Texans Cheerleader of the Week Teresa, better known as Terri, is a drill team instructor at her alma mater of Galena Park High School. She had a brief stint away from the school while attending the University of Houston, where she was a Cougar Doll dancer, but the third-year veteran of the Texans Cheerleaders returned to Galena Park upon graduation.
"Coming to high school here was a wonderful experience, so whenever it was time for me to decide what I wanted to do for the rest of my life I knew that I wanted to come back to Galena Park and give back to the community that gave to me," Terri said.
Terri, whose mother and father also both work at the school, sounds like a proud parent when talking about her students.
"My favorite part of my job is probably the day of the game," she said, "just because as soon as those girls march off the field, the excitement in their eyes, knowing that they did a really good job and that they performed to the best of their ability is probably the best part of my job. They march off that field and they're like, 'How did we do? How did we do?' And that's probably the best, the best feeling."
But Terri's teaching duties don't end when the final bell rings on a Galena Park school day. She also has an instructive role as one of the appointed captains of the Texans Cheerleaders.
"I gave her that role because I thought she would be a great person for the girls to mimic as far as dance quality," cheerleader services manager Alto Gary said. "She does really big movements and she has a lot of energy in her dance, and that's what I want the whole team to represent, so I made her a captain."
{QUOTE}Terri has had the exact impact on the rest of the cheerleaders that Gary had hoped for.
"Terri is the firecracker; she is the excitement of the squad," Lynnette said. "Terri always has a kind word to say. Terri always likes to have a lot of fun and I like dancing by Terri because she gets me a little motivated as well."
Cheerleader practice can be exhausting, especially considering that most of the 35 girls on the squad arrive at practice directly from school or a full-time job. Terri is always one to lighten the mood with her sense of humor.
"Teresa's a goofball, for sure," Crystal said. "She always makes you laugh just at those times when you're about to fall out when you just can't take it any more, when you're just a little wore out, you're tired. She brings that energy right back to us and her personality is just awesome."
"She's hilarious," Ashley said. "If you ever want a good laugh, just tune into what Terri's talking about at that particular time of the practice. She's definitely not afraid to wear her feelings on her sleeve. She's very vocal…she'll bust out laughing out loud at any point, at any moment, but it definitely makes you just laugh along with her."
That attitude allows Terri and her teammates to relax and focus on giving the best performance possible come game day. It creates a satisfaction that, for Terri, mirrors the feeling she gets when her students at Galena Park deliver an energized performance.
"Coming off that field, knowing that us as a team did a wonderful job after all those long hours of practice – game day after a performance is just the best, best feeling ever," she said.
