Courtney Rauchman uses cheer to help special needs children

Courtney+Rauchman+uses+cheer+to+help+special+needs+children

Inspired by West Hills Champions, a program that allows children with special needs to play baseball, junior Courtney Rauchman figured out a way to combine helping disabled youth with cheerleading. Cheer Champions is a program that teaches disabled kids how to cheerlead. Through this opportunity, Rauchman has come to enjoy developing friendships and interacting with each member.

“I gained a lot of perspective on the types of struggles people face everyday,” said Rauchman. “I’ve gained a huge amount of respect for kids with disabilities and their unconditionally supportive families.”

Rauchman takes the Cheer Champions to West Hills Champions baseball games to support the players and show off what they have learned in the cheer workshops. Since the beginning of the program last year, Rauchman has included the CHS cheerleaders in Cheer Champions to help plan and teach routines for the their workshops. She has also encouraged the other cheerleaders to go to West Hills Champions games to cheer with her and to demonstrate the routines for the Cheer Champion participants.

“Some of the CHS cheerleaders volunteered to help me teach routines and run the workshops,” said Rauchman. “I couldn’t have done any of it without every CHS cheerleader that helped me.”

To Rauchman, the Cheer Champions program is more than just another opportunity to cheer; it is a chance to interact with and influence the lives of special needs children. Her patience and devotion to the program helps her overcome the various obstacles she faces. The relationships she forms with the Cheer Champions children drive her to continue to teach this program and work with the kids.

“I have connected to a lot of the kids that I’ve taught,” said Rauchman. “One of them called me her best friend and hearing that made me sure that I would continue doing this for the rest of high school.”

This program has opened new doors for Rauchman’s future. She would love to continue working with children with special needs in the future. Rauchman hopes to continue this program until she finishes high school and hopes her fellow cheerleaders will continue it even after she graduates.