Remember when I talked about the competition cheerleading team that Taylor was a part of? I had foolishly, but gladly taken on the role of Treasurer. I was getting a lot of resistance from the coaches on what money was being spent, so I requested a meeting in October. At the time, I felt like I did not have a lot of support from the other officers or parents. I think most everyone agreed with me, but no one wanted to rock the boat. So I went to the meeting and waited and waited for almost an hour before 2 of the officers showed up and 1 of the 4 coaches showed up. I had Isabella and Nicholas with me who were absolutely starving and freezing. We have a very casual meeting outside the school on the sidewalk and I was told how it was going to be from here on in. I did get a few words in, but I felt ganged up on and unsupported. The only positive from the meeting was that I made it clear that I was to be informed of all money transactions. I didn't necessarily have to handle the money, but I wanted to know every dollar that was taken in and sent out. I told them that I would provide every parent at the monthly meetings a spreadsheet of all the fundraisers and expenses that we had incurred each month. I had a good handle on the money that was being brought in, because I made sure that either I or another parent was personally counting the money. But because I wasn't actually handling the money once it was put in the account, it was like pulling teeth to get an accurate account of our expenses. I would ask and get the brush off over and over again. Finally, one of the dads started asking questions and I told him what I was up against. Within 2 weeks, the superintendant was involved, and the head coach was immediately fired. The superintendant told the parent group that he was let go for not following precedural rules, after being given 3 warnings. It was pretty crazy, and the whole team was in an upheaval. Some of the parents thought it was unjust, some of the kids blamed the parents, and 2 of the 3 remaining coaches quit. It was madness. There is now one coach, who, I think, really has the girls' best interests at heart, but is caught in a tough bind. She is the daughter of the coach that was fired. She's extremely talented and the girls trust her and respect her. I am very happy that she decided to stay and fininsh the rest of the year. All the money from here on in will be controlled by the parents, which is how it should have been from the beginning. This also means that I have a lot of work to do and will be making lots of trips to the Board of Education to drop off money and fill out forms. I am happy that things have changed but sad that it had to be handled the way that it was. Unfortunately, the girls had to learn a big lesson from someone that they really liked and respected. There are consequenses to every decision that you make, and when you don't follow rules, there are punishments.
1 week later, the girls were scheduled to perform in Pittburgh at a pretty big competition. They put their feelings aside, and pulled it together and won the championship. I did not attend this one because it was an overnight stay, and I couldn't get away for the night, so Taylor's dad took her instead. These kids are really talented and work really, really hard. I am so proud of their accompishments.
My name is Sandy. I married my husband Nick in July of 2002, and we have four children. Taylor was born in 1994; Shea was born in 1996; Isabella was born in 2006 and Nicholas arrived in February of 2008. Taylor and Shea are my children from my first marriage.
After my divorce, I went back to school full time to get a 2 year degree, and waited tables at night. Nick was the manager of the restaurant at the time. We developed a friendship, which turned into much more after both of us had moved on to other careers. I had graduated from school and accepted a job in the legal department at a company that handled corporate collections. I told Nick that I would not consider marriage until I was secure in my job, and had purchased my own house. Shortly after those events, Nick and I were married. Since the birth of Isabella, I have become a stay at home mom, and absolutely love it.
We have a blended family, and 2 sets of kids in completely different stages of their lives; but somehow, the six of us have become a solid, happy family.
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