East Kentwood, Holland Christian win Falcon
Fest titles

Sunday, February 7, 2009

By Dean Holzwarth

East Kentwood's Chantel Martin performs
with her teammates. - (Press Photo/Paul L. Newby II)

KENTWOOD -- East Kentwood competitive cheerleader Melanie
Brower was in third grade when her mom, Deb Brower, was diagnosed with breast
cancer.

Melanie Brower was not
old enough to understand the reality of her mother's situation until someone
explained.

"I didn't know what
it was because I was young, but I had a counselor come in and she told me
about it," Brower said. "My mom was diagnosed pretty early, but it
was still tough because there's always that risk there."

Deb Brower, a breast
cancer survivor after surgery in 2001, was in attendance Saturday at East Kentwood's Falcon Fest Cheer for the Cure.

The event promoted
awareness for breast cancer and raised nearly $2,000 for Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Twenty-two varsity and
freshman teams competed. East Kentwood won Division 1 and Holland Christian took top
honors in Division 2.

"I think this is a
great way to bring awareness, especially to all of the young girls who are
here," said Deb Brower, 57. "It's a women's disease and it's a
great opportunity."

Brower was diagnosed
almost eight years ago. It was a shock, since her family had no history of
cancer and she was very health-conscious.

"I did become
overconfident and I put my mammogram off," she said. "It was very
humbling and I learned a lot of from it. My advice to women would be to not
take anything for granted."

Melanie Brower was elated
when the idea to host this event came to fruition.

"It means a lot
because my mom had to go through this and it's nice to raise money and raise
awareness to try and find a cure," she said.

Coaches and judges wore
pink in support of the cause.

Grand Rapids Christian
coach and judge Jacquie DeJonge said the Michigan
High School Athletic Association gave the judges permission to wear pink.

"I think it's a
great idea and I think it makes the girls more aware, because girls really
need to start getting examined earlier than anyone ever thought," DeJonge said. "Breast cancer is a serious problem,
so it brings it to their awareness and makes it more comfortable for them to
talk about."

East Kentwood coach Stacy Sheler,
whose team posted school-record scores in rounds 1 and 2, wanted this to be a
learning experience.

"I wanted to do
something for the community and have the girls give back to the
community," Sheler said.

The Falcons tallied a
three-round score of 801.266 to defeat runner-up Hartland (792.004) and
third-place West
Ottawa
(781.953).

The Maroons struggled in
the first two rounds, but closed with a solid Round 3.

"We had a tough week
last Wednesday at conference so it was nice to redeem ourselves today in
Round 3," Holland Christian co-coach Beth Cunningham said.