Dear Kelly King and Lindsay King,

You wonderful ladies are the reason why I believe in faith, will always push through the roughest times in my life, and know some sort of meaning behind life itself. I’ve never been so grateful to have two amazing inspirational people in my life. You both brought something to my life that made me who I am today; everything you taught me has prepared me to start the next chapter in my life. The amount of gratitude I have doesn’t describe how much I truly am thankful for everything you two have done for me.

Sometimes I sit back and think about the memories you two brought to my life, the adventures we encountered, and the opportunities you both opened up for me. My life was a mess before cheerleading and school was no help, but I looked forward to practicing because you both always found a way to change my perspective on life. There was frustration in the air sometimes at practices, but that’s usually what happens at practices in any other sport. I can personally say that I’ve never seen either one of you give up on our team; everything that came our way, either if it was one of you or both, you looked at every valuable solution to a situation. There was never any loss of faith in us, there was only trust built upon the relationship between you and your athletes.

The coaches you see in movies and television series, where the audience loves their incredible selfless acts to protect their athletes like their own children, is what you two displayed in my life. The lives you both impacted and changed are probably over a few hundred. You both imprinted on your athletes’ lives with something unique, such as wisdom, strength, and comfort even in our darkest moments.

You two were the coaches who knew at least another coach at cheerleading competition we competed at, and you didn’t just know them -- you grew to know some important things about them and didn’t see them as just a coach but as a friend as well. It was an incredible feeling knowing that other coaches loved to watch our team compete because you built us that fan base. Before I entered high school, David Prouty was a legacy in SWCL (Southern Worcester County League) and Central Massachusetts. I dreamt about being part of the David Prouty’s Cheerleading team. It was something no one understood because they didn’t have you two as coaches.

It’s upsetting that the town of Spencer will not have coaches like you two, but you both deserve to coach a program where they will appreciate you guys the way your past athletes have. You both will continue a legacy somewhere else, where you will create memories with a new generation and show them the real meaning behind cheerleading.

I just want to thank you both for everything you’ve done for me. My college entry essay was about cheerleading and how much it impacted my life, and I wouldn’t have been able to create such a masterpiece to submit if I didn’t have you two as my coaches. I’m going to college to do amazing things, and my inspiration behind it is you two; I hope to one day be able to impact individuals’ lives and create them a safe haven like you two ladies did for me. I wouldn’t know the life lessons I know now if it wasn’t for both of your drives to push me harder and believe in me.

Just remember “You, Me, Us, Together” and “Orange, Black, It’s What We Bleed”.