Melissa H. is a junior at Gibault Catholic High School and is co-captain of the Gibault dance team. When she found out that she was chosen as co-captain of the newly formed dance team, she was excited. She knew that she would be eligible to participate in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade just as her friend Emma from Edwardsville High School had done last year. Captains or co-captains of their dance
teams or cheerleading squads receive an invitation to participate in the parade on the last day of their UDA or UCA camp. Melissa attended a 4-day camp at St. Louis University in July. Melissa will be performing with a group called Varsity Spirit which is comprised of 600 girls from across the
country. They will be performing a dance routine in Herald Square to a Beach Boys medley. NBC is the only network that televises the performances in Herald Square. Following the routine, the girls march the two and a half mile parade route. Melissa has been learning the dance at home from a website
since late October. When she arrives in New York on Saturday, she will have an additional 13 hours of rehearsal throughout the week including a four-hour rehearsal the first evening. Besides rehearsal, fun activities are planned for the girls including a Broadway show, the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular featuring the famous Rockettes, a Statue of Liberty Cruise and visiting the Empire State Building. Melissa and her mom plan to visit Carlo's Bake Shop in Hobeken, NJ where the TLC show Cake Boss is filmed. They also plan to visit the Today show. Melissa has been dancing for ten years. Besides her dance team, Melissa takes four dance classes during the week in St. Louis. Her most memorable dance experience was performing in a tap number at the Muny in 2008. Favorite dance workshops include one at Radio City Music Hall taught by a member of the Rockettes in 2009 and one by Broadway performer Nikki Snelson this past summer.