Allison Garcia, the only freshman on Varsity Poms, faces challenges everyday to prove herself to the upperclassmen and her coach. Poms has four freshman total, three on Junior Varsity and one on Varsity. In a crowd of older people Garcia has to be able stand out in a positive way. 

“It can be awkward sometimes but it’s worth it,” Garcia states.

The journey to get to this coveted spot began when she was three. According to Garcia, her parents put her in dance so they would not have to watch her as much. Garcia continued in dance because she enjoyed the environment and liked meeting new people. Last year, in 2020 Garcia filled her time with dance, she got private classes with her dance teacher, and put in extra hours. At the beginning of the year Garcia was not doing any extra dance outside of Poms because she always had her time filled. Whether Garcia filled her free time with A-West games and Poms practice or was elsewhere, she has always loved dance. 

“Once my parents put me in it I never wanted to stop,” she explains. 

Garcia has always had dance as her number one priority, doing anything she could to get extra practice in and get better. To show how hard she has worked for this goal she was awarded by being placed on the varsity team. Lately Allison has met some more difficult challenges. 

“We lost our coaches and have had to practice on our own with a Varsity Poms alumna.”

Garcia and her team overcame this challenge together, being there for each other and still performing at all the games and activities they’ve had to do. One of the bigger events they showed their talent off at was at the Wish Week assembly. The preparation and time Garcia puts into her dancing career always pays off at the end of the day.

There is a big difference between Poms at A-West and at other dance studios Garcia has been to. They [other dance studios] focus on competing and getting good scores, maybe even awards, but A-West showed her something different.

“I enjoy Poms because it is a chance to give back to my community.”

From Garcia’s first football game to now, she has grown so much. Waking up early to get to practice to staying up late after practice; everything pays off.