Like mother, like daughter
All-American cheerleader follows mother’s example
Being an All-American cheerleader runs in Tracy Henson’s family.
The Aubrey High School junior varsity cheerleader was named an All-American by the Universal Cheerleaders Association – an accomplishment achieved by her mother, Ashly Hickman Henson.
“I was super excited and especially that I got named with one of my good cheer friends, and the fact that my mom was an All-American cheerleader kind of made it even cooler,” Tracy said.
Ashly was overjoyed to be able to share the experience with her daughter.
“It, of course, brought tears to my eyes,” Ashly said. “I didn’t even know she tried out, honestly. She called me and talked to me about a co
uple other things and then sent me a text message and said, ‘Oh, by the way, I tried out for All-American and I made it.’ I immediately got into the car and drove all the way [to Grapevine] … and threw my arms around her.”
The mother-and-daughter pair shares more than just the achievement of being named All- American cheerleaders. They also share the school. Ashly was a varsity cheerleader for Aubrey all four years of her high school career. She was also the first Aubrey High School cheerleader to be an All-American.
“To have my daughter following in my footsteps at the same school – you know, she’s my legacy, and that’s awesome,” Ashly said
The cheer friend who was also named an All-American Cheerleader is Alicia Brand, an AHS JV cheerleader.
Because they made the cut, the two students participated in the Houston Thanksgiving parade.
“I just kind of, like, focused and was smiling and was just having fun with it, and having Alicia there with me, you know, to make my way through it and having someone to talk to, it was very fun,” Tracy said. “It was very cold, though.”
Tracy began cheerleading while she was in sixth grade. Now a freshman in high school, she said she hopes to continue with cheerleading through her high school career and has the goal of making varsity next year.
“She’s gonna try,” Ashly said.
