Everyone is trying to be successful at whatever they put their hands to. Whether it is work, education, family, etc., in order to reach the level of success that they want, they have to be willing to put in the time and effort. Royanna Berry is a high school athlete at Chandler High School and she knows that it takes more than just some practices to get better. She says you have to be willing to go above and beyond.
“For me to get where I am has taken hard work,” she said. “Most people might not think that cheer would be as involved and intense as it is. We never stop working. There’s no offseason, no breaks, and we still have to cheer at games between our competitions. It takes everyone working hard together to get us through competitions and games.”
Berry is a sophomore cheerleader for the Lions. Outside of cheer, she is involved in the Student Council, NASA, peer mentors, and winter guard. She also serves as president of the FCCLA and district vice president of Competitive Events.
Along with all the work she has put in, Berry has had people in her life that have been influential and helped her become the person that she is today.
“My parents have always been huge inspirations for me,” she said. “To see how they balance and handle everything with such grace just shows me that I can do that too. The teacher that had the biggest impact on me was my junior high English teacher, Mrs. Anderson. She had the sweetest personality and she made learning so fun. Even after we moved to a different class, she still cared for all of us so deeply and still takes time out of her days to come see us.”
In order to be able to cheer and compete in competitions, Royanna knows that it requires her to keep her grades up. She says that while it can be tough at times, you have to do what works best for you.
“Balancing school work and athletics takes awareness,” she stated. “You can’t expect to balance everything without knowing what your plan entails. Make sure that you’re still getting everything that needs to be done, done. And if you get behind, don’t freak out. It’s never the end of the world because you’ve missed something. Don’t overwhelm yourself, and enjoy the things you choose to do.
