By Patrick Donachie
A Jamaica cheerleading team raised funds to bring the team to national championships to be held in Orlando, Fla. with the help of the public, who pitched in on an online crowdfunding drive.
The cheerleading squad comes from the Young Women’s Leadership School in Jamaica, and according to the GoFundMe page created for fund-raising, the team cheers competitively and for Eagle Academy’s Southeast Queens football and basketball teams. The team consists of cheerleaders between the ninth and 12th grades.
The team took second place in a Regionals bid earlier this year and qualified for the 2017 National Championships to be held in Orlando in February, according to the GoFundMe page.
The cost of the trip for the young women was extensive, however, and the cheerleading team is not funded by the school.
“These girls deserve to go Nationals. They have worked so hard for it and they want to represent the Young Women’s Leadership Network, their school and families,” the page said. It was set up a little more than two weeks ago, with the hope of raising $10,000.
As of Wednesday night, the page had raised more than $14,000 to subsidize the cost of the trip down to Orlando for the national championships.
People wishing to donate can visit the fund-raising page at https://www.gofun
Reach reporter Patrick Donachie by e-mail at pdona
