The Lakewood Cheerleading Youth Camp, open to students ages 4 to 11, offers kids the chance to learn cheers and dances with high school cheerleaders to perform at Friday night varsity games. The event is fun for young children and serves as a fundraiser for the high school team, drawing parents and grandparents to the stands on game day. The most recent camp was held at Lakewood High School Stadium at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 5, 2025, with campers cheering on the football team during the first quarter as it defeated Thomas W. Harvey.
Coaches Maura Flynn and Stephanie Ferrone provide each camper with an essential item—a thank you and a memory of their hard work and dedication to Lakewood’s cheer program. To commemorate this year’s camp, the head coaches decided to give them red and blue bows to incorporate the “USA” theme of the game they cheered at.
Kaitlin Miele, mother of one of the campers, enrolled her daughter Harper in youth camp after Harper expressed interest upon seeing the school spirit at the homecoming parade. The camp has boosted Harper’s confidence and social skills and has been especially beneficial for her, as she has type 1 diabetes; the coaches and the cheer squad have been especially supportive. If Miele could describe the camp in three words, she would say it’s “fun, enriching, and confidence-building!”
Other campers agree, including six-year-old Penelope David, who described the camp as “the best thing ever.” Youth camp is highly important to the Lakewood community because it promotes collaboration, inclusion, and brings the cheer community together.
Coach Maura Flynn, a former Lakewood cheerleader, began coaching in 2021 to revive the program, which was impacted by COVID-19. The youth cheer camp aims to inspire young children, starting in kindergarten, to join cheerleading. “It will be really fun to fill the sidelines with different cheerleaders of different levels,” Coach Flynn said, noting that the sideline entertainment “show[s] the strength of the program.”
The camp includes youth campers, recreational cheer, middle school cheer, junior varsity cheer, and varsity cheer. Lakewood cheer brings diverse strengths to the table. The team has two sideline captains, two competition captains, and one special-events captain, Claire Noelker.
Noelker’s journey into cheerleading began at age 6, building on her background in dance. At youth camps, Noelker leads by example by focusing on making campers comfortable and encouraging participation. For Noelker, seeing campers enjoy themselves and making progress is very rewarding.
She stresses patience, positivity, and inclusivity as key aspects to building confidence in the campers. “I have never been able to participate with a team of kids with disabilities before,” Noelker said, adding that she had never had the opportunity before coming to Lakewood and praising the community’s outreach as being unmatched.
By combining the efforts of coaches, student leaders, and community families, the camp provides an avenue for children to learn skills, participate in school events, and engage with a tradition that connects multiple levels of the Lakewood cheer program. This tradition inspires future cheerleaders, strengthens bonds across generations, and showcases the resilience and inclusivity of Lakewood cheer.
