A new year promotes new challenges and opportunities to learn about people, skills, hobbies, and more. Each month Feather journalist Kemya Hopkins challenges herself to go outside of her comfort zone. In this article, Hopkins challenged herself to get to know someone she has never talked to but always looked up to, senior cheer captain and big sister Ashlee Gallegos.

Gallegos has spent five years at Fresno Christian, and is now ready move on to the next phase of her life. She spent years leading the high school cheer team and inspiring younger students through Sister to Sister. She looks forward to her upcoming graduation and plans to go to GCU in Phoenix, Arizona to study entrepreneurship and business.

Gallegos received words of praise from her friends and family, describing her as compassionate, shy, and genuine. Gallegos’ favorite verse is 1 Corinthians 13:13, “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” 

Gallegos arrived in eighth grade and is grateful for her time at FCS and the memories she’s shared with her friends and family. One of her favorite memories took place at a cheer competition, freshman year.

“That competition was so fun, even though it was freezing,” Gallegos said, “It was one of my best games and it was amazing just being with the team.”

Gallegos became a varsity cheerleader in 2018, winning many competitions and awards throughout the years.  This includes the 2019 FCC West Coast Cheerleading Championship and the cheer camp All Star Award in 2020 and 2021. She also participated in elementary cheer clinics, mentoring  younger cheerleaders.

Cheer and PE coach Hope Villines shares what having Gallegos as a leader on the team is like.

“Ashlee brings a level of dedication and hard work,” Villines said, “She has a sweet spirit and a ‘never give up’ attitude.” 

Villines is most proud of Gallegos’ hard work and dedication to the sport over the years, and admires how Gallegos strives to be a better cheerleader. She summarizes her years on the team as a blessing and is proud of the person she has grown to become.

“She has a huge heart and nobody can be harder on Ashlee than herself,” Villines said, “She’s very self-driven and wants to be the best at her sport.” 

A message Villines wants to send to Ashlee is that she loves her abundantly and she wishes her the very best in the future.

“She has made an impression on my heart and on the team that will be there for years to come,” Villines shares.  

Gallegos’s mother, cheer coach and best friend have influenced her most throughout life.

Gallegos’ sister, sophomore Madison Gallegos, describes Gallegos as her favorite person to be with. She loves how her sister can be shy but outgoing once out of her shell. One of her favorite memories of Ashlee is taking a drive together the day before school started.

“We were driving home and me and my sister just blasted music and watched a really pretty sunset,” Madison said, “That day was just really fun.”

Madison stated that she loves to cheer with her older sister. 

“I love when my sister does my makeup for competitions,” Madison said, “It’s so fun and it’s a bonding experience for both of us.” 

Over the years, Madison noticed her sister come out of her shell. She wants Ashlee to never change for anyone and for her to know that she is enough. 

Another influence on Ashlee’s life is her mom Jamie Gallegos. Jamie says the best word to describe her daughter is “peace.” 

“She carries a sweet peace about her, she hates drama, and loves for all people to be happy,” Jamie said. “She always worries about others and I love that about her.”  

A favorite memory Jamie has of Ashlee is from her earlier childhood.

“Whenever she drank her milk she would always hold her own bottle.  When Madison was born she always made her hold Ashlee’s hand,” Jamie said, “She would tell me to put her in her little bouncy chair and demand a hand from Madison. She was  two and a half and Madison was only six months old.” 

Jamie is most proud of Ashlee for pushing herself when she’s uncomfortable. 

“She knows she needs to grow,” Jamie said, “That’s a hard thing to do and I’m very proud of her for that.” 

Jamie and her husband, Steven Gallegos, explain that they are going to miss Gallegos’s presence in their home the most and both always appreciate her helping hand.

A message Gallegos’ parents want to send is to always keep your eye on the Lord and that when your eyes are focused on the Lord, he is protecting us and will use all things for our good.  

Gallegos’ advice to the underclassman is that they should live in the moment during high school. This season in life goes by fast and you want to make as many memories as possible.   

With my first challenge complete – going out of my comfort zone – I learned about someone I normally would never have spent time with. Stay tuned as I will dive into French class and what the students are learning about this difficult language. A little daunting, but I’ll try my best to get a head start and learn some new vocabulary.

To read more from The Feather visit, Chess Club or The private life of Scott Bucher