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Three cheers for the Bulldog Association
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Neighbors | Shaiyla Hakeem .Olivia Spencer (left) and mother, Maria, are anticipating the start of football season. Olivia has been granted her wish to become a cheerleader despite having hemipelgic cerebral palsy.
By SHAIYLA HAKEEM
Have you ever wanted to participate in something, but couldn’t because someone thought you were too different? If so, you must not have lived in Poland.
Seven-year-old Olivia Spencer has always wanted to try out for cheerleading. She is a first-grader at Union Elementary and this fall will be her first year cheering for Poland’s Little Bulldogs. She is very excited.
“I want to cheer and see all the people,” Spencer said.
The Poland Little Bulldog Association recently announced that there will be no tryouts this year for cheerleaders. Instead, anyone can cheer, regardless of their skill level. Maria Spencer, Olivia’s mother, said she was ecstatic when she heard the news.
“Unless you are the parent of a child with a disability, you don’t know the value of that statement,” she said.
When Olivia was 3 months old, she became very ill due to an infection, and was taken to the hospital. While waiting in the emergency room, her condition worsened.
The infection spread, overtaking her system causing Olivia to stop breathing. The lack of oxygen to her brain affected the left side of her body. It made the muscles on that side more stiff than the muscles on her right. She was diagnosed with hemipelgic cerebral palsy.
Upon hearing the news of the diagnosis, Maria said she asked herself the question any concerned parent would ask.
“Will she ever walk?” Maria questioned.
Olivia has to wear a leg brace on her left leg, but walks perfectly normal. This upcoming cheerleading season is the first physical sport she has participated in.
Olivia’s grandmother, “Mi Mi,” knew how important cheering was to Olivia. Her one wish was for her granddaughter to be able to cheer.
Olivia’s grandmother unexpectedly passed last week, but not before her wish was made a reality.
Olivia has already been fitted for her cheerleading uniform and will officially begin practice in July. She will be cheering for the Poland Little Bulldogs’ 95-pound team. Olivia said she can’t wait to get her cheerleading pom poms.
Maria thanks the Poland Little Bulldog Association for not holding the traditional tryouts this year.
She said they are setting an example for other organizations by saying it is OK to be different. She said it’s a confidence builder for her daughter and other kids with similar conditions.
“Even though you might be a little bit different, you can still do all the things that your friends do,” Maria said.