Excitement abounds as another season of cheerleading gets going within the Newtown Youth Football & Cheer (NYF&C) program. Kristen Keil takes over as Vice President of Cheer and will serve as an assistant coach for the second grade group among two D8 squads.

The girls have been hard at work (all the while having fun) during preseason practices at Hawley School’s Taylor Field. They will cheer from the sidelines of the football games throughout the fall, supporting the elementary and middle school grid iron battlers, and build skills as well as sharpen routines, for participation in competitions.

This is Keil’s second year on the board for NYF&C; last year she was the director of cheer operations.

“I first got involved with Cheer in 2019 when my oldest daughter joined the program. This year I have two daughters in the Newtown Youth Cheer program; my oldest is currently on the D14 team. This is my youngest daughter’s first year cheering; she is on the D8 second grade team. I also have a son who plays football on the fifth grade team — this is a very busy season in our house,” Keil said of children Ava who is in seventh grade, Brielle, who is in second grade, and Reid.

Cheerleading is thriving, and the future stands to be bright with a rise in interest at the youngest level. The program has 84 girls, about a 20% increase from last year’s enrollment of 70. There are five cheer teams broken into division by age: D14, D12, and D10, along with D8 third and D8 second.

“We had 27 girls register for our D8 teams, which would have been a very large cheer team. We decided to spilt them in two: D8 third grade and D8 second grade. This way they can continue to build skills and get more individual attention from our amazing demonstrators and coaches,” Keil said.

Demonstrators are high school aged athletes who have aged out of the program and come back to volunteer. “This year we have 11 demonstrators. They showcase their skills and help teach sideline cheer and even choreograph pieces of the competition routines. They dedicate many hours sharing something they loved so much with the younger athletes currently in the program. It is a big commitment for these kids to dedicate all that time. The younger kids really look up to their demonstrators. They are a big part of our program; we are so grateful to have them,” Keil said.

“We are so lucky to have such amazing and dedicated coaches and demonstrators. Our program is successful because of the efforts of these selfless people who give so much time and energy to lead and coach our cheerleaders,” she added. “We have 18 coaches this year covering our five teams. Like the demonstrators, these coaches give countless hours on and off the field. Our coaches come from all different backgrounds — for some this is their first experience coaching cheer and some were high school and college cheerleaders themselves. Our coaches work together and support each other to make the program successful.”

The cheer program is also managed by Director of Cheer Administration Amber Deamico and Director of Cheer Operations Tracy Veneziano. Both are also coaches. This is Veneziano’s second year as an assistant coach for her daughter Ellie’s D8 third grade team. Deamico has been volunteering for the program since 2019 and is also the head coach of the D14 Team.

“We are so lucky to have Tracy and Amber on our board and as coaches as they have strong cheer backgrounds and organizational skills,” Keil said.

Newtown’s cheer squads will look to build off last season’s success.

“We had a great 2021 season where three teams qualified and competed in the American Youth Cheer National Competition in Florida. Building on that success we have a lot of hope and are very excited about the 2022 season,” Keil said.

From having fun and learning to honing skills and competing at high levels, the girls get a lot out of the program.

“Our D8 teams comprise our youngest cheerleaders and they will be showcasing their routine, some for the first time, at our Shoreline Locals and Connecticut States Competition on October 22 and November 5. We hope these girls have a great time and really have fun during their first years cheerleading. We are looking forward to seeing them build new friendships and learn the foundational cheer and team-building skills that will help these young athletes for years to come,” Keil said. “This year we have a few teams with really advanced skillsets competing at level 2 and level 3. We are excited to see the girls perform at these higher levels. I can’t wait to see what these girls can do and watch how they overcome the difficulty of these advanced levels.”

In addition to the thrill of competitions, these cheerleaders enjoy the camaraderie that exists among the handful of Newtown lineups.

“We are excited to see the girls cheer each other on and build bonds across age groups. Our cheerleaders love to showcase their skills and routines for each other. It helps inspire and build up spirit in our organization,” Keil added. “We have several teams pushing themselves to compete at level 2 and 3 this fall. It is great for the younger athletes to see how their hard work helps them to learn new skills that will allow them to grow as athletes and as a team.”

The competition season kicks off with locals October 22 and states November 5, where D8 teams will showcase their routine and the D10, D12, and D14 teams will compete.

“If our D10, D12, or D14 place in first, second, or third at the states competitions they will move on to the regional competition on November 19, where they will compete for a bid to nationals. It would be great to send a few teams back to Florida to compete for the national title,” Keil said.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.