The rain came steady on a gray October afternoon in Habersham County, where families huddled outside the local high-school gym. Inside, the thump of sneakers on mats and the echo of pop music signaled something new: the first-ever competition showcase for the Habersham County Recreation Department’s cheer program.
The event opened with remarks from one of the program’s coaches, Ashley Hatchett, who welcomed the crowd and explained the significance of the day. Her husband, State Sen. Bo Hatchett, then offered up a prayer.
Ashley Hatchett helped organize the showcase alongside Laura Lee and Ryann Misencik. It marked the first time Habersham County’s Recreation Department cheerleaders would perform a competitive routine under the department’s banner.
‘It’s a big step’
“This is a showcase,” explained Christy Thompson, one of the volunteer judges. “Our job is to give feedback—things they can take back to practice before they go compete.” Beside her, fellow judge Mackenzie Stewart nodded. “This will be their first year competing at the rec level,” she added. “Usually, they just do spirit cheer, but this year, there’s a competition team. It’s a big step.”
The distinction matters. Spirit cheer emphasizes pom-poms, sideline chants, and crowd energy, with performances built around school spirit. Competition cheer, by contrast, demands stunts, tumbling, and synchronization under a time limit. For Habersham’s young athletes, the shift signals both growth and grit.
Among those gathered in support was Kati Daniels, co-owner of North Georgia Reign Gymnastics and Cheerleading Center and mother to Luna and Dovie. She watched with quiet pride as the crowd trickled into the gym.
“The girls have worked so hard for this,” Daniels said. “It’s exciting to see the recreation department take on a competitive program. It gives these kids an early start at learning teamwork, discipline, and confidence.”
Rapid growth
The Habersham Parks and Recreation Department oversees the program, which continues to grow so rapidly that the 6U division—ages six and under—now fields two full teams with more than 50 athletes combined.
“This program is community-run, coached, and heavily community-funded,” said Ashley Hatchett. “The girls are incredible athletes and a joy to coach. We’re all so proud of their growth.”
She noted that the 8U team will be the county’s first to compete in the official “competition” division rather than spirit. “After winning first place in the spirit division four times in a row, this is a big leap,” she said.
Judges and volunteers alike echoed that sense of transition. “It’s hard work,” Thompson said, “but it teaches core values like teamwork, friendship, and persistence.”
Parents filled the bleachers, phones ready. Clayton Williams wore a large button pinned to his shirt featuring his cheerleader daughter, beaming in her uniform. Carlos Banda stood nearby with his son, Miles Ezra, waiting for their team to take the floor. Estefania Paramo and Octavio Tiscareno smiled when asked what brought them out. “Our daughter, Valeria,” they said in unison.
Others arrived in Raider orange, the color of Habersham pride. Brittany Guess, Jessie Delong, Cameron Booth, and Peyton Bishop arrived ready to cheer the young athletes on as DJ Silas Sandles’ music pulsed through the gym.
Transformational
The routines opened with the youngest teams, whose bows bobbed in time to a cheer set to the theme from Beauty and the Beast. They cartwheeled across the mats, led chants in unison, and flashed the broad smiles that carry small-town spirit. The older divisions followed with sharper choreography, roundoffs, and liberty stunts that lifted the flyers high above the mats. Bases steadied their footing, spotters stood ready, and the crowd held its breath before every cradle catch.
When the final team bowed, the coaches invited the crowd to the floor for a dance party—a moment of release after months of training.
For most of these girls, the next stop will be October 19 at Habersham Central High School, where they’ll perform before judges in an official Georgia Parks and Recreation competition. It’s a chance to measure their progress and to mark the beginning of something bigger.
“This program has transformed my daughter,” Hatchett later said. “She went from a shy, timid five-year-old to a confident eight-year-old who does back tucks and loves to perform. She’s found her voice through cheer.”
