Archive for September, 2011

An incredible homecoming

Tuesday, September 27th, 2011

On Friday, Sarah, Helen and Alexis took part in a completely unique experience for all of us, as Sarah’s hometown of Cyril, Okla., gave her a big welcome home to celebrate her making the Thunder Girls!

Not only was the whole town decked out with welcome signs and balloons, but we were also invited to be a part of an all-school rally for Sarah and the Thunder Girls at the elementary school.

We made it to the school just in time to see some of the children come in from recess. They were so excited, and happily waving and greeting Sarah, whom some of them knew from when she taught dance. All three of us waved and said hello before taking a few minutes to practice for our performance. Sarah’s mom was on hand as we rehearsed, and she looked so proud as we waited for our cue to enter the gymnasium.

Even going down the hall from the cafeteria to the gym, you could hear all the schoolkids chanting, “Sarah! Sarah! Sarah!” It was an awesome moment. We ran into the gym, which was filled with teachers and students in Thunder blue. We were greeted by cheers, screams and clapping. Tammy Cocheran, the elementary principal and one of Sarah’s former teachers, introduced us and gave Sarah the mic. Sarah thanked everyone for their love and support, and expressed how proud she was to come from Cyril.

After Sarah spoke, we danced for the school, and the entire audience cheered throughout the performance! We then had a chance to leave a more lasting impression with the kids by talking to them about bullying, building character and setting goals. All the members of our squad have worked hard to achieve our goals, and we know what it’s like to have to press on when things don’t go as planned.

After the talk, we took pictures with each class and had a chance to autograph Thunder shirts, hats, flags and towels that the kids had brought along. Each class created posters, signs and fans celebrating Sarah’s visit. Sarah was glowing the entire time, and so was her family. There was so much love and support from the entire town, and we’re grateful they made us all a part of this very special day!

Be sure to check out the story and video about Friday’s event on the Thunder website!

- Thunder Girls

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A chance to dance in Ardmore

Thursday, September 22nd, 2011

This weekend, Helen and Jessica had a great opportunity to be guest instructors at Debbie Dance Intensive, a dance convention in Ardmore.

The convention is in its second year and is hosted by the Debbie Collins Memorial Scholarship Funds, which helps dance students in the Ardmore area live out their dreams and achieve more in their dance education.

We taught girls ranging in age from 5 to 17, leading them through a pom session called “Kicks and Tricks.” It was just awesome to be there and help teach such a wonderful group of girls. They were all so appreciative that we could be there – but we appreciated the opportunity, too, because we had a lot of fun.

Thanks to all the wonderful folks who invited us to be a part of this very special weekend!

- Thunder Girls

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Timeout for reading

Wednesday, September 21st, 2011

We’ve had the opportunity to help fuel children’s excitement for reading during the last few weeks by taking part in the Thunder’s Reading Timeout program,  presented by American Fidelity Assurance.

Earlier this month, Riane and LaTeshia read to a group of kids in Moore; then, last week, Alexis led a Reading Timeout for kindergarteners at Yukon’s Myers Elementary.

Just this morning, Shereka and Kimberly visited Windsor Hills Elementary in OKC to read “Allie’s Basketball Dream” to a group of third-graders and four-year-olds.

We love these opportunities to get out in the community and share our passion for basketball, for teamwork and for education with these young minds. It’s so much a part of what we do as Thunder Girls – beyond just being entertainers, we are proud to be a part of the Thunder’s outreach efforts in the community. It gives us a real perspective on our daily lives!

Here’s a video from this morning. The kids were so incredibly excited to have us there reading to them, and they just about flipped out when they found out we’d be giving them some Thunder prizes for being so attentive! What a great group!

- Thunder Girls

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Thunder Girls show to debut Sept. 19

Wednesday, September 14th, 2011

We are very proud to announce that Fox Sports Oklahoma is going to be airing a TV special about the auditions process and about life as a Thunder Girl! The special, called “Thunder Insider: Making of the 2011-2012 Thunder Girls,” will debut on Monday, Sept. 19 at 9:30 p.m. Central. It will feature several Thunder Girls hopefuls, looking at both our daily lives and all the work we had to do to prep for the auditions process.

If you can’t catch it on Sept. 19, the show will air again. Here are some of the other dates and times you can tune in:

Monday, Sept. 19 at 9:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 27 at 5:30 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 29 @ 7:30 a.m.

We’ll also be posting the show at THUNDER.NBA.COM, but we’re definitely excited to watch the show on TV!

Hope you can tune in – FSO is available on Cox OKC on channel 37 (722 for HD); otherwise, check your local listings.

- Thunder Girls

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What a weekend …

Monday, September 12th, 2011

Shonna, Sheri, Alexis and Marisa (and some young fans) outside of the Governor's Mansion at Septemberfest

We had a busy couple of days this weekend, making appearances and taking photos for one of our big projects – our 2012 calendar.

We were excited to have a chance to attend the first ever Fiesta Oklahoma in Ardmore on Saturday. The festival organizers, including the Ardmore Main Street Authority, put together a great day-long event that encompassed all kinds of entertainment, food and booths from businesses and other organizations.

The purpose behind the festival was to celebrate the multicultural heritage of people living in the region, and we were proud to be a part of this kind of event. The crowd was just awesome and so appreciative that we were able to come out. The three of us who went – Helen, Sarah and Ashley – mostly walked around and talked with the crowd, taking photos, signing autographs and generally just having a blast.

Meanwhile, Sheri, Shonna, Marisa and Alexis had a chance to visit with the folks at Septemberfest, the Governor’s annual family festival hosted at the Governor’s Mansion. Beside talking with and taking pictures with a lot of fans, we had a special opportunity. Gov. Fallin asked to meet us and offered us a tour of the mansion! We were just thrilled to have this invitation, and we’re grateful to Gov. Fallin for her hospitality.

We’re always glad to have opportunities to interact with fans in communities throughout the state. We’ll have more events coming up. Keep an eye on our Facebook and Twitter feeds for more info – and check out some photos from this weekend’s calendar shoot on Facebook!

- Thunder Girls

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