5 PEOPLE OF INTEREST
The
Cheerleader
BY GREG GARDNER
PHOTOS BY GREG GARDNER
Most high school girls would hae their hands full
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with a . grade point aerage, cheerleading and
class secretary duties, but not Chelsea Dougherty.
The 15-year-old artin County !igh sophomore spends
the rest of her wa#ing hours oer a sewing machine, ma#ing
belts and purses for her company, Sew Preppy, which also
donates a portion of the proceeds to charity.
“'ne of my mom’s friends has stage four breast cancer,)
said Chelsea. “*e hae gien about +5 so far to breast
cancer af,liated charities.)
Lynn .idgeway, her mother, spends much of her time
chauffeuring Chelsea around to her arious commitments.
“I wanted to teach her about giing bac# to the community,)
.idgeway said. “Chelsea is an oerachieer. She thin#s she
can do it all. She doesn0t li#e to delegate.)
.enie 1rillo, competition cheerleading coach at artin
County, li#es Chelsea2s positie attitude. “She wor#s ery,
ery hard for me,) 1rillo said. “3nything you as# her to do,
she0ll do it for you. She’s a team player and always has been.
She’s e4traordinary, totally self-motiating. !er cup is
always half-full.)
1rillo said that Chelsea was the principal’s Student of the
5ear her eighth grade year at !idden 'a#s iddle School, a
fact the unpretentious teenager failed to mention during
an interiew.
!ere’s a typical onday for the teen6 7p at 865 a.m. and
in school by 9615. Cheerleading practice at : p.m. followed
by class secretary duties. om deliers dinner before the
eening student goernment meeting. !ome by ;615 and
homewor# begins.
*ith all of her actiities, Chelsea still ,nds time for ,e to
ten hours a wee# wor#ing on Sew Preppy belts, purses, #ey
chains and headbands. 3fter 1; months, she e4pects the
company to begin turning a pro,t. “I’m uber-preppy, but a
lot of our belts are more classic than <amboyantly preppy,)
she said. “I want to #eep putting money bac# into the
business so it will get bigger and bigger.)
*ith all of her time-consuming interests, Chelsea has her
eyes focused into the future on an education at Du#e
7niersity. “I’e wanted to go there since the ,fth grade,)
she said.
1ien her trac# record of achieing her goals, her future
as a =lue Deil seems pretty li#ely.