless hours behind the scenes so that each team can experience a memory of a lifetime. I am forever grateful to each staffer for their contribution. I would like to list each staffer who was a part of the 2010 Nationals Staff:

Bert Adams, Frank Byers, Sami Corcoran, Britt Cosby, Katelyn Darling, Ally Duce, Mickey Farris, Meagan Gobble, Crissy Jo Goss, Mandy Hanson, Brandon Knight,Alex Lyons, Cody Martin, Katy Mercer, Sarah Morgan, Molly Neumann, Sara Norton, Courtney Odum, Gracie Phelps, Marissa Rodriguez, Carrie Sellar, Whitney Smith, Billy Stuckman, Meagan Wagnitz, Paige Wells, Miriam Wilson, Aimee Yocum, Kyle Zambrana, Mike Zumpano. And our Florida Impact Representative Rea Mennenga.

These are the HEROS and SERVANT LEADERS who deserve our prayers and appreciation for making 2010 Nationals a success.

Once again congratulations to each and every competitor who participated in the 2010 National Christian Cheerleading Championships. Thank you coaches, cheerleaders, parents and friends for so many thoughtful emails, cards and calls. Make sure you put the 22nd Annual National Christian Cheerleading Championships on your schedule - December 30, 2010 - January 1, 2011. You can end your year and start your year with FCC....Thanks again for another memorable year!