My name is David Staton. Once the football and basketball season start you will probably know me as the boy cheerleader or the guy cheerleader. I’m fine with either or …but nothing mean. What I mean by that is when people call me mean names.

I started with band in sixth grade but I knew that wasn’t for me. I had been doing tumbling and gymnastics, so I decided to go into cheer leading. My parents have supported me all the way.

My part on the cheer team is that I tumble and stunt.. I do flips and a lot of people ask me how I started and it all started in Alabama.  Stunts are when 4 people come together and hold the flyer(girl in the air) and do cool tricks.

At games I LOVE when the crowd goes crazy. When I get done doing a tumbling pass, I love all the enthusiasm. I see it as my job to get the crowd excited.

I look forward to Thursdays for cheering with my “sisters.” Yes, I call my fellow cheerleaders my “sisters.” They say they see me as their little brother. I do have one older brother, but it’s nice to have my “sisters”.

Everybody asks why I cheer. All I tell them is that I love to cheer. On Thursdays when my sisters warm up stunts, I warm up tumbling. Well, I did do that until I injured my foot. Now, I mainly do stunts — for now.

On Thursdays when eighth period starts, we all head straight to the locker rooms to get ready for games. When I walk out of the locker rooms, athletics is normally out there. When I hear them whispering that they know me, all I do is smile because I’m proud to represent Dobie.

A lot of people who don’t know me are shocked when I first tell them I’m the guy cheerleader. They automatically think I’m the mascot. I always respond saying the mascot is a completely different thing from being a cheerleader. Other students always ask me how to be a cheerleader and I tell them to talk to Mrs. Santos the art teacher and cheer coach.

This year for games I’m going to  be way more open to take pictures because I love to make people happy all the time. When I see one of my close friends or “sisters” I will try everything to make them happy.

I hope that in high school there will be more boy cheerleaders.