Dad joins in to support daughter’s cheerleading squad at school and 'doesn't miss a beat'

One of the most important forms of love a parent can have for their kids is just showing up on occasions important to them. Be it being there to pick them up from school or watch their ballet recital or play. Just showing up can let a child know that they are valued and loved. A Texan dad, who is usually away on deployment, took it a step further with his surprising performance in the stands during his daughter’s Temple High School cheer team gig. 

A TikTok post shared by Cecelia Simmons (@ceces406) shows her husband Andre Simmons dancing along with his daughter and her high school cheerleading team during their performance. The video starts with the father jumping and clapping in the stands, following the routine of his daughter’s cheerleading team in full support with his enthusiasm. The mother captioned the video saying, “Everyone always asks Andrè Simmons about the boys continuing his football legacy little do they know he's waited his whole life to be a cheer dad.” 

The father to five spoke to Good Morning America and shared that since he’s an infantryman, he stays away from his family a lot. So, when he’s there, he tries to “create a lifelong memory” and so he did! The father matched the entire cheerleading routine step to step, not missing a single beat when the pom poms went up. He further shared that it took him a couple of days to learn the routine but he was determined to support his daughter. He also wanted to “make up that time lost” by indulging in activities his daughter enjoys such as “joining her in the cheer during the football game.”

He also expressed that his daughter Jazlyn and her cheerleading team loved the zeal with which he joined in and as a father, it was an extremely meaningful moment for him. He said, “I love to try to be super dad when I'm here and create those lifelong memories and it's something for us to look back on and enjoy together.” He also said that this isn’t the last he’s going to be cheering along with his daughter and that ultimately “it’s all for her.”

The internet couldn’t keep calm watching the dad step up in cheer for his daughter and the comments section roared with excitement. @charisjae commented, “Baby, he didn't miss one cheer dad practice and it shows! He is the coordinator, the girls are watching him for the next cue.” The viral video has been liked by 54.8K viewers and comments of appreciation are still pouring in. @teresaferguson25 said, “Cheer Dad of the year!" and @dkellam1 said, “Real dad showing how he supports them…awesome dad!” This video is a heartwarming and fun reminder of how being a part of children’s lives requires efforts on little things. Just showing up is also enough but if you’re in the mood to take it up a notch and make it a lifelong memorable moment to look back at and laugh at, then showing up with some moves is even better.