Smoky Hill High School senior
Christine Rollins has been "at it" for a long time. Her involvement in sports and physical activities began early in life when, at the age of three, she started taking dance classes at Miller's Dance Studio in Aurora. At the age of four, she added gymnastics lessons to the mix. When Christine turned five and was getting ready to start kindergarten at Cimarron Elementary School, she announced that she also wanted to play soccer. It was at that point her parents sat her down and informed her that she would have to make a choice because she wouldn't be able to "do it all"--advice that she continued to prove wrong time and again as her life has progressed. Christine decided to drop gymnastics which, in hindsight, was a wise choice as she ended up being 5'8" tall, a liability when it comes to being a competitive gymnast. As a first grader, she played "up" on a second grade basketball team. Along the way she tried spring board diving and softball both of which did not end up being a passion for her. In middle school, she competed for Horizon Community Middle School's track team.
Christine continued playing basketball through the 8th grade. She took dance lessons through the end of her freshman year and played soccer until the end of her sophomore year. Because of the seasonality of most of her sports, she was able to effectively manage her school work, sports and activities as well as a part-time job.
After playing field hockey for Smoky Hill during the fall of her freshman year, Christine considered her options. She surprised everyone when she announced that she wanted to try out for Smoky Hill's varsity cheerleading squad, one of the premier teams in the state. Before tryouts, she enrolled in classes at a local gymnastics institute to develop her tumbling skills. She ended up making the varsity competition squad and informed her parents that cheerleading has been the most exhilarating sport that she has ever participated in. As a result of the countless hours of practice the squad has put in as a year-round sport, the Smoky Hill cheerleaders have continued to be a top finalist at the state competition for several years and they took ninth place at the Nationals competition at Orlando, Florida last year. A personal achievement was to be selected as a Universal Cheer Association All Star by the UCA staff members at the cheerleading camp that the squad attended at the University of Texas this past summer.
In addition to her busy high school schedule filled with sports and activities, Christine is a top academic performer at her school where she has been on the principal's honor roll every semester of her high school career. Her current GPA is 3.8 (4.5 weighted) and she is in the top 8 per cent of her class of approximately 600 students. She was awarded an academic and activity letter for her sophomore and junior years.
Other activities have included her being an active member of the symphonic and women's jazz choirs, the National Honor Society, French Honor Society, DECA, Link Crew, Youth Advisory Board, Ethnic Advisory /Student Response Committee and Young Life. She is currently president of the school's large chapter of the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), vice president/secretary of the choir, and a student leader on the Council of Clubs. She is a coordinator of community service activities for her cheerleading squad and FBLA club which emphasizes the importance that community service has played in her life since middle school. Community service involvement has had her regularly volunteering for such local organizations as the Ronald McDonald House, WarrenVillage, Race for the Cure, the First American State Bank Fitness Festival and the FBLA sponsored community clean-up day. During her junior year she worked as a volunteer each week as a tutor and teacher's helper for fifth grade students at her former elementary school.
Even though as a five year old she was told by her mom and dad that she "couldn't do it all" she has continued to do most of all with great success and flair having lots of fun along the way. This is why we feel she so deserves to be recognized as your Athlete of the Week.