The FC varsity cheer squad packed up their cheer bags as they departed for Azusa Pacific University (APU) for the 25th annual Fellowship of Christian Cheerleaders (FCC) cheer camp, July 15-18. With a squad of 12, the girls practiced over the summer to prepare for the four day camp.

Each day lasted from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.; the agenda consisted of breakfast, devotions, stunt class, jump class, pre game class, sideline class, Faithful buddy instructor (FBI) time, Private coaching, music routines, dinner, daily awards and Prime Time.

The team’s goal while attending camp was to unite in Christ and strive for excellence as they competed for the awards, presented at the end of camp. The awards were one of the main focuses of camp as told by co-captain, Rayna Endicott, ’14.

“It was our main goal as a squad to win the spirit award,” Endicott said. “We really pushed to try to win camp champs but we felt that the spirit award should be our main focus. We really wanted to show that we could have the best spirit and best attitudes at camp. We wanted to improve our skills as a squad and try to win camp champs, but we wanted, even more, to come together as a squad and be unified and stand out as squad with great attitudes and work hard. ”

FCC cheer camp is a Christ-focused camp, eager to unify squads as they spend four days together in the APU dorms. While cheer camp is focused on cheer, there is also a deeper mission that FCC wants to convey to the campers. The theme for FCC camp this year was: “Revolution, Changing the Cheer World.”

Arriving at FC at 6 a.m., the squad said a prayer before caravanning to camp. Pitstops occurred along the way as the team spent four hours in cars on the way to Los Angeles.

When she finally reached the greatly anticipated camp, sophomore Alli Breedlove, was relieved by their arrival to the camp.

“Work hard and drink lots of water,” Breedlove said. “That was my mindset going into camp. It was also important to remember to put on lots of sunscreen, be well rested and stay health. I am a base for our stunt group, so my goal going into camp was to become a better base. When we finally reached camp we got to rest for a little bit. I was happy about that. The drive was long so arriving was a relief.”

Sweat dripped off the girls everyday as they worked hard in the sun. The team strove to show the FCC staffers how well they worked together. Although the day was exhausting, junior Callista Fries tells of her favorite part of the day, Prime Time. Prime Time is what the camp refers to as chapel where the teams worshipped together every night.

“I think its a great idea,” Fries said. “Cheer camp in general is a really good thing. You get to know each other on a more personal level and you get to connect with God during that time. It’s not just about becoming a better cheerleader but also growing in your faith. It is one of my favorite parts. I mean I also love cheering, but I think that the fact that you’re not only growing closer to God but also growing closer to God with your team makes cheer camp all the more better to grow as a team.”

After Prime Time the Eagles would gather back in the dorms and spend quality time talking about the day and going around the room sharing their “Happies and Crappies” of the day, which included sharing the best part of the day and the not-so-great part.

Alumna Bree Ainley ’11, attended the camp with the girls, stepping in as coach. Head coach, Courtney Raymundo, was unable to attend due to recently having a baby.

Ainley’s passion for cheer has helped her stay committed to the girls. She was proud that the squad continuously showed their spirit everyday.

“I have a passion for cheer done right,” Ainley said. “Here at Fresno Christian thats exactly what we strive for. I have been apart of the FC cheer program for over 7 seasons now and have seen such incredible work done. This year I, once again, had the privilege of leading the team at cheer camp. I was thrilled and proud of the hard work, as well as the amount of character displayed while at Azusa. These girls represent everything Fresno Christian would want in their students; character hard work and continuous love for those they come into contact with.”

The spirit stick is a highly anticipated award given every night. The wooden, thin, cylinder stick gets awarded to whatever team had good spirit, respect for staffers and worked hard throughout the day. If a team received the spirit stick they often participated in a fun tradition, not mandatory, to decorate the stick. The FC cheer team won a spirit stick every night.

The awards on the last day is one of the most anticipated events for all the squads. The coveted awards included Camp Champs, Sprit Award, All Stars, bids to Nationals in February and the Achievement Award. The team succeeded in wining Camp Champs, the Spirit Award, a bid to nationals and two of the girls, Fries and Endicott, received All Stars awards.

Endicott was extremely excited and proud of her team at their accomplishments while at camp. But she was more proud of her team for growing together spiritually.

“As well as growing as a team through our skills, we also were able to grow spiritually,” Endicott said. “With chapels every night it was a great way to bond spiritually. We were able to keep a mind set of serving The Lord in all that we did through the week as well as relying on Him to get us through the week and relied on His strength.”

This author can be reached via Twitter: @han_avila. Follow The Feather via Twitter: @thefeather.

For more features, read the Aug. 22 article, Science department undergoes changes, new teacher.